Post by Darthtabby on Jul 14, 2013 13:30:10 GMT -7
In FMP, Arm Slaves are often transported by transport planers or helicopters. However there isn't much detail provided about how this is done. Many transport aircraft have interiors big enough that an Arm Slaves could fit in them, but how would those Arm Slaves get in and out of the aircraft?
Take the mention of linking up with a C-130 in Burning One Many Force for instance. A C-130 has enough weight lifting capacity to transport a M9, but it's cabin is only nine feet high (and 10 feet wide at its narrowest point). An AS would need to be lying on its front or back to have even a hope of getting aboard. Perhaps it could be put on some kind of platform and rolled on and off, but even that's a bit questionable, especially if the AS has any equipment mounted on its back.
The cargo bays on the larger C-17s are about 12.3-14.8 feet in height (they're higher aft of the wing then they are underneath it). So they might be able to manage an AS on is back on some kind of platform. So those might work for the paradrop role, although loading the Arm Slave onto the plane might be a difficult process without specialized ground equipment. Its also worth noting that at 68.2 feet in length a C-17's cargo bay isn't long enough to accommodate more than two Arm Slaves at a time unless they extend onto the rear ramp (a process which might present its own issues) or they're thin enough to fit side by side (C-17s are considered to have a loadable width of 18 feet).
Interior carry by helicopters also presents significant challenges. The Mi-26 Halos used by Amalgam have interior dimensions not all that different from those of a C-130. They've capable of lifting something as heavy as an AS, but even if it fit in the cabin, how would you get it aboard?
Mithril's MH-67 Pave Mares have an advantage in this regard in that they could have been purpose built to accommodate Arm Slaves. Then again, they're used aboard ships, and there's a limit to how big a helicopter a ship can accommodate below deck. Plus there's still the issue of how they load and unload Arm Slaves in the field. Especially if the helicopter is flying while the recovery takes place -see the incident in Approaching Nick of Time where the ARX-8 grabs a flying Pave Mare's "emergency hook" then somehow gets aboard.
Sling loading is probably the simplest way for a transport helicopter to pick up an AS -it might even allow for the AS to be inserted and extracted in areas too confined for the transport helo itself to actually land in. Of course having a heavy payload slung beneath a helicopter is going to limit its agility to the pendulum effect. A flying crane configuration similar to that of the JSDF transports that showed up in Season One might have an advantage here, as such a helicopter could winch the payload up to its spine (any maybe lock it in place once it's there?). A flying crane design could also be fitted with podded mission modules to carry out other roles. I actually kind of think the Pave Mare ought to have been a flying crane design -although such a design might make it difficult for the pilot to get out of the Arm Slave's cockpit during long flights.
So what's your take on all this? Are there ways that transporting Arm Slaves by air could be made practical that I haven't thought of?
Take the mention of linking up with a C-130 in Burning One Many Force for instance. A C-130 has enough weight lifting capacity to transport a M9, but it's cabin is only nine feet high (and 10 feet wide at its narrowest point). An AS would need to be lying on its front or back to have even a hope of getting aboard. Perhaps it could be put on some kind of platform and rolled on and off, but even that's a bit questionable, especially if the AS has any equipment mounted on its back.
The cargo bays on the larger C-17s are about 12.3-14.8 feet in height (they're higher aft of the wing then they are underneath it). So they might be able to manage an AS on is back on some kind of platform. So those might work for the paradrop role, although loading the Arm Slave onto the plane might be a difficult process without specialized ground equipment. Its also worth noting that at 68.2 feet in length a C-17's cargo bay isn't long enough to accommodate more than two Arm Slaves at a time unless they extend onto the rear ramp (a process which might present its own issues) or they're thin enough to fit side by side (C-17s are considered to have a loadable width of 18 feet).
Interior carry by helicopters also presents significant challenges. The Mi-26 Halos used by Amalgam have interior dimensions not all that different from those of a C-130. They've capable of lifting something as heavy as an AS, but even if it fit in the cabin, how would you get it aboard?
Mithril's MH-67 Pave Mares have an advantage in this regard in that they could have been purpose built to accommodate Arm Slaves. Then again, they're used aboard ships, and there's a limit to how big a helicopter a ship can accommodate below deck. Plus there's still the issue of how they load and unload Arm Slaves in the field. Especially if the helicopter is flying while the recovery takes place -see the incident in Approaching Nick of Time where the ARX-8 grabs a flying Pave Mare's "emergency hook" then somehow gets aboard.
Sling loading is probably the simplest way for a transport helicopter to pick up an AS -it might even allow for the AS to be inserted and extracted in areas too confined for the transport helo itself to actually land in. Of course having a heavy payload slung beneath a helicopter is going to limit its agility to the pendulum effect. A flying crane configuration similar to that of the JSDF transports that showed up in Season One might have an advantage here, as such a helicopter could winch the payload up to its spine (any maybe lock it in place once it's there?). A flying crane design could also be fitted with podded mission modules to carry out other roles. I actually kind of think the Pave Mare ought to have been a flying crane design -although such a design might make it difficult for the pilot to get out of the Arm Slave's cockpit during long flights.
So what's your take on all this? Are there ways that transporting Arm Slaves by air could be made practical that I haven't thought of?