Type-26 Banshee

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Banshee The Type-26 Ground Support Aircraft, otherwise known as the Banshee (pronounced ban-she, sometimes just called "The Shee"), is the Covenant's standard ground assault aircraft.

Overview
The Banshee is a very fast, primary personal aerial assault vehicle of the Covenant, only piloted by Elites and Brutes. The Banshee is a small jet with a hood that opens upward from the rear, and is equipped with two stubby "wings", which are basically frames that terminate in the propulsion jets and anti-gravity pods that leave behind a signature exhaust trail. The Banshee is capable of reaching a speed over 100 kph, extremely maneuverable, and is capable of performing loops and barrel rolls to avoid incoming fire with the help of the boosting engines, which in common with most Covenant vehicles, results in the sacrifice of the weaponry for the duration of the maneuver. In Halo:Combat Evolved it is capable of hovering. It has two weapon pods mounted to either side of the fuselage. Each of these pods contains a light plasma cannon and a Fuel Rod Gun (the Fuel Rod Gun is disabled in Halo 2 Multiplayer). Though small arms fire may disrupt or disable the pilot (the SMG is very effective against it in Halo 2), only heavy weapons are capable of inflicting enough damage to destroy the vehicle.

The Banshee is propelled by small anti-gravity pods attached to its wings. These pods create the field that keeps it flying, and make wailing sounds as the craft maneuvers, thus the name "Banshee". The Banshee is also capable of space flight.

The Banshee is never seen being piloted by one of the "lesser" Covenant races. Instead, they are exclusively used by Elites and Brutes.

Halo: Combat Evolved
In Halo: Combat Evolved the banshee could hover in mid-air. Also, the banshee had a health bar similar to the player's. After its health is depleted the Banshee would explode. The Banshee also has increased armor in Halo:Combat Evolved. For example, several shotgun blasts can impact the banshee before it is destroyed. It is usable in the PC/MAC version's multiplayer, but on the Xbox version it is only usable in the single player levels Assault on the Control Room, Two Betrayals and briefly at the end of Keyes.

Halo 2
In Halo 2, the Banshee's engines can be pushed to provide an excellent boost in speed, but at the cost of maneuverability and weapon power. The Banshee can no longer hover; that function has been replaced with a brake. Also on Halo 2, the ability to hijack an occupied enemy Banshee has been added. If the Banshee is traveling at a fairly slow pace and is flying low, then the player can jump onto the Banshee and force out the driver, allowing the player to take control. An enemy is also able to jump on and steal the player's Banshee as well, both in multiplayer and campaign. This can be fatal on the Heroic and Legendary difficulties. Another change from the previous game is (while in campaign) the enemy's inability to fire the fuel rod cannon, although the player may use it.

A rather large defensive change for Halo 2 was made for the Banshee. It now has the ability to perform stunts. Although it may seem like this ability is purely used to appear flashy, these stunts can be very effective for avoiding enemy fire, especially against rockets. They can be used on both campaign and multiplayer, and on campaign can be used by enemies too. The stunts that can be performed are the ability to roll left or right and do a back flip in mid air. On the Heroic and Legendary difficulty settings, these stunts can mean the difference between life and death.

Halo 3
The Banshee in Halo 3 is the same in design as its previous appearances in the last two installments. It has kept its boosts and rolls, although you cannot do it as often. The Fuel Rod Gun is now a secondary weapon in Multiplayer. Just like in Halo 2 campaign, it can be fired with the "B" button. The radius and size of the Fuel Rod blast has been decreased for balance with the other vehicles and weapons of the game.

The Banshee, as with the Warthog and Wraith, have received a substantial visual upgrade. Its canopy now has a green iridescent sheen, almost insectoid in appearance, which makes it look like a truly alien alloy and adds to the realism. Other than that, it remains similar in design and usage to its Halo CE counterpart, though it cannot face any lower than 45 degrees, to prevent it from overpowering ground players and for more airplane-like strafing runs. The brake can still be used to stall out the craft for quick descents. However, the banshee is much more maneuverable than the Hornet, allowing for a Banshee pilot to easily kill a Hornet.

Another change in Halo 3, is a lack of any usable Banshees in Halo 3's campaign. The only way to pilot a banshee in Halo 3's campaign is to hijack one, which is extremely difficult as the Brute pilots are intelligent enough to not let you get close enough to board their vehicle. Some players in co-op attempt to "wind walk" on a Hornet in The Covenant, then jump off in midair to grab a Banshee that way. This usually fails (often hilariously) due to the Banshee's greater speed.

Halo Wars
Banshees were seen in the Halo Wars demo and appear to be capable of boosting and performing barrel rolls like they could in Halo 2. However, they appear to be missing the green sheen that they have in Halo 3. Banshees are effective against ground troops, and the only effective way of taking them out seems to be through the use of a UNSC Wolverine vehicle.

Countering Tactics


The Banshee is lightly armored and thus vulnerable to explosives and anti-vehicle weaponry. The best weapon to destroy a banshee is the Missile Pod. The Missiles home in on the banshee and are difficult to evade. Other weapons such as the Rocket Launcher and Spartan Laser can instantly destroy a banshee although they are harder to successfully hit the target at long ranges. Other alternatives include the Warthog's M41 LAAG, Machine Gun Turrets, and the Brute Shot. At close range a banshee can be destroyed with Plasma or Spike Grenades. It can also be hijacked at low speeds. Some good items to consider using in Halo 3 whilst engaged with a Banshee are Charged Plasma Pistol bolts or tossing a Power Drainer as they both temporarily deactivate the banshee's engines.

One of the things you can do to evade a Banshee is to run to the nearest place of cover. Rocks, trees, caves, and bases are all good places for cover from the banshee's plasma cannons. If you are stuck in a wide open there is not much you can do unless you have an anti-vehicular weapon. However a banshee can't hover in place, so it can only attack for a few seconds before having to reposition itself leaving you a chance to escape.

Trivia

 * A lightly recurring theme throughout the series is players almost dying in Banshee crashes. In The Maw, the Master Chief enters the Pillar of Autumn by deliberately crashing his Banshee to annoy Cortana. Midway through Halo 2's The Oracle, the Arbiter crashes his Banshee into a platform, only to climb up unscathed, just as the Chief did. In Halo 3 both Chief and Arbiter perform a similar crash but with a Pelican instead. Note that all of these vehicles are "stolen" from an enemy territory (Truth and Reconciliation in Halo 1, the Heretic base in the Gas Mine in Halo 2, and the Flood infested High Charity in Halo 3)
 * Although the Banshee in the games is made for one pilot which means they can only hold one person, in the novel Halo: First Strike, a Banshee carried Master Chief and a second Spartan named Linda.
 * The Banshee, like the Ghost, when it takes a lot of damage it starts to vibrate, shake, and whine then explodes which can cause damage to players and sometimes even kill them. However, in Halo 3, this effect on a critically damaged Banshee occurs much less often than in previous games.
 * A running joke in parodies in Halo videos are the fact that the Banshees have no practical viewing port with the MC often crashing.

Related Links

 * The Great Banshee Switch
 * Hornet - UNSC equivalent
 * Heretic Banshee - Heretic equivalent

Images
Banshee