UNSC destroyer

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 class
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, yet it has almost double the mass; 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 s. 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, captained by Commander Jacob Keyes, which performed the daring Keyes Loop during the Battle of Sigma Octanus IV.

DD-993 type
This type of destroyer appears heavily armored and has two thrust nozzles. It has a wide beam and is almost equally tall. Numerous large antennae are mounted across the hull. 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.

List of appearances

 * Halo: The Fall of Reach
 * Halo: First Strike
 * Halo: Ghosts of Onyx
 * Halo: The Cole Protocol
 * Halo Wars: Genesis
 * Halo Wars
 * 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
 * The Babysitter
 * Halo: Fall of Reach - Boot Camp
 * Halo: Glasslands
 * Halo: Fall of Reach - Covenant
 * Halo: Fall of Reach - Invasion''