2.9 Shuttlecraft and Shuttlebays
An overview of the Enterprise's auxiliary spacecraft — personnel and cargo shuttles and shuttlepods — together with the locations of its shuttle bays and the established names of specific shuttlecraft.
Shuttlecraft and Shuttlebays
In brief: The Enterprise carries a number of small auxiliary spacecraft for short-range use when a transporter is inappropriate. Most of our shuttlecraft are named after famous explorers and scientists.
Personnel shuttle: These are used for transport of about six people on trips within a solar system. Maximum speed of these craft is warp factor one. An “executive shuttle” can be used for VIP transport.
Cargo shuttle: A variation on the personnel shuttle, but with the passenger accommodations removed.
Shuttlepod: A small two-person craft, about the size of a Hyundai. The shuttlepod is used for very short-range transport and for extravehicular activity (like inspecting the ship's exterior). Shuttlepods are also the basis of a number of (yet to be designed) auxiliary service craft like a starbase's antimatter tankers for which a shuttlepod serves as a driver's cab. Shuttlepods are incapable of warp speed.
Shuttle bays: The Enterprise has one large MAIN SHUTTLE BAY located at the top rear of the saucer section. This facility is located on Deck 4 and is adjacent to the ship's cargo bays. Two smaller secondary shuttle bays (SHUTTLE BAYS 2 and 3) are located on Deck 13 at the rear of the ship's “neck”. Because of stage space limitations, most of our episodes use Shuttlebays 2 or 3 rather than the much larger Main Shuttlebay.
Shuttlecraft names: We have established the following names for Enterprise shuttles. We assume there are quite a number of other shuttles carried aboard the Enterprise.
- Shuttlecraft #1: Sakharov
- Shuttlepod #5: El-Baz
- Shuttlepod #7: Onizuka
- Shuttlepod #12: Pike (destroyed)