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(Removed some **s where I confirmed myself, tidied up the start, noted size difference between stations)
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{{Main|Docking}}
The Mailslot is an informal term for the docking bay entrance and airlock. It is so named as a result of its distinctive shape, wider than it is tall. The mailslot is one of the greatest obstacles to speed docking and use of larger ships.
 
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[[File:Coriolis-Station-Access-Corridor.png|thumb|300px|Coriolis Station Access Corridor]]
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An '''Access Corridor''', colloquially known as a "Mailslot" due to its distinctive shape, is an airlock that serves as the main point of entry for [[Coriolis]], [[Ocellus]], [[Orbis]], and [[Asteroid Base]] [[station]]s. Access Corridors are marked by flashing guidance beacons and are approximately 222 meters wide and 52 meters high. They are guarded by [[Defence Turrets]] that will open fire on any [[loitering]] or intruding ships. Advertising banners are commonly displayed around the corridor on the outside.
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== Docking Permission ==
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[[File:Station with Boeing 747 and Courier.jpg|thumb|250px|Station with Boeing 747 and Courier]]
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All stations require incoming ships to request and be granted docking permission before they pass through the access corridor. Ships without permission will be charged with trespass as they near it. If they do not then vacate the station area very rapidly, the station will become hostile and open fire. Many ships are not fast enough to reverse course before they are fired upon, so pilots must be attentive at all times and not forget to request permission.
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The interior of stations is kept pressurised with a breathable, if not always pleasant, atmosphere. Translucent blue force fields generated at the access corridor prevent the immediate venting of this atmosphere into space yet allows the passage of spacecraft. Ships with broken [[Ship Canopy|canopies]] which are on emergency [[Life Support]] will no longer be in danger from running out of oxygen once they pass the force fields.
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== Problems transiting ==
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Getting stuck in the access corridor is a common problem for new and inexperienced pilots, or even for seasoned pilots unused to a new ship. Small and medium ships rarely have a problem, while larger ships are far more likely to have issues. Some large ships can require [[Landing Gear]] to be deployed early to fit. Sometimes getting stuck is due to a collision caused by inattention from the pilot in failing to notice an incoming vessel while trying to leave the station, or just impatience trying to get past it.
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In any case, [[loitering]] in the access corridor, even if unintentional, will provoke a hostile response from the station rapidly, so this is a serious situation and should be avoided if at all possible, and dealt with as quickly as possible. Players who get stuck should keep calm and attempt to manoeuvre and reverse out of danger. If this fails, as a last resort logging out of the game and back in will reset the location of the player's ship either as docked or clear of the station. Logging is generally frowned upon but in this case its morality can be left up to the judgement of the player.
   
 
== 360° Roll ==
 
== 360° Roll ==
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In certain situations, a pilot may not have enough time to correctly align with an Access Corridor. While some ships are too wide to enter the Access Corridor any other way, others are small enough that they can perform a 360° roll in the Access Corridor with little or no risk of getting stuck, which means they can be used to enter the Access Corridor without needing to worry about their alignment.
This is a table of which ship can perform a 360° roll in the mailslot. Note that the slot can be a different size in different types of station, thus some ships may be able to perform a roll on an Orbis or Ocellus starport but not a Coriolis.<sub>Please confirm!</sub>
 
{| class="article-table"
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{| class="wikitable" border="1"
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! 360° Roll-capable
!Ship
 
!360° Roll
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! Not 360° Roll-capable
 
|-
 
|-
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|[[Adder]]<br>[[Alliance Challenger]]<br>[[Asp Explorer]]<br>[[Asp Scout]]<br>[[Cobra MkIII]]<br>[[Cobra MkIV]]<br>[[Diamondback Explorer]]<br>[[Diamondback Scout]]<br>[[Dolphin]]<br>[[Fer-de-Lance]]<br>[[Hauler]]<br>[[Imperial Courier]]<br>[[Imperial Eagle]]<br>[[Type-6 Transporter]]<br>[[Sidewinder MkI]]<br>[[Viper MkIII]]<br>[[Viper MkIV]]<br>[[Vulture]]
|Adder
 
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|[[Alliance Chieftain]]<br>[[Alliance Crusader]]<br>[[Anaconda]]<br>[[Beluga Liner]]<br>[[Federal Assault Ship]]<br>[[Federal Corvette]]<br>[[Federal Dropship]]<br>[[Federal Gunship]]<br>[[Imperial Clipper]]<br>[[Imperial Cutter]]<br>[[Keelback]]<br>[[Krait MkII]]<br>[[Krait Phantom]]<br>[[Mamba]]<br>[[Orca]]<br>[[Python]]<br>[[Type-7 Transporter]]<br>[[Type-9 Heavy]]<br>[[Type-10 Defender]]
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Anaconda
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Asp Explorer
 
|Yes*
 
|-
 
|Cobra
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Eagle
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Federal Dropship
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Fer-de-Lance
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Hauler
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Imperial Clipper
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Lakon Type-6
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Lakon Type-7
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Lakon Type-9 Heavy
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Orca
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Python
 
|No**
 
|-
 
|Sidewinder
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Viper
 
|Yes
 
|-
 
|Vulture
 
|Yes
 
 
|}
 
|}
   
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== Notes ==
<nowiki>*:</nowiki> Touches station, serious hull damage could occur at high speeds!
 
