Charon-class light frigate

Charon-class light frigate
Production information
Role:	Escort of capital ships; Expeditionary land warfare support;
Technical specifications
Length:	489.71 meters (1,606.65 ft)
Width:	155.58 meters (510.42 ft)
Height:	139.20 meters (456.68 ft)
Engine(s):	Naoto Technologies: V4/L-DFR
Slipspace drive:	Series IV CODEN/SFTE
Hull:	60cm Titanium-A plating
Armament:	1 Mark II, Light Coil – 83B6R3/MAC; 50 M58 Archer missile pods; 4 M870 Rampart 50mm point defense guns; 3 M4093 Hyperion nuclear delivery system silos;
Complement:	Total: 782 Marines Orbital Drop Shock Troopers; ; At least 2 D96-TCE Albatrosses; At least 7 D77H-TCI Pelicans; Single Occupant Exoatmospheric Insertion Vehicles; M12 Warthogs; At least 3 M808C Scorpions; AV-14 Hornets; ;
Chronological and affiliation
Era:	Insurrection; Human-Covenant War ; Post-Covenant War conflicts
Affiliation:	UNSC Navy

The Charon-class light frigate is a type of escort ship in service with the UNSC Navy.^[7] Ships of this class are used primarily in fleet escort duties and planetary defense.^[7] The class is named after either Charon, a minor god who ferried the souls of the dead to the underworld in Greek mythology, or after a natural satellite of Pluto.

Design details[edit]

Hull and complement[edit]

At 490 meters in length, the Charon is a rather small vessel. Owing to its enlarged hangar bay, the Charon-class frigate is better suited to landing forces groundside than other frigate classes.^[7] The ship's sublight power plant is a Naoto Technologies: V4/L deuterium fusion reactor. Translight power is provided by a Series IV CODEN Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine.^[2] The Charon has a maximum crew and complement of 782.^[4] It can carry several Pelican dropships as well as an assortment of ground and air vehicles. These include M808C Scorpions, AV-14 Hornets, and various varieties of M12 Warthogs.^[6]

The hangar bay on the Charon-class has a large opening on its aft wall. Three elevators are installed in the floor of the bay, which can either retract to allow for the launch of its embarked Pelicans, or extended to deploy its fleet of Scorpions and Warthogs to the surface.^[6]

Armament[edit]

The Charon-class frigate's primary armament is a Mark II, Light Coil – 83B6R3 Magnetic Accelerator Cannon.^[2] It also boasts fifty M58 Archer missile pods,^[2]^{[note 1]}, and four dual-mount M870 Rampart point defense guns are installed on the port and starboard hangar bays, one on the dorsal surface and one below.^[8]^[2] Additionally, the Charon sports three M4093 Hyperion nuclear delivery system silos^[2], which are capable of destroying an unshielded CRS-class light cruiser.^[9]

Ships of the line[edit]

Trivia[edit]

The Charon class' distinctive, oversized cargo bay resembles that of the eponymous Firefly class from the television series Firefly. This was likely intentional, as the most notable Charon-class frigate depicted in the series, UNSC Forward Unto Dawn, first appeared in Halo 3, which was also when Nathan Fillion, who portrayed Captain Malcolm Reynolds in Firefly, joined the Halo voice cast, and whose Halo 3 character is named Gunnery Sergeant Reynolds.
The Forward Unto Dawn was drastically redesigned in Halo 4, including a restructured hull and the addition of several point defense guns. Though 343 Industries writer Jeff Easterling has clarified that the Charon's original design is canon,^[10] the redesign served as the basis of the Strident-class heavy frigate.^[11]

Gallery[edit]

UNSC Forward Unto Dawn.
UNSC Aegis Fate.
A trio of Charons assault the Forerunner Dreadnought near Voi.
A Charon-class frigate deploying vehicles from its enlarged hangar bay.
The bridge of a Charon-class vessel.
Concept art of the redesigned Forward Unto Dawn in Halo 4.
Concept art of the back end of the Forward Unto Dawn in Halo 4.
Concept art of the profile view of the Dawn in Halo 4.
Size comparison of the UNSC Infinity against a Charon-class light frigate.

List of appearances[edit]

Halo: First Strike (2010) (Mentioned only)
Halo 3 (First appearance)
Halo Wars: Genesis
Halo: Helljumper
Halo 3: ODST
Halo Legends
- Origins
- Prototype
Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
Halo 4
Halo: Escalation
Halo: Hunters in the Dark (Mentioned only)
Halo: The Fall of Reach - The Animated Series
Halo Mythos
Halo: Silent Storm

Notes[edit]

^ By the standards of UNSC frigates, this number (given in reference to the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn by Halo Bulletin 10.10.12) is unusually high. For comparison, the UNSC In Amber Clad, a Stalwart-class light frigate, is stated to have possessed 16 M58 Archer pods, and the UNSC Commonwealth, a Paris-class heavy frigate, is stated to have possessed 26. It is possible that the 50 pods figure for the Charon-class is an error, or that the individual pods are much smaller than those of other UNSC ships for an unknown reason.

Sources[edit]

^ ^a ^b ^c Halo 3 3D game data
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Waypoint: The Halo Bulletin: 10.10.12 (defunct, backup on Archive.org)
^ Halo Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Halo Universe, page 259 (2011)
^ ^a ^b Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, Part 1
^ Halo 3 level Sandtrap
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Halo 3, campaign level The Ark
^ ^a ^b ^c Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 76
^ Halo 3, campaign level The Storm, closing cutscene
^ Halo 4, campaign level Dawn
^ Halo Waypoint: Canon Fodder - Have S'moa
^ Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide, page 192

[8] By the standards of UNSC frigates, this number (given in reference to the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn by Halo Bulletin 10.10.12) is unusually high. For comparison, the UNSC In Amber Clad, a Stalwart-class light frigate, is stated to have possessed 16 M58 Archer pods, and the UNSC Commonwealth, a Paris-class heavy frigate, is stated to have possessed 26. It is possible that the 50 pods figure for the Charon-class is an error, or that the individual pods are much smaller than those of other UNSC ships for an unknown reason.

[H3GameData-1] Halo 3 3D game data

[Bulletin_10.10.12-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Waypoint: The Halo Bulletin: 10.10.12 (defunct, backup on Archive.org)

[3] Halo Encyclopedia: The Definitive Guide to the Halo Universe, page 259 (2011)

[FUD_1-4] Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn, Part 1

[5] Halo 3 level Sandtrap

[H3TheArk-6] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Halo 3, campaign level The Ark

[essential-7] Halo: The Essential Visual Guide, page 76

[TheStorm-9] Halo 3, campaign level The Storm, closing cutscene

[Dawn-10] Halo 4, campaign level Dawn

[11] Halo Waypoint: Canon Fodder - Have S'moa

[12] Halo 4: The Essential Visual Guide, page 192

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