New Navy SF-80 Sea Phantom Sea-Air Fighter:

"It never hurts to watch your friends." stated Captain Joseph Manfred, NGR Navy, while his submarine watched silently. His submarine was one of the New German Republic's Type 1200 submarines and he knew it to be one of the most advanced submarines ever built. There had been some interesting potential encounters with other advanced submarines but none were ever been confirmed conclusively. At creep speed, he knew that he was just about undetectable. He was watching a Coalition naval exercise centered around one of the old recovered American Ranger class carriers. From various evidence, it seemed likely that is was the CSS Lone Star, what had once been the USS Lexington. There were also several Coalition submarines in the area as well. Tracking currently indicated that they had five other submarines, old American Virginia and Los Angeles from their sonar signatures. One of them was also an old Ohio class ballistic missile submarine. They did not often deploy those boats. Even though the Coalition was suppose to be New German Republic's allies, the submarines still made him nervous.

'It never hurt to watch you friends' thought Captain Anna Mauser, NGR Luftwaffe, as she circled around the Coalition Naval Force in her stealth fighter. She was getting entirely tired of that statement. Just because she was one of the best pilots of the “Grey Death” cyborg stealth fighter did not mean she had to spend all of her time spying on the Coalition. Honesty compelled her to admit that she still seethed over almost being intercepted by that strange stealth fighter a few months prior to this mission. The NGR had still been unable to identify the design and there was much speculation about it. Still, it seemed unlikely that any of the fighters would detect her. Her passive systems scooped a variety of radar signatures from the air along with a variety of chatter to be decoded later. Several phased array radar signatures showed up quite prominently. She was completely unaware that the NGR had also send out a submarine to spy on the underwater activities of the Coalition Task Force which she was observing their air operations.

Creeping along at just four knots, two tiny craft were approaching the Coalition task force. Test Pilot Commander Margaret Callahan drove her prototype Sea Phantom fighter along the bottom of the shallow bay along with her wing man. Her weapons officer would repeat the range to target every minute or so. Previous to becoming test pilots in the Sea Phantom program, she and her wing man had both been expert Manta-Ray pilots and also had many hours flying the Sea Hawk although ti was not their primary fighter. They were considered some of the best pilots in the New Navy. Because of that, they had both been assigned to the new Sea Phantom test program. The SF-80 Sea Phantoms were wonderful fighters and they were a vast improvement over both the Manta-Ray and Sea Hawk in virtually every way. In fact, the fighters were so revolutionary that new tactics had to be developed for the use of the air-sea fighters.

It was a grim objective but quite important. It also involved two of only four prototypes of the new Sea Phantom Sea-Air Fighter. One of the Coalition's two ballistic missile submarines was operating under the protection of a Coalition task force. Killing these vessels was a priority because who knows when the Coalition might decide to use them. It was like giving a child a rocket launcher. The Sea Phantom was the only craft which could succeed. A fast attack submarine could be snuck in but escape would be another story. The waters were restricted and even though the Coalition navy had only a fraction of the capabilities of the New Navy, escape would be extremely difficult for a larger submarine. Speed would be essential. Likewise, a Manta-Ray submersible fighter would simply not be fast enough to escape in the water and was limited to only around Mach on and a half in the air and could not escape the Coalition fighters once it left the water.

It was decided that interceptor torpedoes would be carried on the prototypes instead of more conventional types on this mission. While much faster, they had much less range than conventional torpedoes. In addition to torpedoes, the fighters only carried four medium range missiles for defense against fighters in air to air combat. Still, even with their relatively short range, her fighter would be in torpedo range within thirty seconds. Alicia got ready to fire and opened up the main ordnance bays. "Torpedo range within fifteen seconds." was repeated by her sensor operator followed by "Torpedo range now." Six heavy interceptor accelerated once launched from her bay followed by six more from the other fighter just a few seconds later.

