Destroyer
Production information
Class:	Destroyer
Role:	Fleet escort, assault
Technical specifications
Length:	Varies by class *Standard model 485 meters (1,590 ft)
Engine(s):	Fusion drive
Slipspace drive:	Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine
Hull:	1.5 - 2 meters titanium-A battle plate
Armament:	Magnetic Accelerator Cannons (2) Shiva-class nuclear missiles (3) Archer missile pods (26) Twin-linked 50mm point-defense autocannons (8x)
Complement:	Single Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicles D77-TC Pelicans
Chronological and affiliation
Era:	Insurrection Human-Covenant War
Affiliation:	UNSC Navy Colonial Military Administration (defunct)

Destroyer is a warship classification in the UNSC Navy, as well as the now-defunct Colonial Military Administration. Its hull classification symbol is DD. Fast, maneuverable, and designed for long-term endurance, destroyers are intended to escort larger vessels such as cruisers and carriers.

Classes

The Navy has made use of at least three destroyer classes which vary widely in design.

Gorgon

Main article: Gorgon-class heavy destroyer

In 2497 the Gorgon class was introduced into service. Similar in design to a cruiser, the class' lead ship was the first UNSC vessel to be armed with a Magnetic Accelerator Cannon, for which the ship carried only three slugs. The CMA destroyer Heracles was the command ship of Battlegroup 4 following the disastrous first contact with the Covenant.

Standard class

The most common destroyer type used during the Human-Covenant War and the later years of the Insurrection features a distinctive "arrowhead" profile. At 485 meters, it is only seven meters longer than a Stalwart-class light frigate, yet it has almost double the mass (7,900 metric tons); this is because they have between one-and-a-half to two meters of Titanium-A armor. This class' armament consists of two Magnetic Accelerator Cannons, twenty-six oversized Archer missile pods, and three Shiva-class nuclear missiles. For defense against single ships the destroyer carries eight twin-linked 50mm point-defense autocannons. Unlike most UNSC warships they do not carry GA-TL1 Longsword interceptors.

Such vessels were in service as early as 2517 and continued to serve throughout the Human-Covenant War. Despite their powerful armament and maneuverability, many Fleet officers looked down upon destroyers, considering them too ineffective against Covenant ships. It was generally agreed that seven destroyers were a match for four Covenant frigates. One of the most notable destroyers was the UNSC Iroquois, captained by Commander Jacob Keyes, which performed the daring Keyes Loop during the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV.

Frigate-style class

This type of destroyer is similar in design to most UNSC frigates, though it is larger and appears more heavily armored. The only known vessel of this class, hull code DD-993, deployed an ODST-Spartan team during a raid on Heian at some point between 2540 and 2551.

Gallery

• 

  The destroyer CMA Heracles transitioning from slipspace.

• 

  Heracles, accompanied by two frigates, emerges from slipspace.

• 

  The Heracles over Harvest with Battlegroup 4.

• 

  The destroyer The Heart of Midlothian.

• 

  A schematic of the The Heart of Midlothian.

• 

  The destroyer UNSC Pioneer.

• 

  The Iroquois collides with a Covenant DAV-class light corvette.

• 

  The UNSC Iroquois from its bow, unleashing a full volley of Archer missiles.

• 

  Concept art of the UNSC The Heart of Midlothian.

• 

  DD-993 near Heian.

List of appearances

• Halo: The Fall of Reach (First appearance)
• Halo: First Strike
• Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
• Halo: The Cole Protocol
• Halo Wars: Genesis
• Halo Wars (Mentioned only)
• Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe
  • Midnight in the Heart of Midlothian
  • The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole
  • Dirt
• Halo Legends
  • Prototype (Mentioned only)
  • The Babysitter
• Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp
• Halo: Glasslands
• Halo: Fall of Reach - Covenant
• ''Halo: Fall of Reach - Invasion