Guide:Class A3

Class A3 / LSA(P)-19 "Little Sioux"
Class Overview
Category	light atmospheric shuttle
Operational	2176-2207
Constructed	2,425
Dimensions
Length	6.0 m
Beam	4.3 m
Height	2.0 m
Mass	1.6 tons
Performance
Cruise Speed	sublight
Max Speed	sublight
Endurance	2 days
Complement
Crew	2
Passengers	2
Tactical Systems
Beam Weapons	2x laser emitters (5 mw) (wingtips)
Missile Weapons	2 missile hardpoints (hull)
Shields	n/a
Canonicity
Design	Matt Jeffries (War of the Worlds)
Name	own
History	own

Two of the very rare images left of the LSA(P)-19 "Little Sioux" light atmospheric shuttle.

Towards the end of the 22nd century, the increasing capabilities of the transporter were eating away the resupply role of shuttlecraft, and improved sensors reduced the need for in situ survey shuttles. As the result, more and more interest was directed at perfecting a liaison shuttle that would concentrate on moving personnel between ships, or between the starship and a surface location, at a speed competitive with the swiftness of transporters.

There were several obvious targets for improvement, some of them contradictory. Ingress and egress had to be made rapid and comfortable, calling for large access hatches and efficiently arranged seating. On the other hand, atmospheric agility and ease of handling in hangars called for as compact a design as possible. Solutions gravitated towards small, bullet-like craft with their entire forward hull dedicated to passenger accommodation and accessible via large gullwing doors. Propulsion was of the microfusion type, with stunted-sloped wings for aerodynamic lift and with minimal gravitics for coping with accelerations. Interplanetary performance was downplayed for the time being.

The most popular type built on this formula was the 'Little Sioux', the smaller of Yondercraft’s contributions to the Star Fleet exploration effort. With a minimal deck footprint of six by four meters, and a mass of just 1.6 tons, the craft could be carried in significant numbers aboard frontline starships. While wing folding was no longer an option due to the flat ventral side forming a resting full-base landing platform, a packing density similar to that of mid-century shuttlepods could easily be achieved by alternate nose-tail parking.

The "Little Sioux" was propelled by two atmospheric jets on the upper corners of the engine section, and by a single Tumanski impulse engine at the lower tail. Radiators for the fusion pile covered the tail in between the three propulsion elements. Gravitics drove the vertical takeoffs and landings. Lifting capacity was modest, allowing for two pilots and two passengers seated in pairs behind a single broad portside gullwing door. Once airborne, the "Little Sioux" could perform formidable aerobatics, however, and could be lightly armed with lasers and missiles for aggressive reconnaissance or basic interception or fire support tasks.

In space, the "Little Sioux" was an under-performer. Life support only allowed for two-day trips, which didn’t translate to practical interplanetary ranges with the impulse performance and fuel reserves of the craft. There was no shielding for high speed operations or against unusual radiation environments, and the craft could sometimes get uncomfortably hot in direct starlight unless the heat exchange surfaces were properly oriented. Yet none of this mattered much in the primary role of the light auxiliaries, and the craft achieved popularity as the Class A3 starship personnel mover and general liaison. Thousands were built for planet-side applications as well, as the craft was superbly affordable in manufacturing and maintenance alike.

Gradual improvements on the basic model emerged during the three decades of service, but Star Fleet largely skipped over all of these when in the 2200s going for the Class A6 "Sauk", arguably the ultimate in this line of shuttlecraft development.

Notes

• While the inserted graphics from Timo's Guide have been retained (for now), a John Eaves-related design for a shuttlecraft from the B-film, Solar Crisis has been inserted as the main image for the craft. Some text regarding the external characteristics have been changed to match the visual.

• The sidebar endurance of 12 days was changed to 2, to reflect both the text and context of the main article.

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• Back to Shuttlecraft
• Appendix A: Of Ship Statistics
• Appendix B: Glossary
• Appendix C: Star Fleet Organization - General Outline
• Appendix D: Abbreviations From Outside