***
Of course, if you expect to need a hospital ship, you can hire one instead of
having it permanently on your payroll. "Mercenary hospital ship" sounds a
little odd but Search And Rescue Company (SARCo) certainly qualifies as
"mercenary" and they have hospital craft as well as salvage tugs and search
craft available.
***
I always assumed that SARCo's fortunes would be lowest at the extremes: peace
and few disaters would reduce need for it's activities; full and long term
warfare would have nations investing in their own resources.
They'd pay through the nose when things were going sour, of course.
Still, one would assume that there were always enough developing hot spots to
keep it in the chips...
The_Beast
I can see that there will always be a need for salvage, medical response or
emergency response such that a commercial interest would get in on the act.
For instance, if the salvage fee is 10% of book value, it only requires a
company to salvage a cruiser or a couple of destroyers to make operating costs
for the year and a large battle could make them
Mcr-aires.
Along those lines, SAR/recovery/salvage for lost cruiseliners,
freighters etc. is probably a constant business too, the major cost being a
fast FTL ship with excellent sensors. A larger, slower "hospital" or "salvage"
ship could then be sent afterwards after the
salvage/recovery crew had already secured the distressed ship.
Another opportunity would be specialized medical treatment for disasters
- not all worlds are going to have the best
radiation/genetic/nanosurgery facilities available - what about a roving
Hospital ship that travels from colony to colony providing top-line
medical care once or twice a year?
Construction companies (especially those involved in installing powerplants)
might hire a hospital ship to be on standby in case of a
construction accident or something horrible happening on power-up. It
might even be required as part of their contract.
The key economic factors - are there salvage rights, how profitable are
the rights, and the cost of FTL compared to the cost of medical services.
> -----Original Message-----
> I always assumed that SARCo's fortunes would be lowest at the extremes:
peace and few disaters would reduce need for its activities;
What's "peace"?
> full and long term warfare would have nations investing in their own
For the ones who're participating over the long term--but even then,
temp jobs will be available, either from the peripheral players or the major
belligerants who need to fill in.
I try to find roles for merc organizations such that they usually don't
have to get directly involved in the fighting--recon, hospitals, tech
support, etc., rather than gropos.
> At 3:30 PM -0500 11/21/03, laserlight@quixnet.net wrote:
That quiet time after you kick someone's ass and win the war.
***
I can see that there will always be a need for salvage, medical response or
emergency response such that a commercial interest would get in on the act.
***
For the ones who're participating over the long term--but even then,
temp jobs will be available, either from the peripheral players or the major
belligerants who need to fill in.
***
There you two go speaking in absolutes... ;->=
Yes, always opportunties; biggest at the start of hostilities, I suggest. The
problem becomes maintaining the large infrastructure between 'happy times'.
***
I try to find roles for merc organizations such that they usually don't
have to get directly involved in the fighting--recon, hospitals, tech
support, etc., rather than gropos.
***
Aha! A strategy of appropriate scale, methinks. I'll try to avoid the usual
liberal analogies to current situations.
Anyway, mine was merely thought play rather than serious analysis. Remember,
I'm the guy promoting a fleet of bitter employees of a dead
company... ;->=
--- "laserlight@quixnet.net" <laserlight@quixnet.net>
wrote:
> >I always assumed that SARCo's fortunes would be
A time when military casualties are at a low enough level that civillians
don't notice them.