Academy Trainer

[Dan Gurden]

The episode 'The First Duty' clearly refers to a transporter system udes for bailing out (when talking about the trainer accident), I dont think it would be too far fetched to consider an emergency transporter addition to this template for this purpose...

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Dan.

"A couple of thoughts from a random mind!"

[Sarge]

Dan's right. I think they called it the "emergency beam-out transporter". I used the same thing in my Snipehawk design.

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LUGTrek isn't really dead. Not as long as we remember it.

[tonyg]

An emergency tranporter? Thanks for the info-it has been some time since I saw that TNG episode.

I am sort of hoping to go over the design later in the week and trim off about 40-50SUs. The design in the Academy book is similar in performance to a shuttle and so I used the SPACEDOCK shuttle write-up as a basic pattern.

I also am planning of working up a few variants including a high performance model designed for "astrobatics". This might help to explain the fact that the tranier in the sourcebooks looks different than the one that has appeared on screen.

[Eric R.]

Suggestions from another smallcraft designer

Drop the medical and science systems

Get rid of the tractor beam (though it could be used in some versions)

Get rid of Long Range Sensors (ships in a system can rely on other resources for this.)

Drop the grid type downward (it's a trainer not a high performence fighter.)

No bridge needed (the ODN network performs this role when coupled with the joystick)

And unless your defending yourself from that mad gang of notorious pirate smurfs get rid of the security systems.

Just a few hints

[This message has been edited by Eric R. (edited 05-04-2001).]

[Dan Gurden]

I agree with all of the above with two exceptions...

Drop the medical and science systems

- Not quite disagree a zero point science system is simply the minimum neccesary, sure the trainer would be unable to survey planets, conduct experiments, but it would be able to analyse data... Likewise even a trainer is likely to have a medkit aboard (the definition of a 1-point medical system), so in this I disagree

So its not quite the absence of science and medical, simply a lack of need for huge systems.

Get rid of Long Range Sensors (ships in a system can rely on other resources for this.)

- This I definatly disagree with, sure the ship is likely to be flying in known space, sure its going to have access to the data from the nearby spacestation, but when the instructors want to train the cadets in 'hands on' sensor training, they wouldn't limit their range to a single light year...

That said there may well be different varients, a very basic trainer and a slightly more advanced version (possibly a 2 seater) for more in-depth training flights...



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Dan.

"A couple of thoughts from a random mind!"

[Lancer]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by tonyg:
I've been working on a wripe-up for the Batam-class trainer from the Stafleet Academy boxed set and have run into a problem. Spefically, a power problem.

As the trainer lacks a warp drive, it it left with only it's Class 3A impulse engine(s) and some auiliary reacotrs for power. If I give the ship two impulse engines, it only generates around 56 power-which isn't enough when you compare the ship to shuttlecraft.

Anyone got any ideas on how to boost the ship up so that it can power its shields, and basic systems?</font>

Even if I like your design with the warp core (and I do!) I am not sure if a warp core is really necessary. How about Class 5 or 5A Impulse Engines? Two of those would give you 80 or 88 power per round. I haven't checked the power consumption in detail, but it should work.

My resoning is that Starfleet would rather hand a cadet an underpowered craft for training, than one with a warp core. If there are problems with the warp core during flight, who would take care of it? After all the cadet who pilots this baby has his hands full with flying and warp core problems can get quite serious.
Even if the cadet beams to safety Starfleet could loose the training craft, which I'm sure they wouldn't like.

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"To seek, to strive, to find and not to yield" - Alfred Tennyson

[calguard66]

All trainers should be 2 seaters, especially "basic" training craft. Starfleet should have an impulse trainer, and a warp trainer.

Both craft should have a reasonable set of whatever equipment a Cadet pilot would be trained on... sensors, communications, etc.

This is because flight training usually is done in "blocks"... for the sensor block you could use an impluse trainer, even if the student has "graduated" to warp powered craft, because the warp system isn't required for that part of the sensor training.

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"I'd rather die standing than live on my knees..."
Shania Twain

[Sarge]

But what about training cadets in how to read the sensors at warp speed?

Maybe some of the advanced trainers could be equipped with a "mini-Nebula" swappable pod system. One pod could hold long-range sensors, another could hold Type I phasers and a micro-torp launcher, another could hold a heavy cargo transporter, another could have a souped-up shield system and inertial dampers and structural integrity fields to practice high-speed maneuvering in asteroid belts or planetary rings. Any more ideas?

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LUGTrek isn't really dead. Not as long as we remember it.

[calguard66]

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Originally posted by Sarge:
But what about training cadets in how to read the sensors at warp speed?

</font>

That would be another, more advanced block of training. If the POI didn't require warp speed, then you could use the impulse trainers, while somebody else used the warp trainers for something that required warp speed.



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"I'd rather die standing than live on my knees..."
Shania Twain

[tonyg]

Folks,
Thanks for the input. There are a lot of good ideas.

But, I would like to explain that I was trying to convert the trainer from the STARFELEET ACADEMY sourcebook, not design a whole new ship. Some of the systems that found thier way into the tranier came from the LUG write-up of the tranier in STARFLEET ACADEMY. Hence, the ratingings for crew, Long-Range Senseors and tractor beams (besides the tractor beam could be very useful if the impulse drives go off-line).

Power was also determined based upon the fact that the LUG write-up has the ship with slightly less power than a shuttlecraft.

As for a warp core, that was really the only way to reach this level of power. While I could have put in a more powerful impulse system, the LUG stats for a trainer resulted in the choice of the 3A. This left the ship wihtout sufficient enegy to power up its shields. According to the write-up in SFA, the ships lack warp engines only to keep the trainers from getting to far out of system, not becuase of any difficulties with handling a warp core. I figure warp core, like transporters and holodecks, are really much safer to opertate when not the focus of this weeks epsiode.

Likewise medical systems were placed in a Level 1, since even shuttlecraft have this. I suspect this is to represent the emergency medical kits that get pulled out of the walls whenever we see a shuttle crash, and not anything approaching a staffed sickedbay.

This also holds for Level 1 security systems, since even shuttlepods have them.


A bridge, appears to be a requirement of any starship design (even the Starfleet shuttles and fighters have them).

In fact, the idea stressed in STARFLEET ACADEMY Was that the trainers are "workhorses" that get used to teach the cadets how to handle a starship, and trainers are often used to "mimic" handling larger vessels. It seemed that in order to do so effectively, it would be best to incoroporate those systems into the craft.

Personally, there are a few things that I don't think the trainer needs, but that starfleet chooce to incoroprate into the design for training purposes. For example, I don't think deflector shields are really necessary for the trainer, since I don't see cadets being out in situations where shields will be needed. But the original design had shuttlecraft strength shields, so my write does too.

[tonyg]

I do think that the idea of modification packages and special mission upgrades made a lot of sense for the trainer.

I was thinking of a few types, but they will have to wait until I get the cost down to around 300, so there is room for other stuff.