One moment everything was normal, the next minute everything broke down. The captain of the New German Republic was as shocked as everybody else. Suddenly, twelve interceptor torpedoes appeared on his sonar. Eight of them hit within seconds of each other and the target, the old ballistic missile submarine, and it practically disintegrated. The captain decided that it would be best to leave the area before it was decided that he had launched the torpedoes. He could see that the explosion had attracted the attention of the other submarines as they all wend to thirty knots and converging on the site of the lost submarine. A similar panic could be seen in the sky above the carrier group. The cyborg fighter pilot suddenly detected a several fold increase in communications and most of the aircraft began converging at a single point.

Commander Callahan could see that all hell was breaking lose. Several submarines were headed for their position and she suspected multiple power armors would soon be launched. She turned her fighter in a quick one-eighty and began accelerating. Soon she was passing fifty knots. While they could not fail to be detected, the hope was that they could simply outrun any pursuit. The fighter’s speed kept climbing, soon passing one hundred knots. Several torpedoes were now in the water but the fighters were now faster than the torpedoes. Of course, this incredibly high speed had a second weakness. That was that the fighters themselves were almost blind. Just under two hundred knots, the acceleration of the fighters began level off. Still, they could run far faster than they could be hunted.

Never had the German submarine captain seem anything like what eh was observing. Whatever they were, they were traveling almost as fast as interceptor torpedoes yet were far too large. They were the size on a mini-submarine. He did not think the Coalition had developed anything like this. It was possible the REEF could have developed something like this but it was also possible that these things were developed in Atlantis.

The New Navy commander observed that she had managed to gain quite a bit of distance between herself and the pursuing forces. Still, given enough time, the air assets could intercept them. It was time for them to make their true getaway and take to the sky. Still, it was hard to know what was above them. The two fighters turned upwards, still at maximum speed. They both leaped from the water and within seconds, they were again accelerating. They stayed at just above wave top level to be harder to detect. With their stealthy design, they were virtually invisible on radar. Still, they could detect the radar from several fighters attempting to make a lock-on.

Captain Anna Mauser watches through the sensors of her cyborg fighter as she detected several powerful fighter radar systems light off and attempt to track something. They all seemed to be searching a small area near the surface of the water but she had not detected anything which would indicate a lock-on. She wondered what was going on and was afraid she would create another stir with the report from this mission. She had no way of knowing how much of a stir her report and Captain Manfred's report would actually cause the NGR High Command.

This fighter is one of the most advanced fighters ever developed on Rifts Earth and it only possible through combined development between the New Navy and the REEF in Florida. The REEF also helped to develop the Super Hawk, an upgraded version of the Sea Hawk, which the New Navy had operated since the coming of the Rifts and United States Navy for decades previously. The new fighter combines stealth, extremely high speeds, and the ability to operate underwater like a submarine. Although much larger, the Sea Phantom is far more capable than the Manta-Ray which is presently the New Navy's premier craft which can both operate underwater and as an aircraft. Due to the revolutionary capabilities of the new fighter, the New Navy is still studying ways which they can be employed for best effect.

So far only four operational prototypes of this sea-air fighter have been completed. Several unarmed technology demonstrators were also produced to test various aspects of the design but were much smaller. They have all been put in mothball storage. Development of the Sea Phantom took several years and would like have cost billions of credits in Pre-Rifts times. Development cost is hard to evaluate for the REEF and the New Navy. It will likely be several years before full production begins for the fighter although four more prototype aircraft are presently being built. Present plans are for a total of around four hundred of these fighters to eventually be produced. Production is planned to be around forty fighters per year. While the REEF helped to develop the design, they currently have no plans to purchase the fighter in large numbers preferring to rely on the Logan and Veritech transformable fighters. They do plan to purchase a few of the new fighter for experimental purposes.

Two of the existing Sea Phantoms are embarked on the USS Ticonderoga where they have already been operated in combat roles. One of the other prototypes is at Salvation base while the final is in Florida, both being used for additional testing. Unfortunately, the larger size of the Sea Phantom means that it is too larger to be operated from Trident class submarines and as a result cannot replace the Manta-Ray in service. While a higher performance fighter than the Super Hawk and able to operate underwater, it is unlikely that the new fighter will completely replace the older Super Hawk due to the older fighter’s ability to carry more ordnance.

