THE
FIRST FULL-VARIANT CONVERSIONS OF PANTHER FIGHTERS ARE EN-ROUTE TO THE
CERBERUS TESTING GROUND. THE "CHAIN ION / CLOUDBURST" TANDEM WEAPONS
SYSTEM HAS BEEN SUCCESSFULLY INTEGRATED AND NOW AWAITS TESTING BY THE
ESCORT PILOTS FROM MIDWAY. WE LOOK FORWARD TO THEIR INPUT REGARDING THE
WEAPON'S UTILITY AND PERFORMANCE.
REDUCTION OF THE ION WEAPONS PROJECTILE PROCESS HAS IMPROVED BOTH RE-FIRE
AND DAMAGE POTENTIAL. TUNING THE PROJECTILE TO RELEASE AT 97.4KJ INSTEAD
OF THE STANDARD 133.85KJ, GIVES US THE SAME DAMAGE YIELD WHEN FOCUSED
THROUGH THE IMPROVED LENSES. THE WEAPON FIRES WITH CONSIDERABLE RAPIDITY
AND HAS AN EXCELLENT RANGE. WITH MINIMAL POWER ADJUSTMENT, THE SKILLED
PILOT CAN MAINTAIN A LONG STREAM OF HIGH-INTENSITY DAMAGE.
THE
LEAVE-OVER FROM THE POWER-PLANT ALLOWS US TO CHARGE THE "CLOUDBURST"
EMISSION SYSTEM. NORMALLY, A FIGHTER'S POWER-PLANT COULD NOT SUPPORT THE
OPERATION OF AN ELECTRIC DISCHARGE WEAPON OF THIS CALIBER. THE LENS
IMPROVEMENTS IN CONJUNCTION WITH MORE ECONOMICAL ION PROJECTILE MAKE
"CLOUDBURST" POSSIBLE ABOARD CIS PANTHER-VARIANT FIGHTERS. ACHIEVING FULL
IMPACT WITH THIS WEAPON HAS PROVEN QUITE DIFFICULT EVEN FOR EXPERT PILOTS.
WE PRESENTLY BELIEVE THAT THE DISCHARGE MAY SOMETIMES PASS 'AROUND' THE
SHIELD LAYERS OF CERTAIN ALIEN CRAFT DUE TO THE ALIEN'S DEFENSIVE SYSTEM
OSCILLATION. HOWEVER, IF THE WEAPON DISCHARGE CAN BE IMMEDIATELY
RE-SYNCHRONIZED (MAINLY BY HAVING THE PILOT WAIT FOR A FEW SECONDS BEFORE
FIRING AGAIN) IT STANDS A MUCH BETTER CHANCE OF MAKING FULL CONTACT WITH
THE ALIEN SHIELD LAYER AND INFLICTING A GREAT DEAL OF DAMAGE.
MAJOR CHARLES FARMER
TESTING AFFAIRS LIAISON