Re: Tugs & Firing Arcs

In a message dated 11/11/99 11:33:39 AM Central Standard Time, 
jon@gzero.dungeon.com writes:

<< Put a drive unit at both ends of the pod train. The front module does
the
 main drive (engines on long outriggers?), and the rear one has
 forward-facing outrigger drives for the "retroes". Pull from the front
to
 go, pull backwards from the rear to stop! Dunno how you'd steer,
 however..... :-)
 Note this isn't a game solution, but a thought on how it might be wmade
to
 work in "reality".....
 (Anyone else here seen Space Truckers...?) ;-)
 
 Jon (GZG) >>

Saw it, funny (bad) movie. The idea in the movie of packaged cargo, and
the 
haulers was just about the way I've always seen interplanetary (or 
interstellar) cargo haulage.  Your idea should work though. If you had
puller 
engines on the front of the "train", and decelleration engines on the
back, 
you could make a flexible linkage system work, if your couplings were 
engineered strong enough. If the engines were also capable of vectored 
thrust, you could have an interesting manuever envelope, albeit at a
slow 
rate. 

BTW, does anyone who is better at the math than I want to hazard some
non-FTL 
towing rules? It seems that at least in the commercial sector of the GZG

universe it would be a common thing.

John
JohnDHamill@aol.com