Banshee

"Whoops!"

- ORCA pilot, after destroying a Banshee

The Banshee served as the primary heavy attack fighter/bomber aircraft for the Brotherhood of Nod during the Second Tiberium War. It was produced in limited numbers following the war, and was succeeded by the Vertigo stealth bomber. The Banshee was developed from technology in the Tacitus, and bore a striking resemblance to the Scrin Stormrider.

Design
The Banshee was extremely thin, compact and very heavily armored. It mounted powerful rapid fire plasma cannons, also possibly developed from Tacitus technology. The plasma reactors had to be recharged at a Helipad however, so the Banshee was not capable of long-term independent operation. Its speed and armor meant that the Banshees nearly always returned from missions.

Its weapons were optimized for use against vehicles, especially lighter vehicles, although there is evidence to suggest that a small group of them could destroy even the Mammoth Mk. II. Although very effective against GDI armour, these weapons were less effective against GDI structures, and the SAM towers at these bases made such operations more risky.

Having the schematics for Banshees by virtue of being Nod's war-computer, CABAL also used this aircraft, using them somewhat bizarrely to target GDI structures rather than vehicles.

Naming
The Banshee was named after a female spirit from the Irish mythology, usually seen as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld.