Pilot Officer

• Access: Shuttle Bay, Pilot, ???.
• Additional Access: N/A
• Difficulty: Easy
• Supervisors: Executive Officer
• Duties: Fly the shuttle for salvage and military operations.
• Quote: “Dropship departing in five minutes!”

You are a Pilot Officer. This means that your job is to fly a crew of Marines and Salvagers and whatever else the XO wants deployed into and out of combat zones, both in space and on the planet. Your domain is the Shuttles in the Shuttle Bay, and while piloting, you're in charge regardless of rank – just don't sass your Command Officers too much.

Bare minimum requirements: Fly the shuttle to do Marine, Salvage, and any other operations requested. Make sure the shuttle can fly back again. Try not to leave anyone behind.

You're responsible for:

• Flying into combat missions, typically to deploy troops. You can hear the Marine All-Squad channel to assist in your communication with them regarding dangers.
• Flying out of combat missions, preferably with everyone that you came in with (or at least their ID cards to prove they aren't coming back.)
• Flying away from the ship should it be in imminent danger of destruction, preferably with as many of the crew aboard as can make it to the Shuttle Bay in time.
• Your shuttle has a phase cannon array, which can be upgraded to a twin phase cannon array if the R&D folk are doing their job properly or if Salvage is doing well this shift. You can use it to fire on enemy craft if necessary (though you should probably leave the heavy ship fighting to the NARV), or you can provide fire support for your troops from a safe distance. You don't have most of the advantages of the Overwatch Officer, though, so expect things to stay quiet until someone finds a xenomorph hive.

As a Pilot Officer, your immediate superior is the Executive Officer; when he orders Marines into the field, you're the ones to get them there. You're also tasked with getting people to and from salvage sites, planetary excavations, and other odd places, as long as the XO signs off on it. Try not to just wander off into space at random as your shuttle is not meant for major interplanetary expeditions and its FTL tether system can take a long time to charge up.

• Do not leave anyone behind if you know they're still alive. If you have questions, ask the Executive Officer to check suit sensors to make sure you're not about to clear out and leave someone stranded.
• The important exception to this rule is that you are not expected to let ground threats wreck the shuttle, nor are you expected to leave it when on assignment. If the Marines are making their final stand, call those who can to the shuttle and leave with those you can. You can also choose to disembark and find a new landing site, should your existing one be overrun with hostile local lifeforms, but tell the Squads that you are doing this (and ideally get them to clear a new landing site so you can pick them up.)

“The name's McCleary. I've done three hundred and forty seven orbital drops. And whoever pays me the most determines what I bring back.”

You have the unfortunate task of working around a very obvious role, so ditch the pilot jacket and get into something more comfortable if you want to take care of your objectives. Or don't; some of the best traitor rounds are those where the traitors make their own fun. You'll only be needed when the crew needs a pilot for boarding, which can be frequently or infrequently depending on the ship's goals.