APAGear Vol. 3, No. 2

Introduced in TN 1704, the P-117 Hawk was the main air superiority fighter for the North until it was replaced by the P-119 Eagle. The Hawk carries up to six air-to-air missiles under its belly. As a backup weapon, a 20mm cannon is mounted under the nose along with 500 rounds of ammunition. Originally the cannon was only used as an air-to-air weapon. However, during St. Vincent's War alarmed pilots eventually got the plane's avionics revised to include an air-to-ground HUD mode.

A test pilot commented on the plane's performance: "It sure handles nice-too nice. There's no bite in it. I can wallow around and fly pretty loops, but that isn't going to help me get on any snake's tail." Indeed, during St. Vincent's War, shortcomings in the Hawk's range, speed and maneuverability became apparent. It had a mediocre performance record during the war. Out of the 450 Hawks that were built, 136 were shot down in exchange for 153 confirmed Southern kills. As a result of the large losses, the Northern Guard dramatically scaled back its air power after the war. Nearly all of the Hawks were scrapped in TN 1890 and replaced by a mere 200 Eagles. Though the Eagle has a performance edge over the Hawk, it also has a higher stall speed and is more difficult to fly. A large number of recent crashes have prompted some Northern Guard pilots to ask for the few remaining Hawks to be refitted as training aircraft for Eagle pilots.

Vehicle Specifications

                   Type: P-117 Hawk
        Production Type: Mass production
                   Cost: 3,985,000 marks
           Manufacturer: Northco
                    Use: Air superiority fighter
                 Length: 14 meters
               Wingspan: 12.2 meters
Average armor thickness: 45 mm
         Armor material: Durasheet w/composite
    Standard op. weight: 15,900 kg
      Primary move mode: Flight (1900 kph)
    Secondary move mode: Ground (0 kph)
       Deployment range: 1400 km
           Sensor range: 3 km (30 km)
    Communication range: 25 km (250 km)
             Powerplant: 2 x Northco Dynamics A-200 turbojet
                 Thrust: 2 x 6000 kg

General Stats

           Threat value: 4483
        Offensive value: 8997
        Defensive value: 2322
    Miscellaneous value: 2131
                   Size: 9
  Original default size: 16
       Indv. lemon dice: 3
                   Crew: 1 
          Bonus actions: 0

Movement

      Primary move mode: Flight
           Combat speed: 32
              Top speed: 63
            Stall speed: 10
    Secondary move mode: Ground
           Combat speed: 0 (25)
              Top speed: 0 (50)
               Maneuver: 0

Electronics

                Sensors: +1
         Communications: +1
           Fire control: +1

Armor

           Light damage: 15
           Heavy damage: 30
               Overkill: 45

Weapon Summary

Name                            Arc    Ammunition Payload
1 x M222-F Autocannon [LAC]     FF     500
2 x AA-12 "Silk" Missile [AAM]  F      3/3

Perks

Name                       Rating  Game Effect
Ammo/Fuel Containment      -       -2 from hit rolls for Ammo/Fuel hit results
Autopilot                  -       Acts as a level 1 pilot
Chaff/Flare Dispenser      2       20 shots
Ejection System            -       Crew can survive Overkill result
Life Support               -       Limited
Stealth                    1       Add rating to concealment
Target Designator          7       Designates targets for guided weapons

Flaws

Name                       Rating  Game Effect
Requires Airstrip                  Must operate from hardened airstrip
Decreased Maneuverability  3       Subtract from Maneuver when on ground

P-117 Hawk

Jason Jong