UES Freedom

In the early years after earths first interstellar war, the degree of damage to earth and the loss of the majority of the human race to a single attack weighed heavily on the minds of the survivors. While most of humanity concerned itself with reconstructing earth, building a new civilization on the rubble of the old, many in the new United Earth Government were concerned about preventing another such incident. Opinions on the subject were split between those who believed a strong military capability would be sufficient to defend earth from any attackers, and those who believed that protecting humanity was the higher priority, advocating the creation of colony worlds so that the loss of any one world would not spell the end of the species. The UES Freedom and its two sister ships were designed during the prominence of the 'colonial' camp to be Galactic Survey Vessels, long range reconnaissance and exploration ships which would scout out prospective colony sites and identify potential enemies before they became a threat to earth. However their construction would be stalled and modified by the militarist camp, deployed initially as a short range exploration unit before being assigned to the newly created United Earth Expeditionary Force. The Freedom and its sister ships were Zentraedi Quiltra Queleual landing ships from the Imperioclas Fleet, which had been mothballed immediately after the end of the 1st war due to losses to their ships complements. With the capture of the Factory Satellite, these three ships were pulled out of mothballs, overhauled, and refitted for use by human crews. In order to accommodate the planned five year scouting missions, the designers incorporated the city in a ship concept used with the SDF-1, turning the vessel into a mobile colony itself. The addition of farming and industrial sections allowed it to be largely self sufficient during these missions. Originally it was intended to carry a much larger civilian compliment, however halfway through the initial refit the militarist camp gained increased influence, and the design was modified to include a full Marine division and a reinforced naval air wing at the expense of half of the civilian compliment.

The UES Freedom never served in its original design role. Prior to the creation of the UEEF, it was deployed as a short range exploration craft, scouting the region immediately around Sol for potential colony sites and rogue Zentraedi splinter fleets left over from the end of the 1st war. With the creation of the UEEF, these exploration missions were folded into that organizations mandate, along with the vessels assigned to them. When the UEEF began its focus on finding the Robotech Master's empire, the Freedom was reassigned to serve as the hub for deep range scouting missions, effectively a mobile star base servicing a task force of smaller shorter ranged recon vessels. During this time it engaged forces of the master's military along the fringes of their empire, as well as Zentraedi conquest fleets expanding the Empire. During the sentinels war the Freedom served as the flagship of the UEEF 2nd fleet, operating as detached task forces on the rim-ward front against the Invid Regency. After the sentinels war, the Freedom was reassigned to peacekeeping tours in the colonies, to free up newer vessels for the earth reclamation forces. With the start of 'The Shadow War' against the Haydonites, the UEEF command expects the Freedom to become an important vessel, along with other older vessels which are less reliant on frequent protoculture resupply.

Vessel Type: Modified Quiltra Queleual Landing Ship

Crew: 6000 Humans/Micronized Zentraedi

Combat Troops: 20,000 Humans/Micronized Zentraedi

Support Crew/Civilians: 200,000 Humans/Micronized Zentraedi

Speed:

Hover Over Land/Water: 150 MPH safely

Range Over Land/Water: Unlimited

Flying: 600mph (965kph)

Operational Ceiling: 7,200 Feet (2194 meters) before the ship must take up orbit in space.

Space:

Main Drives: Maximum sublight speed of 2,795,000 mph (4,498,000 kph, or roughly mach mach 3,677), or 0.00417c (1/240th the speed of light), attainable after 7 days of sustained acceleration (acceleration of roughly 0.09 mach per melee / 0.36 mach per minute / 21.8 mach per hour / 525.285 mach per day.)

Maximum Range: Limited only by supplies. the ships reflex furnace has sufficient protoculture fuel for 100 years of operation. On board expendables are sufficient for 10 years of standard operation. Shipboard expendables are supplemented by on board farms and hydroponics, which can supply the entire population indefinitely at minimum subsistence levels, and by on board resource processors and factories for non-foodstuffs, allowing basic repairs and replenishment of basic supplies.

Statistical Data:

Height: 1,640ft (500m)

Width: 13,12ft (400m)

Length: 9,843ft (3,000m)

Weight: 150,000,000 tons.

