Sai

SAI.JPG
Sai
Production information
Manufacturer Wakazashi Enterprises
Production Year 3045[1]
Model S-3[2]
Class Light aerospace fighter
Tech Base Inner Sphere
Cost 2,111,280 C-bills[3]
Technical specifications
Mass 40 tons
Structural Integrity 8
Frame Wakazashi I
Power Plant Shinobi 240 fusion engine
Armor Shinobi Standard
Fuel 400 - 5 tons
Armament
Communications System Neil 4000
Tracking & Targeting System Chichester ASR-26
Heat Sinks 14 double heat sinks
BV (1.0) 843[4]
BV (2.0) 959[2][5][1]

Description[edit]

The S-3 Sai was created for the Draconis Combine as a new light aerospace fighter to replace the aging and ill-reputed Sholagar light fighter. Originally developed by the now defunct Mangon Aeronautics in the early 3030s, the Sai design was discovered by Wakazashi Enterprises after the company takeover in 3045. The project was pushed into limited production, producing 30 fighters for field tests. The Draconis Combine High Command put the prototypes to use, deploying them against House Davion in raids. On these raids, the Sai got to test its mettle against House Davion's Sparrowhawk and House Steiner's Seydlitz designs.

The Schuyler plant began retooling in 3048, taking advantage of newly recovered Star League technology in the S-4X model. The fighter is noted for being the first in the thirty-first century to mount an extralight fusion engine. Unfortunately, shortly after production began, the Clan Invasion took place and the Sai plant on Schuyler fell into the hands of Clan Smoke Jaguar in June 3050.[2][6]

The Smoke Jaguars discovered the blueprints for the Sai and upgraded it with Clan technology, designating the new design the S-4C and deploying it to several second line Clusters. In 3056 the first Inner Sphere OmniFighter, the S-40 Sai, entered extremely limited production at an unknown location. At the beginning of 3059 fewer than fifty of these prototype OmniFighters existed in the entire Combine. The S-40 Sai was viewed as a morale-boosting production, a flawed one at that, and in 3062 the MIK-O Tatsu was released with many of the older Sai flaws corrected.[7][8][1]

On 10 August 3059, wave three of Operation Bulldog landed on Schuyler. Three days later the Smoke Jaguars retreated off world, leaving the Combine with the planet and the ability to produce the Sai again. However, unable to continue production of the Clan-tech enhanced fighter, Wakazashi engineers redesigned it as the S-4 in 3061.[9][2][1]

The Sai would continue to be improved upon, with the S-7 launching in 3065 and the S-8 in 3069[2][1]

Weapons and Equipment[edit]

The original S-3 was armed with a nose-mounted Diverse Optics Type 30 large laser and a pair of Diverse Optics Type 20 medium lasers mounted in each wing. The Shinobi 240 fusion engine allows the craft to reach a maximum thrust rate of 12, with five tons of fuel. The fighter is protected by seven and a half tons of standard armor.[2]

Variants[edit]

  • S-4 
    Based on the S-4C after recapture Schuyler from Clan Smoke Jaguar, the S-4 is a virtual copy of the Clan tech based version. Its main weapon is a nose-mounted Inner Sphere version of the ER PPC, but the wing weapons were changed to single SRM-4s enhanced with the Artemis IV FCS, fed by 50 rounds of ammo. The double heat sink count is retained at 14. BV (1.0)= 1,075;[10][11] BV (2.0) = 1,005[12]
  • S-7 
    During the 3060s, the Wakazashi created the S-7 variant, taking advantage of the development of new weapons technologies. The S-7 became known as an escort and is used on border worlds of the Combine. The original nose-mounted ER PPC is swapped for a pair of ER medium lasers, and the wing weapons are changed out for MRM-10 launchers, fed with 48 rounds of ammunition. The fuel capacity for this variant was also increased, up to six tons. BV (1.0) = 1,016[10][18]; BV (2.0) = 834[19]
  • S-8 
    Introduced just prior to the Jihad, the S-8 has a revised weapons layout. A pair of new light PPCs are placed in nose, while each wing is given a pair of ER medium lasers. The fighter's armor is changed out for nine tons of ferro-aluminum armor. BV (1.0) = 952;[20] BV (2.0) = 1,304[21]

Gallery[edit]

References[edit]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 MUL online date for the Sai
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 Technical Readout: 3039, p. 236: "S-3 Sai"
  3. Record Sheets: 3039, p. 247
  4. Record Sheets: 3039, p. 245
  5. Record Sheets: 3039 Unabridged, p. 391
  6. Invading Clans, p. 66
  7. Field Manual: Draconis Combine, pp. 66, 85, 109: Two flights and one wing noted as being prototype OmniFighters, the rest were captured Clan OmniFighters
  8. Technical Readout: 3067 Revised, p. 150
  9. The Dragons Roars., p. 50
  10. 10.0 10.1 Combat Operations, p. 126
  11. AeroTech 2 Record Sheets, p. 66
  12. Record Sheets: 3039 Unabridged, p. 392
  13. Record Sheets: 3039, p. 249
  14. AeroTech 2 Record Sheets, p. 67
  15. Record Sheets: 3039 Unabridged, p. 393
  16. Record Sheets: 3039 Unabridged, p. 394
  17. Technical Readout: 3067 Revised, p. 150
  18. AeroTech 2 Record Sheets, p. 68
  19. Record Sheets: 3039 Unabridged, p. 395
  20. Record Sheets: 3039, p. 252
  21. Record Sheets: 3039 Unabridged, p. 396

Bibliography[edit]