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While it's understandable that an M1 couldn’t really fit through the Stargate or get into the embarkation chamber (or could it? It would be nice boost for defense of the stargate), wouldn't armor be good support for SG teams? Even Humvees with some top-mounted 0.50 cals or Mk19 etc would be helpful. Especially by the later seasons, when the US is spending huge amounts on building space cruisers, the SGC could invest in some reworked tanks/APCs that would be able to be used through stargates.

Same thing with rescue-missions, especially launched from BC-X with beaming technology. They had hangars and the capability to 'beam' some choppers, even recon/transport ones, up and down, as well as real armor that should fare rather well against staff/zats and the like. So why did the SGC never employ those kinds of heavy equipment off-world?

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    According to the stargate wiki, Milky Way stargates are 6.7m in diameter (Though no citation is given for that figure). An M1 Abrams (3.66m wide, 2.44m high) would fit through easily, assuming you could get one into the gate chamber.
    – Compro01
    Commented Aug 19, 2013 at 14:39
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    That's good, even though diameter is most probably given in the widest possible place of stargate and vehicle would need to a bit 'fit square in the circle'. I assume the fitting vehicle, even M1 then for that case, would be possible thanks to the same shaft that was used to put stargate there. Also, even if not, there is still Asgard's beaming technology to use when assuming vehicles would take part in ship-launched / supported operations ( aka 'Space Marines' SAR etc )
    – Hary
    Commented Aug 19, 2013 at 16:18
  • @Hary - good point. While the hoist isn't exactly speedy after Unending it's only a matter of time before they install a Thor's Hammer type transporter in the gateroom. For that matter full Asgard transporters probably work through an active wormhole, maybe even both ways given it's an energy beam reintegrated without the gates mechanisms
    – John LA
    Commented Oct 8, 2019 at 8:54
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    Don't forget the tank would have to go through well above the usual ramp height in order for the treads to clear the edge of the wormhole -- and that means it has to go through fairly fast, and take a drop on the destination end, and can't come back without a similarly elevated ramp into the gate at that end. No, not impossible, but a bunch of extra work, when "travel light" has worked pretty well most of the time.
    – Zeiss Ikon
    Commented Dec 13, 2019 at 13:48

2 Answers 2

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In-Universe Answer

SG1

As soon as you move a vehicle into play you have to deal with a host of logistical burdens.

  • For a mission longer than a day you will also need to send a small supply depot for refuel.
  • Terrain would be an issue, as most gates are in the forests of British Columbia. ;)
  • As durable Humvee's are they are not all-terrain vehicles and are surprisingly easy to roll.
  • Minimal value as most civilizations tend to gather near the gates, typically within 5~10 miles.
  • The SGC is a missile silo, not really designed for loading and unloading vehicles.
  • Expansion of the SGC to include vehicle repair and maintenance.

Basically, the cost and material to equip an SG team for a week's reconnaissance of a world are way less than what it would take to equip an SG team for more than a day's reconnaissance of the same world. Load a MALP or a FRED with rations and tents as opposed to extra fuel/tires/oil/axels/etc. necessary for function for more than a day and deal with surprises. For most off-world missions their greatest advantage would be as an emplaced .50 cal to guard the clearing around the gate. Or you could mount one on a MALP or FRED without the maintenance overhead.

In later Alpha and Beta sites (i.e. when the Stargate program gets a consistent budget) we do see F302's and I believe the occasional parked vehicle. But by that point, F302's and stolen Goa'uld transports would be more useful for either reconnaissance or transport around a base.

For the beginning 3-4 seasons, our technology pales in comparison to the threats faced on the other side of the gate. Sure an Abram's and Humvee's would be good against small arms fire, but Staff weapons are roughly equivalent to RPG's, and those are just the handheld versions. An Abrams would not only be a poor choice for fighting Jaffa on foot, and it would be a sitting duck to a Death Glider, especially in 99% of the terrain we see. There is nothing we can field until we get Daedalus and the F302's that can come close to matching Goa'uld firepower or maneuverability.

Imagine an Abrams was used in Children of the Gods. It would be stuck in the Gate Quarry, noticed immediately and get blown up by a Death Glider in like 20 minutes, tops.

