Author Notes:
Welp, a quick and dirty chapter to advance the logistical profile of the Syncra Ascendancy! Enjoy the little tidbits, and I hope to see you all soon!
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https://photos.app.goo.gl/waZgkRa3UQhqKQBi9
OBOM Visual Guide:
https://postimg.cc/gallery/5fQs4Fv
OBOM Visual Guide
MH-1 Knighthawk:
https://postimg.cc/3Wthx3p3
https://postimg.cc/Hj6mkT5G
MH-2 Queen Stallion:
https://postimg.cc/5jsJ2fv4
https://postimg.cc/9zL2QcTV
MH-3 Halo:
https://postimg.cc/K40b8mLS
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"Vi, you're the logistics head," I call out to the cyberpunk-looking Doll. "Since we're talking about airlifters, do you have any recommendations on what we need for air assets?"
Vi nods in Iris' direction, prompting our resident AI to bring up some of the proposals Vi prepared before this discussion in a digital, holographic format.
"According to my available database about the Eternal Reich and the nations of Umbra's home planet in the 21st century," Vi starts presenting what she has in mind. "All of them possess multiple airframes that are either separated into weight classes or types, some of which are very capable in multirole duties. However, in known history, no single airframe has done everything, and I mean absolutely everything. The nation known as the United States of America, one that Umbra is familiar with, had, in its 21st-century heyday, at least three separate airlifter platforms ready to fly at any given time. Mind you, they didn't have to worry about flying in a massive water world, much less carrying Knights and mechas back then."
"From a doctrinal, logistical, and geographical perspective, we will roughly need at least two rotary platforms, three if we are seriously thinking about pushing the heavy lifting envelope onto a helicopter. Fixed-wing-wise, a solid three airframes, separated into light, tactical, and strategic airlifters, are required. However, we in the logistics sector won't say no to a flying boat design or two, as they will save us a lot of resources and time, having no need for a prepared landing strip."
Already, I can feel my head throbbing with the potential designs and blueprints for the proposed requirements. I sigh, knowing that it's yet gonna be a long, long topic to unravel and decide upon. Reizen, who is a bona fide supersoldier, actually mirrors my strained expression. Clearly, sitting this long behind a table, butting heads and braincels, is a first for her too.
"Right, let's get this over with." I say with finality, leading everyone to lean in for a continuation of our discussion.
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The VTOL, the MV-22 Osprey look-alike from the Eternal Reich's inventory, is nearly immediately ruled out, mostly because of the potential obscene maintenance requirements. Unlike the Reich, the Syncra Ascendancy is not a superpower, at least not yet. So, ultimately, we decide to settle on more largely conventional helicopter configurations.
"After much discussion, the helicopter redesigns that make the cut are the ones that are based on the MH-60 Sea Hawk, the CH-53K King Stallion, and the Mi-26 Halo." I say after taking a deep breath and exhaling the turbid air that filled my lungs during the previous lengthy talk. "Goodness gracious, I've never thought helicopters would turn into the most annoying thing to work out, thus far."
Iris shrugs, grinning. "To be fair, there's a lot of work going into strapping a chair to a spinning windmill. But as per usual, let's do a rundown of what's different about our versions compared to what you are familiar with. And surprise, we will do this whole shebang again a few more times after this."
"Joy..." I sigh with a wry smile.
If even Reizen is feeling the strain, then even the Doll is experiencing their version of mental fatigue as well. During the days we've been spending working out the veritable tech tree, the other Dolls, loving citizens of our little faction, visit from time to time, either to deliver meals or to bring that little bit of joy and sunshine that eases our accumulated stress. But clearly, the grind is exacting its toll, just as it should be. Then again, if we don't deal with this now, then when will we? It's not like we can just throw money at the problem and hope it will go away. There is more to building the Ascendancy than you think.
We also haven't touched upon the matter of our economy and how it should function. Like, do we need a monetary system and whatnot? And if we need to, let's say, make or print money, then what should our money be like?
The above thoughts are packed into a can of worms I do not ever wish to open, honestly. But I digress.
After a brief moment to calculate the parameters, Iris then shows us the helicopter blueprints for visualization's sake.
The first design, or redesign, is of an MH-60 Sea Hawk... It's more or less a total rework that only bears some external resemblance to the ubiquitous Black Hawk of the 21st century. The rework here ties to the second chosen design, which we will get into later. Quite interesting, we change the name to MH-1 Knighthawk, Knighthawk being a callback to the older CH-46 Sea Knight of the United States Navy.
Inspired by the original Black Hawk platform, our Knighthawk is capable of being outfitted for multiple mission parameters and is capable of operating out of naval vessels or coastal islands in various biomes. Though I hate how this will make me sound like a broken record from here on out, we have redesigned the MH-1 Knighthawk to be as modular as it can be while still keeping in line with, or even exceeding, what the original platform entails.
The Knighthawk can serve as a true transport and logistical workhorse in its base form, armed with nothing but a pair of .50 caliber door guns. However, that doesn't mean we can't quickly modify the airframe to accept a pair of stub wings with two pylons each. Each pylon can either carry a traversable 30 mm gun pod, a rocket pod, or even guided missiles of different forms, changing its role from utility to what is tactically known as Direct Action Penetrator (DAP), or gunship for short. To go even further, the base Knighthawk can be outfitted for combat search and rescue and even anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare. For these particular mission that requires long loitering time, the Knighthawk comes standard with a retractable and removable fuel probe and all the necessary fly-by-wire, built-in sensors, electronics, and whatnot to complete its duty. You literally only need to have the right parts and a grease monkey on hand to make the required modifications. And do you know what the best part is?
