Age of ships

[JEZorg]

If you've read the ship descriptions on the E: D website, it might have escaped your notice that they are really and unfeasibly OLD.
Sidewinder 2982 - 319 years old
Cobra 3100 - 201 years old
Viper 2762 - 539 years old!
Python 2700 - 601 years old!!
Anaconda 2856 - 445 years old

Etc etc. In fact the only ship built and developed within the previous 50 years is the type 7, a spritely 11 years old.

Now is it just me or is something a bit off about this. If these were ships then we,d be looking at the Mary Rose mark III as a ship of the line. Upgraded sails and made of MDF. Ships are big and complicated but they seem to have a life these days of around 50 years and those that come after are better in almost every way. But for a 2-500 year history we,I got expect the modern elite ships to look and perform nothing like their forebears, only the names to be relevant (think about all of the Ark Royals).

Trouble is these aren't even ships of the line. They are the equivalent of your f22, Lear jet, dc3 etc. In less than 50 years these aircraft went from stick and string biplane to jet powered titanium.

So come on E: D let's be a bit more realistic about ship pedigrees.....unless anyone wants to have a go at constructing ship and tech histories for the previous 600 years.....

 

[Robert Maynard]

Maybe the AI had all the smarts involved in ship and equipment design and development has largely stagnated due to AI being banned in human space?

 

[Vasious]

The Hull designed might be Hundred of years old, but there is probably little innovation needed there.
All the Technological advances have been in the internal components that make up the greatest portion of the cost of the ships.
Consider that all the systems have the ability to side and maintain the Sidewinder, why would you want to design a new ship that would need different parts and equipment to service when you can just design and sell upgrades to said ships

Heck the Soyuz is how old?
Yes there has been a lot of iterations, but much like the Cobra if it works...
Well the other thing to consider is you buy a hull - but then have the option of so many upgrades.
Grade A tech might be the cutting edge and Grade B the cutting edge from last decade and so forth just designed to fit in Hulls that are tried and true designs made of parts that are made everywhere in the galaxy.
I can see the utility of still using a 200 year old Cobra Mk III hull if you can get it repaired and serviced anywhere in the Settled Worlds.
Interesting that the Eagle is no longer in production, only parts and services from Core Dynamics now the two major powers produced their own Space Fighters (though neither seem jump capable...P)
Makes me want to keep my Freagle as it might become a collectors item...

https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=71122

 

[Commander Edison]

The Douglas DC-3 was designed in the 30's, and there are still some in the air today. If the design of a terrestrial plane can last 80 years or so there's no reason a space ship design couldn't still be relevant and useful centuries on. It's not like the problems of moving stuff through space will change over the years.

If it ain't broke, etc.

 

[Ayerc]

So come on E: D let's be a bit more realistic about ship pedigrees.....unless anyone wants to have a go at constructing ship and tech histories for the previous 600 years.....

But, pedigrees are exactly what these are. They are the modern (3300) versions of these classic models.