Eagle Transporter |
|
| First appearance | "Breakaway" |
|---|---|
| Affiliation | Moonbase Alpha |
| Launched | June 2, 1992[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class | Interplanetary |
| Maximum speed | 15% Speed of light[1] |
| Armaments | Laser gun Laser turret Space-to-space missiles[1] |
| Defenses | Force field Anti-gravity/radiation screens Heat shields |
| Propulsion | Nuclear fusion rockets |
The Eagle Transporter is a fictional spacecraft and the iconic image of the 1970s television series Space: 1999. The Eagles serve as the primary spacecraft of Moonbase Alpha, which has a fleet of them. The Eagles are primarily used to explore alien planets, defend Moonbase Alpha from attack, and to transport supplies and other items to and from the Moon. The Eagle was designed by Brian Johnson; his design was clearly influenced by the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey. In turn, the Eagle spacecraft influenced the spaceship designs of Star Wars and other science fiction films and television series.[2]
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The Eagles are constructed by the engineering and technical section of Moonbase Alpha using materials and components either shipped from Earth or manufactured on the Moon.[1] The latter is usually proposed as a rationale for the perceived seemingly endless supply of Eagles despite their frequent losses. At the time of the episode The Last Sunset, dialogue indicated that there were twenty-eight serviceable Eagles on the roster.
Completely modular,[3] the craft are divided into three basic sections: the command module, the passenger module/service pod, and the superstructure (containing the landing gear, access corridor/galley, aft compartment, fuel tanks and main propulsion system). The command module also has an escape hatch as revealed in the episode Devil's Planet, although it is unknown whether this is an original design feature or an adaptation that was designed by Moonbase Alpha. All Eagles are equipped with artificial gravity.
Several types could be used, depending on the mission.
Several types of equipment could be attached to an Eagle, depending on the mission.
The Eagles are powered by four nuclear fusion rockets and carry fuel reserves for 48 hours of flight. Artificial gravity force fields built into the Eagle enable it to accelerate up to 15% of the speed of light, giving it a maximum range (with extra fuel reserves) of several light days.[1] Should there be a need for higher-than-normal velocities, a set of two booster rockets can be fitted to the superstructure to augment the main propulsion system.[4] Under ideal conditions, re-fuelling is carried out in the maintenance hangar at Moonbase; under extraordinary circumstances, provisions for in-flight fuelling are possible.[5]
The Eagle also has the capability to enter the atmosphere of a normal-gravity planetary body, land using its chemically-fuelled landing rockets, and take off and return to Moonbase Alpha.[1] The Eagle maintains sufficient fuel for multiple take-offs and landings. Should the craft be required to operate within meta-gravity conditions (take-off and/or landings from a high-gravity spatial body), the craft can be equipped with four downward-pointing booster rockets to augment the normal vertical rockets on the craft's undercarriage.[6]
The on-board computer system can handle guidance, astro-navigation and interpretation of sensor data; for comprehensive data analysis, telemetry is transmitted to Moonbase Main Computer. The craft can also be flown by remote control from Moonbase Alpha.[1]
Although the Eagle was not designed for use as a military vessel, some Eagles on Moonbase Alpha are fitted with a laser emitter as standard equipment and an arsenal of space-to-space missiles. The episode War Games suggests that only seven of Alpha's many Eagles are armed at that time. It is demonstrated in the series that Eagles were primarily designed for transport, reconnaissance and scientific surveys. In War Games the Eagles are badly outmatched by the Mark IX Hawk, which were designed specifically for combat. The Hawks were faster, more manoeuvrable, and better-armed than the Eagles, although a skilled Eagle pilot such as Alan Carter was still able to destroy several Hawks in the battle to defend Moonbase Alpha.
In addition to the primary weapons mounted on the underside of the Eagle superstructure frame (directly behind the command module)[7] intended for combat or defence when in flight, a retractable laser gun was revealed in Year Two for use when the craft is grounded.[8] This mid-size weapon was mounted on the dorsal surface of the spaceframe and emerged from the girders of the ship's 'backbone'. It can be adjusted to fire in 360 degrees and at numerous angles of elevation. Various pods also carry small arms; a rack of stun-guns and a single laser rifle for the use of crew is mounted by one of the two main hatches.
Eagles are generally flown by trained astronauts (Eagle pilots) from the Reconnaissance Section; although the craft can easily be handled by a single pilot, the right seat in the Eagle command module is routinely occupied by an astronaut co-pilot, although this varies according to mission profile.[1] Many non-Reconnaissance personnel on Alpha are former astronauts or have received flight training and are qualified to handle the craft.
The model of the Eagle used in filming was built in four scales: by the end of the series, there were three 44" Eagle models, two 22" Eagles, one 11" Eagle and a 5" Eagle. The superstructure framework was composed of copper tubing on the larger-scale models and the command module was vacuum-formed plastic. Compressed freon streams were used to portray the vertical jets used in lift-off and landing sequences and, in Year Two, the exhaust from the main rockets. The special effects team worked in Bray Studios, a separate studio away from where the live action filming took place.
The production team included several experts who later went on to win Academy Awards for Alien (1979) and Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)