What is your favorite fictional spaceship?

[Zombie_61]

Yeah, but realistically, with the exception of a head-on attack, the pilot is decently protected. Also, the cockpit offers excellent forward visibility and pretty good side visibility.

There's also the later-model Starfury Thunderbolt, which looks more like a traditional atmospheric fighter and includes actual airfoils and a fuselage, with the cockpit positioned as you'd expect in a fighter jet...

To tell the truth, I've never seen Babylon 5 so I'll have to take your word for it.

 

[Vincent V]

Enterprise C (Yesterday's Enterprise TNG)
Enterprise (TOS)
Enterprise (TMP)
Klingon BOP
Serenity
Max (Flight of the Navigator)
Ebon Hawk (SW:KOTOR)

Never thought I see a list that includes Enterprise C but not D.

It seems like most people forget about the Enterprise B and C, but they were great ships.

 

[Inquisitor Peregrinus]

I like the design of the Starfury, except for sticking the cockpit front and center with nothing to protect the pilot but a thin frame and a bit of glass. :facepalm

There's also the later-model Starfury Thunderbolt, which looks more like a traditional atmospheric fighter and includes actual airfoils and a fuselage, with the cockpit positioned as you'd expect in a fighter jet.

Yet it still retains the directional thrusters at the end of each wing.

To tell the truth, I've never seen Babylon 5 so I'll have to take your word for it.

Those winglets at top and bottom are what rotate out in upper-atmo as control surfaces.

--Jonah

 

[astroboy]

Not to mention that there are many far worse designs as far practicality as a fighter goes. Take the fighters from Buck Rogers for instance, lots of blind spots with the heavy framing around the canopy, and there's the wide body which you're not going to see anybody/or anything that's below you in a pretty wide radius because of that. The same goes for the A-Wing, horrible visibility below you and I think that it has pretty poor visibility to the rear as well.

The falcon has the worst blind spot of all time.

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[Solo4114]

Not to mention that there are many far worse designs as far practicality as a fighter goes. Take the fighters from Buck Rogers for instance, lots of blind spots with the heavy framing around the canopy, and there's the wide body which you're not going to see anybody/or anything that's below you in a pretty wide radius because of that. The same goes for the A-Wing, horrible visibility below you and I think that it has pretty poor visibility to the rear as well.

If memory serves, the A-wing has a bubble cockpit similar to a P-51D. The rear blind spots come from the two rear wings located at your 4/5 and 7/8. The wedge shape, though, does block lower visibility, though, unless you roll the craft.

To tell the truth, I've never seen Babylon 5 so I'll have to take your word for it.

It's a terrific show, but (A) the F/X are woefully out of date (and can't really be fixed, because the live footage mixed in with them got forced into low-quality SD due to production screwups, and (B) its design is very "90s." That said, if you can get past those aspects and a first season that seems largely pointless (but ultimately provides rich background on the characters), it's an amazing story. It also had the benefit of having a single writer for probably about 75-80% of the show's run.

The falcon has the worst blind spot of all time.

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Yeah, but that's a bit more acceptable in a light freighter than in a combat fighter. That said...man, you're really relying on instruments when you're in the Falcon...

 

[Riceball]

If memory serves, the A-wing has a bubble cockpit similar to a P-51D. The rear blind spots come from the two rear wings located at your 4/5 and 7/8. The wedge shape, though, does block lower visibility, though, unless you roll the craft.

The 2 giant rudders do form a blind spot but that's not what I was thinking about, it's giant fairing behind the cockpit and runs all the way to the back of the A-Wing, that's the blind spot I'm talking about. While your forward visibility is pretty good you really can't see very well behind you at almost all angles. I guess it's a good thing that the A-Wing is primarily (believed to be) an interceptor where you wouldn't be, theoretically, doing much dogfighting.

 

[annanake]

the Swordfish II and in the background Is a not so accurate version of the Red Tail from cowboy bebop . the Swordfish was a one manned light fast fighter with one huge laser cannon on it . took a while between shots but it could take down anything it hit .

 

[jarroth]

TOS battlestar galactica
krenim temporal weapon ship

 

[Krull]

Yeah, but that's a bit more acceptable in a light freighter than in a combat fighter. That said...man, you're really relying on instruments when you're in the Falcon...

I love Star Wars and all,and I like the TIE fighters but....how the HELL are you supposed to fly one? you can see straight out the front and that's it,well I think they have a rear window but your visibility is still el sucko and I could see if they made a real one it'd be fantastic at crashing into things.

 

[Solo4114]

I love Star Wars and all,and I like the TIE fighters but....how the HELL are you supposed to fly one? you can see straight out the front and that's it,well I think they have a rear window but your visibility is still el sucko and I could see if they made a real one it'd be fantastic at crashing into things.

Um....cameras on the wings that display on the pilot's helmet! Sensors that provide a 360 degree sense of what's around you! Transparisteel wings!

Yeah, I got nothin'. They're deathtraps on anything other than a forward strafing run.

 

[Riceball]

Um....cameras on the wings that display on the pilot's helmet! Sensors that provide a 360 degree sense of what's around you! Transparisteel wings!

Yeah, I got nothin'. They're deathtraps on anything other than a forward strafing run.

They'd have to incorporate that sort of technology to really make the TIE viable as a fighter, otherwise your visibility is really horrible and you'd have to jink like mad and randomly in order to survive a dog fight. As the old fighter adage goes, lose the sight, lose the fight. Of course, it's likely the TIEs have nothing all that sophisticated sensor wise because they're described as being pretty cheap and (supposedly) the TIE Interceptor addresses the issue of lateral visibility with the cutouts in its 'wings'. But this only helps a little since the canopy still doesn't wrap around the sides very much and you're sitting pretty far back in the body of the TIE providing a pretty narrow field of view, cutouts or no cutouts.

