The Picador is a small, fast and maneuverable jetboat.[2] Used by the RDA, they primarily carry out short-range water patrol missions on Pandora.[1] A variant is deployed from the SeaDragon as a pursuit boat for tulkun hunting.
Specifications[]
Smaller than any other maritime seacraft, the Picador is lightly armed, reliant on its speed and maneuverability to avoid danger. While typically unarmed, Cet-Ops personnel are known to mount a Hydra heavy machine gun[3] on its stern as well as an AHD-9 ultrasonic cannon[1] on its starboard side and a searchlight on its port side. Likewise, it can also mount one or two Chunkers instead of its Hydra or sound cannon.[1]
Picadors are also equipped with smokescreen launchers for concealment or maneuvers[1] alongside a sensor "basket handle" on the roof that contains the radar, antennae, camera, and more sensor equipment. Likewise, the boat's cockpit windscreen has a HUD that displays critical tactical and vehicle data.[1]
Picadors are much faster than Mako Submersibles and can reach a station in a shorter time. Explosives are used to drive the targeted animals back toward the mothership.[4]
A Picador can be crewed by just four people: one pilot, two gunners, and a spotter.
Service history[]
At least six Picadors were attached to the SeaDragon tasked with hunting tulkun and later locating Jake Sully. They were often seen in support of a Matador, firing their sound cannons to disorientate a tulkun before the Matador fired its harpoon gun to incapacitate it.
Several Picadors were destroyed during the Skirmish at the Three Brothers. One of two Picadors with orange markings was used as a lifeboat after the SeaDragon sustained critical damage during the battle.
Trivia[]
- A real life working version of the Picador was made for filming by designer and shipbuilder Alister Baxter for the Avatar sequels, hence the in world manufacturer of "Baxter Industries". The working model was custom built from the ground up with 1000hp engines and dual Hamilton jet drives propelling it up to speeds over 40 knots.[5]
