Free Trader 2 - Modular Hanger Deck Detail

Mechanical pencil on cartridge paper.

Following on from the modular free trader design, details of a scabbed-on hanger deck for smaller ships such as landers and close-orbit vehicles.

The military applications are obvious. When needs are great, the military would need the equivalent of STUFT vessels (Ships Taken Up From Trade) to augment the fighting vessels. A trader may suddenly find his or her ship requisitioned for a modest fee, secure in the knowledge that it would be there to help the common good - until it was blown to pieces by an enemy vessel! (My father-in-law was a radio operator in the Merchant Navy during the Second World War and had three ships sunk beneath him, so I believe I can speak with some authority on this matter).