I think that the best all around fighter, from a realism point of view, in all of sci-fi has to go the B5 Starfury, followed by the X-wing, which wins out in terms of visibility for the pilot. As cool as they look I think the worst has to the Viper, from both incarnations of BS, those things have horrible rearward visibility with those massive engines sitting behind the cockpit, and downwards visibility is somewhat impaired by the wings extending so far forward but is far better than the Buck Rogers fighter and the A-Wing. Actually, scratch that the Draconian Marauder from Buck Rogers has to take the prize for horrible fighter design, you have terrible all around visibility and rather large and prominent cockpit.

 

[Angelus Lupus]

Never thought I see a list that includes Enterprise C but not D.

It seems like most people forget about the Enterprise B and C, but they were great ships.

As much as I like TNG, the D has a few angles that really don't work for me, like the flattened-out-to-nothing rear, or the shuttlebay on the saucer that looks like a handle... Also the glaring differences between the 4 and 6 foot models puts me off.
So it's always been the Ambassador for me, original or refit.

 

[autoprops713]

Nell. Because of the Cameron connection...

 

[Sluis Van Shipyards]

It's a terrific show, but (A) the F/X are woefully out of date (and can't really be fixed, because the live footage mixed in with them got forced into low-quality SD due to production screwups, and (B) its design is very "90s." That said, if you can get past those aspects and a first season that seems largely pointless (but ultimately provides rich background on the characters), it's an amazing story. It also had the benefit of having a single writer for probably about 75-80% of the show's run.

If anyone hasn't watched Babylon 5, go do so now. It takes a while to get through some of the first episodes before the really cool stuff happens, but it's worth it. It's one of the only shows where the expertly set up things in early episodes that you find out about later on and go "Whoa, that's what that was!!!" The FX aren't a deal breaker IMO. They are old, but still look okay. It was very underrated. I watched the pilot when it originally came on and dismissed it as a DS9 ripoff, but it is so much better.

 

[astroboy]

As much as I like TNG, the D has a few angles that really don't work for me, like the flattened-out-to-nothing rear, or the shuttlebay on the saucer that looks like a handle... Also the glaring differences between the 4 and 6 foot models puts me off.
So it's always been the Ambassador for me, original or refit.

The D doesn't work for me. I can't stand that the nacelles are lower than the saucer.

And the Oval shape of the saucer looks odd too.

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[Dessa]

Oh, forgot to put the other one Mom said was her favorite: The Andromeda.

 

[Solos blaster]

I was a huge MF fan and never though any ship could replace her...but then I watched a little show called Firefly and I don't know which I prefer, MF or Serenity. Both have their appeal. One seems like a space "hot rod" and the other a home.

A very strong 2nd place is the Normandy...probably v2. but both are awesome.


For anything larger, the Executer hands down.

A fighter sized, the new X wing(or old), B wing, and or an A wing(blindspots be damned lol). The shorter fuselage of the newer model X wings have REALLY grown on me since TFA. I've always loved the tough, yet odd shaped B wing and the A wing just looks frickin wicked...almost like a fighter sized Star Destroyer lol.

 

[Inquisitor Peregrinus]

I watched the [Babylon 5] pilot when it originally came on and dismissed it as a DS9 ripoff, but it is so much better.

Ironically, Joe shopped it to Paramount, they passed, he developed it independently, and was kinda pissed that shortly after his visit Paramount announced they were developing a space-station-based Star Trek series. I love both, but I also have no illusions about who ripped off whom...

--Jonah

 

[Zombie_61]

If memory serves, the A-wing has a bubble cockpit similar to a P-51D. The rear blind spots come from the two rear wings located at your 4/5 and 7/8. The wedge shape, though, does block lower visibility, though, unless you roll the craft...*snip*...man, you're really relying on instruments when you're in the Falcon...

I love Star Wars and all,and I like the TIE fighters but....how the HELL are you supposed to fly one? you can see straight out the front and that's it,well I think they have a rear window but your visibility is still el sucko and I could see if they made a real one it'd be fantastic at crashing into things.

I think that the best all around fighter, from a realism point of view, in all of sci-fi has to go the B5 Starfury, followed by the X-wing, which wins out in terms of visibility for the pilot. As cool as they look I think the worst has to the Viper, from both incarnations of BS, those things have horrible rearward visibility with those massive engines sitting behind the cockpit, and downwards visibility is somewhat impaired by the wings extending so far forward but is far better than the Buck Rogers fighter and the A-Wing. Actually, scratch that the Draconian Marauder from Buck Rogers has to take the prize for horrible fighter design, you have terrible all around visibility and rather large and prominent cockpit.

Let's face it--from a real-world perspective most sci-fi ships are rubbish. But they look cool and have won a special place in our minds and hearts, so that's really what counts.

If anyone hasn't watched Babylon 5, go do so now.

Okay. Where?

 

[Vincent V]

As much as I like TNG, the D has a few angles that really don't work for me, like the flattened-out-to-nothing rear, or the shuttlebay on the saucer that looks like a handle... Also the glaring differences between the 4 and 6 foot models puts me off.
So it's always been the Ambassador for me, original or refit.

An unusual preference in my experience. But hey, I can respect that. The Ambassador class is a great looking ship.