AV-22 Sparrowhawk

"Known more readily as just “Hawk”, the Sparrowhawk is a formidable air to ground armor busting support aerodyne. The Hawk is still being assessed by command before full production starts while engineers are still working on an experimental propulsion system that has led to failures in the field making the future of this vehicle uncertain. The Hawk first saw actual combat against the Covenant on the surface of Harvest in the final months of that campaign."

- Quote from Halo Wars main site

The AV-22 Sparrowhawk is a United Nations Space Command VTOL aerial support aerodyne that saw use during the early years of the Human-Covenant War.

History
The AV-22 is a formidable air-to-ground anti-tank aerodyne. It is used by the UNSC in a support and anti-armor role to hunt tanks and support advances. Developed during the early years of the Human-Covenant War, it first saw action on Harvest during the end months of the Harvest Campaign. Although the Hawk was in wide production during the first decade of the war, problems with its ducted fan propulsion system limited the craft's deployment later in the war.

Appearance
The Hawk seems to feature design elements from a mixture of modern VTOL aircraft, most prominently the Harrier jumpjet and attack helicopter gunships such as the AH-64 Apache and the AH-1 Cobra. It also bears a marked resemblance to the AV-14 Hornet and bears similarities to the deleted Kestrel from Halo 2. It consists of an elongated fuselage with stubby wings on each side.

The cockpit is forward mounted, and the tail section juts out from behind the fuselage at a downward angle. Each wing incorporates a Ducted Air Fan for lift and thrust, and carries three missiles/rockets on pylons and a twin auto-cannon on each, with an M6 laser mounted underneath the cockpit.

Performance


The Hawk is a fast and maneuverable aircraft, much more so than the AV-14 Hornet. Rather than thrust-vectoring jet thrusters, like most UNSC aircraft, the Hawk makes use of ducted fans in the wings to provide lift and thrust, and is equipped with wing-mounted GUA-23/AW/Linkless Feed Autocannons as well as a nose-mounted Weapon/Anti-Vehicle Model 6 Grindell/Galilean Nonlinear Rifle, allowing it to engage enemy infantry, vehicles and aircraft, making for an aircraft of extreme tactical versatility. In-game, The Hawk is the unique unit of Professor Ellen Anders.

Trivia

 * The original announcement of the Hawk as well as the unveiling of the first concept art for the design was accomplished through a "decrypting" image set. Community Manager Graham Somers posted the first full-static image at the end of an update. Over time the image cleared itself up. The following update contained larger versions of the Hawk and a short description.
 * The Hawk bears a minor resemblance to the Orca Gunships of the Command &amp; Conquer series.
 * The Hawk is an aircraft unit that appears when Anders is the Leader in Skirmish mode, and the 12th mission of the Campaign.
 * The vehicle has changed greatly from its original concept, with it being changed from a gunship with missiles and a range of cannons, akin to modern gunships, to a more aerodynamic vehicle with a nose mounted laser, and 2 autocannons.
 * Unlike all other UNSC aircraft, the propulsion system of Hawk makes a sound reminiscent of modern day helicopter gunships, possibly due to the similarity in their technologies.
 * Robot Entertainment has released an auto-update for Halo Wars that makes the Hawk upgrade cost 1,350 resources instead of 900 in order to prevent easy mass production.
 * MEGA Brands released a version of the Hawk with two front mounted gatling guns instead of a laser.
 * The Sparrowhawk shares some similarities to the Falcon including the tail and the chin-mounted gun.

List of appearances

 * Halo Wars