Ark shuttlecraft


 * Ark shuttlecraft are a form of Autobot transport.

While the Ark itself spent four million years stuck in the side of a volcano, the Autobots were not stranded in Oregon by any means. The mothership was positively stuffed to the brim with smaller shuttlecraft of varying designs and functions. It is possible that not all of the Ark's shuttles were spacefaring craft, as many of them are not seen to leave Earth's atmosphere, though later models are capable of travelling interstellar distances. They are a convenient and apparently disposable way for the Autobots to get where they need to be when the plot mission of the week demands it.

"Whoa, an Autobot shuttle!"

"The history tracks never mentioned this."

"History's still being made!"

- Cheetor, Blackarachnia, and Rhinox

=Types of Ark shuttlecraft= Several of the shuttlecraft share similar designs, and at least five types of shuttle have been seen. Presumably, each of these was designed for a specific purpose, though what that might have been is open to speculation.

Omega Delta-type


This class of Ark shuttle is capable of spaceflight and is compatible with transwarp technology. Among its features is a flight recorder that records the experiences of all the crew members aboard. Although a shuttle of this type was carried on board the Ark, the cockpit and controls are small enough for a Maximal to operate, suggesting that its use may have been limited to the smaller Autobots aboard. These shuttles are outwardly sturdy—the Omega Delta crashed through the bridge of the Nemesis without damage —but are easily damaged from the inside, as the same shuttle was destroyed by a punch to the control console.

Beast Era
When the Ark crashed on Earth, it was carrying the shuttle Omega Delta on board, along with the deactivated Autobots and Decepticons. At the end of the Beast Wars, Rhinox appropriated the Omega Delta to defeat the Nemesis. After it had been fitted with a transwarp cell, the shuttle flew Rhinox, along with his fellow Maximals and the captive Megatron, back to Cybertron. It's unknown whether the Autobots, on awaking in 1984, asked one another, "Dude, where's our shuttle?"

Botanica also piloted a shuttle of the Omega Delta-type. It is unknown whether it too had previously been carried aboard a vanguard-class vessel.

"Heart of Gold"-type
Bearing a resemblance to a black repaint of the starship Heart of Gold from the Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy TV series, this shuttle was used for intercontinental flight within Earth's atmosphere. It has pop-out weaponry in the forward section and is combat-capable.

Marvel Comics
Optimus Prime led a small group of Autobots to England in a "Heart of Gold"-type shuttle to try to locate the Man of Iron's ship before the Decepticons could get hold of it. It was aboard this shuttle that he encountered Sammy Harker. When the ship was located beneath Stansham Castle and battle was joined against the Decepticons, the shuttle led the Autobot attacks and was eventually successful in driving their enemies away.

It was not seen again.

"Slave I"-type
Examples of this kind of Ark shuttle are few and far between. They are known to carry a control crystal and are fitted with weaponry that can be detached and fired remotely by humans. Only one shuttle of this design has been seen, and neither of its two depictions gives a particularly clear view, but it would seem to share some design elements with Boba Fett's ship Slave I from the Star Wars universe.

Marvel Comics
A shuttle of this type transported the Dinobots to the Savage Land shortly after the Ark's crash. When they were buried in a tar pit, this shuttle was abandoned.



Earthforce
The Dinobots' shuttle was salvaged by a human paleontologist, who used its technology to care for sick dinosaurs. When this was discovered by the Dinobots in 1992, they used the shuttle's equipment to transfer Snarl's mind into the body of a Stegosaurus. What happened to the Stegosaurus's mind went unrecorded.

"Bird of Prey"-type
Similar in design to a Klingon Bird of Prey from the Star Trek universe, these shuttles saw common service on Earth in the early days of the Great War. The Ark carried at least five "Bird of Prey"-type shuttles, though most of them were damaged or destroyed in combat. They have a storage bay capable of holding and deploying a mobile Autobot repair bay, or M.A.R.B. and appropriately enough, they can be fitted with cloaking devices.

Marvel Comics
Ratchet took a shuttle of this design to retrieve the Dinobots from the Savage Land. ''When the Dinobots went rampaging across America due to damage to their primary cybo-dendrons, the Autobots used a number of "Bird of Prey"-type shuttles to follow them. The first, piloted by Cliffjumper, Gears and Windcharger, was captured by the Decepticons and booby-trapped, then later destroyed by Bumblebee. A second suffered heavy damage when either Grimlock or Sludge bit through the fuel tank, injuring Bluestreak and Huffer, while a third piloted by Prowl was written off when he crashed it into Grimlock. Only Prime's shuttle was undamaged.''



Universe
A "Bird of Prey"-type shuttle was utilized by Trailbreaker, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Roulette, and Shadow Striker when they took a hiatus at the close of the Great War. They returned in it, somewhat worse for wear, after the Great Reformatting.

All-Terrain Turbo-Transport


It seems likely that these craft were not originally amongst the Ark's complement but were instead commandeered from the Steelhaven. They are capable of transporting troops from orbit to a planet's surface, as well as interstellar travel. Fulfilling a similar purpose to the "Bird of Prey"-type shuttles, ATTTs are used to transport small groups of Autobots over long distances, often between worlds. The Ark apparently had a number of these vehicles, as at least one was lost in combat.

Marvel Comics
Fortress Maximus used an ATTT as a platform from which to attack the Decepticons' island base.

An ATTT was stolen by the increasingly Matrix-possessed Thunderwing and taken back to the Ark. After a brief battle, Nightbeat was able to blow both Thunderwing and the ATTT out of the airlock.

Later, Grimlock stole an ATTT from the Ark to take the Dinobots to Hydrus Four.

"Ark"-type
Resembling nothing so much as a scaled-down version of the Ark from the cartoon, this kind of shuttle is capable of interstellar flight and holds a substantial crew, though it is possible for a single Autobot to pilot one. At least one "Ark"-type shuttle was taken from the Steelhaven and repurposed for use aboard the Ark proper.

Marvel Comics
After his resurrection on Nebulos, Optimus Prime—along with Joyride, Getaway and Slapdash—returned to Earth in an "Ark"-type shuttle and encountered three Wreckers ruining Christmas for everyone.

Optimus Prime and his Autobots once again travelled to Earth in an "Ark"-type shuttle to battle Galvatron, the crazed Decepticon from the future.

''In 2008, Wheelie rescued Wreck-Gar from the planet Quintesson in one of these shuttles, though they were waylaid by Quintesson ships as they left the planet. Wreck-Gar used his superior piloting skills, not to mention the emergency boosters, to escape.''

The Asteroid Association Guide to Mechanoids and their Spacecraft lists the "Ark"-types as standard Autobot shuttles, noting that they are used for short hops and are usually found close to the Ark itself.

"Dome"-type
Rarely seen, this type of shuttle is one of the largest. With a smooth, rounded hull, it is capable of carrying large numbers of Autobots to a planet from the Ark in orbit.

Marvel Comics
''Inferno, Sandstorm and Broadside arrived on Earth in a "Dome"-type shuttle. It was fitted with a "scan cloak" that rendered it invisible when parked.''

Optimus Prime led the Autobots to the New Jersey swamps in a "Dome"-type shuttle when he surrendered to Scorponok. It was presumably destroyed when Shockwave's forces attacked, as it was not seen again.

Earthforce
Grimlock and his crew travelled to Earth in a "Dome"-type shuttle. It would serve as their base of operations until Wheeljack later constructed a permanent base, presumably from parts of the shuttle itself.