Cargo Capacity: [classified]

Power System: One capital class protoculture reflex furnace powering 4 single nozzle capital thruster arrays, numerous vernier thruster arrays, Zentraedi anti-gravity drive pods, and a zentraedi capital fold array.
Secondary power supplied by a human SLMH reflex furnace with a 10 week exclusive fuel supply. Secondary power is insufficient to operate the fold system, and can be extended to twice the operational duration if not powering the capital thruster arrays or anti-gravity drive pods.
Tertiary power is provided by deployable Solar power Sails. These sails cannot be employed in an atmosphere or on the surface of the planet. When solar sails are employed as the main source of power only the missile launchers and Mecha Launch tubes can be employed, all other offensive systems are offline. The capital thruster arrays, anti-gravity drive pods, and fold system will also be off-line. this system allows the vessel to operate as a in system space station, saving its protoculture and SLMH fuel.
Emergency power is provided by long duration nuclear fission reactor cores. emergency power priority is life support, artificial gravity, and sublight communications.

1. Retractable Close-In Weapon System (CIWS) Lasers (30): These medium caliber, rapid fire lasers are the vessel's chief anti-mecha weapons, mounted behind hidden hatches and providing all round coverage.

Primary Purpose: Anti-Mecha and Anti-Fighter

Secondary Purpose: Anti-ship

2. Rapid-Fire Torpedo Launchers (22): Mounted forward along the ventral hull below the bow, these launch tubes fire fast and powerful anti-ship torpedoes. While torpedoes are fast in a straight line, they are relatively clumsy and are mostly suitable only for anti-capital ship work and seiges on installations.

Primary Purpose: Anti-ship

Secondary Purpose: Anti-Installation

3. Anti-Mecha missile Launchers (70): The single tube short range missile turrets of the baseline Quiltra Queleual have been replaced with human built MDS-L-10 CIWS vertical launch silos, protected by retractable covers. Each silo holds 40 short range 190mm stand off aerospace defense missiles. These missiles are used primarily in the anti-mecha role, and are part of the vessel's Close in Weapon System network. each launcher holds 3 volleys of ten missiles at the ready, and an additional volley of 10 in an armored auto-loading magazine. Additional sets of 10 missiles can be loaded from inside the vessel in minutes, allowing mid battle resupply.

Primary Purpose: Anti-Mecha and Anti-Fighter

Secondary Purpose: Anti-ship

5. Anti-ship Missile Launchers (10): Ten of the Single tube short range missile turrets of the baseline Quiltra Queleual have been replaced with human built MDS-H-10

anti-ship guided missile vertical launch silos, protected by retractable covers. These launchers fire anti-ship guided tactical missiles with reflex warheads. Each silo holds 10 of these long range missiles, and can be reloaded from inside the ship in only minutes per missile, allowing mid battle resupply. These long range missiles are the primary anti-ship weaponry of the vessel, allowing it to engage and destroy other capital class warships.

Primary Purpose: Anti-ship

Secondary Purpose: Anti-Installation

4. Mecha and other Vehicles: In addition to her integral weapons, the Freedom has a large compliment of Mecha and combat vehicles, as well as non-combat vehicles. During its service life, the composition of its mecha forces have changed as older systems were retired and new systems were introduced. The following TO&E's represent its mecha compliment at different stages of its service life.

2018: (When initially deployed, supplies of mecha were still limited, and the ship launched with its veritech fighter wing understrength by almost 50%.)
6 UEDF Navy Fighter Squadrons (VF-1R Valkyrie, 15 veritechs per squadron, for 90 Veritechs, including 72 active duty and 18 reserve.)
2 UEDF Navy Electronic Attack Squadrons (VEF-1 EWAR Valkyrie, 15 veritechs per squadron, for 30 Veritechs, including 24 active duty and 6 reserve.)
4 UEDF Navy Attack Squadrons (SF/A-5 Conbat Strike Fighter, 15 fighters per squadron, for 60 fighters, including 48 active duty and 12 reserve.)
4 UEDF Marine Corps Fighter Squadrons (VF-1 Valkyrie, 15 veritechs per squadron, for 60 Veritechs, including 48 active duty and 12 reserve.)
9 UEDF Marine Corps Heavy Armor Platoons (126 MBR-04 Tomahawks, 14 mecha per platoon)
9 UEDF Marine Corps Mechanized Infantry Platoons (126 MBR-07 Spartan, 14 mecha per platoon)
12 UEDF Marine Corps Air Defense Platoons (112 ADR-04 Defenders, 56 SDR-04 Phalanx, 14 mecha per platoon)
2 UEDF Marine Corps Heavy Artillery Platoons (8 HWR-00 Monsters)
6 UEDF Marine Corps Armored Cavalry Platoon (84 VHT-01 Spartas, 14 mecha per Platoon.)
24 SHC-08 Star Goose Shuttlecraft
36 EVRP-1 Spiderbug
6 Frandlar Tiluvo class Zentraedi Re-entry Pod, refitted for human crews and modified for use as cargo transports and mecha landers.
6 Liewneatzs Class Zentraedi Shuttle Pod, refitted for human crews and modified for use as cargo pinnaces or mecha carriers.