While an exceptional fighter in many regards, the more exception feature of this fighter is the underwater propulsion system. Underwater, the Manta-Ray is limited to around fifty knots. At much higher speeds, water acts as almost a solid surface and would destroy the vessel. In the later part of the Twentieth Century, the Soviet Union came up with a hyper-cavitating torpedo which could travel at incredible speeds. The torpedo had a thruster which pushes some of its thrust forward and would break up the water with bubbles. This concept developed into the interceptor torpedoes which became common before the coming of the Rifts although the Russians still held a lead on this type of weapon. Still, the design was never developed into a manned design although there were various proposed designs before the coming of the Rifts. It was not until both the REEF and New Navy began their program that this system was finally developed for the Sea Phantom. Underwater, the fighter is capable of speeds over two hundred knots. This is done by the same method as it was in previous torpedo designs, by breaking up the water in front of the craft by the use of bubbles. The bubble system is engaged whenever the fighter is traveling more than fifty knots. While exceptionally high speed, this system has several weaknesses. One of theses is that the craft is extremely noisy while at high speed and extremely easy to detect. While operating at high speeds, the fighter’s own sonar is blinded. To compensate for this, the fighters have a slower creep setting where they are much harder to detect. While the fighter can travel at incredible rates of speed on the surface of the water, the fighter needs to take off from underwater and effectively leaps from underwater. The fighters engines are designed to work in the air as well as underwater and are extremely powerful The Sea Hawk and Super Hawk have a top speed of around Mach 3.2 while the Sea Phantom betters this by 0.4 Mach for a top speed of around Mach 3.6, just a bit faster than the REEF Sabertooth fighter. Like the Super Hawk, the Sea Phantom is designed for vertical take-offs and landings with a lift fan behind the fighter’s cockpit. Water proof hatches protect the lift fan while it is not in use. The fighter can land in the water but can also land on dry ground like a normal aircraft when needed.

While in the air the fighter uses flight surfaces for control and these same surfaces are used for control while at relatively low speeds underwater. Like most advanced fighters, the fighter uses an advanced fly-by-wire system and is extremely maneuverable both while in flight and underwater at relatively slow speeds. A tailless design was considered by a tail was retained on the fighter to maintain stability underwater at slower speeds. Under the cockpit, the fighter has twin canard which act as bow planes when operating underwater at slower speeds. The fighter also features vectored thrusters to increase maneuverability. Because the bubbles prevent effective use of the control surfaces, the fighter relies virtually exclusively on the vectored thrusters while at high underwater speeds. The hull of the fighter is made from high strength composites and alloys which are designed to be both radar absorbent and reduce the sound signature while underwater at slow speeds. Development of the new materials took several years by some of the most advanced material experts on Rifts Earth. One of the team was quite important doing the same thing in Triax research and development before joining the REEF. Still, in actual material strength, the Sea Phantom can withstand less damage than the Super Hawk although it is only marginally weaker. The actual configuration of the fighter is designed to further reduce the radar signature while also being optimized for high speed both underwater and while in the air. Unlike the Super Hawk, the standard version of the Sea Phantom is optimized for stealth. The hull of the fighter are designed for operation in extreme depth and the Sea Phantom has a similar maximum depth to the Manta-Ray.

Radar is similar to the phased array radar system which the Super Hawk is equipped with and the fighter can track up to ninety-six targets at the same time. The fighter can also target up to twenty-four targets at the same time. Like the Super Hawk, the fighter has a twin cockpit with a weapon officer to reduce the work load on the pilot. Even so, the fighter is designed so all systems can be run by the pilot. Various other electronic systems are also carried and the fighter has a full electronic suite including a powerful jamming system. The fighter also has a short range sonar system although it is close to worthless at speeds over thirty knots. Because of this, the fighter has a blue green underwater tracking laser built into the fighter’s sensor cluster. While limited in range, the system gives some ability to track underwater while at high speeds. There has been some debate about producing a specialize electronics warfare version of the Sea Phantom but so far there has been no actual development on the design.

