Broadcast Skimmers
Broadcast skimmers are ungainly, makeshift things invented by unemployed young adults and illegal radio gangs in southern Iran. They're built from salvaged airships, junked automobiles, and garbage heap scrap, then fueled with waste-nar and cheap oil. Each brodcast skimmer is unique, the result of deeply questionable engineering by enthusiastic young adults. They do, however, have commonalities.
All of them contain nar-based propulsion devices and large wings, allowing them to act as enormous ground-effect vehicles. Most supplement this with large turbines or obsolete aircraft propellers to provide forward thrust. Additionally, each hosts a radio antenna of varying complexity, which gives them their name.
Most radio skimmers don't have the resources to mount a proper radio transmitter, nevermind a safe one. Power supplies and electronic oscillators simply aren't available in the strengths needed for long-range, vaguely quality radio transmission. Instead, they host antennae, recording equipment, and the barebones framework of a transmitter, and then rely on a Djinn or Djinn-blooded 'Arc Jockey' to actually transmit the signal into the antennae. The result is the Djinn-Jockey radio.
The range is limited and audio quality relies heavily on the skill of the jockey, but the result is an ability for the young and voiceless to make themselves heard in a way previously thought impossible. As such they are increasingly common, and the skills of talented pilots, arc-jockeys, and DJs ever more in demand. Most broadcast bursts of poetry, music, and political or theological speeches about the ills of society or problems facing the young.
This is, of course, wildly illegal and a nuisance for civilian radio stations. As such, Skimmers are traditionally built to be fast and agile enough to evade pursuit by the authorities. This, in turn, has lead to racing and impromptu sporting events. Rival gangs rocketing through the outskirts of a city at upwards of twenty kilometers an hour, each attempting to broadcast their signal over the other competitors'.
Broadcast skimmers have begun to be seen outside of Iran. Mughal, Maratha, and Ottoman youths have all begun to pick up the concept, while Irish and Indonesian Rebels have begun to design their own to broadcast propaganda and organize resistance to colonial rule.
Propulsion
A Broadcast Skimmer is a Ground Effect Vehicle, or GEV. A Ground Effect Vehicle uses the aerodynamic interaction between its wings and the ground to maintain low-level flight. Examples in our world include the Ekranoplan and some hovercraft.
Communication Tools & Systems
Arc-Jockeys are Djinn or Djinn-blooded individuals who use their ability to interact with the electromagnetic spectrum to manipulate an electric arc to transmit radio communications.
The resulting radio operates on principles similar to the Poulsen Arc radios of our world. The name has changed and the existence of Djinn has made them far more accessible to normal people, but the fundamental design is the same.
Class
Manufacturer
Owning Organization
Complement / Crew
3+
Cargo & Passenger Capacity
2-8
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Dude! I am lovong the idea of this as a form of rebellion becoming a ritual sport! What gave you the idea to have teens drifting around on landspeeders and putting out poetry? Would a more relaxed world climate have led to these teens dragging through the city doing the same thing? I honestly was jarred by you referencing the real world when talking about the DJ radio. Would have been better if that section was possibly split off with an [aloud][/aloud] block. More formatting could make this read better as well. I really do dig the concept and the harsh world, war weary world you have painted just in this article alone. Definetly worth a follow!