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'''Airlock''' is the name given for any area of a [[UNSC]] ship where one can leave the ship, such as the [[Bumblebee|lifepod]] or [[HEV]] launch area.
[[File:1208375252 Airlock-floorsign.gif|thumb|UNSC airlock floor sign]]
An '''airlock''' is a device which allows passage between two areas of drastically different pressures and/or atmospheric composition, while preventing the exchange of gases and pressure. An airlock consists of a small chamber with two airtight doors in series, which do not open simultaneously. They are most commonly used on spacecraft, where they allow safe passage between the pressurized interior of the ship and the vacuum of space, though they can also be found in enclosed habitats on worlds with toxic atmospheres, for example.<ref>'''Halo: Fractures''', "A Necessary Truth"</ref>


Technically, an airlock is a device which permits the passage of people and objects between a pressure vessel and its surroundings while minimizing the change of pressure in the vessel and loss of air from it. The lock consists of a small chamber with two airtight doors in series which do not open simultaneously. Also, some airlocks on ground prevent compression, such as underwater.
On [[United Nations Space Command|UNSC]] spacecraft, [[hangar bay]]s, [[Class-3 Enclosed Heavy Lifeboat|lifepod]] or [[Single Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicle|HEV]] launch areas are typically equipped with airlocks, used to prevent pressure loss from exposure to vacuum either due to a hull breach or the deployment of a lifepod or HEV.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Flood]]'''</ref> {{Class|Halcyon|cruiser}}s, in particular, employ them as redundancy features for survivability during combat with [[Covenant]] warships. The {{UNSCShip|Hopeful}} had an airlock large enough to cycle a fleet of dropships simultaneously.<ref>'''Halo: Ghosts of Onyx''', ''page 99''</ref>


An airlock may also be used for passage between environments of different gases rather than different pressures, to minimise or prevent the gases from mixing.
The Covenant typically employs [[energy barrier]]s in place of physical airlocks. Certain UNSC facilities also employ energy barriers for this purpose, presumably having reverse-engineered Covenant or Forerunner versions.


Airlocks are used in UNSC spacecraft to prevent pressure loss from exposure to vacuum either due to a hull breach or the deployment of a lifepod or HEV.<ref>[[Halo: The Flood]]</ref> [[Halcyon-class Cruiser]]s in particular employ them as redundancy features for survivability during combat with [[Covenant]] warships.
==Identified airlocks==
*[[UNSC Pillar of Autumn#Airlocks|Airlocks on the ''Pillar of Autumn'']]
*[[Umbilical|Cairo Station umbilical locks]]


Covenant airlocks feature a force field that prevents gasses from passing through, but allows ships and other solids through.
==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Frigate ext airlock.jpg|An external airlock/docking collar on the side of a [[UNSC frigate]]'s [[bridge]].
File:PoA ext airlock.jpg|An external airlock on the {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}}.
</gallery>


{{Ref}}
==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''
*''[[Halo: The Flood]]''
*''[[Halo 2]]''
*''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''
*''[[Halo: Uprising]]''
*''[[Halo: Glasslands]]''
*''[[Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo 4]]''
*''[[Halo 2: Anniversary]]''
*''[[Halo 5: Guardians]]''
*''[[Halo: Fractures]]''
**''[[Breaking Strain]]'' {{Mo}}
**''[[A Necessary Truth]]'' {{Mo}}
**''[[Into the Fire]]''
 
==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}


{{Halcyon Locations}}
{{Halcyon Locations}}

Revision as of 14:12, March 19, 2022

UNSC airlock floor sign

An airlock is a device which allows passage between two areas of drastically different pressures and/or atmospheric composition, while preventing the exchange of gases and pressure. An airlock consists of a small chamber with two airtight doors in series, which do not open simultaneously. They are most commonly used on spacecraft, where they allow safe passage between the pressurized interior of the ship and the vacuum of space, though they can also be found in enclosed habitats on worlds with toxic atmospheres, for example.[1]

On UNSC spacecraft, hangar bays, lifepod or HEV launch areas are typically equipped with airlocks, used to prevent pressure loss from exposure to vacuum either due to a hull breach or the deployment of a lifepod or HEV.[2] Halcyon-class cruisers, in particular, employ them as redundancy features for survivability during combat with Covenant warships. The UNSC Hopeful had an airlock large enough to cycle a fleet of dropships simultaneously.[3]

The Covenant typically employs energy barriers in place of physical airlocks. Certain UNSC facilities also employ energy barriers for this purpose, presumably having reverse-engineered Covenant or Forerunner versions.

Identified airlocks

Gallery

List of appearances

Sources

  1. ^ Halo: Fractures, "A Necessary Truth"
  2. ^ Halo: The Flood
  3. ^ Halo: Ghosts of Onyx, page 99
Halcyon-class light cruiser locations
Airlock - Armory - Bridge - Class Seven service corridor - Cryo B - Engineering
Launch Bay 7 - Lifepods - Maintenance - Mess Hall
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