Just something I did for fun, after a segment of another drawing looked like a certain Joss Wedon ship
it's not supposed to be identical, just a similar vessel.It would be just fine as an alternate for the 200 ton Trader, or a custom build.
I added some extra vector control vanes on the engines and gave it bigger engines that could house small fusion reactors in the nacelles as well as the turbines to force air around the cores to superheat the gasses while operating in atmospheric flight.
Unfortunately at 200 tons the cargo space left over after drives that give it the 4-gee acceleration and jump 2 range is a bit sparse....it would take a dedicated, and industrious crew to make money with this ship.
Since the Firefly universe seems not to have jump drives and no extra fuel consumption, It would be large enough to have a pretty spacious cargo hold without the fuel and jump drives.
Allied Spacecraft: Tigerfly Transport.
Specs
200 ton hull, streamlined.
Type B J-drive, Jump 2
Type D M-drive, Thrust 4
Type D Powerplant.
1 ton fuel processor
8 tons reactor fuel 2 weeks
40 tons Jump fuel, single jump 2
6 crew staterooms( smaller than standard,only house one passenger)
2 passenger Staterooms
1 Lounge( uses portion of crew staterooms tonnage)
1 Med Bay( purchased as Laboratory)
67 tons cargo
Overview
A basic vessel for use by traders, and contracted services. The Tigerfly has jump 2 range, and a higher than average acceleration than most traders its size. With a decent amount of armor the Tgerfly is well suited to use in frontier, unpatroled areas where attack is more likely.
History:
A sister class to the more numerous Firefly class. The vessel was introduced slightly after the firefly and had initial success based on the popularity of the firefly. However it’s smaller cargo capacity, and higher cost the Tigerfly was not as successful as the Firefly.
For decades the vessel has served in small numbers along frontier regions, or in the fleets of corporations who use it to support their operations. It is seldom seen in core areas where more profitable vessels often supplant the tigerfly.
However, in regions where the speed, and armor, of the tigerfly are useful many of the ships are still rather popular among prospective traders, and contracted logistics services. Due to the higher speed of the vessel it is sometimes used by smugglers, or criminal groups. This gives the vessel an unsavory reputation among security forces who will sometimes inspect the vessels more closely than typical.
Typical Role:
Commercial trading and support services along frontier regions. The tigerfly is used by small corporations or private users. The Tigerfly is also sometimes used by colonies and smaller worlds to supply transport for local businesses and industries.
Quirks, and Modifications
The Tigerfly has similar traits to its sister class. Including pylon mounted vector thrust drives, ad a hybrid plasma gravitic drive that leaves a distinctive glowing trail when acceleration or operating at maximum thrust.
The tigerfly has large drop ramps, fitted with smaller air lock hatches next the ramp, and sides of the cargo deck to allow crew to enter and exit without lowering the ramp. In addition, the ship has a large hatch in the center of the cargo deck with heavy lifting winches over the floor hatch.
The tigerfly does not mount shuttle bays or facilities to house shuttles due to the increased engine, and fuel required for its higher performance. This does not impact the flexibility of the craft greatly since it’s drives, and vector control system make it highly maneuverable in atmosphere and operating from unimproved landing areas.If needed ten ton Scarab mini-shuttles can be carried in the cargo area, since they are designed to fit in and out of the ships large drop ramp without difficulty.
The Tigerfly uses a portion of the space allocated to staterooms to create a lounge area for crew and passengers. Crew staterooms can house only a single person as a result, although additional passengers can bunk in the lounge on fold down cots. While this space can’t be used for paying passengers, but working passage, or extra crew can use the space as needed.
Technical
The Tigerfly can fit outsized cargo and load and unload it’s entire cargo rapidly due to the large ramp and floor hatches. This also allows the ship to quickly launch small craft without the need of the hangers. However to use this ramp in areas in vacuum or hazardous environments the hatches to the main areas of the ship must be sealed. The Ship does not feature airlocks at these access points but the hatches are pressure tight, and reinforced to withstand the loads caused by pressure differences.
The hatches are designed to lock in place when the bay is depressurized, and cannot be opened by any means other than cutting tools or explosives until both areas are properly pressurized. Additional airlocks can be installed at access points to allow the main area of the ship to be accessed while the cargo bay is depressurized, or exposed to hazardous environments.
Like the firefly the Tigerfly is laid out in such a way that provides ample spaces to hide small items, discrete cargoes, or persons in ways that are difficult to find without detailed schematics, and a knowledge of alterations made to the vessel since it was launched. Finding a concealed area, (no larger than one cubic meter) is a difficult task without proper scanning equipment, densometers, or other devices.
Up to one displacement ton of material can be concealed within the ship in such a way, although the areas are not suitable for any other use, or for holding objects larger than standard oil drum.
