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Planetary Atmospheric Flight

"Attention all starship commanders, freighter captains, and freelance pilots: Planetary flight corridors across the galaxy are now officially open. Repulsorlift atmospheric thrusters have been cleared for planetary descent. Whether skim-cruising the Dune Sea of Tatooine, carving through Naboo's verdant river valleys, or hovering in luxury above the Corellian plains, the skies belong to you."
— Galactic Flight Operations Advisory Bulletin #774-AF

1. Overview

The Atmospheric Flight System brings true starship piloting directly to the surface of the galaxy's planets. Pilots on SWG Secura are no longer restricted to starport terminals or deep-space sectors—you can summon your starfighter, gunship, or multi-crew space transport anywhere in the planetary wilderness, board your vessel, and take to the skies with full space flight controls and booster acceleration.

2. Calling Your Starship

Calling your starship to the surface is simple, convenient, and designed for exploration:

  1. Open Your Datapad (Ctrl+D).
  2. Navigate to your Data tab and locate your Ship Control Device (SCD).
  3. Right-click the SCD and select Call Ship.
  4. Your starship will materialize safely on the ground roughly 10 meters in front of you.

[!NOTE] Summoning Restrictions: You must be outdoors and out of combat to summon your starship. If you attempt to call a ship inside a building, bunker, or player house, the ship's repulsorlift safety system will abort the summoning.

3. Boarding and Taking to the Skies

Once your starship is summoned on the surface:

  • Boarding: Walk up to the vessel, target it, and either:
    • Open the radial menu (~ or right-click) and select Board Ship, OR
    • Click the Enter Ship button on your atmospheric flight interface.
  • Launch: Your engines will roar to life, repulsorlifts will engage, and you will smoothly ascend to an initial cruising altitude of 100 meters above the terrain.

4. Flight Controls & Dynamics

Atmospheric flight uses the exact same intuitive, responsive 1:1 control scheme as space flight:

  • Pitch & Yaw: Direct mouse flight control allows you to dive, climb, and carve sweeping turns over mountains, valleys, and oceans.
  • Throttle Management: Control your forward speed with standard throttle keys (+ / - or mouse wheel).
  • Roll: Bank into turns using your ship's roll keybindings (Q / E or A / D).
  • Booster Acceleration: Need extra speed for long-distance planetary travel? Fire up your engine booster subsystems:
    • Type /boosterOn to engage full afterburners.
    • Type /boosterOff to disengage.

5. Planetary Mini-Map, Compass & Coordinates

While flying in atmosphere, your Space Heads-Up Display (HUD) automatically adapts into a planetary navigation suite:

  • 2D Planetary Terrain Map: Shows live terrain elevation, ground textures, roads, rivers, and landmark structures below.
  • Heading Compass: A rotating directional compass continuously points your heading (North, South, East, West), making long-distance navigation effortless.
  • Waypoints & POIs: All active planetary waypoints, group members, and points of interest are plotted in real-time on your mini-map.
  • Live Coordinates: Live Latitude (X), Height (Y), and Longitude (Z) coordinates are displayed directly on your radar and in your floating location overlay.
  • Region Indicator: Displays the current geographic zone or municipality you are flying over (e.g., Mos Eisley, Anchorhead, Theed, Coronet).
  • Radar Zoom: Use the + and - zoom buttons on the mini-map to adjust your radar scan range from 32 meters to 1,024 meters.

6. Multi-Passenger & POB Ships: Walking the Cabins Mid-Air

Pilots of multi-passenger Player-Owned Structure (POB) vessels (such as the Sorosuub Luxury Yacht, YT-1300 Transport, Kessel Runner, or Decimator) have full access to their ship interiors mid-flight:

Stepping Out of the Pilot Seat

  • Click the Leave Ship button on your HUD (or type /leaveStation / /unpilotShip).
  • Your starship will stabilize its automated repulsorlifts and remain suspended hovering mid-air.
  • You will step out into your ship's cockpit or bridge, free to walk through the passenger lounges, bar, crafting stations, and observation decks with your friends while cruising the sky!

Resuming Flight

  • Walk back to the pilot chair on the bridge.
  • Interact with the chair or type /pilotShip to take the helm and resume direct flight.

7. Landing & Storing Your Vessel

When you're ready to touch down and explore on foot:

Landing Your Ship

  1. Fly to your desired landing area (e.g. an open plain, outside a cantina, or atop a scenic plateau).
  2. Click the Land Ship button on your flight HUD (or type /landShip).
  3. Your vessel's repulsorlifts will settle downward, halting all momentum.
  4. You and all passengers will be safely dismounted onto the ground outside the ship.
  5. Your vessel will sit proudly parked on the terrain, ready for you to re-board whenever you desire!

Re-boarding a Landed Vessel

  • Approach your landed ship, target it, and click Enter Ship on the UI or radial menu.

Dismissing Your Vessel

  • If you want to store your ship away in your Datapad, access your Ship Control Device (SCD) or the parked vessel's radial menu and select Dismiss Ship.

8. Sub-Orbital Ascent: Flying Into Space

Want to leave the planet and journey into the stars?

  1. Point your nose skyward and apply full throttle.
  2. Climb continuously through the atmosphere.
  3. As you reach 1,000 meters above terrain, you will penetrate the upper atmospheric barrier.
  4. A flight computer prompt will appear:

    "You have reached the maximum atmospheric altitude. Would you like to launch into space?"

  5. Select "Yes": Your vessel will break orbit, initiating a seamless hyperspace jump directly into the planet's orbital space sector (space_<planet>). Your HUD will instantly switch back to the 3D space combat radar.
  6. Select "No": Your ship will level off and descend 50 meters, allowing you to continue high-altitude planetary cruising.

9. Safety & Emergency Protocols

  • Automatic Disconnect / Logout Protection: If you disconnect, crash, or log out while flying mid-air, the server's automated safety protocol will safely ground your character at terrain level and pack your starship into your Datapad SCD to prevent loss or fall damage.
  • Proximity Auto-Pack: If you leave a landed starship unattended on the ground and travel more than 500 meters away, your vessel will automatically secure and pack itself into your Datapad.
  • Passenger Safety: All contained passengers on multi-crew vessels are safely placed on the ground together when landing.

10. Quick Command Reference

Command Action
/landShip Lands your flying starship and safely dismounts all occupants onto the ground.
/shipInterior Enters a landed ship from the ground, or unpilots if currently flying.
/leaveStation Steps out of the pilot seat into the POB cabin while ship hovers mid-air.
/pilotShip Reseats the pilot at the helm from inside a POB cabin.
/unpilotShip Unified command to exit the pilot chair in atmosphere or space.
/boosterOn Engages starship booster acceleration.
/boosterOff Disengages starship booster acceleration.

Clear skies and safe travels across the galaxy, Commander!

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