Type-8 TransporterPassenger

The Type-8 Transporter is a medium-pad freighter, and as a passenger ship it works the way any cargo hull does when you swap racks for cabins: it stacks a serviceable economy board and leans on cheap, rank-free access. Three size-6 optional slots take the biggest passenger cabins in the game, and the medium pad lands at outposts the large liners can't reach — a genuine edge for tourist boards that target remote beacons.

But nothing about the hull is built for passengers. As a Lakon it carries no Saud Kruger dedicated-liner comfort bonus, so every seat pays standard fares while a Beluga, Orca or Dolphin earns far more per cabin. Its size-5 drive gives only a modest laden range, its shield is thin, and at 200/340 m/s it is slow to reposition or flee. The cheaper large-pad Type-7 carries more seats for half the money; the medium Python carries more behind a real shield. The Type-8's passenger case is narrow: cheap economy volume with medium-pad reach, for a commander who already owns the hull.

The Type-8 has genuine hardpoints — one Medium and five Small weapon mounts — but a passenger fit leaves them clean and relies on its four utility mounts and a bi-weave shield for safety. Four things frame it as a passenger hull:

• Three size-6 cabin slots. The size-7 optional holds the shield, but all three size-6 slots take the largest cabins for a solid economy board of ~120–140 seats.
• Medium-pad reach. Lands at outpost beacons the large-pad liners and freighters can't dock at, with no rank or permit gate.
• Cheap and rank-free. A hull most haulers already own; re-roled to passengers in an afternoon with a cabin swap.
• Thin premium depth. Only one slot big enough for a luxury suite, so it stacks cheap seats but earns little from high-value VIP fares.

A cargo barge pressed into cheap tourist work: a decent ~120-seat economy board and medium-pad outpost reach carry the score, but no liner comfort bonus, a thin shield and only ~26 LY laden range hold it below the cheaper Type-7 and every dedicated liner.

The 46/100 headline is a verdict against the passenger role's priority-ordered factors. Each factor carries a weight (its share of 100); this hull earns part of each based on how it performs against the whole field. The points sum to the rating.

Every table rates ships for passenger specifically, split by landing-pad class. The Cabin cap. column is total optional-internal capacity — room for cabins; the rating is the same 1–100 suitability verdict used across the site.

Same class — medium passenger ships

8 medium-pad passenger hulls carry a rating, led by Lynx Highliner (90). Every same-pad rival lands where this one does — the direct field to shop.

Other classes — the liners

The large-pad passenger field (9 rated), led by Beluga Liner (95) — bigger pads and bankrolls. They out-muscle this hull on the numbers, but sit a pad class away.

Other classes — the shuttle-class

The small-pad passenger field (2 rated), led by Dolphin (80) — cheaper hulls and tighter pads. They undercut this hull on the numbers, but sit a pad class away.

At ~34.8M Cr the hull is the Type-8's weakest passenger argument: it costs roughly double the Type-7 (~16.8M) for fewer seats, and far more than a cheap medium tourer like the Asp (~6M) or Mandalay (~16.5M). Cabins are cheap, so an A-rated passenger fit lands around 44M Cr and an engineered one near 54M.

What you buy for the money is medium-pad access with no rank or permit gate. If you already own the Type-8 for hauling or mining, the cabin swap is nearly free and the second income is real. As a purpose-bought passenger ship, though, almost anything else is a better use of the credits.

A budget medium-pad passenger fit — a deep economy cabin suite behind a shield, hardpoints left clean. Initial is buy-only; A-rated is the passenger baseline; Engineered maximises jump range and keeps the cabins safe. The size-7 optional holds the shield (passenger cabins cap at size 6), freeing all three size-6 slots for fares.

Buy-only is a bare shell: the stock Lightweight Alloy bulkheads, two 0A Shield Boosters on the utility mounts, and the stock E-rated core modules with a 5C Fuel Tank. The weapon hardpoints stay empty — a passenger hull carries no guns.

Slot a standard 6E Shield Generator in the size-7 optional and drop two 6E economy passenger cabins plus a 5E economy cabin straight away to start taking fares. Leave every other slot empty (—) until the A-rated pass.

Buy-only just gets you carrying tourists on day one; the bi-weave, point defence and the full cabin board all wait for the upgrade plan.

A-rating priority for a budget passenger hauler:

• 1Shield Generator → 6C bi-weave — The one thing keeping VIPs alive through an interdiction; fast-charging so it recovers between hits. ~3M Cr
• 2Passenger cabins — Fill the board: three 6-class economy cabins in the size-6 slots (swap one for a luxury suite for VIP boards), plus the 5- and 4-class slots. Cabins are cheap and never A-rated beyond their class.
• 3Frame Shift Drive → 5A — Stretch the modest size-5 drive; range is the Type-8's weak axis, so this matters. ~5M Cr
• 4Thrusters → 5A — Escape interdiction when laden with fares; the slow hull needs every bit of it. ~5M Cr
• 5Power Plant → 5A + Power Distributor → 4A — Run the shield and utilities cool, and keep ENG charged to boost clear. ~7M Cr
• 6Utilities & QoL — Add a Point Defence turret and a Heat Sink to the last two mounts, and a 1-class Supercruise Assist for hands-off cruising between drop-offs.

Passenger engineering targets range, escape and shield; the cabins themselves are never engineered. Felicity Farseer (maxed) carries the FSD; pin blueprints for remote G1→G5 application.

Approximate progression across the three states (figures are representative, not exact rolls):

Engineered, the Type-8 carries ~120 economy fares (or a mixed board with a luxury suite) behind a ~450 MJ bi-weave, jumping ~26 LY laden on a medium pad. That is a workable tourist runabout, no more: the range keeps distant scenic boards out of reach, the shield is thin, and the missing comfort bonus caps per-seat pay below every dedicated liner. It competes on cheap seats and outpost access, and loses on everything else.

• No comfort bonus — a Lakon earns standard fares, so a Beluga or Dolphin makes more per seat in the same cabins.
• Range is the constraint — keep tours short; ~26 LY laden won't chase distant scenic beacons.
• It can't fight — keep the bi-weave and point defence, mine safer routes, and boost away if interdicted.
• Only buy it for passengers if you already own one; bought fresh, the Type-7 or Python return more per credit.