The shuttle bay was a room in space vessels designed to store the smaller vessels and shuttlecraft. It also acted as a means to take in or unload cargo, celestial objects like fragments of dysonium,[1] or other spaceships.
The shuttle bay was usually the largest room in a ship, so it often served other purposes like award ceremonies,[2] funerals,[3] concerts,[4] and staff meetings.[5] When the Kaylon commandeered the USS Orville in January and February 2421, for example, they held its crew captive in its shuttle bay.[6]
Planetary Union[]
The shuttle bay was the largest room on most Planetary Union ships. On the USS Orville, the shuttle bay was located on Deck E at the farthest end of the ship. The room had arrows on the ground to direct personnel in and out and to mark landing locations. In each of the four corners of the bay was an autonomous load lifter. The two sides of the room were lined with hatched storage compartments for "emergency rescue equipment, fire suppression systems, environmental suits, and decontamination gear."[7]
Shielding the shuttle bay from the vacuum of space were large pressure doors.[7] When the doors were open, the bay protected by a "force field"[7][8] that maintained pressure and sealed in the ship's atmosphere. The force field consisted of a graviton field that could be adjusted "to ease transition for non-human visitors from their environment into the Orville's Earth-like conditions."[7][9]
The shuttle bay was overlooked by an Observation Deck (also called a flight control chamber), probably accessed on Deck D.[10] The Observation Deck was separated from the bay by a large polyglass partition. A flight controller guided shuttlecraft through the bay and monitored safety systems.[11]
Beneath the shuttle bay floor was a below-deck hangar, accessible by the two autonomous load lifters closest to the hallway doors, where most shuttles and cargo were stored. Cargo could be moved out of the hangar to other parts of the ship. Also in the hangar were "storage compartments, equipment bays, repair bays, pneumatic transfer tubes, dysonium tanks, and spare parts." Heavy cargo could be moved by autonomous utility carts. These carts could even leave the ship via a hatch exiting to outer space; the cart would attach to the outer hull and ride the hull to another hatch to re-enter the ship.[11]
The shuttle bay was the location of choice for large assemblies and special occasions. Concerts were occasionally given by large orchestras, and the physical shape of the force field of the room could tweaked slightly to improve the room's acoustics.[7]
The Orville always kept one Falcon-class shuttle on "hot" standby in the shuttle bay, ready to fly at any moment, while the others were kept on "cold" standby, ready to be flown after preparation. After the Battle of Earth, the Orville decided to always keep a Pterodon on hot standby as well. In fact, an autonomous load lift near the pressure doors a was dedicated just to the Pterodon, and re-designed to be adjustable to create a ramp, allowing the fighter to launch from the lift itself.[11] All shuttlecraft activity was recorded in the shuttle bay log.[12]
An access conduit connected the shuttle bay to areas such as the armory and the communications array. Half a meter wide, the conduit could not accommodate adult humanoids but can be traversed by children and gelatins.[13]
Krill[]
Each Krill destroyer houses a Shuttle Bay for shuttlecraft and, probably, Marauder-class fighters.[14]
Trivia[]
- The Orville's Shuttle Bay is by far the largest interior set, measuring 83 x 85 feet, with an additional observation room that begins 30 feet up.[15]
Appearances[]
- Episode 1x01: Old Wounds
- Episode 1x02: Command Performance
- Episode 1x06: Krill
- Episode 1x09: Cupid's Dagger
- Episode 1x10: Firestorm
- Episode 1.5x03: The Word of Avis, Pt. 1
- Episode 1.5x04: The Word of Avis, Pt. 2
- Episode 3x01: Electric Sheep
- Episode 3x09: Domino
References[]
- ↑ Episode 2x02: Primal Urges
- ↑ Episode 1x02: Command Performance
- ↑ Episode 1x10: Firestorm
- ↑ Episode 2x06: A Happy Refrain
- ↑ Episode 1x01: Old Wounds
- ↑ Episode 2x09: Identity, Pt. 2
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 André Bormanis. The Guide to The Orville. Dark Horse Books. Sept. 2024. Pg. 35.
- ↑ Steve Newton. Episode 1x02: Command Performance
- ↑ Bond, Jeff. The World of the Orville. Titan Books. 2018. Pg. 81.
- ↑ The reason is that the Observation Deck is accessed on its own floor, and that floor seems to be one deck above the Shuttle Bay's access doors. See Episode 1.5x03: The Word of Avis, Pt. 1. Because Shuttle Bay is on Deck E, it stands to reason that the Observation Deck is on Deck D.
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 André Bormanis. The Guide to The Orville. Dark Horse Books. Sept. 2024. Pg. 38.
- ↑ Episode 2x01: Ja'loja
- ↑ Episode 2x09: Identity, Pt. 2
- ↑ Episode 2x04: Nothing Left on Earth Excepting Fishes
- ↑ Lineweaver, Stephen & Robert Strohmaier. "The Orville: A Chance to Design the Future". ADG Perspective. July-Aug. 2018. Pg. 98.