The F-36 Hornet was developed by Origin Aerospace as a high performance fighter both faster and more maneuverable than previous Confederation light fighters. It also was far more maneuverable than the Kilrathi fighters in service at the time of its introduction and the Hornet proved itself capable of flying circles around contemporary Kilrathi fighters. The Hornet first entered service in 2644 and became the mainstay of the Confederation's light fighter squadrons where it performed the roles of escort and reconnaissance. The Hornet's only real weakness was the fighter's lack of firepower. Even though the light fighter only carried two lasers, many fighters preferred the more nimble Hornet, due to its speed and agility, over the more sturdy but less maneuverable F-32 Scimitar medium fighter. While less heavily armored than the Scimitar, the Hornet actually mounts slightly more powerful shields. The fighter was retired after almost twenty years of service in 2661 when the next generation F-54 Epee and P-64 Ferret light fighters were introduced,

During the Battle of Earth, the Hornet was brought back into service to resolve a shortage of fighters due to demobilization of the military after the Kilrathi's false peace treaty. Even though the electronics on the fighter were upgraded, the light fighter was inferior remains inferior to the most modern fighters, such as the F-96B Arrow, and performs poorly against the latest generation of Kilrathi light fighters. The majority of Confederation's remaining Hornet light fighter have been destroyed during the Battle of Earth campaign and the few that remain have been retired back into inactive reserve status.

Notes of game conversion:

Because of the nature of the Video Game series "Wing Commander" and the needs to put the fighter into game mechanics, the fighter has several modification compared to the Video Game. The most important change it to change top speed to acceleration. Like fighters in Star Wars and original Battlestar Galactica, the fighters appear to act as if they are in the atmosphere even when they operating in space. This is incorrect. The Television series Babylon 5 and the new Battlestar Galactic are good series to watch to get a clearer idea on how space vehicles would probably maneuver although still not a perfect perspective. The fighter has been modified to uses my revised phase world starship rules and can hold their own against most C.A.F and Kreeghor fighters. See Revised Starship Rules for Phase World for more details.

Model Type: F-36 Hornet light fighter
Vehicle Type: Light Strike Starfighter / Reconnaissance Fighter
Crew: One

M.D.C. By Location:

	Laser Cannons (2):	40 each
	Missile Hard Points (3):	10 each
	[1] Engines (2):	90 each
	Landing Struts (3):	10 each
	[2] Main Body:	220
	Reinforced Pilots Cockpit:	100
	[3] Variable Force Field:	45 per side (270 total)

Notes:
[1] Loss of an engine will reduce performance of fighter by one half and loss of two engines will prevent fighter from performing beyond 5% of normal (This is using maneuvering thrusters and gravitic propulsion). Due to gravitic propulsion systems, fighter will not crash in an atmosphere even if both engines are destroyed.
[2] Depleting the MDC of the main body will put the fighter out of commission. All internal systems will shut down, including life support and internal gravity. The ship itself will be an unsalvageable floating wreck. In an atmosphere, the fighter will crash.
[3] Shields positions can be varied and all could be combined in one shield. Shields regenerate at the rate of 5% (14 MDC) per melee.

Speed:
Driving on the Ground: Not Possible.
Sublight: Has a special sublight engine that allows the ship to travel up to 40 percent of the speed of light. Fighter can accelerate/decelerate at the rate of .84 percent of light per melee maximum. Fighter has auxiliary thrusters which can be used a maximum of 15 minutes before fuel is exhausted. On auxiliary thrusters, the fighter has a maximum acceleration of 1.68 percent of light per melee maximum.
Atmospheric Propulsion: The fighter is fairly aerodynamic and is quite capable in an atmosphere. As a result, the fighter can achieve escape velocity (Mach 32.6 / 25,053 mph / 40,320 kph) but normally operates at Mach 6.03 (4,473.8 mph / 7,200 kph) or less. The fighter also has Gravitic propulsion systems enabling it to leave an atmosphere even at low velocities.
Maximum Range: Effectively unlimited by internal fuel (10 year duration) although auxiliary thruster range is limited to approximately 15 minutes. Fighter uses a very small fusion cell system for power systems. The fighter carries four days of consumables for fighter's crew.

