Thembrian Transport

Over one hundred feet long, driven by powerful multiple engines, Thembrian cargo freighters are the mainstay of Thembria's military supply system. These bulky, blunt craft are stationed at every shipyard and airfield in the frozen country, providing the Thembrians with an effective, direct means of mass transport.

In the Thembrian tradition of aircraft construction, Thembrian transports are built out of huge metal plates formed into an armored shell. While the armor makes the plane extremely durable and damage-resistant, it also weighs enough to hamper maneuverability and speed, two important factors in aircraft design and crucial assets in cargo shipping. With all that weight, Thembrian transports have very poor responsiveness to the flight controls — carrying tons of cargo onboard, pilots are unable to do much more than navigate from point A to point B.

Thembrian transports are kept aloft by four powerful Thembrian propeller engines mounted in pairs on each wing. Unlike normal planes which have forward-facing props, the transport has its engines pointing aft in a "pusher" configuration. Although it seems a bit unusual for a transport that size to have rear-facing engines, the configuration actually increases the plane's total thrust, helping to compensate for its negligible maneuverability.

The transport comes standard equipped with three to four carriage-mounted, hydraulic-suspension, shock-absorbing landing gear — though they are of little help in Thembrian pilots’ suicidal touchdowns, except to somewhat ease the strain on the plane's fuselage. Thembrian transports also have two cylindrical pontoons bolted onto each wing. Presumably this enables the transport to make water landings, but few Thembrian airports require their planes to do so.

The plane’s systems are technologically crude, containing mostly raw machinery and very little electronic equipment except for the onboard radio. Numerous concealed hatches on the sides and top of the hull give ground crews direct access to the systems, making repairs simpler and less time-consuming. However, the hidden panels also provide access to microphone jacks and other ports, making it easy for saboteurs or practical jokers to patch into the plane's radio/intercom system.

The main hold of a Thembrian transport, furnished for use as a diplomatic vehicle.

Most Thembrian transports are completely unarmed. The need for onboard weapons is minimal since most of the transports' operations are performed within Thembrian airspace. For missions abroad, Thembrian pilots rely on the transport's heavy armor to protect them from attack. Ordinarily this would go against the Thembrian doctrine of total military preparedness and armament on all their mobile forces. However, the Thembrians feel that providing their transports with a few extra layers of steel armor is better than wasting the Glorious People's ammunition firing at Air Pirates (as if pirates deemed it worthwhile to hijack Thembrian craft anyway).

However, certain Thembrian squadrons have converted their transports into bomber planes. Outfitted with forward-facing engines, machine gun cannons, and bomb bays, Thembrian bombers are kept at larger defense stations and airfields to deal with more serious airborne threats. Of special mention is one Thembrian air vector patrol — the Lunch Meat Division — which drops payloads of surplus bologna on offending aircraft.

Thembrian transports have spacious holds that can store up to 15 tons of cargo. This perfectly suits the plane's primary role — heavy transport — as the Thembrian Air Force calls upon the transports to carry materials and surplus goods between stockpiles. In addition, the vast interior space lends itself well to modification for passenger or troop transport duties. Colonel Spigot himself uses a couple of private converted freighters as his personal transports, which carry him on many of his globe-trotting expeditions.

Left: Special delivery of lunch meat, courtesy of the Glorious People's Air Corps.

 

THEMBRIAN TRANSPORT
Craft: Thembrian Transport Type: Heavy cargo hauler Scale: Aircraft Length: 140 feet Skill: Aircraft piloting: Thembrian transport Crew: 2, skeleton: 1/+10 Crew Skill: Aircraft gunnery 4D+2, aircraft piloting 3D+2, navigation 2D+2 Passengers: 4-40 depending on function Cargo Capacity: 15 tons Cost: $85,000 (new), $56,000 (used) Top Speed: 180 mph Maneuverability: 1D Weapons: None Hull: 6D