Bengal

The Bengal is a fleet carrier spacecraft manufactured by Roberts Space Industries (RSI) for the United Empire of Earth Navy (UEEN). Bengal-class carriers carry multiple squadrons of fighters, bombers and support craft, and typically form the nucleus of a UEEN battle fleet or task force group.^[1] Their massive armaments and extremely heavy shielding make it nearly impossible for any individual craft to threaten them.^[2] It is 990 meters in length.^[3]

Features

Carrier

This naval supercarrier transports and maintains an entire fleet of battle-ready fighters, including squadrons of Anvil F7A Hornets, F8A Lightnings, and Gladiators. Alongside the fighters are dedicated divisions of bombers, dropships, and utility craft for specialist missions and support.^[4]

Flying Fortress

Onboard, the Bengal supports a maximum crew of 476, with habitation for all. The crew is protected by a wealth of ballistic, laser, and missile turrets, including a main turret with a Behring ‘Ship Buster’ railgun for engaging enemy carriers and king ships.^[4]

Specifications

Power plant

10x

S4

C Power Plant

N/A

Cooler

10x

S4

C Cooler

N/A

Shield generator

1x

S4

C Shield Generator

Gorgon Defender Industries

Quantum drive

1x

S2

Odyssey

Tarsus

Jump drive

1x

S4

C Jump Module

N/A

Fuel intake

2x

S4

C Fuel Intake

N/A

Fuel tank

3x

S4

C Fuel Tank

N/A

Quantum fuel tank

1x

S4

C Quantum Fuel Tank

N/A

Thrusters

4x

S5

L Main Thruster

N/A

6x

S5

M Main Thruster

N/A

8x

S5

S Main Thruster

N/A

4x

S5

Retro Thruster

N/A

16x

S0

Joint Maneuvering Thruster

N/A

4x

SX

Joint Maneuvering Thruster

N/A

Turret

1x

S12

Remote Main Turret

N/A

4x

S12

Ship Buster

Behring Applied Technology

12x

S6

Remote Missile Turret

N/A

12x

S6

Beehive Missile Launcher

Behring Applied Technology

22x

S9

Manned STS Turret

N/A

44x

S8

Ballistic Cannon

N/A

12x

S6

Remote Phalanx Turret

N/A

12x

S6

Ballistic Gatling

Behring Applied Technology

38x

S8

Remote AA Turret

N/A

76x

S7

Ballistic Cannon

Behring Applied Technology

Model

Ship profile

Isometric	Above	Port-side	Front	Rear

Gallery

Acquisition

At CitizenCon 2954, it was revealed that player orgs would be able to construct the Bengal using the DryDock module on player space stations.^[5]

Development

The initial concept of Bengal is designed by Ryan Church (Freelance Conceptist) in 2013, and then handed off to a crew of artists (including Sergio Rosas) at CGBot.^[6] Throughout the coming years, it was only ever displayed in certain promotion videos or development updates. In one particular case, an episode of Around The Verse was used to display development progress on the ship, showing several interior shots such as ship hangars and flight decks.^[7] Throughout time, it has been worked on mostly behind the scenes. The ship was featured in several Squadron 42 teasers or trailers, confirming that it would need to be developed for an appearance in that game.

Design brief

Builder	Roberts Space Industries
Length	1,000 meters
Crew (max)	755
Mass (empty)	113,000 tonnes
Focus	Battlegroup fighter and bomber support platform
Range	Unlimited 20+ years
Description	The Bengal-class is the UEE's “tip of the sword.” The iconic Bengal is the most powerful warship available to the UEE Navy and its imposing presence has held off raiders and the Vanduul throughout the outer colonies, allowing humanity to spread unchallenged. Bengals carry multiple squadrons of fighters, bombers and support craft. Their massive armaments and extremely heavy shielding make it nearly impossible for any individual craft to threaten them. Only a combined effort could ever hope to destroy or capture one.

Cargo Capacity	15000 tonnes
Engines	Classified
Modifiers	10
Max. Class	Antimatter
Main Thrusters	6 x TR10, 4 x TR8, 4 x TR7
Maneuvering Thrusters	16 x TR6

1 x Behring Turret with 4 x 130m “Ship Buster” Railguns
18 x ASD Ship to Ship Turrets with dual Ion cannons
40 x MaxOx AA Turrets with dual Heavy Duty Laser Cannons
16 x K&W Rolling Space Frame (with 21 missiles each)
4 x Talon ‘Sweeper’ Mine Dispensers (aft) (Ammunition Types: HE, EMP, Web, Nuclear, Anti-Matter)

14 x Phalanx point defense Laser Gatling
36.4” Icarus Armor Plating
14 x Phoenix-class Shield Generators
6 x HT-2000 Burst Shield Generators (back-up non-sustainable shields) (2 fore, 2 mid, 2 aft)

Trivia

Traditionally, Bengal-class carriers are named after big cats.^[8]
Bengal is the first capital ship shown in Star Citizen back in the original Kickstarter campaign.^[9]
Seven artists are on board for its construction and development since the time of R&D.^[7]
An Idris can be fit in the hangar of the Bengal practically, but can't fly it in.^[7]
The main turret of the Bengal is slightly smaller than the Idris.^[7]
The interior is around three or four times the size of a Battlefield 4 map.^[7]
The Bengal was teased on May 1, 2021 on the Star Citizen Twitter with an image of a Bengal cat inside a backpack carrier.^[10] The ship then appeared during the 2951 Invictus Launch Week as part of the UEE navy fleet flying around the Stanton system.
In internal playtesting, players got frustrated traversing the ship. Elevators and a subdeck monorail were added as a solution. It runs from one side of the flight deck to the other. It can be used to transport cargo and personnel.^[11]
The Bengal carrier is sometimes nicknamed as the Bagel carrier by the community.
The Bengal class is also a class of carrier in Wing Commander.^[12]^[13]