Editing D77H-TCI Pelican

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{{Era|H3}}
<center>''Were you also looking for the [[Dropship 77-Troop Carrier]], used in [[Halo: Combat Evolved]] and [[Halo 2]]?''</center>
{{Ship
|name = D77H-TCI Pelican
|image = [[File:D77H-TCI Pelican Gunship.jpg|310px]]
|model = D77H-TCI Pelican (Heavy Infantry variant)
|class = Dropship/Gunship
|manufacturer = Misriah Armories<ref>[[Halo: Arms Race]]</ref>
|modifier =
|sysmods =
|length = {{Convert|30.5|m|ft}}<ref name="ENC">'''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]''', ''page 252''</ref> Troop Bay: 6.19 Meters (20.3 feet)
|width = Wingspan - {{Convert|23.4|m|ft}}<ref name="ENC"/> Troop Bay: 4.64 Meters (15.22 feet) 
|height = 10.0 meters (35.9 feet) (10.5 meters with landing gear) Troop Bay: 3.23 Meters (10.6 feet)
|mass =
|max speed space =
|max speed air =
|engine = 2 main engines housed in middle section of ship, 10 maneuvering thrusters housed in 4 vector pylons. 
|slipspace drive = None
|poweroutput =
|shield gen = Heat and radiation shielding to protect the occupants. 
|sensor =
|target =
|navigation = *Motion trackers<ref>[[343 Guilty Spark (Level)]]</ref>
|avionics =
|countermeasures =
|armament = *1 Chin-mounted Rotary-cannon:
**40mm Rotary-cannon (optional)
**70mm Rotary-cannon (optional)<ref>[[Halo: The Flood]], page 39</ref>
*2 [[ANVIL-II ASM]] Pods (6 missiles each)
*1 AIE-486H HMG
|complement = *1 [[Scorpion Tank]] ''or''
*1 [[Warthog]] ''or''
*4-6 [[Resupply Canister Type-C Capsule]]s ''and''
*2 [[Mongoose]] (internally and externally)
|crew = *1 [[Pilot]]
*1 Co-pilot
*1 crew chief
|skeleton = 1 pilot with an [[AI]]
|passengers = 10 seats in internal bay amidships 15 people standing and sitting (these numbers are doubled in case the ship carries a [[Troop Deployment Pod (Pelican)|Troop Deployment Pod]]).
|capacity = 70 tons on hoist. (anything over 35 tons slows speed considerably)
|othersystems =
|role = [[wikipedia:Air Assault|Air Assault]]/[[wikipedia:Close Air Support|Close Air Support]]
|commission = [[2552]]/[[2553]]
|firstsight = [[Halo 3]]
|battles = *[[Battle of Earth]]
**[[Battle of Voi#Crow's Nest|Battle of Crow's Nest]]
**[[Battle of Voi]]
*[[Battle of Installation 00]]
*[[Battle of Installation 04]]
|affiliation = [[UNSC]]
}}

The '''Dropship-77 Heavy Troop Carrier/Infantry Pelican''', abbreviated '''D77H-TCI Pelican''', is a newer model of the venerable [[D77-TC Pelican]], recently introduced into service within the [[UNSC]] [[UNSC Marine Corps|Marine Corps]] and [[UNSC Navy|Navy]] in late 2552 and early 2553.

==Background==
The D77H-TCI is a fleet wide upgrade to the [[UNSC]]'s squadrons of Pelican dropships, that have been in service for over 50 years. First seen deployed in November, 2552 <ref>[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]] Chapter 23, Page 203</ref> the Pelican is the primary tactical support aircraft of the UNSC. The Pelican serves a multi-role purpose, it is fully capable of Atmospheric flight and can land almost anywhere without difficulty, the Pelican is also capable of limited spaceflight, making it the prime troop transport of the UNSC. The D77H-TCI makes several drastic design changes to both the interior, and exterior, although the exteriors changes are not as noticeable as the interior is. The first significant change is in the cockpit area of the D77H which instead of having the pilot and co-pilot sitting next to each other, the copilot is now seated behind and above the pilot, the control's and instrument panels have been rearranged and upgraded for the D77H. A small holo-tank is installed in the cockpit, allowing an artificial intelligence to project its holographic form to the craft's pilots.<ref>Halo 3</ref>

===Payload Capacity===
[[File:HRS D77H TCI Pelican Bottom.jpg|left|thumb|A bottom-profile of the D77H-TCI Pelican Dropship.]]
The pressurized payload area has also seen a design change, the D77H-TCI variant of the Pelican carries the same number of passengers as its predecessor. However, its troop-bay is more flexible, able to carry up to two [[M274 Mongoose ULATV|Mongoose ULATV's]] internally, in addition to ten passengers, also it has a hermetic door on its rear section for ship-to-shore orbital insertions. Its tail-mounted magnetic clamps are capable of carrying a [[M12 Warthog LRV]], [[Gauss Warthog|M12G1 Warthog LAAG]] or [[M831 TT Warthog]], an [[M808B Scorpion MBT]], or four [[Resupply Canister Type-C Capsule|Type C Resupply Capsules]] rather than six of the older [[Resupply Canister Type-B Capsule|Type B Resupply Capsules]], to the battlefield, able to detach its payload without landing decreasing the chance of an attack while it unloads.