The Sea Phantom is designed to carry its ordinance in bays instead of externally to reduce drag and to reduce the fighter’s radar signature. Under the fighter are two large bays which can carry up to three long range missiles or three heavy torpedoes each. A variety of smaller ordnance can also be carried include medium and short range ordnance. There are also two side bays. Each side bay can carry two medium range missiles or medium torpedoes or a variety of smaller ordnance. Special mini-missile / mini-torpedo pods can also be fitted into the side bays. While the fighter can carry bombs, they are rarely carried with guided missiles and torpedoes being preferred. There was consideration given to giving the fighter wing hard points but this would reduce the fighter’s stealth and cause drag. Still, this greatly reduces the fighter’s payload compared to the Super Hawk which can carry up to fourteen long range missiles. The Sea Phantom mounts two ion cannons identical to those carried on the Manta-Ray submersible fighter which are used as a last ditch weapon. Instead of being mounted on the nose of the fighter like on the Super Hawk, these weapons are mounted on the fighter’s wing roots. In addition to the weapon systems, the fighter mounts two towed decoy dispensers in the wings which are generally used against attacking missiles which are able to target the fighter. There is consideration being given to developing a towed decoy for use against in both the air and underwater. For additional protection, the fighter mounts a decoy dispenser which can both launch chaff / flare and special noise making decoys for use underwater.

Model Type: SF-80 Sea Phantom
Vehicle Type: Twin Engine VTOL Sea-Air Fighter
Crew: Two (Pilot / Sensor & Electronic System operator)

M.D.C. by Location:

	[1] Wing Root Mounted Ion Pulse Cannons (2; wing roots):	*50 each
	Main Internal Ordnance Bays (2, hatches):	60 each
	Secondary Internal Ordnance Bays (2; hatches):	40 each
	[2] Main Wings (2):	160 each
	[2] Forward Stabilizers (2):	80 each
	[3] Rudders (2):	80 each
	[4] Forward Lift Turbo-Fan Engine (1):	60
	[4] Protective Doors for Forward Lift Engine (2, top and bottom):	60 each
	[5] Main Engines (2):	110 each
	[6] Main Body	400
	Landing Gear (3):	20 each
	Reinforced Pilot’s Compartment / Cockpit:	160
	Pilot & Crew seat (2):	5 each

Notes:
[1] indicated hit locations are small and/or difficult targets to hit. An attacker must make a called shot and has a -3 penalty as well.
[2] Destroying a Main Wing will cause the plane to crash while in the air. Pilot and Radar Officer must eject to survive. Underwater, the fighter will be virtually uncontrollable with -10 to strike, parry, and dodge due to being completely unstable. Destroying one or both Forward Stabilizers Wings will result in reducing bonuses to dodge by 2 both underwater and while flying and removing the 5% bonus to piloting the aircraft.
[3] Destruction of one rudder will result in the fighter having a penalty of -3 to strike and dodge both underwater and while flying and removes the 5% bonus to piloting aircraft. Destruction of both rudders will still allow the fighter to be controlled by the varying of power levels and direction of thrust of the engines but fighter has a penalty of -5 to strike, -10 to dodge, and a -30% penalty to all piloting rolls.
[4] Destruction of doors protecting front lift engine will increase drag. Reduce top speed by half and the fighter has a -4 to dodge and piloting is at -20% at high speeds (Above 400 mph / 644 kph). To damage the forward lift engine, a called shot at -3 is required and the shielding doors must be either open or destroyed. If forward lift fan is destroyed, fighter cannot hover.
[5] Destruction of one engine will reduce the fighter’s top speed by half and give the fighter a -3 penalty to dodge as well as removing the 5% bonus to piloting. Destroying both engines will cause the aircraft to crash while flying and will be immobile underwater. Pilot may attempt a emergency landing if flying or pilot and weapons officer can choose to eject.
[6] Depleting the M.D.C. of the main body will shut the aircraft down completely, rendering it useless and causing it to crash if in flight. Pilot and Radar Officer must eject to survive. Damage to the main body will also reduce the aircrafts stealth, for every 10% of damage to the main body, reduce the aircrafts stealth by 10% of its total.

