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Airships and their weapons.

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TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#101: Aug 15th 2010 at 6:14:16 PM

Indeed that would be interesting..

Mellon made some good suggestions and things to think about for ships at higher altitudes. Men not inside the pressurized hull would need a suit and an airtank to survive and something to help hold them to the surface of the hull if they intend to move around the exterior doing repairs.

Who watches the watchmen?
melloncollie Since: Feb, 2012
#102: Aug 15th 2010 at 6:34:28 PM

Gas Mask Mooks :D

Originally I was thinking there'd be something that could generate a magnetic field in the hands and feet, but then there'd be mobility issues, obviously. These guys won't be very nimble or quick. So we need an alternative device/system.

edited 15th Aug '10 6:35:04 PM by melloncollie

LonelyLion from A Baoa Qu Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Singularity
#103: Aug 15th 2010 at 6:50:07 PM

What's wrong with lines and carabiners for the exterior work? Ideally the ship would have something to hook onto fused to the exterior panels. From there it would just be a matter of rappelling down. I can't think of a way to make something like crampons work unless there are deep gaps between the exterior plates to hook into.

^And really I don't see a problem with using the magnets. If they ran a power line from the ship to the suit it could work. I'm envisioning something like the old diving suits running dual lines for power and air. They'd probably have switches to cut the power for each limb independently leading to a Frankensteinesque sort of movement.

melloncollie Since: Feb, 2012
#104: Aug 15th 2010 at 6:51:37 PM

^ If they have to control individual limbs, they wouldn't be able to move very fast now, right? :P If a more efficient system is possible I think that would be better.

LonelyLion from A Baoa Qu Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Singularity
#105: Aug 15th 2010 at 6:59:56 PM

^True, but if they're doing repairs there's not much choice; it's slow work, unless you miniaturize the flying mechanism the ships use to give the workers some sort of hovering capability. Besides this just looks cool.

If the airships are capable of launching small enough vehicles from within you could have the workers tethered to those smaller ships and have the ship move with the worker as needed, sort of like a piloted scaffolding. Hand signals would work for communication if the radio tech isn't up to snuff.

TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#106: Aug 15th 2010 at 10:59:17 PM

Or if possible descend to a lower altitude to reduce the need for full body protection. They suits need to be insulated at high altitudes. It gets pretty damn cold up high.

They would need something more then a simple tether system the winds at altitude or while moving would buffet the shit out of them.

I like the idea of a repair launch for external work.

Who watches the watchmen?
pvtnum11 OMG NO NOSECONES from Kerbin low orbit Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: We finish each other's sandwiches
OMG NO NOSECONES
#107: Aug 16th 2010 at 11:37:21 AM

Take the floating drydock ship and turn it into an airship. A big flying drydock, so you can do quick'n'dirty field repair work to stabilize a ship so it can get itself home again. The flying drydock would have sufficient reserve lifting capacity so as to allow the damaged vessle to secure its engines while repairs are carried out. Smaller ships could be docked inside a larger one - a Vietnam-era ARL would crane up a riverine patrol boat onto a barge or into the main hold (as it was an LST in its fomrer life) and repair the PBR before craning it back into the water. I woud imagine that sufficiently small airships would be able to dock with much larger ones, provided that the larger ship had reserve lifting capacity. Such auxiliary ships don't have much for guns or armor, though, and tend to loiter in staging areas. Probably more crucial if/when the airships have to transit a large body of water, though, as they could simply land on a flat patch of earth, right?

Happiness is zero-gee with a sinus cold.
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#108: Aug 16th 2010 at 1:31:28 PM

I am not sure how I wanted to handle them landing. I was thinking more along the lines of docking cradles that most ships can land on even a war ship. Kind of like those massive dry dock cradles they have ships sit on.

edited 16th Aug '10 1:32:36 PM by TuefelHundenIV

Who watches the watchmen?
LonelyLion from A Baoa Qu Since: Feb, 2010 Relationship Status: Singularity
#109: Aug 16th 2010 at 3:00:00 PM

What if the repair launches had something like a cherry picker attached to them. The launches would basically hover beside the airship and the engineer would have control of the arm. It wouldn't necessarily need to look like a cherry picker, that's just the example I'm using. The engineer could be locked into the boom arm for stability.

Deboss I see the Awesomeness. from Awesomeville Texas Since: Aug, 2009
I see the Awesomeness.
#110: Aug 24th 2010 at 5:24:21 AM

A HA! I found it, six 106mm barrels of pure hell my man.

Fight smart, not fair.
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#111: Aug 24th 2010 at 5:29:25 AM

The Ontos. that thing is made of Awesome.

