Source: Technical Readout 3026
Mass: 20 tons
Movement Type: Conventional Aircraft
Power Plant: Rawlings 140 Air Turbine
Frame: Muilila Aerospace Type 4
Armament:
1 Sian/Ceres Cougar SRM 6 System
Manufacturer: Mujika Aerospace Technologies
Primary Factory: Various
Communications System: Duoteck 20
Targeting and Tracking System: Radcom T5
Overview:
In the era of the Succession Wars, �Mechs and AeroSpace Fighters are assets too rare and valuable to be wasted. This is especially true for the Capellan Confederation of House Liao. Controlling the smallest military and industrial base in the Inner Sphere, Liao was the first of the Successor Houses to use conventional combat equipment to replace �Mechs and AeroSpace Fighters whenever possible.
Though AeroSpace Fighters can provide decisive intervention in a ground battle, they are best used to maintain space superiority. In 2831, House Liao began to issue Guardian conventional fighters to beef up the ground attack capabilities of their garrison units rather than wasting more valuable AeroSpace Fighters on ground support.
The Guardian carries a good-sized bomb load, and its SRM 6 packs a reasonable punch, which is adequate to perform ground support missions. (In a contest with an AeroSpace Fighter of similar size, however, the Guardian cannot hold a candle to its fighter cousin.) Perhaps most important to House Liao is that the Guardian is cheap, easy to maintain, and does not require high-tech production facilities.
Capabilities:
The Guardian is powered by a Rawlings 140 Air Turbine, which utilizes four exhaust nozzles, two on each side of the fuselage. These nozzles can be rotated to give the Guardian VSTOL capabilities. True vertical take-off and landings are only possible when the craft is not loaded with ordnance, but even with a full bomb load, the Guardian needs only 50 meters of open field to get airborne.
The Rawlings air intake is located on top of the fuselage, behind the cockpit. This configuration reduces the aircraft�s radar signature and diminishes the possibility of landing strip debris being sucked into and damaging the turbine.
The Guardian�s construction is a model of simplicity. Its airframe, avionics, and engine are built up from component modules for easy removal and replacement in the field. Though most of its electronics are considered obsolete, they are highly reliable. This puts the Guardian at a disadvantage against more technologically advanced units, but it also means an army of Techs is not necessary to keep it operating. Indeed, only one Astech � if any � is usually assigned to a Guardian. This reduction in manpower is possible through the use of a unique electronic system fault-tester. The tester isolates and identifies the problem area and tells the Astech what number module to remove and replace. It also prints out a list of workable substitute modules (along with necessary directions for modifications) if the required module is not available.
The Guardian has two major flaws. The first is that it cannot withstand damage. Its speed is the aircraft�s only defense against an AeroSpace Fighter, for example, because a fighter can shoot it down easily. Its other defect is the relatively weak primary armament. In ground support, the SRM is not as effective as a laser or other energy weapon. Mounting a laser on the Guardian would be impractical, however, for it would only further increase its overall weight and thus reduce its speed even more.
Overall, the Guardian has performed well as a stopgap measure for the Capellans. When used with an awareness of its limitations, the craft has provided yeoman service to hard-pressed garrison commanders.
Deployment:
Soon after receiving a squadron of Guardians, the Liao forces on Sappho were hit by an overwhelming invasion by House Marik. In the first wave, Marik seized Sappho�s major cities and industrial areas, along with the spaceport and all other military installations. The few surviving Liao AeroSpace Fighters could no longer operate, for lack of airfields. The Liao �Mech forces were also shattered, with the remaining units fleeing into the jungle, hoping for the arrival of a relief force.
One of these escaped units was the 976th Air Support squadron. Its twelve pilots had been able to load up most of their ammunition, fuel, and spare parts onto Karnovs, and to escape before the Marik forces overran their base. For six months, the 976th staged what has become a textbook example of an air unit fighting a guerrilla action.
Using their mobility to the fullest, the 976th continually hit Marik ground targets without warning. Flying in at treetop-level, they dropped their load of infernos or high explosives, and then escaped in the confusion. With their VSTOL capability, the unit was not tied down to one base area. They only stayed in one place long enough to rearm or refuel before going out on another mission; the helicopters meanwhile moved to another field.
The 976th was not invincible, though. They had to be particularly wary in areas patrolled by AeroSpace Fighters. Indeed, seven of their number were destroyed in chance encounters with fighters.
Fuel was another problem. The Rawlings may be fuel-efficient, but it cannot run on air. Early on, the squadron was able to hook up with a lance of Vulcans, which helped them raid ammo and fuel dumps to keep the 976th supplied. While the Vulcans took out the infantry garrison, the Guardians bombed any �Mechs that tried to intervene. The Karnovs then hauled away the supplies.
After six months, the 976th were reduced to four Guardians, two Vulcans, and one Karnov. A Marik patrol spotted these survivors while they were on the ground refueling one day. Within an hour, a battalion of jump troops attacked. The Guardian pilots were gunned down before they could even reach their machines.