Killer Bees. What was their fate?

M

MjavTheGray

Spaceman
I am not doing it for a Space Point, I assure you :)
But I am curious about the Hornets' fate.
They were too outdated by the WC2 era, but...

We know (from Unknown enemy) that Border Worlds DID USE Hornets long after those were forgotten by Confeds, at least for training purposes. How long could the 'Bees' stand in active duty?

And the second question - what was the fate of my favourite squadron? Were they never re-created after destrucion of the 'Claw ?
 
Allright! Great threads, people! Another Space Point.

I can answer both questions to some extent.

- Hornets are still flying in Confederation service in 2668 - they're among the fighters defending Earth in Fleet Action. They were surplussed after the war and many were sold to the Free Republic of the Landreich... who oeprate Hornets as their primary light fighter in False Colors (early 2670s).

- The Killer Bee squadron did survive the destruction of the Tiger's Claw and was still around at the end of the war - there's a WC:CCG card for them! By 2669 they've transitioned to flying Hellcat Vs.
 
Unknown Enemy is about as far from canon as you can get.... didn't we blow up the intrepid? *ouch*
 
Bandit LOAF said:
- The Killer Bee squadron did survive the destruction of the Tiger's Claw and was still around at the end of the war - there's a WC:CCG card for them! By 2669 they've transitioned to flying Hellcat Vs.
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And so, the Killer Bees became Killer Cats? :)

And as for the survival ... how did it happen? Were they transferred off the carrier for that mission? Or were they all out there - searching the safe route to Kilrathi HQ ? In this case it makes sense - they are scout pilots, after all :)
 
And as for the survival ... how did it happen? Were they transferred off the carrier for that mission? Or were they all out there - searching the safe route to Kilrathi HQ ? In this case it makes sense - they are scout pilots, after all
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Good question - remember that the Tiger's Claw's *pilots* were all in space... and they were spread so thin that Blair had to fly alone. As long as the Hornets survived that last mission then they would have return to the Austin and survived.

It's not uncommon for military units to outlive the men and women serving in them, though, too - there are army divisions around today that aren't actually made up of the same men who fought in the Civil War. :)
 
It also makes sense that the Killer Bees transitioned from Hornets to Hellcats in that we see it with current USAF and USN fighter squadrons. Some of these squadrons have been arounded since WWII, Korea, or Vietnam, but they are not flying the same aircraft, they've switched to different aircraft as older aircraft were phased out or as missions and the need for certain types of aircraft changed.
 
ck9791 said:
It also makes sense that the Killer Bees transitioned from Hornets to Hellcats in that we see it with current USAF and USN fighter squadrons. Some of these squadrons have been arounded since WWII, Korea, or Vietnam, but they are not flying the same aircraft, they've switched to different aircraft as older aircraft were phased out or as missions and the need for certain types of aircraft changed.
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I think the most interesting part of the transition is they've gone from light fighters to medium fighters. More to the point, the Hellcat isn't a new bird. In terms of age of the general fighter, they're both getting on in years. The change seems more specific to mission role rather than upgrading.
 
Yet Hellcat is still capable of scout missions. On some terms it is the most suitable cratf of Confed by the year '73. It has enough fuel to fly long-range patrol, it is atmosphere-capable, and it has enough firepower to defend itself.

No other fighter of WC-IV era would suit. Neither Arrow, nore Thunderbolt - the first has too short range, the second wouldn't outrun anything. And both can't fight in atmosphere - they have no wings, no maneur - no chance to survive athmospheric attack.

So it seems to me that Killer Bees weren't ressigned to some another duty. They still could and would perform scout missions.
 
There was a longer range Arrow - the Arrow Scout. We fly it in Armada (and Arena, of course.) Still, a Hellcat seems a reasonable fighter for the 'Bees to fly.
 
Bandit LOAF said:
Now, what could the Latin phrase mean? ("Nolumus Signa Olida Habore!") I know a bunch of the CCG phrases aren't great Latin, so it may be impossible to figure out...
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Are you sure that's not 'habere'? That's a Latin verb, as in "to have" - and that looks more like an 'e' than an 'o' due to the line in the middle of the circle. Olida is "olive tree" - a symbol of peace, signa is a sign or battle standard, and "Nolumus" is to be unwilling or to refuse.

In that context, the phrase may mean 'Unwilling to have peace' or 'Refuse to surrender'. Or maybe it's "Unwilling to make peace"? Or perhaps "unwilling to have an olive tree as a battle standard" if we're translating it literally, which is a mistake itself.
 
MjavTheGray said:
Yet Hellcat is still capable of scout missions. On some terms it is the most suitable cratf of Confed by the year '73. It has enough fuel to fly long-range patrol, it is atmosphere-capable, and it has enough firepower to defend itself.

No other fighter of WC-IV era would suit. Neither Arrow, nore Thunderbolt - the first has too short range, the second wouldn't outrun anything. And both can't fight in atmosphere - they have no wings, no maneur - no chance to survive athmospheric attack.
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The ships we most often fly in atmospheres do seem to have wing-shaped structures, but they're not operating like modern atmospheric craft. We can just stop and hover if we want. We do also occasionally see a variety of fairly wing-less craft operate on the ground, including the Arrow.

Thanks jetlag!
 
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Haesslich said:
Are you sure that's not 'habere'? That's a Latin verb, as in "to have" - and that looks more like an 'e' than an 'o' due to the line in the middle of the circle. Olida is "olive tree" - a symbol of peace, signa is a sign or battle standard, and "Nolumus" is to be unwilling or to refuse.

In that context, the phrase may mean 'Unwilling to have peace' or 'Refuse to surrender'. Or maybe it's "Unwilling to make peace"? Or perhaps "unwilling to have an olive tree as a battle standard" if we're translating it literally, which is a mistake itself.
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Oh god, I got to the end of your post and almost died man :D. That as a good one indeed my friend. Just thought I'd say so.
 
By the way... what would be an **official** reason for Hornet retitement?
With neutron guns she had no less firepower the Ferret had.
Yes, she was less speedy, but still fast enough, and still very nimble...
So - why?
 
By the way... what would be an **official** reason for Hornet retitement?
With neutron guns she had no less firepower the Ferret had.
Yes, she was less speedy, but still fast enough, and still very nimble...
So - why?
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And if my grandmother had wheels...

The Hornet *didn't* have neutron guns - that's something that the Standoff folks came up with all on their lonesome. The Hornets we see in False Colors (2670-72) are still using lasers.
 
I doubt that the reactor of the Hornet could supply neutron guns. It is a light fighter (and an old one), it hasn't a strong reactor. That is probably the main reason it doesn't carry stronger guns.

EDIT: Of cource it could use neutron guns if its reactor was upgraded...
 
Aginor said:
I doubt that the reactor of the Hornet could supply neutron guns. It is a light fighter (and an old one), it hasn't a strong reactor. That is probably the main reason it doesn't carry stronger guns.

EDIT: Of cource it could use neutron guns if its reactor was upgraded...
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Standoff tells us that Hornet was upgraded to carry neutrons...
 
Standoff is great, but it isn't canonical - neutrons on Hornets are something fans decided it would be fun to play with, not part of the Wing Commander history.
 
But they're still very possible guns for the Hornets.
Look athe the Pan-cake - it had lasers replaced with mass-drivers...
Look at the Sartha - it carried neutrons while being a light fighter...
Even the disgraced Epee's reactor could support P.C.

So why Hornet couldn't?... ;)

But the point is taken. The Hornets were not upgraded, I see. That answers the question. Arigatou :)
 
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