Dropship: Difference between revisions

{{Era|UNSC|HCW}}

A '''dropship''', sometimes referred to as an '''assault boat''',<ref>'''[[Halo: The Flood]]''', ''page 35''</ref> '''shuttlecraft''' or '''troop carrier''', is a atmospheric and/or exoatmospheric transport aircraft of small proportions chiefly designed to ferry military assets and hardware into combat. The primary technical definition of a dropship is a military logistical support/deployment platform that can deliver (or extract) troops from space platforms to the surface of a planet (and vice versa), but dropships also serve as gunships and utility craft, providing ground operations with close air support in addition to ferrying infantry and matériel between combat zones within terrestrial environments. Occasionally, dropships are also used for [[boarding]] operations.<ref>'''[[Halo Wars: Genesis]]'''</ref> Some dropships are designed to carry specific types of cargo, such as supplies or prefabricated structures.<ref>'''[[Halo Wars]]'''</ref>

==Known dropship types==

===In the Covenant===

*'''[[Phantom|Phantom dropship]]s''' - The primary series of Covenant dropship.

**[[Type-44 Troop Carrier|Type-44 ''"Phantom"'' Troop Carrier]] - A dropship supplanted by a newer model, the Type-52, which was ubiquitous later in the Human-Covenant War. The [[Covenant remnant]] use the Type-44 as their primary dropship, likely due to the scarcity of the newer model.

**[[Type-52 Troop Carrier|Type-52 ''"Phantom"'' Troop Carrier]] - A more heavily armed version of the Type-44 typically used to transport personnel, though also used to transport matériel.

***[[Phantom gunboat|Type-52 ''"Phantom"'' Gunboat]] - Exoatmospheric combat craft and a variant of the Type-52 Troop Carrier. It is used for space-based engagements

*'''[[Deployment Platform Type-56 Ground Support/Ultra Heavy|Type-56 ''"Lich"'' Ground Support/Ultra Heavy Deployment Platform]]''' - The largest airborne deployment platform, the Type-56 boasts heavy armament and is capable of mass deployments of up to forty soldiers.

===In the UNSC===

*'''[[Pelican|Pelican dropships]]''' - The primary series of UNSC dropship.

**[[D77-TC Pelican]] - The standard Pelican dropship.