The Knighthawk comes in the beautiful Medium Gray for the primary color and Light Ghost Gray for the underside. In my honest opinion, as a once-humble military model hobbyist, that color scheme looks absolutely perfect on any naval airframe.
Now, do you remember that part where I said something about a redesign to fit something? Lo and behold, we make the Knighthawk feature a staggering 70% parts commonality with the similarly redesigned version of the Ch-53K King Stallion. This truly ridiculous idea of making a medium-lift and a heavy-lift helicopter somehow share the same root comes about because Vi suggested that we need some interoperability with the two future workhorses, thus simplifying at-sea logistics. Seeing the benefits, Iris and I basically jumped at the chance to play the brain game, and here we are.
Introducing the MH-2 Queen Stallion- I know, funny and very original name change. The MH-2 Queen Stallion retains most of its original chonky appearance, but the interior is basically gutted and refilled according to Iris' and my specifications. Still, it retains largely the same layout as the King Stallion, featuring three uprated engines, a composite seven-blade main rotor, a fuel probe, and a wide, roomy aircraft cabin that can even carry a Humvee internally. Due to our redesign, the Queen Stallion has a payload capacity of over 16 tons of cargo and features a generous operational range of approximately 500 nautical miles, the same as the Knighthawk, and that is without using midair refueling.
True to its MH designation, the Queen Stallion can be equipped to fulfill combat search and rescue, just like the Knighthawk, maritime patrol, and even a stand-off arsenal bird due to its ability to ferry a lot of munitions and sensors. Like the Knighthawk, it all boils down to time, parts, and a pair of hands to make the Queen ready for prom night.
Last but not least, the superheavy-lift Mi-26 lookalike. Unlike the MH-1 Knighthawk and MH-2 Queen Stallion, the MH-3 Halo is not carrier-capable, and it shares only 35 percent of its parts with the other two rotary wings. And yes, the name Halo is retained in its entirety because, let's face it, there ain't no cooler name to describe its absurd, more than 30-meter-in-diameter main rotor capable of kicking up a mini cyclone whenever it hovers near ground level. Although it shares the overall appearance of the Mi-26, the MH-3 is actually a bit bigger when you compare the two airframes side by side. From the initial payload of only 20 tons, the MH-3 Halo is now capable of ferrying 25 tons after Iris works her magic and improves upon the horsepower figure and structural integrity of the MH-3. It's planned that the MH-3 will be a worthwhile helicopter to carry important, heavy-weight payloads in the most treacherous conditions while simultaneously featuring a range similar to the MH-1 and MH-2. Of course, the Halo is nowhere near as fast as the other two helicopter designs due to its humongous size.
Unironically, it's actually unsafe to ever, ever attempt an aerial refueling of something as big and powerful as the MH-3. When simulated, the turbulence from the main rotor alone will snap any refueling line and render a catastrophic accident for any pilot attempting such a risky maneuver. As such, aside from making it possible to outfit the MH-3 with stub wings and pylons for drop tanks and whatever else is safe to install, Iris and I elected not to give the Halo a refueling probe. Additionally, the lumbering size and its lack of maneuverability mean the Halo is practically useless in a direct engagement. Perhaps it can be used in a stand-off configuration, but right now, we think it's more practical for the MH-3 to either be a dedicated transport, a flying crane, an airborne command center, or a mobile hospital.
Although we planned and cooked up three separate multirole helicopters, at the end of the day, it's just that- planning. We will have to wait until we're done brainstorming and actually have something out in the field; then we can talk about the feasibility of our doctrine and whether or not to make any additions or subtractions accordingly. But for now, I can see that all of us are satisfied with what we managed to draft thus far.
And because the MH-1 and MH-2 are naval helicopters, we can cheat around producing them by offloading the task onto the GAD Module instead. Iris has said to me in one of our chats that she may have an idea on how to cheat the GAD Module and get us naval aircraft and vessels faster and cheaper than ever. Once we are finally settled, Iris and I will test if her theory holds true and if we can swiftly build the Ascendancy into a force to be reckoned with.
At the very least, the Syncra Ascendancy must be able to protect its citizens and sovereignty. Without them, we can kiss our grand vision goodbye.
Oh, by the way, did I say that the Navy, Marines, and the Air Force will pretty much use the same type of aircraft where they matter? Save us a lot of effort in actually sourcing parts and supplies for them. I didn't? Well, now you know. Regardless, back to our schedule talk.
Much like how we plan our helicopters, we separate them into three categories. We shall also define our bigger, fixed-wing carrier around that frame of thinking, namely: light, tactical, and strategic airlifters. Light: for operating out of a carrier, a naval airbase, or a rough jungle airstrip. Tactical and strategic: for when you need to haul your Marines elsewhere fast and overwhelmingly, or to drop off enough materials to build a coastal fortress out of a deserted island. These are what we're looking for.
And once we are done with the logistical side of things that may or may not run into more forceful applications, we will get into the meaty, gritty fighter aircraft. I can't wait to see what we can come up with then, given that the pilots will be Dolls that can defy physical limitations while in the air.