Transport

Line Combatants (Primary - Capital)				Escort Combatants (Secondary - Subcapital)				Military Auxiliary (Tertiary)
B- Battleship	C- Cruiser	O- Ortillery	V- Carrier	D- Destroyer	E- Escort	F- Fighter	H- Defense/Security	I- Combat Transport	Q- Combat Support	S- Scout	U- Utility	X- Commo	Z- Special

Mercantile Commercial Ships (Trade & Profit)				Non-Mercantile Commercial Ships (Industry & Profit)					Non-Commercial Ships (Nonprofit)			System Craft (Intrastellar)
A- Tramp	M- Freighter	R- Liner	T- Transport	G- Industrial	J- Prospector	K- Expedition	P- Corsair	U- Utility	L- Science	N- Medical	Y- Private	WB- Barge	WA- Satellite	WO- Space Station

T-class Transport: Bulk transport vessels are civilian commercial ships with hulls designed for transport of bulk materials, liquids, fuel, ore, grain, barges, and even other starships!

• Transports ideally carry high thousands to tens of thousands of cargo including bulk cargo, project cargo, and very large, heavy, or bulky items that smaller liners or freighters could not, such as turbine parts, large scale fusion power plants, or even ship hulls.
• Tankers carry vast amounts of fuels or other high value liquids...
• Bulk Cargo Carriers, Grain Haulers, Ore Haulers, Tankers, Ship Transporters, and a variety of other subclasses with varied missions comprise this grouping although the bulk cargo carrier is the best known.
• The same hulls under dedicated military service are known as Q-class Combat Support Ships and I-class Combat Transports. I-class vessels are hardened and often armored for hostile conditions.
• The Supraclass designation is also known as Ship Mission, Ship Mission Code, Mission, or Ship Hull Designation.
• It is a starship supraclass.

Library Data Referral Tree

Please refer to the following AAB Library Data for more information:
Starship:

• Starship User Types
  • Civilian Ship
  • Military Ship
  • Non-Commercial Vessel
  • Paramilitary Ship

• Advanced Ship Classifications
  • Ship Mission Code / Supraclass
  • Ship Type Code / Superclass
  • Ship Class Code / Class
  • Model (TL)
  • Bloc (Lot)

• Basic Ship Classifications
  • Adventure Class Ship
  • Battle Class Ship
  • Capital Ship
  • Fleet Class Ship
  • Size-Role Classification
  • Subcapital Ship
  • QSP
  • USP
  • World Class Ship

• Ships by Function
  • Bigcraft
  • Boat
  • Capital Ship
  • Largecraft
  • Non-starship
  • Smallcraft
  • Spaceplane
  • Spaceship
  • Starship
  • Subcapital Ship
  • Subcraft
  • System Craft
  • Warship

Speed of Travel

• Astronomical Unit (AU)
• FTL
• Light Speed (c)
• Light-week (lw)
• Light-year (ly)
• NAFAL (STL)
• Parsec (pc)

Description (Specifications)

Transports and tankers are the really large cargo ships built to conduct corporate bulk trade. They are expensive ships and often come equipped with light armament and significant defensive suites. Convoys and escorts are common. Almost all bulk trade is scheduled, profitable, and integral to an established interstellar, economic network. Some larger ships weigh hundreds of thousands of tons in displacement. Few are streamlined or designed to enter an atmosphere. Most make use of highports and extensively employ interface craft. High population, rich nexus worlds, and capitals are their most common destinations.

Image Repository

This image repository features a selection of transports and tankers:
Merchant Vessel - Type TC Bulk Cargo Carriers:

1. A Jack Driscoll class Bulk Freighter.
   
2. An Empress class Bulk Carrier.
   
3. An Aspirant class Provincial Carrier.
   
4. A Connestoga class Heavy Carrier.
   
5. A Hercules class Commercial Tender.
   
6. A Pegasus class Bulk Cargo Carrier.
   
7. A side view of a blocky Suluru class Mercantile Carrier.
   
8. This is a side view and a top view of a smaller layout of the modular ship known as the Roca Maestro class Modular Ore Hauler.
   

