Early on in the 5th Frontier War, it was clear that the Zhodani had something in the armoury that was allowing their forces to pacify invaded planets more quickly than had been theorised in pre-war estimates.
One channel of thought was that a new class of weapon was the cause, but of the few troops that escaped, most were adamant: A new class of assault boat was the cause.
The Imperial Interstellar Scout Service, in its war role as military scouts, had managed to take a number of images of these craft shortly thereafter, and it was determined that it was an unknown form of Strike Gig, with unusually wide armament and cargo/lift capabilities.
Initially identified by the Imperial Navy Reporting Name "Merihem" (from the old Earth mythological Merihem, the 'Purveyor of Pestilence'), Imperial Troops came to know it by another name altogether: The "Skyvan", after a popular Naasirka (Spinward Marches) model of low-cost light grav transport with a vaguely similar side-on aspect.
The Zhodani 'Skyvan' (their name for it: Zhotpinzh, which translates, oddly enough, and in an interstellar coincidence, to 'Skytruck') however, boasts a trainable triple chin turret and several in-atmosphere turreted fusion canons, and the ability to carry up to thirty battle-armoured troops and light cargo, all at the same time, without major refitting between roles.
The design philosophy behind it was a requirement for an armoured grav-engine equipped small assault craft, capable of swift interface from orbit to ground in most non-insidious atmospheres, and able to work with friendly ground forces to dominate and/or suppress the armoured battlefield in small flights (four or five Zhotpinzh craft in a flight), carrying anything from a fire team to a full platoon of armoured troops at the same time, with their standard equipment as cargo.
It also had to be capable of hauling limited but ungainly cargo via underslung loading (cargo hooks are located on the underside of the craft), such as battlefield artillery, ground-launched missile launchers, fuel bottle cartridge packs, and other large supply items.
Engines, power plant, and most electronics, would be located either on the top of the craft, which is less vulnerable to ground fire from the front, or in the nose, adding to the flight crews protection.
The main weapon of the craft, a single ships laser canon, is mounted in a chin turret, and directed by a helmet-mounted system in the front of the craft, by a gunner, who also has overall control of the other craft weapon systems, four individually-mounted infantry-level fusion guns in their vehicle-mounted role.
The Triple turret is the primary weapon system, intended for use against small craft, armoured vehicles such as grav tanks, APCs, SP Artillery/Ortillery, and similar; the fusion canons, all rapid fire versions, are for both infantry suppression and anti-air artillery/missile attacks. The turret also mounts a sandcaster, mostly for defence against laser weaponry in micro-gravity environments, but also of use close up in the anti-personnel target role, and less so against ground-based laser weaponry.
Refuelling follows the now-standard Zhodani small craft method: An eight-litre bottle 'cartridge' of H
2, which is changes from within the craft, in the troop/cargo deck area (open a hatch, twist to unlock, drop old cartridge, insert new, twist to lock, close hatch).
Crew access is either by opening cockpit 'windows' (Gunner to port, Pilot to left), or via pressurised access from the airlock via admittedly tight crawl ways, with cockpit seat backs folding down to the rear to permit the crew to gain their seats.
Troops gain access either through the airlock, or via +3 Atmosphere over-pressure-rated sealable troop doors port, starboard, and aft. The cockpits are rated the same as the troop/cargo deck, at +3 Atmosphere over pressure; in the normal course of events, the craft is kept to +5% overpressue, in case a compromised pressure seal in an NBC environment.
When images of the craft appeared in Solomani-controlled space, military historians made the connection between the Merihem and an old-Earth combat aircraft known as the Hind-D, a turbine powered assault helicopter used first by a nation known as the "Soviet Union".
There are currently five version of the Merihem assault gig.
- Two man crew, 10 passengers or 5 Dton cargo, heavy armour, One turret, 1.5 Dton free for other armaments.
- Two man crew, 25 passengers, 12.5 Dton cargo, heavy armour, One turret with a fusion gun, 2.5 Dton free for other armaments.
- Two man crew, 25 passengers, 6 m3 cargo, one space turret and Five in-atmosphere gun turrets (Heavy Fusion, 2 Pulse Fusion, 2 Pulse Laser PD).
- Two man crew, 30 passengers, 9 m3 cargo, One space turret (PD capable), Four gun turrets (4 High RoF Pulse Fusion point defence capable).
- This is the export version sold by the Zhodani to their client states, which is a slower (subsonic) version of the Merihem-B, with increased cargo capacity; Two man crew, 60 passengers, 15 m3 cargo, heavy armour, One space turret (PD capable), Four gun turrets (4 High RoF Pulse Fusion point defence capable).
In border systems, up to J-6 from the Zhodani/Third Imperium border, Zhodani forces now (since shortly before the FFW) exclusively utilise the Merihem-D. Older models can still be found in Zhodani use closer to the Core of the Consulate, but it is expected that these will be phased out of the combat role by 1115, or re-roled as First Responder vehicles (they are ideally suited to be de-armed, and repurposed to the air ambulance role, for example).
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