A Dark Arrow engages a Brotherhood war fleet. Although the cannon armament was very effective, it forced the Arrows to run a gauntlet of surface-to-air missile defences often leading to heavy losses.

A brief throwback to earlier times

The Dark Arrow was a specialised attack aircraft developed by the in-house development team of the Saltwater Carrier Nation, with work starting just two years after the nation's founding. The aircraft was designed to be a dedicated "ship hunter", to serve as the nation's shield against hostile fleets. Extremely fast and agile, yet with little in the way of defensive systems or sensors, the Dark Arrow soon gained a reputation as a "bruiser", reliant on the extreme levels of firepower provided by two specially built "AS-2 Heavy Rotary Cannons", known as the "semi-nuclear cannon" or "smasher", which fired mix of tungsten, depleted-uranium and high-explosive 40mm shells at a range of up to 2,400m.

Brainchild of John C. Wilcox, the nation's founder and aircraft engineer, the Dark Arrow prototype first flew in 2015 from aircraft carrier SWS Exterminator, with test pilot Charles D. Hughes at the controls. Three prototypes were built during the development program, with the first crashing on its twelfth flight after entering a flat spin from which the pilot was unable to eject. After the accident, altitude limitations were imposed, with future Dark Arrows limited to 12,000 feet when lightly loaded.

Over Maywar, where Dark Arrows were frequently tasked with engaging terrorist vessels attempting to resupply insurgents on the island.

With its novel flying wing design, the aircraft was capable of impressive performance, capable of flying under full control at speeds as low as 60mph and up to 1,400mph, and was capable of absorbing the immense recoil of the two AS-2 Heavy Rotary Cannons. However, with the cockpit recessed into the wing, the view was very restricted, limited to directly ahead and above in most circumstances. Combined with a lack of radar, this made the Dark Arrow useless in air to air combat. Although weapons hardpoints could be fitted, in most cases squadrons chose not to fit them, except in the few instances in which Dark Arrows were sent against land targets.

A single Dark Arrow onboard SWS Retribution. A Conegsreich destroyer can be seen in the background providing escort.

The Dark Arrow proved to be a highly effective ship killer, making strikes at speeds in excess of 1,100mph and altitudes below 100 feet, giving only a few seconds of warning to opposing air defences before the target came within range of the Arrow's guns, which were capable of rapidly reducing an enemy warship to a floating wreck with just a few seconds of firing. However, without the luxury of radar or even FLIR, Dark Arrows had to operate with effective air cover, unable to defend themselves against enemy fighters and unable to locate targets independent of the fleet.

Production of Dark Arrows was limited, constrained by the lack of space aboard the nation's ships. The Saltwater Air Force initially operated just twenty such aircraft in two squadrons. In 2018, the Dark Arrow made its combat debut when twenty-five aircraft attacked Algorithm warships following a strike against the Saltee fleet that sunk a corvette and damaged one of the two carriers. Although all but one of the aircraft returned from the strike, a second follow-up strike against positions on Snowstone saw the loss of two Dark Arrows to surface to air missiles.

During the following First Algorithm War, the Dark Arrow fleet was employed against a large range of enemy targets, including warships as well as providing close air support to Saltwater Marines fighting on Krakabola.

A Dark Arrow swoops low over Snowstone during a strike against Algorithm forces during the First Algorithm War.

All but five aircraft were lost during the destruction of the Saltwater Navy off NovrdLisch, but following the refounding of the nation a larger number of aircraft served with the Saltwater Air Force from the Second Algorithm War through to the defeat of the the Brotherhood terrorist group, where they were instrumental in the destruction of the enemy fleet.

After twenty years of service, a single Dark Arrow was lost during exercises with the Falken Reich. After recovery of the aircraft, it was found that metal fatigue, caused by relentless low-level flying and high-G maneuvering, had caused structural failure of the wing. Careful inspection of the rest of the fleet showed that most of the aircraft were also severely damaged, hastening the replacement of the Dark Arrow with the multi-national CFA-14 Black Prince strike aircraft, which also carried twin semi-nuclear cannons, in an upgraded Mark 3 version that required less maintenance, but featured proper radar and lacked the altitude restrictions of the Dark Arrow, with two crew members and weapons hardpoints for seven air to air and cruise missiles, although the more conventional design meant that landing speeds were higher and maneuverability reduced. The Dark Arrow fleet soldered on for another two years, making one last strike against terrorist positions in Brightneau, before the fleet was completely replaced.

An Eagle-Rider display pilot takes his Dark Arrow below the canyon wall.

Three Dark Arrows flew with the Saltwater Air Force display team, the Eagle-Riders, with two aircraft operated in a "Synchro" flight.

Controls:
AG1 activates afterburner.
AG2 arms the guns.
AG3 activates the navigation lights.
AG4 deploys the drag chute.