AMOEBA

The Alma Mater Of Every Bomber Airship, referred to as the AMOEBA, is the second largest lighter-than-air vessel ever constructed (the largest is Skydale, approximately five times the size of the AMOEBA).

The AMOEBA is laden with weaponry. From its septet of reused jumbo jet engines and flawless camouflage ability to its intense heat ray and millions of stored explosives, this zeppelin is a monstrous fighting machine. To relay this message to the enemy, Mayor McFlapp personally painted a mural of an amoeba swallowing a smaller single-celled protozoan on both sides of the blimp.

Background
The idea of a bomber blimp was conceived in 2007, when Explorer was tossing around new ideas for weaponry and fighting vehicles. Mayor McFlapp especially liked the idea of a zeppelin or blimp being used as a bomber in warfare, and authorized the construction of a fleet of large zeppelins that had special compartments for holding explosives. The members of this fleet later became known as MEAPs.

In late 2008, as the production of MEAPs was being finalized and the airships were being transported to hangars across Antarctica, Rory and Gary proposed that an even larger airship be built to not only store MEAPs, but to gain control of the sky with powerful long-range weapons that could inflict severe damage on multiple enemy units simultaneously. (T.L.;D.R.: A zeppelin/blimp that can store MEAPs and also have powerful weapons that can take down lots of troops all at the same time.)

The idea was passed. Mayor McFlapp, as usual, was tasked to oversee the construction of the ship. It took one-and-a-half years to build the AMOEBA, primarily because some of the proposed components of the ship had not yet been invented. Gary took it upon himself to design the heat ray and camouflage ability. By spring 2010, the result was a behemoth about 4,000 feet (approx. 1,000 m) long, and 1,000 (approx. 300 m) feet wide and high. The ship took up a volume of a little less than 17 billion cubic feet. The AMOEBA was completed.

The AMOEBA's first use was in the Great Fanon War, triggered by Swiss Ninja's actions against Dorkugal. It, along with its fleet of MEAPs, was deployed in the middle of the war, right after the Jsudsu Email Affair that brought the USA into the fight.

Description & Structure
The AMOEBA is a colossal zeppelin stored away inside one of Ternville's clouds. It is filled to the brim with tons and tons of Super Helium (Helium-3) to make it rise. The tanks containing the Super Helium are constantly being refreshed via pipes that are passed through portals.

The AMOEBA's livery consists of an outer layer that is usually colored a shade of light green. A picture of an amoeba swallowing a smaller protist is painted on both sides of the zeppelin. However, the AMOEBA has a special color-changing ability that allows it to fly in a stealth mode or be used as a signal. Small electrochromic panels covering the entire skin can change color based upon the amount of electricity that flows through them. Using a special color dial in the bridge, the captain can change the AMOEBA's color at any time. The AMOEBA's skin can also be set to automatically camouflage itself based upon the background and scenery that the AMOEBA is flying in. This works great for ambushes and stealth.

The AMOEBA has a set of four large fins, all colored a darker shade of green. Each fin has a built-in flap that is used to help steer the AMOEBA. These flaps can be used to make the ship pitch, yaw, and roll. The AMOEBA is powered by a set of nine turbofan engines all designed by Gary and built by Rory and his crew. The turbofans are larger than conventional engines, having a diameter of 300 feet and a length of 500 feet. They run on a mixture of two parts kerosene, one part nitromethane, and one part Ditto A. The mixture is stored in a compartment in the stern and is constantly replenished through portals. Four of the turbofans are located on the side of each fin, three are positioned in a triangle array located at the center of the fins, and the remaining two are located on either side of the AMOEBA.

A huge retractable heat ray is stored at the top of the AMOEBA. The ray is colored black with red stripes on both ends and a fiery streak along its length. It is simply just a high-power carbon dioxide laser that emits intense infrared light, which efficiently transmits heat. The heat ray's ray is actually invisible, but the effects are clear. The AMOEBA is capable of melting the entire housing district of South Pole City (Rooks).

The AMOEBA also has several built-in projectile launchers. Eight giant retractable deletion cannons are located along the sides of the AMOEBA -- four on the port side and four on the starboard side. In addition, arrays of missile launchers are located along the underbelly of the ship. Two quintets of jumbo KEI Cannons, mounted on a revolving column, are also positioned on the underbelly, one near the AMOEBA's bow and one near the rear. Energy for the KEI cannons is provided by the Governance through portals. To top this all off, the nose of the AMOEBA contains a giant flamethrower adjacent to a giant ice beam, both with an average diameter of 100 feet and a range of 500-600 feet.

The aircraft has 6 main exit doors, with two at the front of the fuselage, two at the rear of the fuselage, and one on each side of the ship. There are also airstairs that retract from the doors when opened. Five emergency exits, all located at the sides of the AMOEBA, can be activated in an emergency. The exits are also equipped with evacuation slides that can convert into life rafts. The exits cannot open during flight, as a mechanism called a Cooper vane usually stops the doors from opening.

The aircraft has 25 main cabins. There is a large flight deck located at the front of the aircraft, which has fly-by-wire systems on board, and is one of the most advanced cockpits in the continent. The flight deck has 6 flight crew members -- the captain, assisted by the first officer, maneuvers the airship. There is also one flight engineer, who controls all engine, fuel and power systems aboard the aircraft. Finally, there is a navigator, who handles radio and navigational systems, and two flight specialists, who maintain the aircraft's systems and help the pilots, flight engineer, and the navigator.

MORE COMING SOON!

Trivia
thumb|100px|left|The AMOEBA's theme music.


 * The AMOEBA is often mistakenly called a blimp. This is technically incorrect -- a blimp is a non-rigid airship, while the AMOEBA is a rigid airship (it contains a metal framework within), commonly called a zeppelin.
 * The AMOEBA comes with its own fitting theme song, chosen specially from another universe by DJ X.
 * The AMOEBA is capable of storing about 70-80 MEAPs.
 * The AMOEBA has one flaw -- it's rather slow. While it is capable of achieving a speed as fast as 200 miles per hour, however, flying the aircraft at speeds over 160 mph is considered dangerous, as the aircraft may become overstressed from the speed. The recommended cruising speed is only 100 miles per hour.
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