Clones to ramp up Type A production

The news from the Fleet Day continues. The Clones will increase Type A freighter production this year from it's current rate of 4 a year to 6 a year until at least 2111. This is because a number of the fleet, the backbone of the HCS Space Navy transport service and thus the arteries of the empire, are approaching their end of life dates. Twenty Type As are to be refurbished by the DDS of course, a contract which began last month, but these refurbs are of Type A3s and A4s. There are a lot of older Type As which date from the first great fleet expansion in the First Clone War which are coming to the end of their lives and it is not considered economic or practical to refurbish them.

A Type A transport (seen here with a Kalahati Tuul)

A DDS Upgrades spokesman working on the Type A contract said the older ships had been considered for refurbishment too but are simply too old to make it worthwhile. "To get any more than 10 years more out of them we'd have to practically rebuild them, its therefore much more practical for the Clones to replace them with new ships which would last for at least twice as long and have improved performance."

Another reason for replacing these aging ships is so they can be sold to other navies as they recently did with Artic who bought 3 ships. The HCS can sell them cheap to customers after a minor refurb to keep them going for 5-6 years more and this is considered a way into the lucrative spaceship export market the DDS have had largely to themselves so far.