Scott Martin
SOC-13
Yup, another thinly veiled plug to consider joining my PBP game here:
http://www.guildportal.com/Guild.as...Count=687&GuildID=213934&TabID=1804610#forums
(link leads to the "Old Chapters" forum - I should add the last couple / several hundred posts sometime soon)
Republic of Zhun K-35 Shrike Strike Fighter
The Shrike is an interesting product of border-worlds requirements: Built using the advanced design and fabrication capabilities of the Federation of Arden using a limited number of high technology pre-fabricated components, the majority of its construction is very pre-stellar, including all of the moving components. During the run up to the Third Frontier war, several worlds became the proxy battlefields for the major powers in the Spinward Marches, where maneuvers by factors of the Imperium, Zhodani Consulate, Sword Worlds and the Federation of Arden in advance of actual force committment by those powers.
While the larger powers tended to "lease" equipment and personnel to their factors, smaller polities such as the Federation of Arden were constrained by costs to provide most of their assistance in terms of technology transfer, training and strategic advice. In the aftermath of the 3FW, it is notable that many of the governments supported by the Imperium and Consulate collapsed fairly quickly due to lack of off-world supplies, toppled by forces drawing on "local" resource bases.
The Shrike was designed in conjunction with the Federation of Arden as an air superiority platform. The early trade-offs sacrificed electronic warfare capability and low-speed maneuverability for carrying capability. Early models demonstrated that they were extremely vulnerable to ground-based missile fire, and due to several comprimises already made it was determined that it would be impractical to add point defence capabilities or electronic countermeasures. The only "workable" solution appeared to be making the Shrike the fastest thing on the battlefield, and the prototype designers rose to the challenge, incorporating exotic materials and construction techniques that arguably make the Shrike the fastes air-breathing airframe in known space. As a result, the Shrike is capable of outrunning most conventional "anti-aircraft" missiles, and comes close to being able to match the speeds of the fastest fusion powered space fightercraft.
Many of the "advanced" materials used in its construction are components that are electromagnetically or gravitically active - the air intake diverters use a variant of the Dulaneys/Gusth alloy to gravitically divert airflows without physically interacting with them, and a similar material (generally used to paint the floors of container trans-shipment areas) is coated onto the airframe to smooth turbulent flows over the aircrafts lifting bodies and control surfaces. The skin of the fighter contains materials used to control heat build-up at high speeds, and these work by "upshifting" infared wavelengths to more energetic wavelengths, emitting radiation well into the UV bands. The net effect of these changes led Carl Jensen (the lead designer) to say that the Shrike on a modern battlefield "...is as stealthy as a twenty ton neon pink Poni in heat trying to hide under a bathroom sink". The obvious down side of this is that the Shrike is an active grav- and EMS emitter with both signatures similar in magnitude to a modern interstellar destroyer.
While the Shrike has the life expectancy of a mayfly on any battlefield using interstellar level technology (TL-9) due to its total disregard for stealth, emissions control or low-level maneuverability on the low-tech battlefield where energy weapons, grav detectors, laser sensors and EMS tracking systems are not present, the Shrike has proven to be a potent addition to aerospace forces. It has also become one of the most beloved craft for non-military aviation afficianados due to its fast and maneuverable airframe and sleek predatory lines. There are persistent rumors that an "air superiority" version of this aircraft is planned, but given the engineering costs for the original Shrike program this is viewed as extremely unlikely.
Scott Martin
http://www.guildportal.com/Guild.as...Count=687&GuildID=213934&TabID=1804610#forums
(link leads to the "Old Chapters" forum - I should add the last couple / several hundred posts sometime soon)
Republic of Zhun K-35 Shrike Strike Fighter
The Shrike is an interesting product of border-worlds requirements: Built using the advanced design and fabrication capabilities of the Federation of Arden using a limited number of high technology pre-fabricated components, the majority of its construction is very pre-stellar, including all of the moving components. During the run up to the Third Frontier war, several worlds became the proxy battlefields for the major powers in the Spinward Marches, where maneuvers by factors of the Imperium, Zhodani Consulate, Sword Worlds and the Federation of Arden in advance of actual force committment by those powers.
While the larger powers tended to "lease" equipment and personnel to their factors, smaller polities such as the Federation of Arden were constrained by costs to provide most of their assistance in terms of technology transfer, training and strategic advice. In the aftermath of the 3FW, it is notable that many of the governments supported by the Imperium and Consulate collapsed fairly quickly due to lack of off-world supplies, toppled by forces drawing on "local" resource bases.
The Shrike was designed in conjunction with the Federation of Arden as an air superiority platform. The early trade-offs sacrificed electronic warfare capability and low-speed maneuverability for carrying capability. Early models demonstrated that they were extremely vulnerable to ground-based missile fire, and due to several comprimises already made it was determined that it would be impractical to add point defence capabilities or electronic countermeasures. The only "workable" solution appeared to be making the Shrike the fastest thing on the battlefield, and the prototype designers rose to the challenge, incorporating exotic materials and construction techniques that arguably make the Shrike the fastes air-breathing airframe in known space. As a result, the Shrike is capable of outrunning most conventional "anti-aircraft" missiles, and comes close to being able to match the speeds of the fastest fusion powered space fightercraft.
Many of the "advanced" materials used in its construction are components that are electromagnetically or gravitically active - the air intake diverters use a variant of the Dulaneys/Gusth alloy to gravitically divert airflows without physically interacting with them, and a similar material (generally used to paint the floors of container trans-shipment areas) is coated onto the airframe to smooth turbulent flows over the aircrafts lifting bodies and control surfaces. The skin of the fighter contains materials used to control heat build-up at high speeds, and these work by "upshifting" infared wavelengths to more energetic wavelengths, emitting radiation well into the UV bands. The net effect of these changes led Carl Jensen (the lead designer) to say that the Shrike on a modern battlefield "...is as stealthy as a twenty ton neon pink Poni in heat trying to hide under a bathroom sink". The obvious down side of this is that the Shrike is an active grav- and EMS emitter with both signatures similar in magnitude to a modern interstellar destroyer.
While the Shrike has the life expectancy of a mayfly on any battlefield using interstellar level technology (TL-9) due to its total disregard for stealth, emissions control or low-level maneuverability on the low-tech battlefield where energy weapons, grav detectors, laser sensors and EMS tracking systems are not present, the Shrike has proven to be a potent addition to aerospace forces. It has also become one of the most beloved craft for non-military aviation afficianados due to its fast and maneuverable airframe and sleek predatory lines. There are persistent rumors that an "air superiority" version of this aircraft is planned, but given the engineering costs for the original Shrike program this is viewed as extremely unlikely.
Scott Martin
