Ship Bridge
A Ship Bridge is the control location for a vessel.
- It is a kind of Ship Equipment.
- It is often called a cockpit on smallcraft or vehicles.
Description / Specifications
The bridge (often designated as the main bridge or prime bridge) is an enclosed space on a ship from which the captain and officers direct operations. Bigcraft and starships require a bridge for control of the drives and electronics and for navigation, though smallcraft may instead be designed with a computer and a cockpit. Some Warships may have auxiliary bridges to replace the prime bridge in the event of battle damage.
The size of the bridge varies depending on the size of the vessel and can range from a large ergonomic open deck with multiple crew positions to a cramped minimalist compartment crammed into a tiny hull. The bridge is generally adjacent to the ship's primary computer.
- The bridge contains the main workstations for the sensors, the avionics suite, and any other onboard defensive electronics.
- Many ships have transparent panels (windows) associated with the bridge, allowing the crew to physically see outside of the vessel. Windows are generally polarized: the windows on some vessels have exterior shutters.
- It contains the main workstation for the ship's Communications Equipment.
- It has independent Life Support and environmental systems.
- It usually has one or more Emergency Lockers.
Starship and Bigcraft Bridges
The bridge of a starship or bigcraft occupies 2% of the vessels volume, with a minimum volume of approximately 270m³. This volume is taken up by deck and access space, crew workstations, control panels, displays and instrumentation, as well as associated control gear, machinery, conduits, piping and tanks, linkages and connections, relays, and electronic devices. Much of this infrastructure is contained within consoles.
- The bridge of a vessel normally contains two or more Acceleration Couches as part of its construction.
- The bridge can be sealed off in the event of an emergency.
Smallcraft Bridges
A smallcraft requires either a bridge or a cockpit with a computer: if a bridge is installed, a computer is unnecessary, though many designs will include them. A smallcraft bridge occupies 20% of the volume of the vessel, with a minimum volume of approximately 55m³. This volume is taken up by deck and access space, crew workstations, control consoles, displays and instrumentation, as well as associated control gear, machinery, conduits, piping and tanks, linkages and connections, relays, and electronic devices.
- A smallcraft bridge can be sealed off in the event of an emergency.
- It normally contains at least one Acceleration Couch as part of its construction.
Cockpits
A smallcraft may lack a bridge. The crew compartment of such vessels is referred to as the cockpit.
- Vessels lacking a bridge require an onboard computer. However, the computer suffers a reduction in efficiency.
- A cockpit contains one acceleration couch per crewmember as part of its construction. Each couch is a workstation and has multiple control panels.
History & Background / Dossier
A separate admiral's bridge may be provided in flagships, where the admiral can exercise strategic control over his fleet without interfering with the Captain's tactical command of the vessel. This may be referred to as a Command Bridge.
Old Vilani bridge designs put the captain and other command staff on a raised balcony or walkway over the workstations; the Solomani layout generally puts the captain in the center.
Scout ship bridges are notoriously cramped and smelly.
Some commercial vessels, particularly liners, pride themselves on the elegance and style of their command stations.
Detachable Bridge
On some designs of smaller vessel (generally less than 6,000 Tons displacement) the bridge can be ejected from the ship in an emergency to become a lifeboat for the command crew. Generally, such a design includes up to two weeks of life support and battery power, while emergency thrusters give it basic maneuvering capabilities.
- A detachable bridge is a subhull or a pod, depending on its size.
- A detachable bridge is generally capable of soft-landing on a planetary surface and usually includes suitable landing gear.
References & Contributors / Sources
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- Classic Traveller, Book 2 Starships (Game Designers Workshop 1977, 1981)
- Classic Traveller, Book 5 High Guard (Game Designers Workshop 1980)
- MegaTraveller Referee's Manual, (Game Designers Workshop 1987)
- Traveller The New Era: Fire, Fusion, & Steel, (Game Designers Workshop 1994)
- Mongoose Traveller: High Guard, (Mongoose Publishing 2008)
- T5 Core Rules, Far Future Enterprises 2013
- Traveller Wiki Editorial Team
- Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master Scout Emeritus Adie Alegoric Stewart of the IISS
- Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science