Manumoku (Ma-noo-moh-koo)

Manumoku are small personal aircraft featuring a large set of mechanically operated wings, a fixed horizontal tail wing with a vertical rudder, and an enclosed cockpit. They are powered by a rowing motion generated by the pilot which flaps a pair of mechanical wings on either side of the craft which provides both lift and a generous amount of forward thrust. A pair of pedals are able to control the rudder and angle of the fixed wing on the tail section of the craft to control the yaw and pitch respectively.
Modern Manumoku are a bit larger than originally designed, typically with a wingspan of 45ft, though are usually designed for the wings to fold back for easier storage while not being used. The cockpit is around 6-8 feet in length, with only enough width for the crew to sit and change positions as necessary during the flight. Thanks to Atlantean construction materials, the framework of the craft only weighs around 75 pounds, which takes up around half the weight of the craft. The other half belonging to the cockpit, seats, cloth stretched over the wings, and the mechanisms to control both the flight surfaces and movement of the wings. They were originally designed to be crewed by a single Mehune, but since the popularity of the craft as a scouting vehicle, larger variants have been created to allow sufficiently light members of larger races to operate the vehicle as well.
The cockpit is designed to hold a crew of two, one spotter and one rower, with the spotter seated towards the front of the cabin. The two positions trade off to allow each rower time to rest during a sustained flight or scouting mission. An experienced and trained team of pilots can keep a Manumoku in the air for around two shifts of an hour from each rower before needing to land, though exceptional teams have performed for longer during times of emergency. A typical scouting flight will make wide circles around the city state at a cruising air speed of around 35 miles per hour and altitude of around 5000ft.
Exceptionally trained and experienced teams will sometimes compete in a Lele Lo'ihi, (Ley-Ley Low-Ee-Hee) an incredible feat which tests both the endurance and power of the crew with the engineering skill of the designer which requires the team to maintain sustained flight for a grueling eight full hours. Meant to honor a similar such feat involving a team of operators, Noa Kapena and Keanu Wikolia, traveling for eight hours to warn their coastal city-state of an impending attack by the Kegani, then another eight to meet with the army of their city-state to redirect them to return to defend against the attack, and then a final eight hour flight to return home. Though the coastal city-state from the story is no longer inhabited, the journey of Noa and Keanu are honored names among the Mehune.

Usage

Since the ceasing of the planets rotation and with it the rising threat from the approach of Ra's armies, most city-states have begun to maintain a small fleet of these craft which run regular patrols around the city. These patrols are both on the lookout for potential dangers to the city and for ever scarce resources that the city can make use of.
Larger and more well-off city states will have multiple scout flights launched periodically, each with their own fresh and rested crew.

Inventor

The Manumoku was first invented many generations ago by a clever Mehune engineer, Makana Kaleo, as a personal project in their spare time. The framework of the vehicle is exceptionally strong and light by using an alloy of softer metals, and scrap pieces of Orichalcum. The scrap Orichalcum is too impure or of insufficient quantity to be used in more serious and demanding engineering projects, such as weapons, armor, or the many hundreds of legs that power a walking city, but is more than sufficient to hold a frame of cloth strong against the wind. The plans were replicated from time to time by other Mehune for several generations until their modern popularization as scouting vehicles.

Width

Wingspan: 45ft

Length

22ft

Height

6 ft

Weight

150 lbs

Speed

35mph sustained; 58mph max recorded

Complement / Crew

2

Cargo & Passenger Capacity

max load 300 lbs