Star Citizen guide #03: your first ship, from the ASOP terminal to quantum travel

The big moment: getting your ship out of the hangar, taking off, and making your first quantum jump. Here’s the whole sequence, step by step.

1. Retrieve your ship

• At the spaceport, find an ASOP terminal (fleet manager). Pick your ship and request it: the terminal tells you which hangar or pad it’s on.
• Take the elevator to the hangars and choose the right number. Your ship is waiting.
• If a ship gets destroyed, the ASOP is also where you file an insurance claim (see the insurance guide).

2. Take off

1. Board (hold F on the door or ladder) and sit in the pilot seat.
2. Press R (“Flight Ready”): the ship powers up and gets ready.
3. Request takeoff with Left Alt + N: the hangar doors open.
4. Rise gently (Space), retract the landing gear (N), and fly out without scraping the walls.

3. Quantum travel

1. Leave the city area: while you’re in the protected zone, keep your speed reasonable.
2. Open the star map (F2), select your destination and plot the route; or aim straight at a marker shown in your HUD.
3. Press B to enter quantum mode, line your nose up with the destination, then start the jump (long press).
4. During the trip there’s nothing to do: the ship stops on its own at a safe distance from the destination.

4. Land

• When approaching a station or a city, request landing with Left Alt + N: you’re assigned a hangar or pad, shown in your HUD.
• Slow down for real, lower the gear (N) and descend slowly and straight down. Too slow beats too fast.
• Once landed, power down and store the ship at the ASOP if you’re done with it: it frees the hangar and keeps the ship safe.

5. Fuel

• Two tanks: hydrogen for the thrusters and quantum fuel for jumps.
• They refill at landing services (once landed at a station or city), along with repairs and ammo.
• Since Alpha 4.10, hydrogen tanks are smaller but consumption is lower, and fuel costs more: check your gauges before a long trip.

💡 Beacon tip: never leave your ship parked too long on a public pad: past a time limit it gets impounded, with a fine.

Read next: Navigation and jumps · Rookie mistakes · Best missions to start with

Written for Star Citizen Alpha 4.10.2 (October 2026). The game changes with every patch: if something has moved, tell us in a reply and we’ll update the guide.