The Imperial Courier is perhaps the most
recognisable spacecraft of all times. Where many space vehicles are
(and were) designed primarily with their function in mind, the Courier
is a throwback to the times when it wasn't enough that something worked;
it also had to LOOK good. And the Courier sure has them: looks.
The byproduct of a shameful Imperial Navy defeat, the Courier
is an old craft. It's first flight was more than 400 years ago. This
puts it in the same bag with classics such as the Krait or the Cobra
Mk. III. But whereas these retain only their name and their outward
appearance from those days, the Couriers that are built today are much
the same with those put together almost half a millenia ago, while still
being a highly advanced and competitive spacecraft. A testimony to the
Courier's superb design.
While in its early years the Courier was a strictly military toy
with a few exceptions, public pressure and Imperial greed resulted in
the first Couriers being sold to the public. They were almost identical
to their Navy brethren, only mission-specific black boxes were removed.
But they were too good for their own good, and after a few entire law
enforcement agencies were exterminated by Courier-equipped criminals,
a more tame civil version made its appearance. Still a redoutable spacecraft,
it sold thousands. A powerful, underground "Courier doctor"
movement soon appeared, smuggling bits and pieces that enabled those
with money to restore their Courier to military specs and beyond. Despite
important opposition, the Courier soon became the terror of the spacelanes,
as it was fancied by pirates and boutyhunters alike. And since the best
ship to kill a Courier with is another Courier, the demand soon reached
peak levels. The Courier became an expensive ship, a sure sign of a
wealth.
Nowadays, with the declassification of its design files and impending
production by independent shipbuilders, release of the Turner's Quest
to the general public and the rejuvenation of older craft with new technology,
the Courier has lost its glow somewhat. What it will never lose though,
is its status as a human technology marvel, a classic that deserves
its place with the Mercedes W123, the B-52, the Kuznetzov ramjet and
the Cobra Mk. III.