Speed:
Driving on Ground (Taxiing): Only possible for take offs and landings as well as for parking and storage. Speed is 40 mph (64 kph) when traveling and not on take off or landing.
Flying: can hover and go up to a maximum speed of Mach 3.6 (2,669.2 mph/ 4,295.7 kph/ 2,317.9 knots). Its cruise speed is up to Mach 1.5 (1,112.1 mph/ 1,789.8 kph/ 965.8 knots) and has a maximum altitude is about 30 Miles (158,400 feet/ 48,280 m). The sea-air fighter must slow down to 300 mph (482.8 kph /260.5 knots) before entering water. Due to the fact that all ordnance is carried in internal bays, the aircraft's performance reduction when fully loaded is negligible.
Surface Travel: Can Float on the surface or can travel as a hydrofoil on the surface of the water with a top speed of 400 mph (643.7 kph / 347.4 knots.) The aircraft does not take off from the surface of the water and instead leaps from underwater.
Underwater: Has a maximum speed underwater of 57.8 mph (50 knots/ 92.7 kph) under normal propulsion. Can reach speeds of up to 236.1 mph (205 knots / 379.9 kph) using special hyper-cavitation propulsion system.
Maximum Depth: 1.8 miles (2.9 km)
Maximum Effective Range: Engines do not overheat while underwater or in the air due to advanced coolant system and can fly indefinitely (Pilot endurance will generally prevent operations of longer than 12 hours).

Statistical Data:
Length: 72.5 feet (22.1 meters)
Wingspan: 48.2 feet (14.7 meters)
Height: 11.5 feet (3.5 meters) with landing gear down and 8.5 feet (2.6 meters) with landing gear retracted.
Weight: 20 tons (18.1 metric tons) empty, 28.5 tons (25.8 metric tons) fully loaded
Power Source: Nuclear Fusion, Should have an average lifespan of 20 years.
Cargo: Minimal (Storage for small equipment). Does not include ordnance bays. Main ordnance bays, if emptied of ordnance can carry up to 3,000 lbs (1,360.8 kg) of cargo each and secondary ordnance bays can carry up to 1000 lbs (454 kg) each
Black Market Cost: Not available, prototype stage only. The prototypes are practically priceless but if captured and sold on the black market would likely cost around 300 million credits.

Weapon Systems:

