Ark shuttlecraft

This article is about the various ancillary vessels carried by the Ark. For the larger shuttles featured prominently in the animated movie, see Autobot shuttle.

Ark shuttlecraft sometimes function as transport for the Autobots in the Generation 1 continuity family.

Thunderbirds are GO!!!

While the Ark itself spent most of Generation 1 stuck in the side of a volcano, the Autobots were not stranded in Oregon by any means. The mothership was positively stuffed to the brim with smaller shuttlecraft of varying designs and functions. It is possible that not all of the Ark's shuttles were spacefaring craft, as many of them are not seen to leave Earth's atmosphere, though later models are capable of travelling interstellar distances. They are a convenient and apparently disposable way for the Autobots to get where they need to be when the plotmission of the week demands it.

Whoa, an Autobot shuttle!Cheetor

The history tracks never mentioned this.Blackarachnia, Nemesis Part 2

Types of Ark shuttlecraft

Several of the shuttlecraft share similar designs, and at least five types of shuttle have been seen. Presumably, each of these was designed for a specific purpose, though what that might have been is open to speculation.

Omega Delta-type

I call him...mini-Ark!

This class of Ark shuttle is capable of spaceflight and is compatible with transwarp technology. Among its features is a flight recorder that records the experiences of all the crew members aboard. Although a shuttle of this type was carried on board the Ark, the cockpit and controls are small enough for a Maximal to operate, suggesting that its use may have been limited to the smaller Autobots aboard. These shuttles are outwardly sturdy—the Omega Delta crashed through the bridge of the Nemesis without damage Nemesis Part 2—but are easily damaged from the inside, as the same shuttle was destroyed by a punch to the control console. Fires of the Past

Beast Era

When the Ark crashed on Earth, it was carrying the shuttle Omega Delta on board, along with the deactivated Autobots and Decepticons. At the end of the Beast Wars, Rhinox appropriated the Omega Delta to defeat the Nemesis. After it had been fitted with a transwarp cell, the shuttle flew Rhinox, along with his fellow Maximals and the captive Megatron, back to Cybertron. Nemesis Part 2 It's unknown whether the Autobots, on awaking in 1984, asked one another, "Dude, where's our shuttle?"

Botanica also piloted a shuttle of the Omega Delta-type. It is unknown whether it too had previously been carried aboard a vanguard-class vessel. Home Soil

"Heart of Gold"-type

Note that Buzzsaw is causing the biggest explosion out of all three... and then know fear.

Bearing a resemblance to a black repaint of the starship Heart of Gold from the Hitch-Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy TV series, this shuttle was used for intercontinental flight within Earth's atmosphere. It has pop-out weaponry in the forward section and is combat-capable.

Marvel Comics

Optimus Prime led a small group of Autobots to England in a "Heart of Gold"-type shuttle to try to locate the Man of Iron's ship before the Decepticons could get hold of it. It was aboard this shuttle that he encountered Sammy Harker. When the ship was located beneath Stansham Castle and battle was joined against the Decepticons, the shuttle led the Autobot attacks and was eventually successful in driving their enemies away. Man of Iron!

It was not seen again.

"Slave I"-type

"Put Captain Solo in the cargo hold."

Examples of this kind of Ark shuttle are few and far between. They are known to carry a control crystal and are fitted with weaponry that can be detached and fired remotely by humans. Destiny of the Dinobots! Only one shuttle of this design has been seen, and neither of its two depictions gives a particularly clear view, but it would seem to share some design elements with Boba Fett's ship Slave I from the Star Wars universe.

Marvel Comics

A shuttle of this type transported the Dinobots to the Savage Land shortly after the Ark's crash. When they were buried in a tar pit, this shuttle was abandoned. The Last Stand Repeat Performance!

We parked it in Marvel 616.

Earthforce

These stories do not fit into the normal Marvel continuity. See Earthforce for details.

The Dinobots' shuttle was salvaged by a human paleontologist, who used its technology to care for sick dinosaurs. When this was discovered by the Dinobots in 1992, they used the shuttle's equipment to transfer Snarl's mind into the body of a Stegosaurus. What happened to the Stegosaurus's mind went unrecorded.

"Bird of Prey"-type

...wait, how big is that dinosaur?!

A mere dialogue box does not an explosion make.

Similar in design to a Klingon Bird of Prey from the Star Trek universe, these shuttles saw common service on Earth in the early days of the Great War. The Ark carried at least five "Bird of Prey"-type shuttles, though most of them were damaged or destroyed in combat. They have a storage bay capable of holding and deploying a mobile Autobot repair bay, or M.A.R.B. and appropriately enough, they can be fitted with cloaking devices.

