F-36 Hornet

F-36 Hornet
Type	Light Fighter
Manufacturer	Origin Aerospace
Primary User	Terran Confederation
Additional Users	Free Republic of the Landreich
General Characteristics
Length	20 meters
Mass	12.5 tonnes
Crew	1 (pilot)
Cost	c250,000,000
Performance
Maximum Yaw	8 dps
Maximum Pitch	9 dps
Maximum Roll	8 dps
Acceleration	Good
Velocity
Cruise	300 kps
Maximum	420 kps
Afterburner
Maximum Afterburner	1240 kps
Armament
Guns
MK. 25 Laser Cannon (2)
Default Missile Loadout
Dart DumbFire (2) Javelin Heatseeker (1)
Components
Decoys	None
Cloaking Device	No
Jump Drive	No
Defense
Shields
Fore	4 cm equivalent
Aft	4 cm equivalent
Armor
Front	4 cm
Rear	4 cm
Right	4 cm
Left	4 cm
Hornet Target Identification circa Vega Sector 2654
Source	Claw Marks

Hornet line-drawing from Joan's Fighting Spacecraft.

History

The F-36 Hornet was a light fighter designed by Origin Aerospace. It engaged in reconnaissance, patrol and light anti-shipping duties throughout the Terran-Kilrathi War. It was used by the Terran Confederation and later by the Free Republic of the Landreich A trainer variant of the Hornet was flown by rookie pilots at the Terran Confederation Space Forces Academy. These fighters are known for their speed, and carried a fairly-balanced arsenal of weapons for such a small fighter.

Noted Hornet squadrons include the Yellowjackets and Killer Bees assigned to the TCS Tiger's Claw during the Vega Sector Campaign. General James Taggart began his career flying the nimble fighters.

The Hornet was officially replaced by the F-54 Epee in 2661, though Hornet squadrons continued flying combat missions through the Battle of Earth. After the war, surplus Hornets were sold to the Free Republic of the Landreich - where they served in numerous border disputes. Hornets were also sold to the Union of Border Worlds, who used their existing squadrons in combat against the Black Lance during the 2673 Border Worlds Conflict.

The Flying Eyes, VF-12 of the Free Republic of the Landreich Space Forces were used heavily during President Kruger's Project Goliath. They conducted the initial flybys of KIS Karga which showed the hulk to be mostly intact. They were eventually transfered to the Karga/FRLS Mjollnir as part of its budding air wing. Their presence was critical when the carrier was attacked by Guild forces. VF-12 also served with distinction during the Battle of Baka Kar which pitted FRLN forces against those of Ragark da Haka in 2671.

An earlier variant of the Hornet carried two FF Pike missiles instead of Dart DFs.

Wing Commander

Mission Appearances

• Flyable Missions
  • Alpha Wing (Enyo System)
  • Epsilon Wing (Enyo System)
  • Delta Wing (Gateway System)
  • Kappa Wing (Gateway System)
  • Sigma Wing (Gateway System)
  • Epsilon Wing (Cheng-Du System)
  • Iota Wing (Cheng-Du System)
  • Omicron Wing (Cheng-Du System)

• Appears in Mission

Conversational References

• Beta Wing (McAuliffe System)
  • Joseph Khumalo: "Ever flown Scimitars before? I think you’re going to like them. A Scimitar isn’t quite as fast or nimble as a Hornet, but she’s got twice the armour, as well as heavier guns."

• Omicron Wing (Gimle System)
  • Todd Marshall: "I'm lookin' forward to seein' one of these new Rapiers! They say she's got tougher shields than anything in the fleet. She must be just about invulnerable!"
  • Ian St. John: " 'Ang about, there, mate...She may 'ave God's own shields, but she's armored like a light fighter. If they knock down the shields, she's no tougher than a Hornet."

Wing Commander: Freedom Flight

Reference

• "The flight deck was already busy; two Hornet fighters took off, one after the other, as Hunter mustered up a tired trot to his fighter. A tech was under the Rapier, invisible except for a pair of booted legs sticking out from beneath the wing."

The Memoirs of Lieutenant Colonel Carl T. LaFong: The Kilrathi War's Greatest Ace (TCSN, Retired)

References

• The Academy Years
  • For Tighter Up or Down Movements, Roll and Turn
    • "The arrangement of thrusters on Hornets, Scimitars, and Raptors produces an unusual flight characteristic: up and down movements cannot be completed in as tight a radius as a turn to the left or right. Aerospace engineers are trying to correct the flaw in the new Rapier class, but it is still unknown whether their efforts have been successful."
  • Simulated Dogfights
    • "I'll never forget stepping into the Hornet simulator for my first dogfight. All the hours of studying texts and holo-vids, and discussing theory and tactics, were going to pay off. The days spent practicing launches, landings, and other flight drills would be put to the test. During the first semester, we were just learning to fly and use the sophisticated electronics; now we would fight, and discover whether we had the instincts of a combat pilot."
  • TCS Formidable
    • "Our first month was spent in training flights in the Hornets. I can't count the number of times I launched, circled, and returned to the destroyer. We practiced flying in different formations, worked on our communications skills and even engaged in mock dogfights. I was surprised how our simple simulator training at the academy had prepared us for flights in real space."
  • Using Your Ship's Guns
    • "Laser Cannon - At this point, the laser cannon was employed only on the Hornets, although scuttlebutt indicated that a new class of fighter, the Rapier, would use them as well."
  • Your Ship's Missiles
    • "While we studied all the missile statistics in the classroom, the greatest lesson we learned was to rely on our guns in combat. We could take out every enemy ship known at the time with nothing but the laser cannon on a Hornet, although it was much easier with the mass drivers or neutrons."