2028:
24 UEEF Navy Attack Squadrons (SF/A-5 Conbat Strike Fighter, 15 fighters per squadron, for 360 fighters, including 288 active duty and 72 reserve.)
8 UEEF Navy fighter Squadrons (VF/A-6 Alpha Veritechs, 15 veritechs per squadron, for 120 Veritechs, including 96 active duty and 24 reserve.)
8 UEEF Marine Corps fighter Squadrons (VF/A-6 Alpha Veritechs, 15 veritechs per squadron, for 120 Veritechs, including 96 active duty and 24 reserve.)
30 UEEF Marine Corps Mechanized Infantry Platoons (420 MBR-12 MK.II Condor, 14 Mecha per platoon.)
6 UEEF Marine Corps Armored Cavalry Platoon (84 VHT-01 Spartas, 14 mecha per Platoon.)
4 Reinforced Marine Infantry Regiments (10,000 combat troops) (VR-040 series, VR-030 series Cyclones)
12 Horizon-T Transport Shuttles.
36 EVRP-1 Spiderbug6 Frandlar Tiluvo class Zentraedi Re-entry Pod, refitted for human crews and modified for use as cargo transports and mecha landers.
6 Liewneatzs Class Zentraedi Shuttle Pod, refitted for human crews and modified for use as cargo pinnaces and mecha carriers.

Hull Alterations
Outer Hull Passageway: The passageway between the outer hull on decks one, five, and seven, and round the main spaces on all other decks, have been filled with frozen water, providing an extra 600,000 gallons of potable (but frozen) water and serving as additional protection to those spaces from radiation and enemy fire.
Deck plan Alterations (compartment designations use the floor plan from Robotech 1st Edition Book 3 The Zentraedi)
Deck One: The Fighter and Battle Pod bay has been converted into multilevel bays to house the ships Shuttles, Veritechs, and fighters. Catapult tubes have been constructed in the ships launch airlocks to deploy the fighters quickly. The zentraedi sized quarters have been refitted for human sized occupants, replacing the single Zentraedi sized berths with apartment style buildings, as well as Gym's and mess halls.
Deck Two: the core compartments of this deck have been hollowed out and a small city has been constructed within them. (compartments 3, 4, and 5). This city includes a central park, a monorail mass transit system serving all parts of the city as well as most sections of the ship, several theaters, and many restaurants, arcades, and stores. compartment 6 has been converted into a large base for the Destroids and their pilots, similar to the mecha bay and crew quarter modifications on Deck One.
Deck Three: The crew berthing have been refitted as apartment complexes. The Mecha storage bay has been converted into a large park, and also houses the City Police headquarters and the ships Military Police station.
Deck Four: The cryogenics compartment and mecha bay have been refitted to store food and other supplies. Most of the Zentraedi cryogenics chambers have been removed, replaced with cargo pods for perishable goods and a medical cryogenics center. The Zentraedi berths have been refitted and expanded (taking space from the stasis chamber compartment) into a major hospital complex. the old zentraedi mecha bay has been refitted into a multilevel cargo warehouse complex with airlock loading dock for shuttles.
Deck Five: The zentraedi Officers quarters have been refitted as high end apartment complexes.
Deck Six: Half of the holds on this deck have been converted to resource warehouses and automated factories, allowing quick replacement of spare parts, ammunition, and other basic material needs. The other quarter have been converted into Hydroponics Bays, growing many basic grains, fruit, and vegetables, and also includes an aquaculture tank farm providing shrimp, fish, and yeast. A synthetic meat production facility supplies alternatives to non-seafood protein sources using processed yeast, vegetable, and grain products.
Deck Seven: Compartment 15 has been refitted into a cargo bay for vital or difficult to manufacture spare parts for ship systems, as well as a housing for a deployable Solar Power Sail.