Merchant Vessel - Type TF Tankers:

1. A massive Baleen class Heavy Tanker.
   
2. A Nimrod class Fuel Lighter.
   
3. A Provision class Medium Tanker.
   

Merchant Vessel - Type TJ Jump Ship Transporters:

1. A Type TJ class Jump Ship hauling valuable asteroid ore with its flexible jump net.
   

Merchant Vessel - Type TV Ship Transporter / Commercial Tenders:

1. A Corporate class Range Carrier.
   
2. A huge Mariner class Frame Carrier.
   
3. A commercial Endeavor class Ship Transporter mounting two Bluestone class Cargo Barges.
   
4. A J-2 High Liner class Bulk Freighter transporting a pair of Elysium class Passenger Barges.
   

Spectrum of Civil Shipping in Charted Space

Spectrum of Civil Shipping in Charted Space: 1105
Cateogries	A-class	R-class	M-class	T-class
Synopsis	Tramp	Liner	Freighter	Transport & Tanker
Hull Tonnage	100 to 2,499 dTons	100 to 2,499 dTons	2,500 to 999,999 dTons	2,500 to 999,999 dTons or more... (...rarely more than 1,000,000) dTons
Size-Cat	ACS	ACS	BCS & FCS	BCS & FCS (rarely WCS)
Ideal Freight Volume	Zero to Low (Hundreds of tons)	Medium (Hundreds to Thousands of tons)	High (Thousands to Tens of Thousands of tons)	Very High (Tens to Hundreds of Thousands of tons)
Market	Unscheduled low volume, high speculation trade routes	Mostly scheduled, medium speculation, subsidized trade routes	Scheduled medium and high-volume, low speculation trade routes	Scheduled high volume trade routes with massive economies of scale, or massive (...usually government) projects
Rough Market Share	10%	25%	45%	20%
Area of Influence	Cluster or Trace+	Subsector+	Sector	Multi-Sector
Business	Fledgling Line	Subsector-wide Line & Interface Line	Sector-wide Line	Multi-sector Line
Remarks	Merchant Princes & Adventurers	Scheduled & Subsidized Trade	Backbone of Merchant Trade	Corporate Bulk Trade
NOTES: While standards exist, ship naming standards evolve with time and over tech epochs. Class naming comments are only generalizations and many exceptions exist. Trade is heavily affected by local regulations, the rule of law, and local security conditions. WCS-class vessels are not ordinarily used for merchant missions as they are too large and expensive.

Strategy & Tactics (Doctrine)

Transports form the economic backbone that enables any sizable polity to exist. If there is one supraclass that can be said to be the single most vital to any such polity, this is it. The Third Imperium could, in theory under hypothetical optimal conditions, continue to exist without warships, scout vessels, x-boats (...communications being handled by transports instead), and all other types - but it can not exist without transports hauling freight (...and sometimes passengers) from world to world.

One reason is that many colonies can not survive without continued import of vital goods. During the Long Night and Collapse, when conditions (...whether destruction of or damage to transports, loss of availability of maintenance, disruption of cargo availability, destabilization of currency, or any of a number of other factors) meant that transports stopped coming, many colonies were unable to support themselves. Nonagricultural worlds ran out of food, many agricultural worlds ran out of spare parts to run their farms (...or the machines that kept their land arable), and many worlds with tainted or exotic atmospheres ran out of spare parts for the machines that kept their air breathable. Lucky survivors found their way to other worlds that could sustain themselves; the rest died. Only with the return of regular freight service could these colonies be successfully re-established.

Supraclass Roles

Transports typically serve the following roles:
Largecraft & Bigcraft:

T-class Transport & Tanker Supraclass Archetypes
Archetype	Type Code
Bulk Carrier	(TC)
Bulk Cargo Carrier	(TC)
Bulk Cargo Hauler	(TC)
Bulk Hauler	(TC)
Bulk Liquid Carrier	(TF)
Bulk Transport	(TC)
Bulk Transporter	(TC)
Cargo Carrier	(TC)
Cargo Ship	(TC)
Cargo Transport	(TC)
Commercial Tender	(TV)
Frame Carrier	(TV)
Fleet Transport	(TC)
Frame Carrier	(TV)
Frontier Tanker	(TC)
Frontier Transport	(TC)
Fuel Lighter	(TF)
Grain Hauler	(TCG)
Heavy Jump Transport	(TV)
Heavy-lift Ship	(TV)
Heavy Tanker	(TF)
Heavy Transport	(TH)
Highliner	(TC)
Jump Cab	(TJ)
Jump Caboose	(TJ)
Jump Ferry	(TJ)
Jump Ship	(TJ)
Jump Tanker	(TF)
Jump Train	(TJ)
Light Transport	(TL)
Medium Transport	(TM)
Merchant Tender	(TV)
Modular Ore Hauler	(TCO)
Ore Hauler	(TCO)
Project Cargo Ship	(TV)
Provincial Carrier	(TC)
Range Carrier	(TV)
Ship Transporter	(TV)
Station Tanker	(TF)
Superheavy Transport	(TS)
Super-Heavy Transport	(TS)
Tanker	(TF) (Namesake)
Transport	(T) (Namesake)
Transporter	(TC)
Ultraheavy Transport	(TU)
Ultra-Heavy Cargo Transport	(TU)
Vehicle Carrier	(TV)

