Egusa-class shuttle

The Mitsushishi **Egusa-class** shuttle is a standard light utility craft in common use throughout the Yamatai Imperial Military and the Government of Yamatai as a transport for troops, cargo and high-ranking individuals. Its iconic appearance has become one of the lasting symbols of Yamatai's government and military, due to its widespread use within the Empire.

Mitsushishi denies allegations that the entire design was stolen wholesale from somewhere.

## Design

The Egusa-class shuttle is based on a tri-wing design with a central stationary wing flanked by a pair of folding wings. When in flight position, the wing configuration resembles an inverted Y. When landing, the lower wings fold upwards. This design feature was implemented as a means to further protect the ship's occupants from ground fire as it touches down.

The Egusa-class is designed as both a secure official transport shuttle and a cargo and troop transport. It can carry 80 tons of cargo or 20 passengers. It has a crew of five, consisting of a pilot, co-pilot, navigator, communications officer and gunner. During emergencies or non-essential missions such as switching hangars, the shuttle may be flown by a skeleton crew of a pilot and co-pliot only. It is also equipped with a short-range interstellar FTL drive, allowing it to travel quickly within star systems and to neighbouring systems.

The cockpit is at the front of the craft, with the boarding ramp behind and under it. The main propulsion consists of a pair of ion engines. Cooling intakes are located on the fuselage, and formation lights are at the end of the wings.

The Egusa-class is reasonably well-armed, with a pair of dual 30mm cannons and a pair of dual beam guns as forward weaponry, as well as a third beam gun on a rear mount. It is also protected by a Yukitate Crystal Lattice and Laser-Resistant Coating. In addition to this, the Egusa-class is covered by a heavily reinforced hull capable of deflecting enemy small-arms and light weapon fire. The shuttle class is considered so well armed that it is able to roam freely without an escort, making it suitable for covert operations. In addition, the shuttle was equipped with a state-of-the-art communications grid.

In an emergency the cockpit can be jettisoned from the main body and travel a short distance at sublight speed. The lifeboat does not have enough space for all passengers when the shuttle has its full complement and therefore priority is given to the most senior officers on board.

## Operational use

The Egusa-class shuttle acts as the main consular shuttle and transport for politicians, diplomats and high-ranking military officers. While initially conceived as the sole transport craft of the military, over the years a dichotomy has emerged as higher-ranking officers use the relatively more comfortable Egusa-class while lower-ranked officers use the more spartan and shorter-ranged Seiran-class. The Egusa-class is also used for non-VIP transport matters, and is occasionally used as a covert operations troop transport and light cargo carrier.

A sort of colour-coding system may be observed in the shuttles. Consular and VIP-transport shuttles tend to be white, while the Yamatai Imperial Navy's shuttles are painted in a standard white and dark blue scheme, in grey drab, or in black. The Army and SNLF operate shuttles in digital camouflage typically suited to the environment they are expected to operate in.

Numerous variants of the Egusa-class exist to cater to the needs of the various branches of the Imperial Military and the Yamataian government. The modifications made do not change the craft in major ways, often being the removal of weapons, the addition of sensors, armour or even rumoured stealth capabilities.

Notably, the Empress of Yamatai owns a shuttle painted in the colours of the Imperial House, red, black and gold. This shuttle is rumoured to include additional modifications such as increased armour, internal rearrangements for the Empress' enjoyment, an upgraded FTL drive for long-range travel and even a functioning shield generator reverse-engineered from alien technology.

## Specifications (Egusa-class Block 380)

**General characteristics**

* Crew: 5
* Passenger Capacity:
	+ Standard: 20 passengers
	+ Alternatively: 8 passengers in staterooms
* Length: 20m
* Height: 19.8m
* Wingspan: 42m
* Propulsion: 2x RaMe-204 ion engines

**Armament**

* Forward:
	+ 2x twin-mounted Type-33 Beam Guns
	+ 2x twin-mounted Type-76 30mm automatic cannon
* Rear:
	+ 1x retractable Type-33 Beam Gun