• Between Missions (McAuliffe-Gimle Systems)
  • "He started streaking through the asteroids with the Dralthi hot on his tail. And he was flying so close to the stones that it looked like he was running a slalom course. I figured out what he was doing when he led that Dralthi head-on into one of the asteroids. It was unbelievable. I'd never seen a Hornet flown like that before, and I might never again. Say what you want about Maniac, he's one of the best pure flyers I've ever seen."

Wing Commander: Fleet Action

References

• Battle of Sirius
  • " "This is Tolwyn. Good luck to all of you and good hunting." The image winked off and Kevin smile. Typical Brit understatement. The forward edge of Rapiers, Raptors, Ferrets and Hornets, running ahead of the attack wave, slammed into the opposing wall of opposition defending the Kilrathi heavy carriers."

Wing Commander: False Colors

References

• "For a moment Tolwyn wished he'd strapped on a Hornet for today's mission, instead of picking the Raptor. Babcock's squadron, VF-12-more usually known as the "Flying Eyes" was equipped with the Hornet light fighter, a fast, high-performance craft that was ideal for reconnaissance missions but limited in the fighting it could handle. Today they carried even lighter combat loads than usual to make room for a Mark VI APSP, a sensor pod containing a battery of cameras, imaging systems, and other survey gear that was normally used to conduct long-range scans ahead of a fleet or target identification runs in a planetary atmosphere. So Babcock would be taking her planes in low over the Kilrathi hulk to get a good look at the supercarrier ahead of the rest of them, while the heavier Raptors of Doomsday's VF-88, the Crazy Eights, waited to provide cover if they ran into trouble."

• "Sparks had shifted from the tactical plot to a real¬time computer-enhanced relay from the sensor pod mounted on the bow of Babe Babcock's Hornet."

• "The Darket was small and agile, even better for scouting duties than the Confederation Hornet. Individually weak in shielding, armor, and weapons, they were often employed in fighting pairs by Kilrathi pilots to excellent effect."

• " "I don't know how accurate it is,- he said, "but Sparks and Jorkad seem to think it isn't too far from the real thing. If it's anything like the simulator, the Strakha's going to be heavy going. Big and mean, but not exactly subtle ... except for the stealth technology. I guess the Cats figured they had a cloak, so why bother making the thing nimble too? Takes some getting used to when you've come out of the high-maneuverability school." "Sort of like trying to fly a shuttle after a stretch of duty with Hornets," she said, nodding."

Variants

F-36 Hornet Type Light Fighter Manufacturer Origin Aerospace Primary User Terran Confederation General Characteristics Length 20 meters Mass 12.5 tonnes Crew 1 (pilot) Cost c250,000,000 Performance Maximum Yaw 8 dps Maximum Pitch 9 dps Maximum Roll 8 dps Acceleration Good Velocity Cruise 300 kps Maximum 420 kps Afterburner Maximum Afterburner 1240 kps Armament Guns MK. 25 Laser Cannon (2) Default Missile Loadout Dart DumbFire (2) Javelin Heatseeker (1) Defense Shields Fore 4 cm equivalent Aft 4 cm equivalent Default Recharge 5 cm/second Armor Front 4 cm Rear 4 cm Right 4 cm Left 4 cm Source Wing Commander

F-36 Hornet Type Light Fighter Manufacturer Origin Aerospace Primary User Terran Confederation General Characteristics Length 20 meters Mass 12.5 tonnes Crew 1 (pilot) Cost c250,000,000 Performance Maximum Yaw 8 dps Maximum Pitch 9 dps Maximum Roll 8 dps Acceleration Good Velocity Cruise 300 kps Maximum 420 kps Afterburner Maximum Afterburner 1240 kps Armament Guns MK. 25 Laser Cannon (2) Default Missile Loadout Dart DumbFire (2) Javelin Heatseeker (1) Defense Shields Fore 3 cm equivalent Aft 3 cm equivalent Default Recharge 5 cm/second Armor Front 3 cm Rear 3 cm Right 3 cm Left 3 cm Source Claw Marks

F-36 Hornet Type Light Fighter Manufacturer Origin Aerospace Primary User Terran Confederation General Characteristics Length 20 meters Mass 12.5 tonnes Crew 1 (pilot) Cost c250,000,000 Performance Maximum Yaw 8 dps Maximum Pitch 9 dps Maximum Roll 8 dps Acceleration Good Velocity Cruise 300 kps Maximum 420 kps Afterburner Maximum Afterburner 1240 kps Armament Guns MK. 25 Laser Cannon (2) Default Missile Loadout Dart DumbFire (4) Javelin Heatseeker (2) Components Jump Drive Yes Defense Shields Fore 4 cm equivalent Aft 4 cm equivalent Default Recharge 5 cm/second Armor Front 4 cm Rear 4 cm Right 4 cm Left 4 cm Source Super Wing Commander

Images

• 

  Origin Aerospace blueprint.

• 

  Origin Aerospace blueprint.

• 

  Origin Aerospace blueprint.

• 

  View from a Hornet cockpit as it chases down a wing of Krants.

• 

  View from a Hornet cockpit as it engages a wing of Dralthi.

• 

  A Hornet from the Killer Bees Squadron prepares to launch.

• 

  A Hornet landing on the TCS Tiger's Claw.

• 

  A Hornet landing on the flight deck of the TCS Tiger's Claw.

• 

  Hornet as seen in Super Wing Commander.

• 

  Hornet VDU image