Project Duck Boots
Classification: Centaur
Designation: CG-10 Troopship
Patent Registry: Colonial Technologies
Patron(s): Gestalt Colonial Fleet, Kashan Defense Fleet, New Galactic Coalition of Planets
Pilot/Passengers: 3/20
Length: 25 Meters
Armament
2 Rotary Mini-Missile Pods
20 Missile Hard-Points
2 Twin Laser Cannon Turrets
1 Heavy Ion Canon (Fixed)
2 Belly Pods
Ships Biography
The CG-10 Centaur is a heavily armed and armored combat ship designed to fill a vital role in the Colonial Defense Fleet. These are planned to be dynamic, diverse operating platforms that will serve in a number of varied capacities.
Classified as a troopship, the CG-10 performs proficiently as a troop transport or gunship alike.
The CG-10 was developed primarily for service in the Colonial Commando Corps. Pilot, co-pilot and gunner positions are filled by Commandos assigned to a particular craft. The Commandos have come to trust and rely upon the Centaur.
The CG-10 is fitted with a series of fold down racks which can be easily converted for seated or prone personnel. A lattice of Ultrachrome protects the passenger compartment which is located amidships with access doors which slide open on either side of the vessel. Redundant security protocols have been incorporated into the design of the gunship, these afford the passengers and crew multiple levels of additional security.
The CG-10 should be classified as ultra-heavy. It has a substantial body mass and considerable offensive manifest. To this end the Centaur is not a nimble ship and in fact suffers from a notably sluggish response time. Powerful drive engines, sublight and FTL, make the CG-10 incredibly fast in a straight line but it suffers from underpowered maneuvering thrusters/repulsors. It is a very stable starship both in vacuum and atmosphere. To accommodate missions that take the Commandos to remote locations each CG-10 is has a hyperdrive capable of making x1 past light speed without difficulty.
As the Centaur cannot avoid as much enemy fire as its smaller starfighter counterparts it carries powerful primary and secondary reactive shield generators. Particle and ray shields are generated by two sizable units located in the aft section of the transport. The CG-10 is able to soak up enemy fire with near impunity as compared to other similar craft. Additionally, the hull of the Centaur is bristling with ablative armor plating. Elements of Ferrocarbon and Ultrachrome, both purchased at some expense from KDI, have been used in the tempering of the vessels superstructure. Even with its shields reduced to nothing the CG-10 can expect to endure sustained enemy fire for some time. Protected in the passenger compartment, those aboard the CG-10 can count on further protection as described above.
In combat operations the Centaur can also function proficiently as a weapons and command platform. It carries a mixed manifest sufficient to confidently engage multiple enemy formats. Two blisters are located on the dorsal surface of the CG-10. Each blister contains one mini-missile launcher and one “twin” laser cannon. These are operated by a single gunner; the controls are located in the aft section of the CG-10 behind the passenger area. Each rotary missile pod carries a total of fifteen projectiles. There are twenty missile ‘hard points’ located in the wing sections of the gunship, ten per ‘wing’. These weapons are protected behind a retractable blast shield, have forward firing arcs and are triggered by the co-pilot. Equipped on the nose of the gunship is a single heavy ion canon. This is weapon is under the prevue of the pilot and is utilized for precise strikes against offensive targets. Two multi-purpose “Belly Pods” are located on the ventral surface of the CG-10. These are generally equipped according to specific missions.
As the CG-10 is often called upon to act as command shuttle for starfighter squadron operations and tactics the troopship boasts an advanced sensors and electronics suite. Communications for multiple engagement areas can be routed through a single Centaur and thus relayed to a capital-scale command ship. The CG-10 is equipped with directed array sensors and dedicated energy receptors which are in turn wired into the ships central computer. It is a strategic player on the electronic battlefield.
Combat actions can be conducted through the CG-10 on multiple levels. The Colonial Commandos have developed strategies for boarding and ground based actions which take advantage of the gunships attributes. A retractable ‘forced entry’ airlock is located on the deck of the Centaur but can only be utilized when the craft is free of any under slung belly pods. Furthermore the passenger area has been formalized for open-airlock status for situations that demand the passengers operate in a vacuum.
Deviating from the typical Colonial starship line the CG-10 has a number of stealth advantages which have been incorporated into the design. First and most important two seemingly superficial technologies that have long been the benchmark; a vehicle shape that is conducive to a minimal radar cross-section and construction materials that are naturally resistant to detection. UltraChrome plating has been incorporated into the outer skin of the troopship. This material, purchased from KDI, helps reduce the total RCS of the gunship and, in conjunction with an angular body shape which reflects most inbound sensors makes the CG-10 notably difficult to track and detect. The internal compartments which house passengers and electronics have been additionally treated with UltraChrome and sealed against electromagnetic interruption. Even the cockpit blast screen has a coat of transparent RADAR absorbing paint applied to the exterior surface.
The Centaur-class CG-10 troopship is a flexible, competent transport and gunship. Those who have come to know it, trust it while, to the rest of the Colonies it, like the men who fly it, has become an iconic symbol of Gestalt unity. While the line was not commissioned by the Coalition or any outside market research it is believed that the Centaur will find uses throughout the New Galactic Coalition and certainly with the Kashan Government.