Be more careful
21 Nov 2024Hig Hurtenflurst
For most of this trip I’ve flown my stalwart choice, the DBX. Anyone who flys a DBX will tell you that it is slow in the void but handles well close to a planet surface. Like many current explorers I have recently taken delivery of a new Mandalay, kitted out nicely for exploration. There is a stark contrast between the Mandalay and DBX in that in all aspects apart from hyperspace jump distance they are opposite. One of the best ways to find that valuable biology on a planet surface is to fly low and simply look out of the window. A DBX has a nice flat keel, perfect for this. Skim along watching from left to right. If you can’t see what you’re looking for then full throttle and boost, watch for the ridges, apply a little vertical thrust, drop down into a crater or canyon, just keep the nose up. Before you know it you’ve covered a thousand kilometres and you’re in fresh territory.
Now doing this in a Mandalay is a whole different story. If you’ve looked at one of these superbly versatile ships you will have notice that attached to the otherwise flat keel is what can only be described as a small square family apartment building. In a landing configuration this sits just a few meters from the planet surface which is perfect for SRV entrance and egress.
So there I was, in the shiny new Mandalay, throttle fully open, boost recently activated and skimming along at a touch under 400m/s. I can see a ridge rapidly rising up before me, I’m not concerned, just a little vertical thrust and I will clear the crest. In my brain I am confidently flying the Mandalay but my muscle memory is still flying the DBX… an ear shattering clang fills the flight deck as the family apartment building firmly attached to my underside instantly shatters a boulder the size of an Asp into dust. In the space of 2 seconds the ship has turned 3 somersaults. Fighting the yoke to regain control I no longer know which way is up. Half a second later the attitude stabilisers have done their work and I gently put the ship down on a flat plain. Shields went down in an instant upon impact and are slowly coming online. There’s severe hull damage, integrity is down to 67%. Thankfully the inertial dampeners weren’t overloaded on impact or I think I would have bitten off my own kneecap!
All this while I am still 3000ly from Amundsen’s star. I’m not carrying any hull repair limpets so will need to take things steady until I can book a repair.