In-atmosphere speed of manoeuvre drives

[Linwood]

Sounds like gas giant skimming brings its own set of limitations. Seems to me that anything designed for that would need to be designed for super/hypersonic flight consequences. However, would this also limit some skimming ships to smaller gas giants (less G forces, less dense atmosphere, etc.)?

Skimming has never been well defined, you just skim in a few hours and go. Nothing about atmospheric hazards, storms, hitting pockets of rich gas vs. say helium or maybe even oxygen. Oh, and what about that High Guard thing... just why does refueling in a gas giant make you more vulnerable?

Sounds like a short list of great ideas for adventure complications!

 

[Reynard]

In the real world, climbing out of a gravity well and dealing with atmospheric conditions especially of a gas giant should make maneuvering and targeting a nightmare. Personal suggestion should be assigning banes to ships caught like that until they can clear the hazard.

 

[Reynard]

Remember one thing, just because your ship can move very fast doesn't mean you must or should. Just because your car might be able to move at 190kph doesn't mean it's a good idea in the majority of situations. How fast does the ground come up on you at 1200-4200kph? Can most pilots safely react and control a ship at those speeds in such relatively confined conditions? The atmosphere and weather could be your worst nightmare.

Populated areas don't want ships roaring down on them like barely controlled kinetic bombs so speed restrictions will be paramount and monitored. Traveller starships act as grav vehicles planetside more than capable of slowing and maneuvering as any VTOL vehicle. You'll be expected to enter the atmosphere following specific flight paths by Air and Space Control and, as a grav unit, able to drop more vertically. Speed will be high far up with lots of room but must slow greatly as you descend into heavier traffic until you maneuver and touch down at near hovering speed. No 1200kph touchdowns.

Travelling at 1g should not be an issue for cross country flight as that's around aero jet speeds but, once again, you slow down once you reach populated space.

 

[Condottiere]

Automatic lifting like airbags.

The anti gravity bounce.