Atlantis

The initial gate in was better served with equipment and supplies to support the people and by the time they contacted Earth again, they had access to the Puddle Jumpers which don't have the logistic concerns nor terrain limitations. Also, adding a maintenance bay or a 100-story heavy elevator or larger than closet-sized transporter to the tower may not be feasible.

Universe

As they only had what they could carry on the first dial-in, and what the Lucian Alliance could carry on the second dial-in, Destiny never had the opportunity to receive any heavier equipment. If they did have the opportunity, FREDs and other vehicles pale in the versatility and speed of kino sleds over varied terrain. And unless they find a launch bay breaking down F302s is not an option. A puddle jumper could be useful, but they would have to make structural changes to the gateroom and surrounding compartments that could compromise structural integrity. If they were able to resupply Destiny, fabrication equipment and parts would be first on the list.

Out of Universe answer There was never a story that would have been improved with vehicles enough to warrant the cost and story hassle of their inclusion. Zat's were a problematic enough choice, adding vehicles would have been doubly so.

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  • Yeah, I belive the biggest out of universe explanation is that I would like see much more 'combat' or at least 'combat-style' things that SG ever was meant to show though; is there any in-universe source for Staffs having power similar to RPG? I never ever thought of them in that category
    – Hary
    Commented Mar 7, 2014 at 11:01
  • In the show we see development of 2-inch thick body armor inserts that the staff weapons blow through. In the RPG they are in the same "heave" class and have similar damage codes (though not blast radius). Commented Mar 7, 2014 at 17:17
  • But how cool would it have been for them to rip around alien worlds on ATVs a few episodes each season? Forget about fuel, noise (use electric?), and all the practical considerations-- it would have been really fun. Commented Mar 2, 2019 at 10:22
  • Most or all of these points are resolved first by powering whatever vehicle with a Mk"?" Naquada reactor. The rest are resolved if the third Alien craft they developed an analog of is a puddle jumper. All terrain flying APC anyone?
    – John LA
    Commented Oct 8, 2019 at 8:58
  • Well, a missile silo is designed for loading one very particular type of vehicle. It's even designed for said vehicle to leave under it's own power. Of course... only in a direction 90 degrees away from gate travel. :)
    – T.J.L.
    Commented Dec 13, 2019 at 13:44
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One issue with designing heavy-equipment specifically for the Stargate is that the US was in the middle of two on-Earth wars during the Goa'uld and Ori wars, along with various other on-Earth security issues such as terrorism and countering Chinese expansion. Designing weapons is expensive, and the Stargate Programme already eats a lot of funds as it is.

All that being said, I still believe designing a few heavy weapons and vehicles specifically for use through the Stargate would be a very good idea, and the US should invest in doing so. I do believ there were a few vehicles used at the Alpha and Beta sites, which presumably came via the 'Gate. It's likely that the equipment is just very expensive, and the US would rather invest money in defending themselves from a Goa'uld attack via space, rather than through the relatively-defensible Stargate network.

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  • The costs are always the problem, very true, so I guess that in fact creating some M551 / M113 ( do we have exact wide of the gate? maybe they could fit at all? )-based vehicle might be a bit too expensive but on the other hand, especially during the on-earth conflicts, making some Humvees or LAV "missing in action" or damaged "beyond repairs" shouldn't be 'that' difficult to organise.
    – Hary
    Commented Aug 18, 2013 at 8:52
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    and such vehicle would be a huge force multiplier to SG-teams, both at securing fall-back positions on gates and conducting recon / combat recon as seen in multiple episodes. Also in Atlantis series, even basic Humvee would be a big help IMO - the Darts beaming technology doesn't seems to be to be able to penetrate anything 'solid' to capture living organisms, so SG-teams should be relatively safe inside Humvees from being captured by beams or incapacitated by Wraith stun rods + heavy weapon on Humvee turret would be a force multiplier against both infantry and Darts
    – Hary
    Commented Aug 18, 2013 at 8:53
  • I'd be surprised if In Real Life special forces didn't already have an electric dirt bike for scouting while the show was still on the air. So there'd be that.
    – John LA
    Commented Oct 8, 2019 at 9:03
  • The real question is why is the US still building ANY current weapons system or fighting any war on earth. Realistically we would just button up the country, rely on our oceans for defense, and invest only in weapons to fight space wars Commented Dec 13, 2019 at 15:53

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