The RD44 Cutlass

Originally thought that they would extend the range of the Dreadnought, once they were deployed in the field the opposite turned out to be true. Although it was easier to perform reconnaissance aboard the rigid airship, it was also getting a reputation for being shot at. Although these incidents hardly proved dire, it was agreed that it was only a matter of time before some idiot dug up a land-to-air missile and decided to sink their airship. This made it much more tactical to remain at a high altitude and send faster moving biplanes in to take pictures and disappear before anyone was any the wiser.

Fitting with a trapeze style suspension harness and a pair of retractable wings, the Cutlass can not only deploy from the hangar while the Dreadnought in is flight, but also land. This limits it to one pilot and modest armaments, but it is extremely effective at its intended job. Because of the reduced weight it uses energy more efficiently than any other aircraft in its class and can remain autonomous from the zeppelin for long periods of time. On long missions planes will have their landing gear replaced with additional storage for fuel.

Usually armed with a pair of wing mounted light machine guns, some pilots have swapped these out for Rapid Capacitor Weapons so that they can make use of the more widely available energy cells. They have also been known to carry a small store of explosives modified with fins and weights for better accuracy. Not exactly an effective method of bombing, they can still be strategically utilized to maximize the effectiveness of a strafing run.

• Length- 20 feet


• Wingspan- 25 feet


• Max Speed- 200/mph


• Max Altitude- 20,000 feet


• Climb Speed- 2,000 feet per minute


• Crew- 1 pilot


• Armaments- Two wing mounted 7.62 Light Machine Guns, or RCWs requiring microfusion cells