History Main / TechnicallyATransport

*** The HWK-290 light freighter is completely unarmed -- and moves closer to a starfighter than a freighter. [[VideoGame/DarkForces Kyle Katarn]]'s first ship is a modified HWK-290).

* The AC-130 gunship is a C-130 Hercules transport plane armed with a 75mm cannon and a 40mm rapid-fire cannon. The AC-47 and AC-119 having a similar history, being armed versions of the C-47 Dakota (better known as the DC-3 airliner) and C-119 Flying Boxcar transports.
* The Merkava main battle tank has space for 6 passengers in addition to the 4 man crew.

* ''Franchise/StarWars'' has a surprising amount of these:
** Corellian Engineering Corporation is well known in-universe for making highly customizable transports that could be turned into capable warships, sometimes with modification kits made directly by CEC. Among them we have the YT-series of light freighters (in their stock models they carry a single light gun... and provisions for more numerous and much heavier ones, plus the ability to mount incredibly fast engines and powerful shields. The ''Millennium Falcon'' is a [=YT-1300f=], and the weapon array includes two ''capital ship'' point-defense quad-guns, a pop-up light blaster cannons, and concussion missiles), the HWK-290 light freighter (as a stock model, it's completely unarmed -- and moves closer to a starfighter than a freighter. [[VideoGame/DarkForces Kyle Katarn]]'s first ship was a modified HWK-290), the ''Gozanti''-class cruiser (a largish merchant ship, if a well armed and armored one and intentionally made slow to prevent pirate use. Both Rebels and Empire are known to modify it into a light assault carrier, and CEC itself has made their own militarized version), the [=CR90=] corvette (an armed transport, with available assault corvette and troop transport configurations among many, with the stock model being already more than capable of fending off pirates), the [=CR70=] corvette (an unarmed transport in its standard configuration. Once the Vanguard c20 retrofit suite is applied it basically turns into a [=CR90=]), the ''Consular''-class space cruiser (a completely unarmed vessel, that both the Republic's Judicial Forces and the various local militias were known to arm for anti-pirate duties. Then for the Clone Wars CEC came up with the Charger c70 retrofit, turning it into a very capable light frigate and giving the Republic a military fleet almost overnight), and the ''Sphyrna''-class corvette (another armed transport, even if inspired by an ancient warship model, armed with three laser cannons. The Rebellion would modify the ships with torpedo launchers or additional engines for hit-and-run attacks. In ''Film/RogueOne'' one with an additional engine was able to [[RammingAlwaysWorks push]] a disabled [[TheBattlestar Star Destroyer]] into a fully active Star Destroyer and a hostile space station, destroying all three at once).

** The ''Dauntless''-class cruisers were originally luxury liners manufactured by [=SoroSuub=], the shipwright company of the planet Sullust, with powerful shields and thick hulls to deal with the endemic piracy in the Outer Rim. When the Sullustans rose and joined the Rebellion, [=SoroSuub=] took the ships and added stronger shields, sophisticated countermeasures, and [[MoreDakka an insane amount of weapons]], turning them into one of the few ships capable of taking on an Imperial Star Destroyer and win.

** The [=V-4X-D=] was originally made for asteroid slalom racing. When the sport shut down due an entire group of racers getting eaten by stone mites, the Rebels acquired some of the speeders and, due their high performance, equipped them with laser cannons for use as land-based high-speed assault vehicles.
** As hinted above, the Rebel Alliance was very prone to arm any transport they could due them having very little numbers of actual warships, and generally of smaller size, compared to the Empire.

* The AC-130 gunship. It's simply a Hercules cargo plane with guns and ammo rolled on board, pointing out the port side. The AC-47 and AC-119 having a similar history, being armed versions of the C-47 Dakota (better known as the DC-3 airliner) and C-119 Flying Boxcar tranports.

* During UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar, the Confederacy salvaged the USS ''Merrimack'' and outfitted her with iron plating, renaming her the CSS ''Virginia''. To be fair, though, the ''Merrimack'' had been a frigate before that, so not really an example of this trope.

