The Valley Gunship [1] is the main defense of the Valley of the Wind.
Description and Capabilities[]
It is a large, two-seated armed combat plane (see Armor and Weapons below for combat capability). The gunship has flaps but no slats and does not have an empennage (i.e. no vertical or horizontal stabilizer at the aft of the plane). The landing gear [2] retracts into the wings and has built-in fairings to allow for aerodynamic airflow.
The pilot is located in the front cockpit and the co-pilot is in the aft cockpit. Nausicaä was the pilot until she was separated from the warriors of the Valley of the Wind, with Mito as co-pilot.
The pilot controls have a display screen. The scarlet tri-jewel clocks the gunship speed as building from 205 leagues, 235, 240, 245 [3] until the white heart jewel shows the engines at maximum at 300 leagues [4].
The Valley Gunship is able to land and take off from water [5].
Armor and Weapons[]
The Valley Gunship has two large-bore single-shot cannons in the bow, much like an over-under double barreled shotgun [6]. The caliber of the cannons are unknown, however, by inspection, it is large and bore, enough that it can down a Dorok Air Monitor [7].
The Gunship has Ohmu-shell armor, much more resilient than ceramic armor, which would have shattered under the intense fire of a Dorok Air Monitor [8].
Manufacture and Maintenance[]
The people of the Valley are able to maintain the Gunship but unable to build new gunships because of the loss of knowledge [9], a common occurrence in the Periphery it seems.
There are multiple junked gunships in the cellars of the Castle under the hangar, presumably used for spare parts [10].
It is obvious that the Gunship is the last aircraft left from what was originally part of a squadron of aircraft that served the valley.
In the Story[]
Nausicaä pilots the Gunship with Mito as co-pilot in the Periphery Campaign [11]. When Nausicaä goes in search of Asbel, Mito leads the Valley Forces to the Acid Lakes then returns to search for Nausicaä.
They spot the Dorok trap [12] and Mito rushes back to the Acid Lakes in time to get the Periphery Forces into the air, right before the Torumekian defeat at the Battle of the Acid Lakes.
When Nausicaä agrees to go with Kushana into Dorok[13], she sends Mito back to the Valley in the Gunship to meet with her father.
Mito and the warriors then take the Gunship to find Nausicaä. Along the way, they spot Ohma being carried under a Dorok Battleship[14].
Mito fires on the God Warrior to prevent it from being taken to Dorok [15]. He scores two direct hits but loses the Dorok Battleship in the clouds. One of the battleship's escorts, an Air Monitor [16] shoots down the Gunship. The Gunship's cannon shots has no appreciable affect on Ohma[17].
Mito manages to set the damaged Gunship down in the desert and Yupa, Asbel and Ketcha see it land [18].
As night falls, Asbel helps repair the Gunship and the others comment on their good fortune for having the prince of a city known for mechanical prowess with them[19].
References[]
- ↑ DE1 pg 27 (first appearance), pg 28 (identified)
- ↑ DE1 pg 27
- ↑ DE1 pg 29
- ↑ DE1 pg 29
- ↑ DE1 pg 108
- ↑ DE1 pg 27
- ↑ DE1 pg XXX
- ↑ DE1 pg 456
- ↑ DE pg 30
- ↑ DE1 pg 79
- ↑ DE1 pg 82
- ↑ DE1 pg 168
- ↑ DE1 pg 213
- ↑ DE1 pg 440 (first spotted by Mito), pg 442 (identified by Mito)
- ↑ DE1 pg 445
- ↑ DE1 pg 446-448
- ↑ DE1 pg 449
- ↑ DE1 pg 452
- ↑ DE1 pg 456
a See Page Conversions Between Editions to convert Deluxe Edition volume 1 (DE1) to other editions
| Ships and Vehicles
| ||
|---|---|---|
| Dorok Air Monitor • Dorok Battleship • Dorok Flying Jar • Dorok Tanks • Forest People Boat • Fuel • Glider • Mehve • Miralupa's Private Ship • Pagase Brig • Pejitei Brig • Pejitei Gunship • Ships and Vehicles • Signal Flags • Tolmekian airships • Tormekian Landing Craft • Torumekian Armored Corvette • Torumekian Armored Corvette Galley • Torumekian Strike Bomber • Valley Barge • Valley Gunship • Worm Handler Brig | ||