===Armament===
The D77H-TCI Pelican, like its predecessor, is compatible with the Rotary-cannons in both 40mm and 70mm types. The Pelican is also able to mount an [[AIE-486H Heavy Machine Gun]] in its troop-bay compartment for supporting ground teams and covering the departure of its passengers, an improvement from the previous [[M247 GPMG]], although this prevents it from carrying a vehicle internally. The D77H can also be equipped with [[ANVIL-II ASM]] Pods; the design of the pods has changed, and now seamlessly blends with the Pelican. The new ANVIL pods can fire up to 12 missiles at once, six from each pod. A Gunship version of the D77H is in service as well, this heavily armed version, is equipped with more chainguns, missiles, and a large cannon, mounted at the ventral-fore of the dropship<ref>[[High Ground (Level)]] computers</ref>.

===Propulsion===
The main engines are mounted in pairs in four nacelles, one situated on each wing and two at the rear and posterior. The nacelles can articulate independently, thus altering the direction of thrust, referred to as vectoring in aviation; This improves the Pelican's low altitude maneuverability. Four ventral thrusters are identified by markings and a rendered thrust effect, one on each wing nacelle and one on each aft nacelle, allow the drop ship to land and take off vertically. These engines are capable of both space and atmospheric operation. It has 8 jet intakes, 3 on each side and 2 on top.

The wings mounted on a Pelican seem extremely small, too small to support the weight of drop ship and payload alone. It is speculated that it utilizes at least some [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifting_body Lifting Body] principles, using its own hull create most of the lift necessary for flight. It may also be that the Pelican partially relies upon thrust vectoring, referred to as jet-borne flight as opposed to wing-borne flight which can be further reinforced with the fact that down-ward aiming jets can be seen on the bottom of the thruster mountings. It should be noted that small wings are very efficient for high-speed flight, as demonstrated by the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F-104_Starfighter F-104 Starfighter]. It is also a benefit for operations in the upper atmosphere, especially re-entry, as was the case with the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X-15 X-15]. The D77H-TCI, like the D77, although fully capable of orbital insertion, is too small to be equipped with a [[Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine]], and thus is incapable of slipspace travel.

==Identified Pelicans==
{{Pelican}}

==Trivia==
*A [[D77C-NMPD Pelican Dropship|police version of]] the Pelican appears in [[Halo 3: ODST]]. This version is colored black and white, and has the front turret replaced by optic surveillance gear.
*In the cockpit it has a screen which in Hocus' Pelican reads "connected to [[UNSCDF]] via local grid Pz87-3383." It also has the insignia of the UNSCDF in the upper left corner. This screen is also used as a method of communication in scripted sequences.
*In ''Halo 3'', it is possible to "destroy" a Pelican by throwing a grenade into the cockpit. If so, then the Pelican will sink through the floor.
*When you are in theater mode and you go in the troop bay of a Pelican (when the door is closed), you can see that there is no light, unlike in the cinematic, where the red light is always lit. Then you will see that the rear door is highlighted as if it was lit from the inside. If you go into the cockpit (through the closed door), you can see a standard marine sitting in mid air.

==Gallery==
<gallery type="slideshow" position="center" widths="400px">
File:Concept police pelicans.png|Concept art of different color schemes of NMPD's Pelican dropships.
File:The Ark Pelican.jpg|A Pelican, dropping off two ODSTs on Installation 00.
File:Landfall Pelicans.jpg|D77H-TCI Pelicans under construction.
File:Pelican bay.jpg|The rear seats of a D77H-TCI Pelican.
File:1210810634 Gfs 63166 2 16.jpg|A Pelican seen from the front, with ANVIL-II pods attached.
File:1212438981 The Pit.jpg|Pelicans outside [[The Pit]].
File:Pelican-Abrams Comparison.jpg|A comparison of how big the troop bay actually is. 
File:PolicePelican1.png|The NMPD-version of the D77H-TCI.
File:Ark2.JPG|The cockpit of the D77H-TCI.
File:Halo 3 Pelican Hangar.jpg|A Pelican dropship in the hangar of [[Crow's Nest]] in [[Halo 3]].
File:Pelican Cockpit.jpg|The cockpit of the Pelican dropship.
File:Halo 3 Pelican1.jpg|The Pelican as it appears in [[Halo 3]].
File:Halo 3 Pelican2.jpg|A top view of the Pelican as it appears in [[Halo 3]].
File:Halo 3 Pelican3.jpg|A front-view of the Pelican as it appears in [[Halo 3]]'s campaign level [[Crow's Nest]].
File:PelicanCrash-large.jpg|A crashed Pelican on [[Installation 00]]
File:PelicanOnCortana.jpg|A Pelican crashed on [[High Charity]]
</gallery>

==Sources==
<references/>

==Related Pages==
*[[D77-TC Pelican]]
*[[Albatross|Albatross Dropship]]
*[[Phantom|Phantom Dropship]]
*[[Spirit|Spirit Dropship]]

{{UNSC Ships}}
{{UNSCDF Aircraft}}
[[Category:UNSC Vehicles]]