UNSC Iroquois

The UNSC Iroquois is a UNSC Destroyer. It was constructed sometime in April of 2552. Three months after leaving drydock, on July 17 of 2552, it was the first ship to respond to the Covenant attack on Sigma Octanus IV. It was subsequently involved in the ensuing battle, which lasted until July 18. However on page 138 of "The Fall of Reach" chapter 16, 0300 Hours, July 17, 2542 the UNSC destroyer Iroquois was on routine patrol in the Sigma Octanus Star System. So probably wasn't constructed sometime in April of 2552.

Specs
The ship was outfitted with 2 MAC cannons, 26 oversized Archer Missile pods, and 3 Shiva nuclear-tipped missiles. Covered with 2 meters of Titanium-A battleplating and Vanadium Steel alloy, as well as restricted red war stripes painted on each side due to the name "Iroquois" a reference to an early Native American tribe. The ship also features a circular shaped bridge.

History
The ship was commanded by Commander Jacob Keyes. He happened to be near Sigma Octanus IV when the Covenant were detected there. The Iroquois fought with four Covenant vessels: one carrier, one destroyer, and two frigates. Commander Keyes destroyed the Covenant destroyer and both Covenant frigates using a maneuver later called the Keyes Loop and a Shiva-class Nuclear Missile. During this encounter, the ship first hit emergency engines in order to dodge the two plasma torpedoes. Keyes himself was thrown sideways. Then, the ship came into physical contact with the Covenant Destroyer in order to evade the guided plasma that instead hit the Covenant Destroyer. However, they managed to scrape off most of the 2-Meter Titanium-A armor on the underside of the ship. The Iroquois then proceeded to go into orbit in order to go around the planet in order to detonate the nuke. The carrier escaped, however, deploying thirty-four Dropships onto the surface of Sigma Octanus IV towards Cote d'Azur.

After this first engagement, although the Covenant hadn't landed a serious shot, the Iroquois was severely damaged. Apart from replacing the armor on the underside, it needed a full engine overhaul, replacement of 15% of the electronic systems, 5 new superconducting magnets, as well as a replenished store of Archer missiles, MAC rounds and a Shiva nuclear-tipped missile. It was estimated that Cradle, a refit station, could repair the ship in 30 hours but this process was interrupted when a new Covenant fleet appeared.

Prior to the battle, Keyes received a promotion to Captain. The encounter began when twenty Covenant ships dropped out of Slipspace and prepared to attack. The Iroquois , which had been severely damaged during the Keyes Loop, broke formation after the opening salvo and rammed a Covenant stealth corvette that was in the process of receiving a secure transmission from their ground troops at Côte d' Azur. This transmission was partially intercepted by Keyes before the Spartan Blue Team disabled the Hunter pair sending the message and stopped the transmission.

Shortly after the battle, the Iroquois was tagged by a Covenant Spy Probe, subsequently leading the Covenant to the planet of Reach. However, it is possible the Covenant managed to glean the information from the transmission as did Doctor Halsey in First Strike in Castle base.

Its subsequent fate is unknown, although it is probable it was destroyed in the Battle of Reach, given the fact that approximately ten UNSC ships were destroyed for every one which was able to limp away.

Commanding Officer

 * Commander Jacob Keyes (promoted to Captain after Sigma Octanus IV)

Bridge Crew

 * Lieutenant Aki Hikowa - Weapons
 * Lieutenant Hall - Operations
 * Lieutenant Jaggers - Navigation (replaced with Ensign William Lovell after instance of insubordination)
 * Lieutenant Dominique - Communications

Trivia

 * The Iroquois Confederacy (Haudenosaunee, also known as the League of Peace and Power, Five Nations, or Six Nations) is a group of First Nations/Native Americans. It was originally made up of five tribes: The Mohawk, the Oneida, the Onondaga, the Cayuga, and the Seneca. A sixth tribe, the Tuscarora, joined after the original five nations were formed. They are also sometimes called the People of the Long House. They are often referred to as Iroquois, a term that some members of the group consider derogatory.
 * It was the first ship to perform the Keyes Loop.
 * Commander Keyes actually liked the war stripes painted on the ship, but intended to have them removed anyway. Both stripes were damaged during the execution of the Keyes Loop. The CO of the Cradle offered to repaint them for Keyes, but he refused and chose to leave them the way they were as a reminder of how close a call he had with death.
 * The Iroquois is also the name of the Canadian navy's command\anti-aircraft destroyer, along with a small town and waterfall in Ontario