Statistical Data:
Length: 65.62 feet (20.0 meters)
Height: 16.24 feet (4.9 meters)
Width: 101.38 feet (30.9 meters)
Weight: 13.78 tons (12.5 metric tons) unloaded
Power System: Fusion power supply with a 10 year duration.
Cargo: Small Storage Space, 1.0 ft x 1.0 ft x 2 ft. Used for emergency equipment and weapons.
Market Cost: 19.22 million credits

WEAPON SYSTEMS:

1. Dual Laser Cannons: These cannons are mounted on the wings of the starfighter. While extremely long ranged, the damage of the weapons is less than most other Confederation and Kilrathi weapons. When compared to Phase World weaponry, the lasers inflict less damage than those on most C.A.F. Starfighters but have a much longer range. The cannons can be fire individually or in pairs.
   Maximum Effective Range: 3,106.8 miles (5,000 km) in space and 15.5 miles (25 km) in an atmosphere.
   Mega Damage: 1D6x10 per cannon and 2D6x10 for both cannons
   Rate of fire: Equal to pilots hand to hand (Usually 4 or 5).
   Payload: Effectively Unlimited.
2. Missile Pylons (3): On the underbelly of the fighter are three missile racks that allows the fighter to carry missiles. Individual pylons must carry all the same type ordnance but each pylon may carry different types of ordnance. Long Range Missiles has a top speed of Mach 20 in an atmosphere and in space has an acceleration of 8% of light per turn (faster than any starship). Medium Range Missiles has a top speed of Mach 15 in an atmosphere and in space has an acceleration of 6% of light per turn. Since starships will no longer engage at rock throwing distances, whether weapons can be shot down is calculated from the speed of target, launcher, and missile. When drive goes dead, missile will still cruise unless set to self destruct but has very low odds of hitting starships (Great for hitting bases and planets because target does not move and missile when dead at -25% to detect.) Missiles can be launched on multiple targets simultaneously and all missiles are normally considered smart missiles.
   Fuselage Hard Point (1): One Long Range Missile or two Medium Range Missile each.
   Inner Wing Hard Points (2): One Medium Range Missile each
   Maximum Effective Range: Long Range Missiles range is 3,400 miles (5470 km) in an atmosphere and 1,800,000 miles (2,89700 km/9.7 light seconds) in space, and Medium Range Missiles range is 160 miles (257.5 km) in an atmosphere and 80,000 miles (128,750 km/0.43 light seconds).
   Mega-Damage & Properties: See Revised Phase World Missile tables (Long Range Fusion does 2D4x100 MDC).
   Rate of fire: One at a time or in volleys of two..
   Payload: Varies by hard point
3. Anti-Missile Decoy Dispenser: Located at the very tail of the fighter are two decoy dispensers. When a missile if fired at the fighter, a decoy can be released to confuse or detonate the enemy's attack. Decoy system works against Phase World missiles although has a -10% penalty against Brilliant missiles.
   Effect:
   01-50 Enemy missile or missile volley detonates on decoy - Missiles are all destroyed.
   51-75 Enemy missile or missile volley loses track of real target and veers away in wrong direction (May lock onto another target).
   76-00 No effect, missile is still on target.
   Payload: Ten (10)

COMBAT BONUSES: The F-36 Hornet light starfighter is very maneuverable and very accurate. Use the Phase World Starfighter combat (Elite or Basic) skill.

+2 to initiative
+3 to dodge

[ Phase World TM, Kreeghor TM, and CAF TM are trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc. ]
[ Rifts® is a registered trademark owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc.]
[ Wing Commander copyright © Origin Productions]

By Kitsune (E-Mail Kitsune).

Rifts Conversion Copyright © 2004, Kitsune. All rights reserved.