<p>A bit of stab in the dark, but I think you might be referring to something by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leiji_Matsumoto" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Leiji Matsumoto</a>. Beautiful long-haired women are a dime a dozen in his works, and there are at least few ship designs with something like a winglet on the underside.</p>

<p>The Spacewolf fighter from the various Captain Harlock TV shows and movies usually has a winglet on the underside. The version on the left below, from Arcadia of My Youth: Endless Orbit SSX, is noticeably swept forward. The enemy Mazone fighters, always piloted by women with long hair, also can have something like a underside winglet, like the example below on the right. </p>

<p><a href="http://www.cornponeflicks.org/harlock/pirateships.html#SPACEWOLF" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/sbvH9.jpg" alt="Spacewolf fighter from Endless Orbit SSX"></a>
<a href="http://www.cornponeflicks.org/harlock/mazoneships.html#MFIGHTERS" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/NRC41.jpg" alt="Mazone fighter"></a></p>

<p>Apparently the fighters in Space Battleship Yamato sometimes had a bottom mounted winglet:</p>

<p><a href="http://yamato.wikia.com/wiki/Type-Zero_Space_Model_52_Cosmo_Zero" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/NDrnb.jpg" alt="Cosmo fighter variant from Yamato "></a></p>

<p>It's a bit of a stretch, but but if you didn't realize how big it is, The Queen Emeraldas, kinda sorta fits your description. It has a long "streamlined" shape and the gondola can sorta look like a forward swept winglet depending on how it gets drawn. Despite its size I believe it's usually shown a being piloted by one long-haired woman.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.cornponeflicks.org/harlock/pirateships.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/uEuIz.jpg" alt="The Queen Emeraldas"></a></p>

<p>(Click on any of the above images will take you to a page with more images of similar craft.)</p>

<p>Unfortunately I'm can't suggest any specific titles or episodes. I'm not that familiar with these works, having only a watched a few Captain Harlock episodes recently and a handful other shows in French as long, long ago as a kid. Hopefully this will at least help narrow it down.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-04-14T21:27:21.523Z
It definitely wasn't a zeppelin, but the Mazone fighter on the pic seems pretty close (as far as my memories from early childhood can tell). Thanks a lot for the detailed and illustrated answer, I'll dig in that direction. Apparently, the woman-piloted winglet-equipped fighter-filled space is more abundant than I thought. I'll wait a bit for other versions and, most likely, accept your answer.
Kelly Roadkill
CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-04-12T18:59:30.433Z
2015-04-12T18:59:30.433Z
Ross Ridge
<p>I have seen this anime on a VHS somewhere in the middle 90s. I've only watched a few minutes into it (probably just an opening), and the few details that I remember are:</p>

<ol>
<li>A spaceship, not too big, probably a single-pilot fighter, with a
streamlined design and a small forward-swept winglet protruding from its
underside (like a hook of a <a href="https://texascreek.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/trencher.jpg" rel="nofollow">trencher machine</a>); the ship
probably had a greenish tint (though it could be a VHS color
artifact);</li>
<li>The pilot was a long-haired girl; her design was probably typical for that era (at least, I can't remember anything particular about her, except for the serious face expression); she was beautiful, that's for sure;</li>
<li>There also was another ship (no winglet) with a female pilot, but I'm not completely sure about that;</li>
<li>I don't remember anything important happening during those minutes
(no dogfights etc.)</li>
<li>I don't remember anything "European" or "Victorian" in the design of
ships and pilots (as opposed to popular space operas of the 80s); even if there was any, it was subtle;</li>
<li>I don't remember any other characters, ships, or locations from those few
minutes;</li>
<li>Overall, it seems like it was a serious title, not a
comedy.</li>
</ol>

<p>I am definitely not an expert in the retro-space-opera department, so it could easily be something totally mainstream. Since it was on a bootleg VHS, it could be an OVA, a full-length movie, or a TV episode.</p>

<p>UPD. The winglet was small, compared to the craft dimensions (see the trencher machine proportions). Overall, the craft design was rather streamlined. It didn't look like a "many pieces held together" thing (in terms of the game FTL: more of the Stealth cruiser than Engi or Lanius one).</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2015-04-14T21:37:15.330Z
@Gao I've made corrections to the question regarding the winglet and craft design. Unfortunately, I can't remember any more details. I've seen only a few minutes into the movie, and it was many years ago (around 1992-94). If it can be of any help, it was a bootlegged VHS in Russia (those were abundant in ex-USSR). Since most of those pirated cassettes were re-recorded from several bootlegged sources, there actually was a finite number of movies/anime circulating around. So maybe someone here on SE could've seen the a copy of the same cassette.
Kelly Roadkill
<identification-request>
Space anime from 80s/early 90s, with a distinct ship design and female pilots
# Space anime from 80s/early 90s, with a distinct ship design and female pilots
Posted by: username_0 on 2015-04-10
I have seen this anime on a VHS somewhere in the middle 90s. I've only watched a few minutes into it (probably just an opening), and the few details that I remember are:

