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Classification: HyperFighter
Designation: HF-10
Patent Registry: Colonial Technologies
Patron: Galactic Coalition of Planets
Pilot: 1/2
Length: 20 meters
Armament
1 Rotary Mini-Missile Launcher
12 Missile Hard Points
2 Fire-Linked Heavy Laser Canons
3 Fire-Linked Ion Canons
1 Belly-Slung Pod
Ships Biography
The HF-10 HyperFighter was purpose built and designed by Colonial Technologies with support from the Kashan Defense Fleet to patrol the new Gestalt-Kashan Hyper-Lane.
These are specialized starfighters which feature a number of specialized innovations well suited to the purpose of hyperspace patrol.
The primary mission objective of any given HyperFighter is to patrol the Gestalt-Kashan hyperlane. To accomplish this they incorporate a number of technologies which are mission specific for escort or security operations.
In active formation the HF-10 maintains a steady Faster-then-Light trajectory along the Gestalt-Kashan hyperlane while in constant communication with the Sentry-class space stations. They are designed for extreme-duration missions.
The primary FTL engines installed in the HF-10 are reliable and extremely powerful. The HF-10 also mounts a second, independent hyperdrive motivator. Both sets of FTL engines are overseen by the pilot and astromechanical units. In use the larger primary engines are responsible for ninety percent of the fighters’ hyperspace operations. Both sets of engines are capable of x.75 past light speed. Under extreme circumstances both sets of engines can be interlocked to achieve x.5 past light speed.
Located in the nose of the HyperFighter is the advanced sensor suite standard to every vessel. Incorporated in the onboard electronics compartment is a hyperspace transceiver while enables the craft to maintain constant, uninterrupted contact with Sentry-class space stations. As the HyperFighter moves from one network area to the next its transceiver likewise rotates among the available communication channels to maximize security and stability.
When a HyperFighter receives updated telemetry information from a relay station its computers adjust accordingly. Real-Time tactical information can be communicated from the pilot to a flight operator. This also means that although the pilots are expected to endure long flight plans they can keep live contact with one another and the outside world. The psychological advantages of this stratagem are obvious.
If a HyperFighter is required to dramatically alter its course according to its flight telemetry it is able to do so with considerable speed and acuity. Updated navigational data can be transmitted from a Sentry-class space station to a HF-10 and then relayed to the ships navigational equipment. The astromechanical computer will then analyze and further maximize the information. Because of the depth of the network established between Sentry-class space stations and HF-10 HyperFighters along the Gestalt-Kashan hyperlane this information is second to none in terms of real-time relevance. This information can then be fed into the second navigational computer which is in turn tied into the secondary hyperdrive motivators. Before the fighter even reverts to ‘real space’ it can be one hundred percent prepared to immediately return to light-speed. The fighters need only turn about and line up according to the updated telemetry information before returning to hyperspace. Once the HF-10 establishes a stable FTL trajectory the astromechanical computer ramps up the primary FTL drive and calculates a precise switch over.
To further its ability to quickly acquire its new flight path the HF-10 is a considerably swift and nimble fighter at sub-light speeds. It utilizes thrust-vector control; this is attributed to nozzle manipulation on the fighters’ extremely powerful ion-engines. Anti-gravity plating ‘repulsor’ units are mounted along the axis of the fighter on both dorsal and ventral surfaces. Azimuth thrusters are located along the extreme edges of the craft to add a further level of maneuverability. Due to the extremely complex nature of the HF-10’s modular motion generators the computer contributes heavily to the pilots own gestures and while some fault this as being a fly-by-wire dependency the results have come out in favor of this approach time and time again.
A HF-10 pilot is well accommodated. The cockpit of each HF-10 is designed according to the body shape of each individual human pilot and further adapted for less obvious physical comfort zones. The pilot’s helmet, which is an impressive, complex assortment of HUD displays and other computer related interfaces, is built for the pilot after he or she has been assigned to a fighter. Further measures have been taken to increase comfort levels both physical and mental including, but not limited to independent climate controls, muscle stimulating flight chairs, luxury upholstery and color.
The only thing more important then the pilots operational ability in an HF-10 is his or her protection. Like all Gestalt designed starfighters the HyperFighter incorporates a number of measures which are oriented to ensure the safety and security of the pilot. In addition to all standard measures (as mentioned in the previous designs) the HF-10 has a couple unique features. The nose and cockpit of the HF-10 is in fact a completely enclosed safety pod complete with a reinforced structure including Ferrocarbon supplanting and a blast-proof canopy. It can sustain an unassisted drop from hyperspace and crash-down on most standard or near-standard gravitational bodies. Ultrachrome has also been used, supplied like the Ferrocarbon by Kashan, to protect key areas of the ship such as its navigational computer, astromechanical center and secondary hyperdrive.
For combat purposes the HF-10 HyperFighter utilizes a potent array of offensive and defensive strategies.
The HF-10 mounts powerful reactive combat shields which are comparable with larger combat craft such as bombers or combat interceptors. It does not, however; carry any secondary or supplementary particle/ray shielding and instead relies on its dual core primary processor to supply enough juice. This is not the fighters’ only line of defense; it also features a reinforced space frame with armor supplied by the KDF’s advanced metallurgy department. A sizable electronic defense suite is also standard to every HF-10 and this includes a missile jamming antennae and target lock scrambler. As a last line of defense against hostile tracking the HF-10 has four decoy-beacons countermeasure deployment pods just fore of the engine vents.
The designers of the HF-10 believed that the best defense would be a strong offense. To this end the HF-10 carries a compliment of strike weaponry which is comparable to the manifest of most missile boats. The elongated frame of the HyperFighter is host to one Mini-Missile pod which uses a rotating tractor to fire a barrage of up to twelve anti-starfighter missiles. For larger targets such as small capital ships and freighter transports the HF-10 also boasts twelve missile ‘hard points’ which are generally equipped with larger, higher-end rocket warheads. Its main rapid-fire weapons are three, fire-linked heavy laser cannons which are located just beneath the fuselage of the HyperFighter. A trio of blast-connected ion cannons supplements the direct damage ability of the HyperFighter, these are separated; one is located in the front of the nose section while the two others are mounted on the forward S-foils. These are all fairly standard among the Gestalt designed starfighters. Additionally the HF-10 has the ability to carry a Belly Pod. Belly Pods can be anything from additional fuel to sensor equipment even up to a single capital scale missile or torpedo.
The HF-10 is an extremely fast, long range starfighter with a weapons manifest that makes it a deadly opponent to fighter or freighter alike. It could easily have been classified as a dedicated interceptor but for its purpose built nature and the extreme expense involved with manufacturing each HyperFighter squadron. Because the HF-10 is mission specific to the Kashan-Gestalt JTF (joint task force) along the mapped Gestalt-Kashan hyperlane, however; the starfighter required a designation that better reflected its profile and thus it was named the HyperFighter (v)10 and dubbed “Hypers” by their crews.