Ion Pulse Guns (2): These weapons are built into the wing roots on the fighter and are barely visible on the fighter. The weapons are effective both while the fighter is flying and while it is underwater although range is reduced underwater. These weapons are identical to those carried on the Manta-Ray combination fighter / submarine. The weapon is used for both defense against missiles and against other aircraft. It is controlled by the fighter’s pilot.
Maximum Effective Range: In Atmosphere: 4,000 feet (1,220 meters). Under Water: 2,000 feet (610 meters)
Mega-Damage: 1D6x10 for one ion gun and 2D6x10 for both ion cannons (Counts as one attack)
Rate of Fire: Equal to the combined hand to hand attacks of the pilot (usually 4 or 5).
Payload: Effectively Unlimited (Draws Power off the main engines).
Main Internal Ordnance Bays (2): The sea-air fighter has two large bays in the main body that can carry a wide variety of different ordnance types. Ordnance types include missiles, bombs, or torpedo types. Missile and bomb sizes may be mixed between different types of ordnance but an ordnance drop or launch must include the same type and size of ordnance. Ordnance may be carried at the rate of four short range missiles, four light bombs, four light torpedoes, two medium range missiles, two medium bombs, or two medium torpedoes for one long range missile, heavy bomb, or heavy torpedo. Both guided and unguided ordnance may be carried. Special medium range amphibious missiles are also used. Medium range amphibious missiles (can be used as missile or torpedoes, have the same damage as equivalent missile, double cost, but can travel to underwater targets and are +2 to strike). Missile speed underwater is 120 mph (192 km) and has a range of 20 miles (32 km).
Maximum Effective Range: Varies by missile type for missile and varies by altitude bombs are dropped at for missiles and torpedoes (See revised bomb and missile tables for details) or by torpedo type (See revised Rifts torpedoes for details.)
Mega-Damage: Varies by missile or bomb type (See revised bomb and missile tables for details) or by torpedo type (See revised Rifts torpedoes for details.)
Rate of Fire: Ordnance is dropped or fired one at a time or in volleys of two to twelve but must be the same size (light, medium, or heavy) and style of ordnance (all missiles, bombs, or torpedoes in a volley.)
Payload: 12 short range missile or light bombs / torpedoes, 6 medium range missiles or medium bombs/torpedoes, or 3 long range missile or heavy bombs/torpedoes each bay. Ordnance can be mixed.
Secondary Ordnance Bays (2): The sea-air fighter has two smaller bays on the sides of the fuselage under the wings that can carry a wide variety of different ordnance types. Ordnance types include missiles, bombs, or torpedo types. A special Mini-missile / mini-torpedo pod can also be carried on the fighter. Missile pod extends to fire min-missiles and torpedoes.
1. Bombs and Missiles: Missile and bomb sizes may be mixed between different types of ordnance but an ordnance drop or launch must include the same type and size of ordnance. Ordnance may be carried at the rate of two short range missiles, two light bombs, two light torpedoes, for one medium range missiles, one medium bombs, or one medium torpedoes. Both guided and unguided ordnance may be carried. Special medium range amphibious missiles are also used. Medium range amphibious missiles (can be used as missile or torpedoes, have the same damage as equivalent missile, double cost, but can travel to underwater targets and are +2 to strike). Missile speed underwater is 120 mph (192 km) and has a range of 20 miles (32 km).
  Maximum Effective Range: Varies by missile type for missile and varies by altitude bombs are dropped at for missiles and torpedoes (See revised bomb and missile tables for details) or by torpedo type (See revised Rifts torpedoes for details.)
  Mega-Damage: Varies by missile or bomb type (See revised bomb and missile tables for details) or by torpedo type (See revised Rifts torpedoes for details.)
  Rate of Fire: Ordnance is dropped or fired one at a time or in volleys of two to four but must be the same size (light, medium, or heavy) and style of ordnance (all missiles, bombs, or torpedoes in a volley.)
  Payload: 4 short range missile or light bombs / torpedoes, or 2 medium range missiles or medium bombs/torpedoes each bay. Ordnance can be mixed.
2. Mini-Missile / Mini-Torpedo Pod: Medium capacity mini-missile pod. Launcher can use both mini-missiles and mini-torpedoes. The aircraft normally carries missile pods for ground strafing, anti-troop, and anti-emplacement attacks. Normal missile used are armor piercing, plasma, or fragmentation mini-missiles.
  Maximum Effective Range: Varies with missile or torpedo types, mini-missiles or mini-torpedo only (See revised bomb and missile tables or revised Rifts torpedoes for details.)
  Mega-Damage: Varies with mini-missile or mini-torpedo types (See revised bomb and missile tables or revised Rifts torpedoes for details.)
  Rate of Fire: Each pod can fire missiles one at a time or in volleys of two (2), four (4), eight (8), or sixteen (16) mini-missiles and can be linked with other mini-missile pods for greater number of missiles (Counts as one attack no matter how many missiles in volley.)
  Payload: Each pod carries sixteen (16) mini-missiles.
Anti-Missile Chaff / Anti-Torpedo Noisemaker Dispenser: Located at the very tail of the fighter are two chaff / noisemaker dispensers. When tailed by a missile, a cloud of chaff and other obtrusive particles can be released to confuse or detonate the enemy's attack. In a similar fashion, the fighter can launch off noisemakers against torpedoes. Rifts Earth decoy systems are assumed to not operate against Phase World missiles due to technological difference. Reduce effects by 20% against smart missiles (Add +20% to rolls for smart missiles.)
Effect:
Chaff:
Also note that the chaff cloud will also blind flying monsters that fly through cloud. They will suffer the following penalties: reduce melee attacks/actions, combat bonuses, and speed by half. Duration: 1D4 melee rounds.
Noisemakers: 50% of decoying normal torpedoes and 20% of decoying smart torpedoes.
Payload: Six (6) chaff pods and six (6) noisemakers
Advanced Towed Decoys (4): These do not work underwater and are only designed to decoy radar systems while in the air. These are mounted in dispensers near the middle the fighter’s wings with two decoys in the dispenser on either wing. These drones are dragged about 328 feet (100 meters) behind the aircraft on a thin cable. Each is a specially designed radar lure that creates a radar image to mimic the aircraft. The decoy has a special jammer that is designed to decoy missiles that have been programmed to home on jamming signals. If decoys are not destroyed, they can be recovered and repaired. Rifts Earth decoy systems are assumed to not operate against Phase World weapons due to technological difference.
M.D.C.: 5
Effects: The decoy has an 80% chance of fooling ordinary non military radars and non smart guided missiles, the decoy has a 50% chance of fooling military level radars (like those of the Coalition), and the decoy has a 25% chance of fooling advanced military radars (Like those of the New Navy and Triax) and smart missiles. Against missiles homing on a jamming signal, jamming has an 40% chance of tricking missiles if both the aircraft and missile are jamming and an 80% chance if the jamming system on the aircraft is deactivated before the missile reaches it.
Maximum Effective Range: Not Applicable although decoy is deployed 328 feet (100 meters) from the aircraft.
Rate of Fire: One can be deployed at a time and requires 15 seconds to deploy (Reel Out) another decoy.
Payload: 4 Decoys (2 each)

