The Type-99 Space Attack Fighter Aircraft, commonly referred to as the Cosmo Falcon or by its Japanese name Hayabusa (ハヤブサ, Hayabusa), is a trans-atmospheric space fighter plane used by forces of the United Nations Cosmo Force and the United Nations Ground Force in the late twenty-second and early twenty-third centuries.
Armaments and Technical Specifications[]
A Cosmo Falcon fires its machine guns, noye the two missile launchers at the start of the wing
The Cosmo Falcon is equipped with 6 cannons placed in two groups located in the large main wing fairing, and 2 machine guns placed on the underside of the nose section. It carries a total of eight missiles,[4] four per side, that can be equipped either on the 2 hidden weapon bays built in the fuselage, or on the triple racks built under each wing. The Cosmo Falcon is equipped with eight anti-ground/anti-ship missiles, capable of performing two-stage injection for instantaneous acceleration. It can also carry the same anti-aircraft missiles as the Cosmo Zero.[5]
The wings are angled, foldable, and have seesaw flaps. The wing pods house vernier thrusters and RCS. The Falcon also features 2D vector-thrust, allowing for vertical take-off and stationary flight.[6] The flaps placed at the end of the wings and of the vertical stabilizer are made out of two plates placed one on top of another which can open if needed to facilitate maneuvering. Inbetween the two plates is a heat dissipation device which can release coolant or propellant.[7] Two antennas with spikes are attached to the underside of the nose section. It has a doubled wheeled nose gear. The main landing gear is angled halfway to the side. It is splayable and retracts forward.[8] The craft has a navigation computer AI.[9]
Usually, it is manned by one pilot.[9]
History[]
Yamato's Cosmo Falcon at the Rainbow Star Cluster
Jointly developed and manufactured by the United Nations Ground Force, the Far East Front Aerospace Battlegroup, and the Space Technical Arsenal, the Cosmo Falcon was originally designed as an interceptor for the defense of Earth's absolute defense perimeter and was formalized in 2199.[4][3] However, it became the Yamato's carrier-based fighter due to delays in the mass production of the Cosmo Navy's Type-0 Cosmo Zero.[10] A total of thirty-six (3 squadrons) Cosmo Falcons were on board the Yamato at the time of its departure.[11] The Cosmo Falcon saw significant action throughout Yamato's journey to Iscandar, most notably during Operation M2, the Battle of the Rainbow Star Cluster, the Battle of the Imperial Capital and the Battle of Shambleau.[9][12][13][14]
An Hayabusa of the Apollo Norm's Air Corps in late 2202
Following the end of the Great Garmillas War, the Cosmo Falcon continued to be operated by the UNCN, but it began being phased out in favor of the Type-1 Cosmo Tiger II.[2]
Notable Pilots[]
- Saburo Kato
- Hiroki Shinohara
- Mikio Nemoto
- Nobuhiko Sugiyama
- Takuya Kobashi
- Takeshi Daikuhara
- Sho Sawamura
Notes[]
- The number written on the nose and rotor wings of the Cosmo Falcon is the modex number given to it during assembly, the 6-digits number on the vertical tail is the aircraft's unique number.[7]
- The Cosmo Falcon is based on the Type 1 Fighter Hayabusa of Imperial Japan.[15]
- According to mecha designer Yutaka Izubuchi, the original name "black tiger" was too similar to the US First American Volunteer Group's nickname, the Flying Tigers, additionally, the name is currently used in Japan to refer to a type of shrimp. To avoid these issues, the plane was renamed. The Hayabusa inspiration for the new name came from the Kato Hayabusa Combat Team.[15]
- The Type-99 Falcon also shares part of its name with the Nakajima Ki-43 Falcon fighter used by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force in World War II.
- The name is also shared with two robotic spacecraft built by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA): the original Hayabusa that collected samples from an asteroid surface in 2005, and the Hayabusa 2 that is scheduled to arrive at another asteroid in July 2018.
- Just like how the real life Hayabusa was fielded by the Japanese army, the Cosmo Falcon was originally built by the UN Ground Force.
- According to mecha designer Yutaka Izubuchi, the original name "black tiger" was too similar to the US First American Volunteer Group's nickname, the Flying Tigers, additionally, the name is currently used in Japan to refer to a type of shrimp. To avoid these issues, the plane was renamed. The Hayabusa inspiration for the new name came from the Kato Hayabusa Combat Team.[15]
- In Japanese, the word "hayabusa" specifically refers to peregrine falcons.
- In Space Battleship Yamato 2199, the redesign of Earth mecha from old works (such as Cosmo Zero) was left to Junichiro Tamamori and the new mecha was designed by Izubuchi. However Izubuchi also worked on the rough design Cosmo Falcon. According to him, "If I left it to Tamamori from the beginning, he would have drawn a normal black tiger."[15]
References[]
- ↑ "Messenger of Iscandar"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Clash! Yamato vs. Andromeda"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Yamato 2199 Mecha data
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 121
- ↑ Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 126
- ↑ Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 124
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 123
- ↑ Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 125
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "The Trap on All Sides"
- ↑ Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 120
- ↑ Yamato 2199 BD/DVD Volume 4 booklet, p. 5
- ↑ "Under a Raunbow Sun"
- ↑ "One Man's War"
- ↑ "Space Battleship Yamato 2199: Odyssey of the Celestial Ark"
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 Space Battleship Yamato 2199 Model Sheet Design Collection EARTH p. 259
Japanese language information[]
- 99式空間戦闘攻撃機 99-Shiki kūkan sentō kōgeki-ki (type-99 space attack fighter aircraft)
- コスモファルコン Kosumofarukon (cosmo falcon)