Intelligence data updated.
The following is a transcript of a webpage. The original can be viewed here.
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Sea-Wing / Sky-Wing[]
Designation | Anti-Air Sub / Anti-Surface Aircraft |
National Origin | Japan |
Mass-Produced at | Shirada Shipworks (unconfirmed) |
Key Features |
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Battle Footage[]
History[]
Doubtlessly one of the more impressive feats of Japanese engineering to date, the sea-wing is a stealthy submersible whose sealed hull and specially-designed locomotors let it rise up and out of the water in the form of an anti-surface strike craft. This makes it perhaps the most maneuverable craft in the Imperial military, which, considering the extreme mobility of many of Japan's fighting forces, is saying a lot. What's more, neither the Soviet nor Allied military possesses a counterpart to this type of never-before-seen dual-role craft. With the discovery of the sea-wing, it seems not even the seas are safe from the Empire of the Rising Sun's ambush forces.
While lurking undersea, the sea-wing is nearly undetectable to scanners, and could almost be mistaken for a large mechanical devil ray. Once it has detected enemy aircraft, it surfaces to unleash a rapid seeking-rocket barrage against its foe. The rockets are disturbingly accurate even at range, and sea-wings seem to carry no shortage of them either. An entire top-ace squadron of Soviet MiG fighters once was decimated by a sea-wing patrol in only a matter of minutes.
While the MiG incident left Soviet air command in a state of near-panic, only later was the sea-wing connected to the sky-wing strike craft, which was previously assumed to be a completely different unit. In sky-wing form, the vehicle seems to use the propulsions from its rockets to help keep it aloft, while using a single swivel-mounted energy weapon to attack surface targets. The weapon causes intense burns, and has proven deadly against unarmored targets in particular--especially ones ill-equipped to take on a fast-moving aircraft like the sky-wing.
The way in which the sea-wing transitions to the sky-wing, and back again, is almost bizarre, in that the vehicle simply turns end over end like a coin-flip. How sea-wing pilots are able to withstand this, in addition to the G-forces of subsonic rises and submerges, is anyone's guess, though the cockpit of the vehicle is believed to be suspended in a sort of gyroscopic mounting. At any rate, piloting such a craft must take incredible skill, especially since the sea-wing's slender form means it is relatively fragile and dependent on its mobility for protection. The Empire of the Rising Sun, having a considerably smaller population than its rival world powers, must be training only the best of the best to commandeer these unusual vessels.
Notes From the Field[]
Battlefield reconnaissance has revealed at least these facts about the Sea-Wing:
- Air emerge -- In its base form, the sea-wing is a relatively quick-moving submarine armed with an anti-air rocket system specially designed to track and destroy flying targets. While it has no way of attacking other surface craft, it can burst from the waves into the flight-capable sky-wing form seemingly anytime.
- Sea submerge -- While in sky-wing form, this vehicle's kinetic pulse-shot weapon can rapidly overwhelm unarmored targets, with results arguably superior even to the machine guns of the Soviet twinblade gunships. Unlike a helicopter, however, the sky-wing must remain constantly in flight, and unlike any known vehicle, it may simply dive back into the water to avoid harm.
- Nearly undetectable underwater -- While underwater, the sea-wing is undetectable to most radar scans, and cannot be attacked directly by common weapons. It does become vulnerable when surfacing to fire, though having first-attack advantage has proven to be essential to Imperial battle tactics.
- Target spotting -- While the sea-wing is extremely capable on its own, it seems designed to work even better in concert with other Imperial forces, including naval forces such as the feared Shogun-class battleships. In sky-wing form, these craft can help the Shoguns' main battery guns track inland targets.
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