For those interested, I just completed an RE carbon carrier that performs much better. I hated to leave the Gaia behind because I put a lot of time into her. But I'm happy with the replacement, and there are certainly ways I like the new one better. It's certainly more practical.

Here's the link to the new Kurma Carrier, in case you haven't found it:
https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3006865194

It's got a similar style, but has 22 pitch and 22 yaw and is half again as big with room for all the shield upgrades.

I don't think I'd risk landing a carrier on a 4g+ planet, just not common sense to try it. Personally I'd rather have some headroom and space to expand, with lower cost-of-entry material requirements. But I haven't flown her yet, so will let you know after some time using her.

They do, and I had intended to use that, but I kept running out of CPU. For a high-end build with quantum extenders, etc. it could probably get to where you could maneuver much better and also lift off a 4g planet. I did my best to at least save space for expansion, but I'm willing to give it another go.

I was looking at it in creative mode tonight (the Vanilla version). The thruster pods have an unused forward/rear face on each that could use some building out with more engines if space is at a premium. Didn't look too hard at vertical thrust positions though. Will check out the RE version since my game can support one now.

The RE Version is out. Still not 100% satisfied because of how slow it is, but it still performs reasonably well.

Thank you both for the info & feedback. I'll be patient for now and simply give you time to work on the RE build poetry, since that's what I'm playing as well.

On a rough calculation, looks like the vanilla model currently idles for about 4 days. That's with thrusters, shield and turrets inactive, so you'd want to find a safe spot to log off if you're out more than a few days.

I'll try running it single player this week and see how it does.

Jᴧgᴧ - I have not yet run tests on the survival sustainability for single player, My co-op server has been using it and it doesn't seem to have been a burden in terms of consumption. The major components, thrusters, defenses, and other amenities are relatively similar to the Helios itself. I'll see if I can run the comparison in the next couple days and post the consumption rate in idle and cruising modes.

Aargh Tenna - I am still experimenting with the solar build in RE, I'm not happy with the maneuverability of either the Helios RE or this carrier as it's currently built. The RE build has been more problematic (which is frustrating because that's normally what I play on.)

I'm working on some modules to deal with the lack of combat capability. I am usually drawn to the Spearhaed module, so I'm doing my own take on that one. But I'll Keep plugging on this carrier.

normal Helios with max solar in RE idle fuel consumption is negative. That is sort of the whole point of modular build. Oxygen - do not know, but never had problem in normal Helios, changes maybe by 1% during a week of RL (if stationary).

Out of curiosity, is this blueprint (in your opinion) sustainable in a Single Player game? From the standpoint of energy/oxygen requirements, could a solo player keep the CV running without spending most of their time hunting down promethium?

I suspect due to it's size and the solar panel limits (even for a RE build), that it's idle consumption would be quite large. Haven't spawned it in creative though, so it's simply a guess.

Working through the CPU and shield issues, but hoping to have it in the next few weeks. Thanks for checking it out.

Looks good. Will keep eyes open for a RE compatible version.