Marvel Comics

Events from the UK-only comic stories are in italics.

Ratchet took a shuttle of this design to retrieve the Dinobots from the Savage Land. Repeat Performance! When the Dinobots went rampaging across America due to damage to their primary cybo-dendrons, the Autobots used a number of "Bird of Prey"-type shuttles to follow them. The first, piloted by Cliffjumper, Gears and Windcharger, was captured by the Decepticons and booby-trapped, then later destroyed by Bumblebee. A second suffered heavy damage when either Grimlock or Sludge bit through the fuel tank, injuring Bluestreak and Huffer, while a third piloted by Prowl was written off when he crashed it into Grimlock. Only Prime's shuttle was undamaged. Dinobot Hunt!

Dan Khanna, you magnificent bastard.

Universe

A "Bird of Prey"-type shuttle was utilized by Trailbreaker, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Roulette, and Shadow Striker when they took a haitus at the close of the Great War. They returned in it, somewhat worse for wear, after the Great Reformatting. Abduction

All-Terrain Turbo-Transport

Thank goodness for the tail fins, or it might not be aerodynamic.

It seems likely that these craft were not originally amongst the Ark's complement but were instead commandeered from the Steelhaven. They are capable of transporting troops from orbit to a planet's surface, as well as interstellar travel. Fulfilling a similar purpose to the "Bird of Prey"-type shuttles, ATTTs are used to transport small groups of Autobots over long distances, often between worlds. The Ark apparently had a number of these vehicles, as at least one was lost in combat.

Marvel Comics

Fortress Maximus used an ATTT as a platform from which to attack the Decepticons' island base. The Desert Island of Space!

An ATTT was stolen by the increasingly Matrix-possessed Thunderwing and taken back to the Ark. After a brief battle, Nightbeat was able to blow both Thunderwing and the ATTT out of the airlock. All Fall Down

Later, Grimlock stole an ATTT from the Ark to take the Dinobots to Hydrus Four. Eye of the Storm!

"Ark"-type

It's uncanny.

Resembling nothing so much as a scaled-down version of the Ark from the cartoon, this kind of shuttle is capable of interstellar flight and holds a substantial crew, though it is possible for a single Autobot to pilot one. At least one "Ark"-type shuttle was taken from the Steelhaven and repurposed for use aboard the Ark proper.

Marvel Comics

Events from the UK-only comic stories are in italics.

After his resurrection on Nebulos, Optimus Prime—along with Joyride, Getaway and Slapdash—returned to Earth in an "Ark"-type shuttle and encountered three Wreckers ruining Christmas for everyone. Cold Comfort and Joy!

Optimus and the Powermasters were last seen aboard the Steelhaven and have yet to join up with the rest of the Autobots stranded on the Moon, so this shuttle must have been aboard Fortress Maximus's ship. However, the Steelhaven just kind of disappears around this point in continuity (possibly cannibalised to repair the Ark) and like the ATTTs, its "Ark"-type shuttles appear to have been absorbed into the Ark's complement.

Optimus Prime and his Autobots once again travelled to Earth in an "Ark"-type shuttle to battle Galvatron, the crazed Decepticon from the future. Time Wars

In 2008, Wheelie rescued Wreck-Gar from the planet Quintesson in one of these shuttles, though they were waylaid by Quintesson ships as they left the planet. Wreck-Gar used his superior piloting skills, not to mention the emergency boosters, to escape. Space Pirates!

Like Botanica's ship above, Wheelie's shuttle is not seen to be associated with a larger vessel. However, it is identical in design to the one the Autobots use in "Time Wars".

"Dome"-type

"We'll sell the pieces separately on eBay and clear THOUSANDS! MUHAHAHA!!!"

Rarely seen, this type of shuttle is one of the largest. With a smooth, rounded hull, it is capable of carrying large numbers of Autobots to a planet from the Ark in orbit.

Marvel Comics

Optimus Prime led the Autobots to the New Jersey swamps in a "Dome"-type shuttle when he surrendered to Scorponok. It was presumably destroyed when Shockwave's forces attacked, as it was not seen again. Surrender!

It's possible that the "Dome"-type shuttle is merely artist Andrew Wildman's rendition of an "Ark"-type shuttle, though it lacks some of the latter's distinctive superstructure and is a different color.

Earthforce

These stories do not fit into the normal Marvel continuity. See Earthforce for details.

Grimlock and his crew travelled to Earth in a "Dome"-type shuttle in "Break-Away!", though it would not be seen until "Once upon a Time...". It would serve as their base of operations until Wheeljack constructed a permanent base in "Internal Affairs!", presumably built from parts of the shuttle itself.