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Dornier Aerospace "Albatros ADV" heavy fighter

Single-seat long-range heavy fighter.

Albatros ADV - single-seat, 4x BK-30 cannon, 4x rocket pods

Length: 10m
Wingspan: 13.5m
Height: 3m
Displacement, approximate: 33.9 tons
Powerplant: 3.5MW
Time to 104.5m/s: 11.5s

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To the eternal disbelief of military observers, Dornier's first attempt at a long-range heavy fighter turned out to be all it needed: the result was both more agile and more compact than any other manufacturer's prototypes, at home or abroad. Named for the famed and wildly successful Albatros family of WWI, Dornier received contracts from the UK, France, its native Germany, Italy, and Canada. The United States, by this time suffering severe dysfunction at virtually every level of government, briefly considered placing an order for 500 Albatros (as the F/A-202 Bison) before cancelling in favour of a domestic design tendered by Boeing. This order was later cancelled itself as the debt crisis worsened, curtailing new military acquisitions.

In combat, the Albatros proved difficult for its contemporaries to catch. Able to outrun I-16s and almost keep pace with the Moskit torpedo bomber in vacuum, it was a serious thorn in the side of the VKO until the I-22 entered service. To the VVS and PVO, however, it was significantly less threatening; its considerable bulk made it sluggish in atmospheric flight. By the time more modern interceptors were pressed into service, the Albatros had been replaced in EU service but found many new and enthusiastic operators on the export market. Remaining in service with 13 countries, three major contractors and at least six pirate hosts, the Albatros is still regularly encountered across Orion.