Project HAYABUSA

The Hayabusa Powered Assault Armor is a type of United Nations Space Command powered armor, developed independently from the MJOLNIR Project. It is compatible with SPARTAN-II supersoldiers and components of the MJOLNIR armor.

Summary
The Hayabusa is a powered battle armor system, similar to the MJOLNIR Armor, except stemming from Project HAYABUSA as opposed to Project MJOLNIR. It was developed by RKD, an Earth-based "think tank" in the year 2536, 6 years before the Mark V entered production. It was presented to the UNSC Ordnance Committee as an answer to the self-contained powered armor problem. Advanced materials are used in the production of the Hayabusa armor reducing the weight of the current generation armor by nearly a third (at that time).

Development and History
While HAYABUSA had different goals than its rival project, MJOLNIR, both programs resulted in powerful battle armor that boasted energy shields. It is unknown though whether or not the original version had energy shields. The HAYABUSA project was intended to develop self-contained power armor, and the project eventually culminated in the development of the Hayabusa Powered Assault Armor, which was developed by Facility RKD on Earth in the year 2536 and was accepted by the UNSC Ordnance Committee the same year.

The Hayabusa Armor's advanced materials decreased its weighty bulk by one-third, and is aesthetically Japanese in design. The Armor was designed after Ancient Samurai and Ninja designs. It includes spiked shoulder pauldrons (correctly referred to as s'ode). The purpose of the Japanese aesthetics was to instill fear in enemy soldiers while compensating for the armor's lack of defensive strength by angling the pieces to reduce ballistics penetration and providing a sleek, aerodynamic figure.

The Hayabusa Armor's helmet was designed with a defensive and ultraviolet protective visor. It, like on all UNSC helmets, is the weakest point in the helmetpiece itself. The small visor is more difficult to accurately penetrate thus defending the wearer. The small visor also provides for better camouflage.

Although initially developed as its own powered armor system, it seems that the Hayabusa armor has been modified and adapted to be compatible with the next-generation MJOLNIR armor system. This allowed it to be available for use by the SPARTAN-II supersoldiers although its field deployment appeared to be extremely limited.

Helmet Characteristics
The helmet features 7 angular spikes, or spokes, one to each side and the face plate is fused into a single piece and contour. The top rear guard of the helmet is pointed, revealing a protruding spike. The bottom rear, around the neck, forms a neck guard, like that of a Samurai helmet. The 7 spikes are always silver-white regardless of armor color. Clips can be seen on the side of the helmet.

Shoulder Pauldron Characteristics
Its shoulder pauldrons are replaced by three metal plates arranged in an overlapping fashion similar to the armor of a Japanese samurai, also known as the "sode".

Chest Characteristics
The Chest armor features a thick, round "collar" piece protecting the neck, as well as an angular strip of armor that appears to be "strapped" down over the chest, featuring a small delta in the center. The Hayabusa chest piece is great for hiding the neck so it will not appear abnormally long.

How To Unlock

 * Head: Obtain all 13 Halo 3 Skulls.


 * Shoulders: Obtain 9 Halo 3 Skulls.


 * Chest: Obtain 5 Halo 3 Skulls.

Trivia

 * The Hayabusa armor is the only armor that has built in white areas. This can be frustrating because some people would not want white on their armor, purely for cosmetic problems. Or, it could be very helpful if a player is going for an all white look for a free-for-all Slayer match on a snow-themed map using the coloring as camouflage. Such an advantage is only possible in a free-for-all match, however, as team colors will override the rest of the armor's color.
 * The Hayabusa helmet can be a problem for players who want to avoid snipers, or for hiding in general, as a player wearing normal helmet could avoid snipers by crouching behind a rock, while a player using the Hayabusa helmet, might have the white peak on top of the helmet showing clearly, giving away their position.
 * The Hayabusa armor bears a resemblance to feudal-era samurai. The armor is named after Ryu Hayabusa, protagonist of the Ninja Gaiden series and DOA Combatant. The helmet is almost an exact copy of the "ninja of the future" costume in Ninja Gaiden on the Xbox. Bungie may have put Hayabusa armor as a way of saying thanks to Team Ninja for putting Nicole-458 into Dead or Alive 4. Team Ninja, the developers of the Ninja Gaiden series and Dead or Alive series, are also mentioned in the credits for Halo 3.
 * McFarlane produced a Hayabusa Spartan Soldier with different colors and with interchangeable armor pieces, as well as a Katana that can be wielded in the soldier's hands, unlike in the game. The Katana could be obtained only through the Halo Points program. The katana and scabbard were later released in a boxed set which included a red and white Hayabusa and interchangeable armour pieces in order to change from Hayabusa to another armour type.
 * The Armor has been nicknamed Ninja armor by many players, it in fact resembles the armor of the Samurai, not a ninja; although this is probably the case because many players recognize the Ninja Gaiden"reference. Ninjas in fact, never wore armor, as their stealth tactic required them to blend into a crowd - farmer's clothing, fir instance.
 * Hayabusa is Japanese for "peregrine falcon," and is also the name for an unmanned space mission conducted by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency that returned to Earth in 2010.
 * Although HAYABUSA was the counterpart to the MJOLNIR armor, the Hayabusa Halo 3 Action Figures mistakenly refers to is as MJOLNIR variant.