[gurps] [Vehicle] TL8 "Pigeon"

[DataPacRat]

On 10/09/2007, DataPacRat <datapacrat at gmail.com>

> > An entirely new class of smart bomb, the Pigeon, was developed. They were called
> > Pigeons because they could be launched in flocks that could number a thousand bombs
> > and had a tendency to wheel about in the air like a flock of pigeons. The flock would
> > make its way to the target area using GPS technology and terrain following algorithms.
> > The flock would seek out targets and, through a negotiation process, one and only one
> > bomb would attack a target with the rest searching for the next target. The bombs could
> > be programmed to seek out vehicles, buildings, and even specific humans as targets.
> >
> > Ahead of the tanks and helicopters were tens of thousands of smart bombs called
> > Pigeons that picked their own targets. Although the amount of explosives carried by any
> > single Pigeon was small, the group behavior destroyed any form of resistance. The
> > results were even more spectacular when one of them would explode in a weapons
> > storage area. If the Pigeons couldn't destroy a target, they sent back data for a cruise
> > missile to be sent to the target.
> >
> > When one wave of Pigeons was consumed, another wave was launched. The [good
> > guys] weren't interested in advancing or holding territory. The soldiers were too busy
> > setting up the next wave of Pigeons. It took almost two hours for ten thousand men to
> > set up thirty thousand Pigeons for launch.
> >
> > When night fell, the attack didn't slow down. Three separate waves of Pigeons with
> > infrared cameras were released. Anything with a heat signature that differed from the
> > background was targeted.

Well, I don't know what I was doing wrong with my first attempt, but
after I started from scratch with a new GVB template, I have, in fact,
been able to cobble together some stats that seem like a workable
representation of the above.

With this draft, a flock of 30,000 still costs about $79 million, even
with the 'cheap' option. Not an insignificant investment, and any
suggestions on reducing the individual cost would probably be
worthwhile.

-----8<-----
TL8 Pigeon

Crew: 0 total. 0 crew stations covering vehicle maneuvering system,
communicator, navigation aid, sensor.

Subassemblies: Vehicle -3, Body -4, Wings -4, Wheels -4.

P&P: 1,455-kWs advanced battery, 0.3-kW ornithopter drivetrain (no
access space) [Wings].

Fuel:

Occ: 	Cargo:

Armor  F   RL  B   T   U
Body   1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1
Wings  1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1
Wheels 1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1

Weaponry      Malf Type Damage  SS Acc 1/2D yds Max yds RoF TL
self-destruct Crit Exp  24d[4d] -  6   0        0       -   8

Equipment
All: modest sound baffling (-2 hearing modifier); basic chameleon (-3
spotting modifier); self-sealing hull.  Body: short range radio
communicator (10-mile range; scrambler); LLTV (magnification x1);
inertial compass; tiny robot brain (complexity 1, +0 DX; compact);
thermograph (scan 7, 0.25-mile range); 40mm self-destruct (normal HE
warhead; self destruct).

Statistics
Size: [LxWxH] 1.53'x0.382'x0.191'	Payload: 0.26 lbs.	Lwt.: 7.67 lbs.

Volume: 0.112 cf	Maint.: 195 hours (0.491 mh/day)	Price: $2,620

HT: 11	HP: 1 [Body], 0 each [Wings], 0 each [3xWheels].
Aerial Performance, backswept: Stall Speed 60 mph, Drag 0.043, Top
Speed 230 mph, aAccel 0.8 mph/s, aMR 43, aSR 3, aDecel 170 mph/s.

Aerial Performance, outswept: Stall Speed 30 mph, Drag 0.043, Top
Speed 115 mph, aAccel 0.8 mph/s, aMR 44, aSR 3, aDecel 175 mph/s.

Wheeled Ground Performance: Speed Factor 16, Top Speed 285 mph, gAccel
14 mph/s, gDecel 10 mph/s, gMR 0.5, gSR 2, Ground Pressure 539
lbs./sf, Off Road Speed 140 mph.


Design Notes:
TL8 robotic super light frame very cheap materials (Using greater of
volume or surface area) [Vehicle].
TL8 DR 1 advanced composite [Vehicle].
Operating Duration:  2 H 40 M 33 S.
Payload Cost: $5.2
Vehicle Features: computerized controls, radical streamlining, cheaply made.
Wings: standard, folding, auto-variable.
Wheels: quantity 3, retract into body.
Volume: 0.095 cf [Body], 0.012 cf [Wings], 0.005 cf [Wheels].
Area: 1.25 sf [Body], 0.472 sf [Wings], 0.17 sf [Wheels].
Aerial Performance, backswept: external item drag 0, payload 0, sweep
back-swept, use VXii stall speed;
Aerial Performance, outswept: external item drag 0, payload 0, sweep
out-swept, use VXii stall speed;
Wheeled Ground Performance:;

----->8-----


Thank you for your time,
-- 
DataPacRat         VA3BOS
"You shall not accept any information, unless you verify it for
yourself. I have given you the hearing, the eyesight, and the brain,
and you are responsible for using them." -- Qur'an 17:36, Khalifa
translation.