Osa class Missile Sloop

Osa Class Missile Sloop
Type: EL Missile Sloop
Size	235 Tons
Hull Configuration	[[{{{hull}}}]]
Tech Level	TL–11
Engineering
Computer
Jump	J-2
Maneuver	4 G
Armaments
Hardpoints	2
Accommodations
Staterooms	0
Personnel
Crew	9 with 1 marine
High/Mid Passengers	0
Payload
Cargo	1.4 Tons
Fuel tank	0 Tons
Construction
Origin	Worlds of The Leader
Price
Cost	MCr 220.191 Qty: MCr 176.153
Source
Canon	Unpublished, fan design
Five in service

Description

Designed and built at Urcor for the Worlds of The Leader. These ships operate within the Far Home Sector. The TL–11 hulls have jump 2 drives and carry enough internal fuel for two range 2 jumps, and carry drop tanks with 28 days of power plant fuel and an additional jump 2 as needed. There are in service with the Glorious Leader's Benevolent Patrol Squadron. The Osa Missile Sloops are used for long range patrol and interdiction missions. They have a partially streamlined close structure hull equipped with fuel scoops for wilderness gas giant refueling.

This Project 235 is more commonly known by their enemy designation and reporting name Osa. They are a class of missile boats developed for the Leader's Navy. Five have been built so far. The first prototype of the design was ordered many years ago. During testing it proved to be a cheap and efficient boat. However, the endurance, space worthiness, and habitability were modest at best, and it was vulnerable to damage. Among the other weak points were the hull, the sensors and computer were lacking as a fire control unit, and it had an inadequate defensive armament.

Upgraded for the subsequent production models, the prototype was retro-fitted. The new offensive weapons are a pair of P-15 Styx missile launchers mated to a missile magazine. A single plasma cannon has been installed for point defense. The hulls have been strengthened to armored standards. The sensors improved with the addition of the model 5 fib computer. The crew of nine may still not be large enough to employ all the systems efficiently. A second officer slot was assigned to help with resource management, which reduced the boarding "party" to a single token marine. In an effort to please the leader and remedy all these shortcomings, it was felt that bigger boats were needed to mount the necessary equipment and to provide more space for a larger crew. The displacement tonnage swelled to the non-standard 235 tons. The Project 235 boats are bigger than the pioneering Project 205 boats. They were still meant to be 'minimal' ships for the planned tasks.

Some of the armored hull is made of steel, with some bonded alloys for the superstructure. The Project 235 boats have newer, more powerful engines. They could still achieve high 4G acceleration and the three Zvezda M503 radial fusion power plants combine to produce 4,700 megawatts of power. The plasma cannon and the bigger computer do reduce the evasion agility. The drop tanks and internal fuel storage ensure reasonable endurance and reliability. There were also three generators. Two main engines and one generator were placed in the forward engine room, the third main engine and two generators in the aft engine room. There was a control compartment between the two engine rooms.

The problem related to the weak anti-fighter weaponry of the earlier Project 183R was partially solved with the use of a plasma gun turret, in the fore deck. An MR-104 Rys "Drum Tilt" fire-control radar array was placed in a high platform, and controlled the engagement envelop, with a good field of view. The AK-230 missile turrets are unmanned, each remotely operated from within the fire control center deep inside the hull. Once all missiles were expended it was planned to escape and not fight.

With all these improvements, these ships were considerably more effective. The survivability rating was improved to 50%, and the required a coordinated volley of missiles could be launched by at least two ships operating in tandem. Destroying an enemy vessel was therefore regarded as 'assured' using all five ships working as one squadron in concert. These missile boats saw action during several conflicts with the leader's enemies. With few losses, several have incurred some damage requiring lengthy repair and refit. The use of unrefined fuel has also lead to several misjumps.

Tonnage: 235 tons (standard), 3,290 cubic meters.

Crew: 2 officers, 7 ratings

Performance: Jump 2. 4G acceleration. Power plant-4. 9.4 EP. Agility 2.

Electronics: Model 5 fib computer.

Hardpoints/Armament: One dual missile turret firing as two batteries, a single plasma gun turret.

Defenses: Factor 1 armored hull.

Craft: 4 ton Air/Raft

Fuel Treatment: Fuel scoops

Cost: MCr 220.191 standard. MCr 176.153 in quantity.

Construction Time: 50 weeks standard. 40 weeks in quantity.

This article has metadata.

This list of sources was used by the Traveller Wiki Editorial Team and individual contributors to compose this article. Copyrighted material is used under license from Far Future Enterprises or by permission of the author. The page history lists all of the contributions.

• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis), Captain, and Lead Naval Architect Ronald B. Kline, Jr. of the Imperial Navy