The Enemy Within Question

[ToddPence]

With a planet that was an arctic wilderness, visibility and atmospheric conditions would make a shuttlecraft landing nearly impossible.

 

[Forbin]

'cause they don't have computer flight control 300 years from now?

 

[scotpens]

With a planet that was an arctic wilderness, visibility and atmospheric conditions would make a shuttlecraft landing nearly impossible.

'cause they don't have computer flight control 300 years from now?

Even in good weather with perfect visibility, how could anyone land that thing without instruments? The damn windows are too high for the pilot to see out of!

 

[Mytran]

The windows would just about work on the smaller exterior mockup (with was just under 22' long). The shuttle interior seems to represent a vehicle nearly 30' long however. Maybe it's time to get some...taller chairs?

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Even in good weather with perfect visibility, how could anyone land that thing without instruments? The damn windows are too high for the pilot to see out of!

Luckily that instrument panel displays loads of useful information.

 

[BeatleJWOL]

You'd think that they would just heat up a patch of ground with the ship's phasers and have the landing party scoot over onto it.

I can't decide if the idea of the Enterprise and the landing party playing Goldilocks with an irradiated planet surface is hilarious or terrifying.

 

[Robert Comsol]

1. The shuttles could have been in for upgrade.

2. The shuttles could have been loaned out for some emergency

3. At that stage Starships didn't have shuttles - only Starbases.

4. Some technobabble in the atmosphere stopped them from using the shuttle.

I'll go for explanation # 2. During a previous mission, diplomatic considerations or else demanded the loan or handover of Enterprise's four shuttlecraft that would have been replenished during the next starbase stop.

Also, one of the explanations why the crew complement was boosted from 203 to 430 had been that the Enterprise leaves scientists behind on planets of interest to conduct further studies.

I would like to imagine that they leave shuttlecraft behind (with bunk beds and the like) to serve as a shelter on planets with heavy weather, not to mention to provide such scientists with a means to abandon the planet or to move to remote sites of interest on such a planet.

In simpler language: By the time of "The Enemy Within" the Enterprise had used up its supply of shuttlecraft.

Bob

 

[Robert Comsol]

Even in good weather with perfect visibility, how could anyone land that thing without instruments? The damn windows are too high for the pilot to see out of!

Maybe they are not meant for the pilots but the passengers to have something to look at while in flight.

Which brings me back to my mobile shelter idea. If the scientists can't leave the shuttlecraft because of heavy rain at least they can enjoy a cup of coffee while admiring the scenery outside.

Bob

 

[Grant]

Yeah, it would have been terrible if they had beamed down some really heavy, thick blankets---AND THEY DUPLICATED!!!!

I mean what if they couldn't reintegrate them!

 

[Nerys Myk]

Yeah, it would have been terrible if they had beamed down some really heavy, thick blankets---AND THEY DUPLICATED!!!!

I mean what if they couldn't reintegrate them!

They were evil blankets. They made you itchy and colder.