Ginga

That's fine. This is our ship, a human one

—Lt. Commander Saki Todo, to Lt. Megumi Kanzaki^[5]

The Wave-motion Test Ship Ginga (BBY-03) (ぎんが, Ginga, lit.: Galaxy), also identified as the Experimental Ship of Transcendental Dimension,^[6] is a Yamato-class Wave-motion energy research ship of the United Nations Cosmo Navy. The ship was conceived as a next-generation exploration vessel succeeding the original space battleship Yamato, but was repurposed for defensive support during the Gatlantis Campaign.

Armaments and Technical Specifications

Ginga was originally planned to be heavily armed like its predecessor Yamato. However, Ginga was equipped with the Cosmo Reverse System brought from Iscandar by Yamato, which had lost its planetary reconstruction capabilities, but remained a powerful tool to control Wave-motion Energy. As a machine built in accordance with the Iscandarian philosophy of pacifism and designed to restore life, the Cosmo Reverse System disabled all weaponry mounted on the ship. Because of its lack of firepower, Ginga relies on escorts for protection. However, its Cosmo Reverse System can use Wave-motion Resonance to amplify the offensive and defensive capabilities of nearby vessels, such as boosting Wave-motion Shield strength, amplifying Wave-motion Gun, or disrupting enemy engines when combined with multiple Wave-motion Core. A projector for the Cosmo Reverse System is mounted where a Wave-motion Gun would normally be located, and two more projectors are mounted below the superstructure.^[1][7]

Ginga was also built as a platform for developing the United Nations Cosmo Force's artificial intelligence programs. Its AI system is linked to a self-evolving artificial intelligence inside a factory operating inside Earth's time fault. The ship also has an AU13 unit permanently stationed on its main bridge. During the Gatlantis Campaign, the unit had command authority over the ship. Additionally, the vessel is equipped with several squadrons of pilotless Black Bird fighters. The entire AI system is capable of learning from Ginga's human crew.^[1]

Much like the second Yamato-class ship Musashi, Ginga's basic structure and all of its systems are copied from Yamato.^[8] Drastic changes were made to Yamato's bridge structure, such as adding a large dome behind the second main turret, which houses a research facility for new technologies based on Wave-motion Energy. This facility is primarily aimed at developing new devices for the amplification or the concentration and aggregation of Wave-motion Energy. Additionally, the cosmo radar and the captain quarters were removed and replaced with a mobile compartment for the take off and landing of aircraft placed behind the first bridge.^[1][8]

The interior of the ship was also modified to be integrated with the AI system, which substantially reduced the number of needed crew members. The first bridge is nearly identical to that of Yamato, with the only differences being the removal of the dimensional compass. Unlike its predecessor however, most of the seats on the bridge are only auxilliary thanks to Ginga's AI, with only the captain, XO, tactics officer, and chief navigator posts being necessary to run the ship.^[8] By 2207 however, other crew members had been assigned to the ship while it participated in the Saturn Restoration Project. By that year, Ginga was also equipped with a O.M.C.S..^[9]

History

Development and the Gatlantis Campaign

Ginga was first designed in the years between Yamato's return from Iscandar and its departure for Terezart by Yamato's executive officer, Shiro Sanada, to serve as a vessel of exploration. It was also supposed to be used to research new technologies based on Wave-motion Energy.^[8] Its construction began during the Gatlantis Campaign, at the time fault shipyard. During its construction, Ginga's command AI, Black Analyzer, was brought online and was able to predict Gatlanteans tactics at the Battle of Saturn, while other components were tested by the ship's crew aboard Laboratory Prometheus. The ship was completed, placed under the command of Lieutenant Commander Saki Todo, and was deployed to the front lines were moments after the Gatlantis Empire's defeat of Yamato. Many members of Yamato's crew were subsequently transferred to Ginga to help teach their experiences to the ship's AI.^[1]

Ginga took over the role of flagship while the battleship Andromeda returned to Earth for repairs. The Battle of Saturn progressed as the ship made numerous attempts to gauge the Gatlantis White Comet's gravitational pull, and defended the Walls of Garmillas Subject of the Garmillan Zoellugut-class Super Dreadnoughts.^[1] Eventually, the White Comet broke through the allied line and warped to Mars. Ginga was sent to Jupiter, where the command AI took control of the ship.^[10] The command AI was ordered to carry out Project G, a contingency program for survival and eventual counterattack following a disastrous human defeat, but was destroyed by Todo before it could carry out its orders. Ginga was taken to Mars to help Andromeda's captain attempt to rescue Yamato. At the cost of the Cosmo Reverse System and Andromeda, Yamato was successfully rescued and both ships went to the Mars shipyard for repair. Ginga was subsequently cannibalized to repair and upgrade Yamato for its mission to defeat the White Comet.^[5][7]

Repairing the Moon

First phase

Six months after the final battle of the Gatlantis Campaign, Ginga had been assigned to aid in clearing debris blasted from the Moon during the Gatlantis invasion, and had been given a new command AI, White Analyzer. Ginga stopped work on this assignment to join four Murasame-class cruisers in Earth orbit and welcome the return of two missing Yamato crew members.^[11]

The "Old Man" anomaly

Technological exchange

From late 2203 until at least 2205, Ginga continued to restore the Moon. On October 1, 2205,^[12] a Kripitera-class Astro Destroyer transferred Yahbu Sukelji of the Desler fleet to Ginga to carry out a technological exchange between the Earth and Garmillas. However, due to the rising tension between Garmillas and the Bolar Federation, it was agreed to carry out the exchange outside of the solar system. Sukelji was thus transferred to Yamato.^[13][14]

The restoration of Saturn and Dezariam

By 2207, the restoration of the Moon had been completed. Ginga was tasked with restoring the destroyed Saturn as the core of the Saturn Restoration Fleet.^[15][9]

In October 2207, during the Invasion of the Ground Reverse, Ginga moved toward the Earth at the suggestion of Inspector Susumu Kodai to assess the situation on the planet as the Earth Defense Force's networks went offline. Kodai would leave the ship to follow a special directive issued by Earth Federation Defense Command to gather with other crew members of the former 65th Escort Corps. Ginga rammed a Pleiades-class, and attempted to divert a Dezariam fleet away from the carrier Asuka, while the crew repeatedly tried to start up its weapon systems without success.^[16]

After hearing the pleades of Executive Officer Megumi Kanzaki, the CRS spontaneously activated and Ginga was able to fire a shock cannon shot at one of the enemy ships, resulting in several vessels being annihilated by a chain reaction. While this allowed the Asuka to escape, Ginga continued to be targeted, and crashlanded onto Baleras III on the Moon.^[16] The Galman-Garmillas embassy offered asylum to the crew of the ship, but after being legitimised by the Earth Federation Government, the Dezariam General Kazan confiscated the ship and took the wounded Kanzaki into custody.^[17]

Gallery

Notes

• For the duration of the Gatlantis Campaign and the post-war period until at least the end of 2203, Ginga was in formal dress mode, displaying more ostentatious markings as a showcase of the Wave-motion Gun fleet plan. By 2205, the ship was in normal operation mode.^[18]
  • While on dress mode, the ship's name was written in kanji as "銀河", meaning "galaxy". In normal mode, the ship name is written in hiragana and with the latin alphabet like all other UNCN vessels.^[18]

References