The Caladan Frigate Bird

The Atreides homeworld of Caladan is a world of seas and storms. And the Atreides have been known for millennia for their prowess with ornithopters. “So,” I wondered, “How do these ideas meet?”

And so I bring you the Caladan Frigate Bird.

Real world frigate birds are really neat. They stay aloft over the ocean for weeks at a time. They have 2m wingspans. Their throats inflate into a crimson balloon to look sexy.

In a DUNE context, they should be…even more so. This is the first of a couple of studies leading to the design of an Atreides ornithopter.

Modular systems are a function of industrial society. But do people of The Fifth World still know how to agree to standards? With their acute interest in efficiency, I think they might have carried that lesson forward!

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