This was inspired by a handful of things, all of which happened to be swirling through my head while I was insanely bored at work. The catalyst was listening to the song "Space Trucking."

I started thinking about cargo ships and how they're usually depicted as big ugly things, like the Millennium Falcon. Yeah, it's pretty bitchin' look, but not at all graceful or terribly efficient, I think. The space shuttle is dead sexy, and the modularized cargo bay is pretty effective, but it's only good for taking things out of earth's gravity. What then?

That's where you need the Starfreighter. Built strictly for non-atmospheric flight, it can tug huge ass cargo "trailers" between orbiting warehouses. It's basically just a ginormous set of gas tanks with a couple of engines attached. The cockpit area is built out from the fuselage not only for visibility, but for the aesthetic similarities to atmospheric aircraft. The living space is fairly comparable to what you'd find in a fancier semi-truck, perhaps a bit larger to accomodate the longer durations of space travel. The "trailers" more resemble the cargo pods that are installed into the space shuttle, with maneuvering jets that can borrow fuel from the "truck." The front end (pictured) is primarily taken up by a docking collar with an exterior ring of catches similar to what's used on railway cars. The intent is to make it completely unnecessary for any sort of EVA to complete a routine pickup or dropoff. When not attached to a truck, the trailer should be able to be easily maneuvered by robotic arms or via it's own set of maneuvering jets.

I don't know why the engine pillars are aerofoil shaped when I just said it's not for atmospheric use or why I decided to slap on a Dick Simon logo onto the side of the trailer. I guess I just miss seeing the skunk on the freeway.