A-17 'Republican' Fighter-Bomber

> ***“This lady may be a old one, but I’m sure she still gets the job well done. After all, one must pilot her at least once before properly applying to the Pilot’s Corps.”***
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> **-Aramathi Fighter Ace Demuru Kileda speaking about the A-17 ‘Republican’.-**
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## **Overview**

Very well known by Commonwealth pilots, the **A-17** is a multirole purpose fighter-bomber designed specifically by Curacao Naval Yards to be the first fighter craft to operate both in space and in air. The *Republican* is also one of the oldest military aircraft still in active operation, serving in nations like the Jir, the Entente, Udkavongos and even the Ahadi, oftentimes being accounted by said nations as *“Cheap, but deadly”.*

In recent years, most of the A-17s still maintained by the Commonwealth are kept outside combat zones and are used as training aircraft for newer pilots, acting as the first actual aircraft for the recruits to fly after simulations enacted in-flight computers, this makes the Republican a well-established craft, once being the backbone of the Commonwealth, later teaching the younger generations to fly on even deadlier machines than itself ever was.

The A-17 was officially decommissioned from duty in 2339 (100 years from its first introduction), giving way for much more modern designs of Curacao Naval Yards to take its place. It's chosen successor, the A-53 ‘Liberator’ Strike Fighter, fared well in early trials and was welcomed by newer recruits hoping to get their hands on more advanced trainers. Although deactivated or not registered anymore, most other countries still maintain the use of these fighters with more modern versions designed specifically from each respective country, venturing the A-17's legacy into the military of many different nations at times of the 24th century.

## **Tactical Roles**

As for their active roles around the Commonwealth's Armed Forces, the A-17s once were the first to be introduced into the Space Carrier Squadrons of Task Force Manticore, and although it initially presented somewhat of a sluggish speed and agility in space, it more than fared as an Anti-fighter weapon during void engagements, efficiently protecting the fleet against large scale enemy fighter and bomber swarms. The same couldn't be said on air planetary engagements, however, as its design provided incredible speeds at greater atmospheric levels, while it's Close Air Support (CAS) capabilities alternatively promoted many benefits to the ground troops enduring combat on land. Although considered fairly dated by now, the A-17 is still in use by several combat and non-combat units within the Commonwealth's borders, some of them being in Curacao's Air Defence Wing and Kosciuszko Squadron, for instance.

## **Specifications**

**Designed In:** 2239

**Designed By:** Curacao Naval Yards

**Manufacturer:** Ortus Naval Yards

**Number Constructed:** 290,000

**Weight:** 19 Tonnes (19.371kg)

**Length:** 26M

**Height:** 7M

**Width:** 15M

**Crew:** 1 (2 in specific training variants)

**Armour:** 90mm (9cm)

**Shielding:** Romanov-Class Shield Generator

**Armaments:** 3x 20mm Laser Cannon, 4x Dark Matter AA Missiles, 2x “Reaper” Anti Personnel HE Bomb

**Speed (In Space):** 80km/s

**Speed (In Atmosphere):** 4.5km/s

**Main Role:** Fighter-Bomber / Training Craft