Size-Class Roles for Transport Vessels

1. Utility Craft (U) (1 to 99 tons)
2. Tramp Vessel or Liner (A or R) (100 to 2,499 tons)
3. Light Transport (TL) (2,500 to 99,999 tons)
4. Medium Transport (TM) (100,000 to 249,999 tons)
5. Heavy Transport (TH) (250,000 to 499,999 tons)
6. Superheavy Transport (TS) (500,000 to 999,999 tons)
7. Ultraheavy Transport (TU) (1,000,000 or more tons)

Civilian Subcraft

Civilian subcraft (...both smallcraft and bigcraft) are carried by some of these vessels:

1. Barge (WB)
2. Utility Craft (U)

Supraclass Archetypal Roles

These vessels typically serve the following archetypal roles:

T-class Transport Supraclass Archetypes
Archetype	Type Code	Exemplar	Remarks
Transport	T (Namesake)	Oukhaha class Bulk Hauler	Transporters are a generic class of large tonnage cargo transport vessels. There are numerous subclasses, but all carry large amounts of cargo freight, often in bulk forms. T = Transport
Bulk Cargo Carrier	TC	Empress class Bulk Carrier	Bulk cargo haulers focus on transporting containerized freight. They often operate over well known, long establish routes. They are often contracted directly to companies with most or all their capacity used for moving that company's products. The primary way they differ from other transports is that they deal with large cargo containers. These containers are connected to an external framework, which provides atmosphere and power, and allows access by crew members. There are usually discounts for modules without power and/or atmosphere requirements. C = Cargo
Grain Hauler	TCG	Average Cargo Ship class Cargo Ship	Another bulk cargo hauler for agricultural products. These cargoes can not exposed to vacuum or temperature extremes, so the hold is sealed, and subject to strict environmental standards. The holds are normally not suitable for passengers or crew due to the temperature, atmospheric mix, or pressure conditions needed to keep the agricultural products as fresh as possible. Grain is merely one of the most common cargoes these ships carry; anything that requires a pressurized, environmentally-controlled container may be carried by this type. G = Grain
Ore Hauler	TCO	Roca Maestro class Modular Ore Hauler	A specialized bulk cargo hauler for raw or processed ore. To qualify as this type, at least half of the cargo may be exposed to vacuum and/or suffer temperature extremes (and is not necessarily liquid or gas, nor in detachable cargo containers), though some ore haulers have a small pressurized hold for more valuable cargoes. O = Ore
Tanker	TF	Regent class Station Tanker	Tankers are specially designed to haul cargoes of either liquid or gas. Many are specially designed and can not take alternate types of cargo. For example, a hydrogen carrier can not normally be used to transport ammonia. There are some specialized tankers where entire storage modules are swapped out, not unlike bulk cargo carriers, but these are more the exception than the rule. F = Fuel
Heavy Transport	TH	Gargantuan class Heavy Transport	Heavy Transports are a size-displacement category that includes transport vessels between 250,000 to 499,999 tons in displacement. H = Heavy
Jump Ship	TJ	Brown class Jump Ship	Jump Ships operate like commercial tenders or ship transporters and are specialized to carry irregular shaped loads or very large cargos. Some work as jump shuttles and attach to other non-jump-capable vessels while others latch onto other vessels and create a truly enormous jump bubble. They are not always the most economic option, but when needed, there is no other substitute. They are also known as Jump Shuttles or Combat Support Tenders among other terms, depending on their use or application. This category covers civilian applications of the technology. J = Jump Ship, Jump Shuttle, Jump Train, Irregular Load Hauler, etc.
Light Transport	TL	Refugee Pilgrim class Transport	Light Transports are a size-displacement category that includes transport vessels between 2,500 to 99,999 tons in displacement. L = Light
Medium Transport	TM	Caccil class Merchant	Medium Transports are a size-displacement category that includes transport vessels between 100,000 to 249,999 tons in displacement. M = Medium
Super Heavy Transport	TS	Three Sisters class Heavy Jump Transport	Super Heavy Transports are a size-displacement category that includes transport vessels between 500,000 to 999,999 tons in displacement. S = Super Heavy
Ship Transporter / Commercial Tender	TV	Mariner class Frame Carrier	Ship Transporters are similar to carriers and tenders, but instead of military subcraft, they carry civilian subcraft. The concept is similar to the battle rider concept, except in a civilian application. The class also includes various kinds of jump ships or jump trains, specialized to carry variable cargos, or as jump shuttles. V = Vehicle Carrier, Subcraft Carrier, Jump ConVeyance, Jump Shuttles, Ship Transporter, etc.
NOTES: There is semantic overlap between many of the classes and codes. Some codes organize by mission or capability, others by size and tonnage, and yet others by other characteristics.