** ''Override'' has the Helian, a ship whose description notes that it skirts laws on civilians owning ships designed for combat by its large cargo bay allowing it to be classified as a courier vessel/light freighter. As ''skirts'' laws implies, in terms of gameplay coding it is combat-capable enough to be classified as a light warship, and its most common users are planetary militias and renegades (eg. SpacePirates). Lorewise the UE Destroyer originated as a refit of a freighter, although since the Voinian War it has been turned into a model of its own, and the source ship isn't present in-game[[note]]but will be added with the ''Cosmic Frontier'' remaster[[/note]].

* In ''Film/MadMax2'', Max drives an armoured tanker truck as a DecoyConvoy to lure the Humongous' forces away from the settlers' caravan.

* Armed merchant cruisers are quite literally merchant ships with guns and sometimes torpedo launchers bolted onto the decks. Though usually no match for a proper cruiser (emphasis on ''usually''; just ask HMAS Sydney), they're much cheaper and are just as capable of threatening unarmed merchant ships. And having started out as ordinary merchant ships before the guns were added means [[ShapedLikeItself they look like merchant ships]]. Meaning that when fake hull panels are used to conceal the guns, they look completely non-threatening and thus can potentially get in very close for a surprise attack.

[[folder:Films — Live-Action]]

* In ''Literature/SixteenThirtyTwo'', the denizens of Grantville made makeshift armored personnel carriers by adding steel plating and guns to mine trucks.

* In ''Run Silent, Run Deep'', the fictional account of WWII submarine warfare by real-life ace submarine skipper Edward Beach, the submarine ''Walrus'' has two separate encounters with Japanese "Q-ships," freighters outfitted with the engines, weapons, and ASW sensors of a destroyer.

* In ''Literature/SixteenThirtyTwo'', the denizens of Grantville made makeshift armored personnel carriers by adding armor plating to mine trucks.

In comes this trope; A humble battlefield bus, troop carrier, cargo truck/plane turned into a substitute front-line tank, gun truck, or gunship by adding armor, firing ports, missile pods and MoreDakka, like GatlingGood. And it can still drop off its passengers and heavy cargo most of the time. But who'd want to stick to those roles?

Up-armoring and up-arming non-military and miltary transport vehicles is TruthInTelevision. LaResistance fighters add improvised armor and bolt tripod-mounted heavy machine guns onto civilian trucks because they don't have real military-issue vehicles. Even conventional armies sometimes do improvised up-armoring and up-arming in the field to keep transports safe in war zones.

Transport vehicles, planes, and vessels, whether on land, sea, air or space are valued for their roomy cargo bays and large bay doors, but they have a well-known list of weaknesses. They are [[DefenselessTransports slow, weaponless, and altogether quite vulnerable.]] But what if you could fix those little issues?

In comes this trope; A humble battlefield bus or troop carrier or cargo truck turned into a substitute front-line tank, gun truck, or gunship by adding armor, firing ports, missile pods and MoreDakka. And it can still drop off its passengers and heavy cargo most of the time. But who'd want to stick to those roles?

In comes this trope; A humble battlefield bus or troop carrier or cargo truck turned into a substitute front-line tank, gun truck, or gunship by adding armor and MoreDakka. And it can still drop off its passengers and heavy cargo most of the time. But who'd want to stick to those roles?

Transports. We all know them. [[DefenselessTransports Slow. Weaponless. Altogether quite vulnerable.]] But what if you could fix that little issue? In comes this thing; A humble battlefield bus turned into a substitute front-line tank. Or gunship. And it can still drop off its passengers and cargo most of the time. But who'd want to?

* During UsefulNotes/WorldWarI, the Royal Italian Navy came up with the MAS (initially meaning '''M'''otoscafo '''Armato''' '''S'''VAN, Armed Motorboat SVAN, with SVAN being the initial manufacturer, later meaning '''M'''otoscafo '''Armato''' '''S'''ilurante, Torpedo Armed Motorboat): literally civilian offshore motorboats massing from 20 to 30 tonnes depending on the model and manufactured out of ''wood'' (as metal models resulted slower), carrying a machine gun or a small autocannon, depth bombs, and two torpedoes-the latter of which sunk multiple Austo-Hungarian battleships, including the ''flagship''. Their small size was however detrimental when operating outside the calm waters of the Adriatic Sea, limiting their usefulness during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.