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Barracuda

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Tau Air Superiority Fighter Barracuda

The Barracuda air superiority fighter is the Tau's most common atmospheric aircraft. Faster than the Imperial Navy's Marauder bomber, but lacking the top speed of the Thunderbolt or Lightning fighter, it makes up for its shortcomings with its sophisticated electronics and pilots' natural talents.1

In a dogfight, Thunderbolts and Barracudas are very closely matched, with the Thunderbolt having the edge in speed but the Barracuda having the manoeuvrability. The Imperium's pilots often have the hard edge of combat experience that the Tau Air Caste find hard to match.1

Armament and Equipment

A Barracuda is armed with a nose-mounted, pilot aimed Ion Cannon. This is the aircraft's primary weapon of use in dogfights, backed up by two drone controlled Burst Cannons in the wings. For ground attacks, it is primarily armed with wing mounted missile pods. When used in an ground attack role a Barracuda can carry additional armament of up to four Seeker missiles. These are not controlled by the pilot but by a Markerlight operator on the ground.

All Barracudas are equipped with escape pods. In the event that the aircraft sustains serious damage the pilot can eject. Some versions of Barracuda might include Blacksun Filters (night-fighting sensors), Disruption Pod and Decoy Launchers for additional protection.1

Taros Campaign

On Taros, the Tau Coalition included a large Air Caste contingent, which formed an integral part of their strategy. Barracudas and Imperial Thunderbolts fought daily for the planets air superiority. Flying from well-concealed desert airbases the Barracudas eventually won the battle.

Not only engaging in dogfights, the Barracudas also targeted the Imperial Guard's supply columns, operating in unison with Pathfinder teams in order to destroy Trojans and vital equipment. The Barracudas played a vital role in the Tau's strategy, eventually defeating the Imperial Guard and forcing it to retreat.1

Aircraft specifications

Vehicle Name: Barracuda

Type: Aircraft

Crew: 1. Pilot

Weight: 7 tonnes

Length: 11.4 M

Wingspan: 12.5 M

Height: 3.25 M

Max Recorded Speed : 2,100 KPH

Main Armament: Nose mounted Ion Cannon, wing mounted missile pods

Secondary Armament: 2x Drone controlled Burst Cannons

Main Ammunition: 8 Missiles. 8000 rounds

Armour Type: Nano-Crystalline alloy (composition unknown)

Sources

1Imperial Armour Volume Three - The Taros Campaign