History & Background (Dossier)

Transporters and tankers have carried a stable fifth of the interstellar shipping economy for several thousand years, only broken by periods of unrest, war, and anarchy such as the Long Night. Naval architecture has grown quite sophisticated over the many years of civilization within Charted Space. All sorts of technologies have been used and developed with these craft where significant economies of scale can be exploited and experimented with.

Selected Variant Types & Classes

Civilian Ship - Merchant Ship - Transport:
Type T class Transport:

1. Type TC class Bulk Cargo Carrier
   1. Aspirant class Provincial Carrier
   2. Chtierabl class Transport
   3. Connestoga class Heavy Carrier
   4. Conveyor class Heavy Freighter
   5. Empress class Bulk Carrier
   6. Fat Jack class Bulk Freighter
   7. Goliath class Provincial Freighter
   8. Hercules class Commercial Tender
   9. Jack Driscoll class Bulk Freighter
   10. Kobe class Bulk Carrier
   11. Last Armada class Heavy Transport
   12. Pegasus class Bulk Cargo Carrier
   13. Port of Nickle Eugenia class Bulk Container Vessel
   14. Reynolds Meyers Briggs class Heavy Merchant
   15. Sao class Heavy Merchant
   16. Suluru class Mercantile Carrier
2. Type TCO class Ore Hauler
   1. Roca Maestro class Modular Ore Hauler
3. Type TCG class Grain Hauler
   1. Average Cargo Ship class Cargo Ship
4. Type TF class Tanker
   1. Baleen class Heavy Tanker
   2. Kleinnächster class Medium Tanker
   3. Last Armada class Frontier Tanker
   4. Nimrod class Fuel Lighter
   5. Orowani Deep Space class Heavy Tanker
   6. Provision class Medium Tanker
   7. Regent class Station Tanker
   8. Type 058A Fedko class Tanker
   9. Valdez class Fleet Tanker
5. Type TH class Heavy Transport
   1. Gargantuan class Heavy Transport
6. Type TJ class Jump Ship
   1. Brown class Jump Ship
7. Type TL class Light Transport
   1. Refugee Pilgrim class Transport
8. Type TM class Medium Transport
   1. Caccil class Merchant
   2. Fornorb class Heavy Merchant
9. Type TS class Super Transport
   1. Three Sisters class Heavy Jump Transport

Civilian Ship - Merchant Ship - Ship Transporter:

1. Type TV class Ship Transporter
   1. Brilliant Gem class Cruise Liner
   2. Brown class Jump Ship
   3. Brutus class Ship Transporter
   4. Corporate class Range Carrier
   5. Endeavor class Ship Transporter
   6. High Liner class Bulk Freighter
   7. Mariner class Frame Carrier
   8. Marius class Ship Transporter
   9. Orowani Deep Space class Commercial Tender
   10. Sagacity class Bulk Freighter
   11. Type JS class Jump Ship

Ship Summary List

Some of the most commonly used vessels in this role or these roles include:

1 Representative Transport (T) Classes
Class Mission Code TL Tons Jump G Origin Canon Quick ship profile Class Mission Code TL Tons Jump G Origin Canon Quick ship profile Cadence Gaul class Troop Transport TT 10 4,000 1 6 Maujen Defense Bureau TBD

0 Representative Bulk Cargo Carrier (TC) Classes
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0 Representative Grain Hauler (TCG) Classes
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0 Representative Ore Hauler (TCO) Classes
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0 Representative Tanker (TF) Classes
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0 Representative Heavy Transport (TH) Classes
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0 Representative Jump Ship Transport (TJ) Classes
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0 Representative Light Transport (TL) Classes
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0 Representative Medium Transport (TM) Classes
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0 Representative Superheavy Transport (TS) Classes
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0 Representative Jump Shuttle / Ship Transporter (TV) Classes
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References & Contributors (Sources)

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.

• This article is an amalgamation of many different materials published since 1977.
• Fighting Ships of the Shattered Imperium
• Traveller Wiki Editorial Team
• Author & Contributor: Adrian Tymes
• Author & Contributor: Lord (Marquis) and Master of Sophontology Maksim-Smelchak of the Ministry of Science