Rivet City bow

The Rivet City bow is the broken-off section of the aircraft carrier where Rivet City is located.

Layout
Although technically a part of Rivet City, the Rivet City bow consists of the broken-off front third of the aircraft carrier. Pinkerton has set up his lab within the bow part of the carrier after being 'removed' from the Rivet City council in a coup.

Access to the bow is gained via an underwater door (yellow X on the image to the right) which can be most easily entered by exiting the Flight Deck door in the marketplace and jumping into the water. You will have to swim for quite a bit once you enter, and there is a hollow section half way along in which you can pause and take a breather. The entrance is guarded by mirelurks, the exact amount/type depending on your level.

Another entry is south west of Rivet City across a small pier. The door is locked "Very Hard" (requiring a Lockpick skill 100) on both sides. Alternatively there is a power switch to the right of the door, when used this unlocks the door as well, but this can only be accessed from the inside of the bow. If you enter this way, watch out for the frag mine that is placed on top of an empty ammunition box. If re-locked via the trigger, the door will drop to "Easy" for unknown reasons. Keep an eye out for further traps in the gas-filled hallway as you make your way towards Pinkerton's lab. A room containing two rigged shotguns, purified water, and frag mines is off to the right of the gas-filled hallway, and a tripwire activating a grenade bouquet is immediately after the door. Eventually you will reach a door that can only be opened remotely, via an activation switch. The switch can be found on the wall directly opposite the door. Beware of the rigged computer next to the door.

Notable loot
Note: All of these have to be stolen (except for the scoped .44 magnum), which leads to Karma loss and will likely turn Pinkerton hostile if he detects you stealing. However, if you (and/or your companions) fight him and win, he will not be killed (he will go unconscious) and will usually wake up as if nothing happened.
 * Big Book of Science on a table in Pinkerton's lab.
 * Dean's Electonics on the conjoined shelf in Pinkerton's lab.
 * 3 Stealth Boys
 * Located on the table mixed in with all the crafting items.
 * Located on the conjoined shelf.
 * Located inside the wooden box below the shelf.
 * Near the operating table is a D.C. Journal of Internal Medicine.
 * The components for every single custom weapon (excluding the schematics), plus a work bench to assemble them on.

Appearances
The Rivet City Bow only appears in Fallout 3.

Bugs

 * The game may freeze if you try to fast travel after exiting of locked door (reloading save will not fix this problem.)
 * The game may freeze upon entry.
 * Mirelurks might suddenly spawn to a different position (Most likely from the lower staircase to the top) Startling the player and Leaving him/her vulnerable to mirelurk attacks. This also happens mostly to mirelurk hunters due to their size compared to the size of the extremely narrow and diagonal hallways and re-positioned staircase. There is a way to avoid this; This bug will more likely happen if you've alerted your presence to the mirelurks or mirelurk hunters.
 * While jumping on the desk with the rigged terminal, it is possible to become stuck, forcing you to reload.
 * The area near the first set of stairs, coming from the locked entrance, may turn into water. You can swim where there normally should be air, even on the upper level. The bottom level, instead, has a pocket of air where you can walk. Followers will be glitchy and may swim below the floor. May be accompanied by minor graphical glitches.
 * Most followers, notably Charon and Fawkes, have trouble in the broken bow. Fawkes is too big to fit through the narrow doorways and tight staircases, and Charon's tendency to aim for the Torso and get stuck underwater puts him at risk of mirelurk attacks. Other followers may use attacks which don't generally target regions of the body, such as Dogmeat's melee attack, placing them at an increased risk.
 * If the mirelurks on the bottom floor got to the bottom of the stair that leads to the top floor, Pinkerton might run out of his lab and try to attack it, however, he will not kill them most of the time. Sometimes he will disappear from the game.
 * When entering the Rivet City bow and then attempting to return to the wasteland, through any of the doors, the normal loading screen will appear, but it is possible that when the area loads the screen will be solid black with sounds of running water playing.
 * There is a possible EXP exploit on the Bow. If you enter via the door underwater and go to the locked door from inside, you can flip the electric lock switch off and pick the lock. After entering, you can re-lock it and repeat the process as many times as you wish.
 * There is a spot in the hollow place of the broken bow to "take a breather in", that you can stand on. This can be confirmed by pulling out your weapon. If you crouch, you go completely underwater, however do not get an oxygen meter on the top of the screen.