Special Equipment:
The Sea Phantom has all the standard features of a standard fighter (same as standard robot minus loudspeaker and microphone) plus these special features listed. The special equipment is a combination of both magic and technology.

Stealth Features: The craft has a very similar stealth feature as the Coalition Talon fighter and has a -90% to be detected at long range because of its stealth. As the aircraft gets closer, more target return will allow for easier detection. The special shape of its exhaust also means that the plane is -40% to detect using IR sensors. All IR guided missiles are -3 to strike. Opening the main ordnance bay greatly increase the aircraft's radar signature from the underside of the aircraft and aircraft creates no penalties to be detected in those conditions. The vehicle is also is designed for extremely quiet underwater operation at slow speeds with -30% to be detected at speeds less than 10 knots and -10% at speeds up to 40 knots. While using the hyper-cavitation propulsion, the craft is at +50% to be detected.
Internal Active Jamming Gear: Causes -25% to detection but when it is active, other vehicles/ bases can detect that it is jamming, and some missiles will home in on jamming signals. Jamming also causes a -4 penalty to all radar guided weapons.
Radar: Range: 500 miles (805 km).The radar system can identify and track up to 96 targets simultaneously and is also capable of Terrain Following for low altitude flight. With Combat & Targeting Computer, the fighter can fire missiles at up to twenty four targets at the same time. The weapons officer frees the pilot from controlling the missiles so he can retain his full attacks.
AN/AQS-65 Integrated Sonar System: Relatively short range sonar system fitted to the flanks of the submersible fighter for underwater detection and tracking. Can identify and track up to 32 targets simultaneously and active sonar system has a terrain mapping system for use underwater. Range: Passive Sonar: 12 miles (10.4 nautical miles / 19.3 km) Active Sonar: 16 miles (13.9 nautical miles / 25.7 km).
AN/AAQ-68(V2) Advanced Electro-Optical IRST: IRST stands for infrared search and track and uses multiple thermographic cameras that sense infrared radiation. Advanced 360 degree system which can be used both during the night and during the day to get on target.
E.S.M.: Radar Detector, Passively detects other radars being operated.
Laser Navigational System: Allow flight at low altitude without use of Radar. Gives a map of the Terrain with a range of 10 miles (16 km) in the air. The system is usable underwater with a range of 2 miles (3.2 km) underwater. Uses a special blue-green laser beam to increase range underwater.

Combat Bonuses:

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Writeup by Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

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