Strider Squadron

## Overview

The Strider squadron, part of the United States Navy 124th Tactical Fighter Squadron. The squadron is lead by Master Sergeant Allen Locust and is made up of mostly F/A-143 “Helios” Aircraft. These aircraft are equipped to operate in atmosphere and out of atmosphere, the primary role for them is air to air combat but they can function as CAS.

## History

Strider squadron was founded on December 31st 2104 and has been attached to the Athena for 13 years. The squadron was originally lead by Lieutenant Steven Warren, followed by Lieutenant David Walker. Throughout the years the squadron has advanced tremendously and is one of the more advanced squadrons in the US Navy. The squadron started off with a lack of pilots but has slowly grown to the numbers it is today.

## Primary Mission

The primary mission of Strider squadron is to conduct air operations to support the Athena’s mission, weather it be support to ground troops, a attack on a hostile starship or defense of the Athena itself. The squadron also assists in aerial reconnaissance, electronic warfare and bomber escort. They are also able to assist in the bridge due to their skill operating radar systems and communications systems.

## Personal Weaponry

The members of strider squadron are supplied with a sidearm for use inside the ship and abroad. This pistol is able to be fired in space as the rounds have a miniature thruster on them to propel them. The weapon is chambered in .327 Federal Magnum and commonly hollow point. The round has a high stopping power and penetration, able to go though 16 inches of a ballistics dummy. The pilots are also given combat knifes in the event their parachute is tanged in trees when operating on a planet that has them. The knife also doubles as a projectile weapon, if the cap is removed and button is pressed the blade can be “shot” via a spring loaded inside the handle.

## Equipment

Members of Strider squadron wear a dark blue and gray uniform with the squadron patch on the side (pictures included at end). They have a dark blue and gray service cap as well, the uniform is based off of Air Force flight suits. The squadron members are also given wrist PDAs which display the time and date along with the state of their aircraft and a way to request it to be fueled and armed if not already done. In addition to this, the PDA also is equipped with a schedule app so the pilots don’t miss briefings and other important events. The boots they wear are also equipped with mag locks in the event a hull breach occurs while they are in the ship, to go along with this they also have oxygen masks.

## Aircraft

The F/A-143 “Helios” is a very versatile craft, equipped to preform a variety of tasks including air to air combat, air to surface combat, electronic warfare, close air support and aerial reconnaissance. The Helios is capable of doing these tasks due to the high definition cameras and ECM jammers in it, among other things. The ship is equipped with two TAE-54 selective thrust engines, these engines have the ability to run off full hydrogen or use the air intake and save the hydrogen fuel. The engine, while it does use a fair amount of fuel is one of the more fuel efficient of its kind and is extremely reliable. The Helios is also able to carry a fair amount of armament, this ranging from air to air, air to ground and air to space missiles, along with many types of bombs and cannons. Some of the more notable weapons are the SFM-42 “Longbow” a long range anti-spacecraft Missile. The SFMA-36 “Tracker” a medium range anti fighter missile. The SFMA-53 “Sidewinder” a improved and modified variant of the AIM-9X. For bombs the more notable ones are the GBU-431 Cluster Bomb, the SGBU-653 Cluster bomb, the SGBU-532 Penetrator and the SGBU-321 EMP. The cannon is a standard space capable 25MM Vulcan.