1. A spaceship, not too big, probably a single-pilot fighter, with a
   streamlined design and a small forward-swept winglet protruding from its
   underside (like a hook of a [trencher machine](https://texascreek.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/trencher.jpg)); the ship
   probably had a greenish tint (though it could be a VHS color
   artifact);
2. The pilot was a long-haired girl; her design was probably typical for that era (at least, I can't remember anything particular about her, except for the serious face expression); she was beautiful, that's for sure;
3. There also was another ship (no winglet) with a female pilot, but I'm not completely sure about that;
4. I don't remember anything important happening during those minutes
   (no dogfights etc.)
5. I don't remember anything "European" or "Victorian" in the design of
   ships and pilots (as opposed to popular space operas of the 80s); even if there was any, it was subtle;
6. I don't remember any other characters, ships, or locations from those few
   minutes;
7. Overall, it seems like it was a serious title, not a
   comedy.

I am definitely not an expert in the retro-space-opera department, so it could easily be something totally mainstream. Since it was on a bootleg VHS, it could be an OVA, a full-length movie, or a TV episode.

UPD. The winglet was small, compared to the craft dimensions (see the trencher machine proportions). Overall, the craft design was rather streamlined. It didn't look like a "many pieces held together" thing (in terms of the game FTL: more of the Stealth cruiser than Engi or Lanius one).
**Tags:** identification-request
> **Comments:**
> **username_0**: @Gao I've made corrections to the question regarding the winglet and craft design. Unfortunately, I can't remember any more details. I've seen only a few minutes into the movie, and it was many years ago (around 1992-94). If it can be of any help, it was a bootlegged VHS in Russia (those were abundant in ex-USSR). Since most of those pirated cassettes were re-recorded from several bootlegged sources, there actually was a finite number of movies/anime circulating around. So maybe someone here on SE could've seen the a copy of the same cassette.  
---
## 1 answers
### Answer by username_1 on 2015-04-12. Score: 3 | Accepted answer
A bit of stab in the dark, but I think you might be referring to something by [Leiji Matsumoto](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leiji_Matsumoto). Beautiful long-haired women are a dime a dozen in his works, and there are at least few ship designs with something like a winglet on the underside.

The Spacewolf fighter from the various Captain Harlock TV shows and movies usually has a winglet on the underside. The version on the left below, from Arcadia of My Youth: Endless Orbit SSX, is noticeably swept forward. The enemy Mazone fighters, always piloted by women with long hair, also can have something like a underside winglet, like the example below on the right.

[![Spacewolf fighter from Endless Orbit SSX](https://i.sstatic.net/sbvH9.jpg)](http://www.cornponeflicks.org/harlock/pirateships.html#SPACEWOLF)
[![Mazone fighter](https://i.sstatic.net/NRC41.jpg)](http://www.cornponeflicks.org/harlock/mazoneships.html#MFIGHTERS)

Apparently the fighters in Space Battleship Yamato sometimes had a bottom mounted winglet:

[![Cosmo fighter variant from Yamato ](https://i.sstatic.net/NDrnb.jpg)](http://yamato.wikia.com/wiki/Type-Zero_Space_Model_52_Cosmo_Zero)

It's a bit of a stretch, but but if you didn't realize how big it is, The Queen Emeraldas, kinda sorta fits your description. It has a long "streamlined" shape and the gondola can sorta look like a forward swept winglet depending on how it gets drawn. Despite its size I believe it's usually shown a being piloted by one long-haired woman.

[![The Queen Emeraldas](https://i.sstatic.net/uEuIz.jpg)](http://www.cornponeflicks.org/harlock/pirateships.html)

(Click on any of the above images will take you to a page with more images of similar craft.)

Unfortunately I'm can't suggest any specific titles or episodes. I'm not that familiar with these works, having only a watched a few Captain Harlock episodes recently and a handful other shows in French as long, long ago as a kid. Hopefully this will at least help narrow it down.
> **Comments:**
> **username_0** (2015-04-14): It definitely wasn't a zeppelin, but the Mazone fighter on the pic seems pretty close (as far as my memories from early childhood can tell). Thanks a lot for the detailed and illustrated answer, I'll dig in that direction. Apparently, the woman-piloted winglet-equipped fighter-filled space is more abundant than I thought. I'll wait a bit for other versions and, most likely, accept your answer.  
---