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A common misconception of Access Corridors is that their constricting shape is arbitrary, and therefore makes entry into stations more difficult than necessary. In fact, Access Corridors are narrow as a reference to the station design in ''[[Elite]]'', as well as to accommodate an unimplemented feature: blast doors. These blast doors are almost never seen because they are locked open pending a future game update, but on rare occasions a bug can cause them to close and obstruct entry to a station or destroy a CMDR's ship. It is currently unknown what purpose the blast doors will ultimately serve or if they will ever be fully implemented.<ref>[https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php/103327-So-the-stations-have-closable-blast-doors-on-the-front?s=0d71794b21c76a6f2311fdb647591193&p=1602409&viewfull=1#post1602409 Frontier Forums: So the stations have closable blast doors on the front?]</ref>
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== Gallery ==
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<gallery>
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Coriolis-Station-Access-Corridor.png|Coriolis station access corridor
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Station with Boeing 747 and Courier.jpg|Access Corridor with a Courier and Boeing 747
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Access_Corridor_Dimensions_Corvette_For_Scale.png|Access Corridor dimensions and a Corvette for scale
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Station-Defence-Turret.png|Station Defence Turret
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Asteroid-Base-Access-Corridor-Mailslot.png|Asteroid Base access corridor mailslot
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</gallery>
   
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== References ==
<nowiki>**:</nowiki> Unconfirmed estimate, please confirm trhrectifyis values and delete the marks!
 
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<references />
[[Category:Stations]]
 
[[Category:Ships]]
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[[Category:Guides]]
 
[[Category:Technology]]

Revision as of 08:27, 12 August 2019

Main article: Docking
Coriolis-Station-Access-Corridor

Coriolis Station Access Corridor

An Access Corridor, colloquially known as a "Mailslot" due to its distinctive shape, is an airlock that serves as the main point of entry for Coriolis, Ocellus, Orbis, and Asteroid Base stations. Access Corridors are marked by flashing guidance beacons and are approximately 222 meters wide and 52 meters high. They are guarded by Defence Turrets that will open fire on any loitering or intruding ships. Advertising banners are commonly displayed around the corridor on the outside.

Docking Permission

Station with Boeing 747 and Courier

Station with Boeing 747 and Courier

All stations require incoming ships to request and be granted docking permission before they pass through the access corridor. Ships without permission will be charged with trespass as they near it. If they do not then vacate the station area very rapidly, the station will become hostile and open fire. Many ships are not fast enough to reverse course before they are fired upon, so pilots must be attentive at all times and not forget to request permission.

The interior of stations is kept pressurised with a breathable, if not always pleasant, atmosphere. Translucent blue force fields generated at the access corridor prevent the immediate venting of this atmosphere into space yet allows the passage of spacecraft. Ships with broken canopies which are on emergency Life Support will no longer be in danger from running out of oxygen once they pass the force fields.

Problems transiting

Getting stuck in the access corridor is a common problem for new and inexperienced pilots, or even for seasoned pilots unused to a new ship. Small and medium ships rarely have a problem, while larger ships are far more likely to have issues. Some large ships can require Landing Gear to be deployed early to fit. Sometimes getting stuck is due to a collision caused by inattention from the pilot in failing to notice an incoming vessel while trying to leave the station, or just impatience trying to get past it.

In any case, loitering in the access corridor, even if unintentional, will provoke a hostile response from the station rapidly, so this is a serious situation and should be avoided if at all possible, and dealt with as quickly as possible. Players who get stuck should keep calm and attempt to manoeuvre and reverse out of danger. If this fails, as a last resort logging out of the game and back in will reset the location of the player's ship either as docked or clear of the station. Logging is generally frowned upon but in this case its morality can be left up to the judgement of the player.

360° Roll

In certain situations, a pilot may not have enough time to correctly align with an Access Corridor. While some ships are too wide to enter the Access Corridor any other way, others are small enough that they can perform a 360° roll in the Access Corridor with little or no risk of getting stuck, which means they can be used to enter the Access Corridor without needing to worry about their alignment.

360° Roll-capable Not 360° Roll-capable
Adder
Alliance Challenger
Asp Explorer
Asp Scout
Cobra MkIII
Cobra MkIV
Diamondback Explorer
Diamondback Scout
Dolphin
Fer-de-Lance
Hauler
Imperial Courier
Imperial Eagle
Type-6 Transporter
Sidewinder MkI
Viper MkIII
Viper MkIV
Vulture
Alliance Chieftain
Alliance Crusader
Anaconda
Beluga Liner
Federal Assault Ship
Federal Corvette
Federal Dropship
Federal Gunship
Imperial Clipper
Imperial Cutter
Keelback
Krait MkII
Krait Phantom
Mamba
Orca
Python
Type-7 Transporter
Type-9 Heavy
Type-10 Defender

Notes

A common misconception of Access Corridors is that their constricting shape is arbitrary, and therefore makes entry into stations more difficult than necessary. In fact, Access Corridors are narrow as a reference to the station design in Elite, as well as to accommodate an unimplemented feature: blast doors. These blast doors are almost never seen because they are locked open pending a future game update, but on rare occasions a bug can cause them to close and obstruct entry to a station or destroy a CMDR's ship. It is currently unknown what purpose the blast doors will ultimately serve or if they will ever be fully implemented.[1]

Gallery

References