Raptor Mark IIIa

The Raptor Mark IIIa was a multipurpose spacecraft used by the Colonial Fleet as its standard combat support vessel. One of the most heavily used craft in the Fleet, it was capable of performing a wide variety of missions, and unlike most small Colonial craft it carried a miniature FTL drive that gave it a limited jump capability. A standard Raptor crew numbered two, a pilot and an electronic countermeasure officer, though the cabin had room for a dedicated co-pilot.

Design#

The Raptor Mark IIIa weighed approximately fifty tons. It could carry at least ten adults in addition to its two-person crew, though an excess of occupants prevented it from reaching orbit when launching from a planet's surface. The crew operated in flight suits and helmets to ensure their protection should a hull breach depressurize the cabin.

Raptors could fly in both atmosphere and space. To maintain lift within an atmosphere, however, their engines had to run constantly, which consumed more fuel, and at low speeds the craft could suffer poor handling. The miniature FTL drive set the Raptor apart from most Colonial craft of its size, allowing it to undertake missions light years away from its mother ship.

Roles#

Within the Colonial Fleet, three craft became the standard models for their particular roles. Vipers served as space-superiority fighters, Shuttles as transport ships, and the Raptor as the combat support vessel.

During combat, Raptors typically accompanied a Viper squadron to provide targeting information and electronic countermeasures, such as interfering with the guidance systems of enemy missiles. Munitions pods could be attached to the body of the craft, allowing it to fire missiles during operations.

As a scout, the Raptor could operate independently, using short and medium-range scans to detect radio, heat, and other signatures from spacecraft, and scanning planetary surfaces for particular molecules such as water. It also served as a transport, both for moving crew from ship to ship or ship to surface and for carrying Marines. Such missions, known as Search-and-Rescue, were vital in disaster response, and the Raptor could depressurize its cockpit when the rescue of a stranded pilot required it.