Oh shit. Those Recoiless rifles can fire Bee Hive tracer rounds. O_O

The very first round Janes guide listed it as also firing a tracer variant.

edited 24th Aug '10 5:35:26 AM by TuefelHundenIV

Who watches the watchmen?
Deboss I see the Awesomeness. from Awesomeville Texas Since: Aug, 2009
I see the Awesomeness.
#112: Aug 24th 2010 at 6:21:04 AM

Pull the turret off, stack a few of them onto a ship and you could throw dozens of rounds at whatever pisses off the ship.

Fight smart, not fair.
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#113: Aug 24th 2010 at 7:12:28 AM

recoiless rifle stuff will have to wait until I reach the wwII part of the story.

Who watches the watchmen?
pvtnum11 OMG NO NOSECONES from Kerbin low orbit Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: We finish each other's sandwiches
OMG NO NOSECONES
#114: Aug 24th 2010 at 1:16:14 PM

Don't forget anti-tank rifles, which were in vogue during and after WWI... Mount them on a pintle or something, stick a big scope on it, and you can use them to pick off exposed crewmembers on the enemy ship. Or delicate bits of the ship that are too small to hit with the big guns.

Our own .50-cal BMG round was derived as an answer to a rumor about some German anti-tank round.

Happiness is zero-gee with a sinus cold.
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#115: Aug 24th 2010 at 10:58:46 PM

All the earlier anti-tank rifles were around the .50cal range with horribly brutal recoil.

Who watches the watchmen?
Flanker66 Dreams of Revenge from 30,000 feet and climbing Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: You can be my wingman any time
Dreams of Revenge
#116: Aug 25th 2010 at 8:50:37 AM

Possibly to reduce the strain on the repair crew, the airship being repaired may slow down to lower wind speeds.

Locking you up on radar since '09
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#117: Aug 25th 2010 at 11:44:44 AM

If possible they could also decrease altitude to allow crew out onto the hull.

Who watches the watchmen?
Flanker66 Dreams of Revenge from 30,000 feet and climbing Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: You can be my wingman any time
Dreams of Revenge
#118: Aug 31st 2010 at 2:36:04 PM

If I remember correctly, you need to be below 10,000 feet in order to avoid hypoxia.

Locking you up on radar since '09
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#119: Aug 31st 2010 at 2:58:47 PM

Now that is a useful bit of info.

Who watches the watchmen?
Flanker66 Dreams of Revenge from 30,000 feet and climbing Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: You can be my wingman any time
Dreams of Revenge
#120: Aug 31st 2010 at 3:01:34 PM

Apparently at 10,000 feet it's recommended you take some oxygen every hour. The interval decreases as altitude increases.

Locking you up on radar since '09
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#121: Aug 31st 2010 at 4:27:11 PM

Damn this thread is awesome for notes for my story.

I need to make one just for ground warfare though. Figure out what weapons could be interesting or cool or even practical.

Who watches the watchmen?
MajorTom Since: Dec, 2009
#122: Aug 31st 2010 at 4:34:01 PM

^^ 10,000 feet above sea level or above ground level? (There is a difference in my experience.)

I've been higher than 10,000 feet above sea level for more than an hour and never needed external oxygen. (I have seen guys get altitude sickness before however...)

pvtnum11 OMG NO NOSECONES from Kerbin low orbit Since: Nov, 2009 Relationship Status: We finish each other's sandwiches
OMG NO NOSECONES
#123: Aug 31st 2010 at 5:11:29 PM

^^Whatever historically existed is a start. Depends on where you want to introduce the airship concept.

Tank development might follow a different evolutionary path, though.

As will artillery - why invest so much on Rail guns (the old-fashioned kind of railcar-mounted artillery) when airships could prove to be more effective?

Anti-air artillery would have to expand to keep up, or maybe not. They were trying hard ot kill dirigibles in WWI, which could usually sit above the efective ballistic arc of most triple-A and drop bombs iwth impunity.

Happiness is zero-gee with a sinus cold.
TuefelHundenIV Night Clerk of the Apocalypse from Doomsday Facility Corner Store. Since: Aug, 2009 Relationship Status: I'd need a PowerPoint presentation
Night Clerk of the Apocalypse
#124: Aug 31st 2010 at 5:15:35 PM

Did a quick check it can occur between 8000-12000 feet. It depends on whether or not your in any form of pressurized container like some airplanes, Lodges on mountains, and the physical aspects of the individual.

It really boils down to how efficient your body is at handling oxygen in your blood.

They even do regular training at higher altitudes to enhance how the body reacts to the oxygen.

I could see men who frequently spend time at higher altitudes eventually adapting to the higher altitudes kinda like getting your legs (sky Lungs) only on an airship.

edited 31st Aug '10 8:22:01 PM by TuefelHundenIV

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Acatalepsy The Map To Madness Since: Mar, 2010
The Map To Madness
#125: Aug 31st 2010 at 9:12:12 PM

Why use rail guns? Because moving tons and tons of stuff will probably easier by rail. Because having more firepower is always a plus, and you aren't going to be able to mount battleship guns on an airship. Because land based artillery is most likely superior in terms of sustained fire support.


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