D96-TCE Albatross

Albatross

The Albatross Heavy Dropship is a Heavy-lift dropship of the United Nations Space Command.

Background
From its general design and structure, it seems to be a dedicated cargo dropship for vehicles, crates, and raw supplies for the ground units in the field, rather than possessing any combat capabilities. It appears suited more towards ferrying supplies and vehicles to a planet's surface, as vehicles such as the Pelican have a more aggressive nature. Once it has landed, the Albatross lowers three metal ramps, allowing its cargo to be unloaded. Both times the Albatross has been seen, it can be used as a makeshift base, indicating that it may also serve as a mobile field command post for the UNSC.

Appearances of the Albatross
The Albatross first appeared as concept art in the book The Art of Halo. It has since made appearances in Halo 2 & 3 (on the multiplayer maps Relic and Sandtrap respectively), as well as in Halo Wars. In both Halo 2 & 3, the only observed Albatrosses had crashed into a hillside and been partially buried. Its first active appearance is in Halo Wars, where it is used to ferry supplies in from the Spirit of Fire.

It has been speculated to be a heavy dropship used for for the transportation of multiple units. Another theory, although less prevalent, is that the Albatross could be a mobile command post. It is used as such on Relic, being the base for one of the teams. It may also be able to perform transport and command post roles alternatively, switching between the two. Its role in Halo Wars seems to suggest that it is not a combat dropship like the Pelican but is meant for utility operations, such as delivering supplies.

Known Albatross class dropships

 * 03: Attached to the UNSC Aegis Fate.

Trivia

 * The Albatross appears on two maps, Relic and Sandtrap. By coincidence, both maps are large, and meant for Big Team Battles, however both are crashed and unusable.
 * On the UNSC Spirit of Fire artwork, several Albatrosses can be seen attached to the forward 'wings'.
 * The possible Albatrosses in the Halo Wars Announcement Trailer seem much larger than those on Sandtrap and Relic.
 * An albatross is also a bird, in keeping with the animal naming tradition.
 * The Albatross has been seen in footage from E3 showing it bringing down supplies from the Spirit of Fire to supply pads as part of the economic aspect of gameplay. Whether it will be a controllable unit for other uses is still unknown.

Related Links

 * United Nations Space Command
 * D77H-TCI Pelican Dropship