Design Bureau · Chapter 2 · Pathfinder-class Survey Cruiser
2.6 Autonomous Probes & Embarked Craft
A large probe and drone complement multiplies the ship's survey footprint; an aeroshuttle and Flyer-class craft extend its reach.
The Pathfinder multiplies its own reach with a large complement of autonomous probes and sensor drones. Deployed as a coordinated swarm, they let a single ship survey a whole system at once, relay data across light-years, or maintain a watch after the ship has moved on — the astrometrics core flies them as a distributed sensor array.
Embarked craft
A docked aeroshuttle serves as a warp-capable atmospheric craft for surface and diplomatic work, supported by Flyer-class and standard shuttles. The aeroshuttle bay also recovers and refits probes between deployments.