then as soon as the ship was accepted from Wannstead it was flown here and installed inside."
"That must have been a neat piloting trick."
Jergens grinned. "The side walls of the hanger are set on rails. The whole building moves. Man, when Wannstead brought these ships into service it sure caused a paradigm shift in space flight. Who ever dreamed we'd have interstellar ships that could land and take off from planets twenty years ago?"
"Or interstellar ships at all, for that matter. I sure didn't," Keane admitted with a chuckle. "I was a teenager then and hoping I'd get to Mars on a rocket in my lifetime, then Wannstead suddenly popped up with the quantum drive and the gravitic technology to control it. Was there anything else besides the shield I need to know, or was that the last of your little Christmas presents?" He reached up to catch his hat to keep it from blowing off in a sudden wind gust. Beneath it he wore his dark brown hair rather long for the military. Strands of it peeked from beneath his cover.
"That's about it for deployed systems. We'll be there in a moment," Jergens answered. "I think you'll like what you see."
The building loomed ever larger as they neared. It was like looking up at a mountain, Keane thought, reminiscing about previous ship duty. He had served as executive officer on Wanderlost for a year of exploration and already had a feel for the size of the interstellar ships. After that he'd thought he was going to be captaining the Spectre but an abrupt change of orders gave him this one. It made for a surprise when the golf cart entered the hanger and he saw that the new class loomed larger than he had imagined, even after seeing the specs. It was the third class of ship since Wannstead began building them and the largest by far. He could see already that he, and his astrogator and helmsperson, would all have to practice piloting it.
"I'm impressed already," he commented as he stepped out of the cart and gazed upward at the bow end of the goliath. It was the size of a wet navy supercarrier and yet was able to land on earth. That aspect alone made the ship impressive. Contrary to its size, it carried a crew of only eight hundred as compared to four thousand or more for the big carriers that still plied the world's oceans. However, this particular ship was going to have about six hundred marines, almost a battalion, and all their supplies and ammunition, along with four assault shuttles to go with them.
"Just wait until you see the inside. The control room has been redesigned to give you more space and a couple more workstations have been added, each of them with backup computers. The ship's AI also has two backups." He glanced slyly at Keane. "The Captain's cabin has been sized upward in proportion to the larger ship, too. I have a notion you'll appreciate that."
Keane shrugged. "I'll take it, whatever the size."
An improvised gangplank allowed entrance to the ship. It was being temporarily kept under low power from the base electrical system, allowing lighting and minimal use of facilities. An elevator took them to a passageway that led forward to where the control room was housed. Keane entered then stopped just beyond the hatch.
"You were right. This is great!" He gazed around at the half circle where workstations were indented into a number of alcoves. There were three blank spots which could be used for future upgrades, a design philosophy he heartily approved of. Each of the stations contained two small side screens for auxiliary use, and controls to display both a holograph and a flat screen. Set well above the workstations, keyboards, input controls and other paraphernalia of the console arc, were three huge screens. The one in the center dominated but the other two were also large and placed for easy viewing by all personnel. At the very center of the consoles was an extra-large station containing a chair designed for both comfort and support while the ship was maneuvering. It had a
"That must have been a neat piloting trick."
Jergens grinned. "The side walls of the hanger are set on rails. The whole building moves. Man, when Wannstead brought these ships into service it sure caused a paradigm shift in space flight. Who ever dreamed we'd have interstellar ships that could land and take off from planets twenty years ago?"
"Or interstellar ships at all, for that matter. I sure didn't," Keane admitted with a chuckle. "I was a teenager then and hoping I'd get to Mars on a rocket in my lifetime, then Wannstead suddenly popped up with the quantum drive and the gravitic technology to control it. Was there anything else besides the shield I need to know, or was that the last of your little Christmas presents?" He reached up to catch his hat to keep it from blowing off in a sudden wind gust. Beneath it he wore his dark brown hair rather long for the military. Strands of it peeked from beneath his cover.
"That's about it for deployed systems. We'll be there in a moment," Jergens answered. "I think you'll like what you see."
The building loomed ever larger as they neared. It was like looking up at a mountain, Keane thought, reminiscing about previous ship duty. He had served as executive officer on Wanderlost for a year of exploration and already had a feel for the size of the interstellar ships. After that he'd thought he was going to be captaining the Spectre but an abrupt change of orders gave him this one. It made for a surprise when the golf cart entered the hanger and he saw that the new class loomed larger than he had imagined, even after seeing the specs. It was the third class of ship since Wannstead began building them and the largest by far. He could see already that he, and his astrogator and helmsperson, would all have to practice piloting it.
"I'm impressed already," he commented as he stepped out of the cart and gazed upward at the bow end of the goliath. It was the size of a wet navy supercarrier and yet was able to land on earth. That aspect alone made the ship impressive. Contrary to its size, it carried a crew of only eight hundred as compared to four thousand or more for the big carriers that still plied the world's oceans. However, this particular ship was going to have about six hundred marines, almost a battalion, and all their supplies and ammunition, along with four assault shuttles to go with them.
"Just wait until you see the inside. The control room has been redesigned to give you more space and a couple more workstations have been added, each of them with backup computers. The ship's AI also has two backups." He glanced slyly at Keane. "The Captain's cabin has been sized upward in proportion to the larger ship, too. I have a notion you'll appreciate that."
Keane shrugged. "I'll take it, whatever the size."
An improvised gangplank allowed entrance to the ship. It was being temporarily kept under low power from the base electrical system, allowing lighting and minimal use of facilities. An elevator took them to a passageway that led forward to where the control room was housed. Keane entered then stopped just beyond the hatch.
"You were right. This is great!" He gazed around at the half circle where workstations were indented into a number of alcoves. There were three blank spots which could be used for future upgrades, a design philosophy he heartily approved of. Each of the stations contained two small side screens for auxiliary use, and controls to display both a holograph and a flat screen. Set well above the workstations, keyboards, input controls and other paraphernalia of the console arc, were three huge screens. The one in the center dominated but the other two were also large and placed for easy viewing by all personnel. At the very center of the consoles was an extra-large station containing a chair designed for both comfort and support while the ship was maneuvering. It had a
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