Hellcat

The Hellcat subscribes to the school of thought that even a brick will fly if it has enough thrust." The Hellcat was designed by Mitchell Vehicles and was originally introduced in 2671, a product of Mitchell Vehicles' need to diversify from its mainstay armored vehicle production in the wake of the general decline in conflict and arms sales after the Reunification War.  However, the design was considered lackluster because of its lack of advanced equipment and the SLDF did not purchase many of these craft.  The Hellcat really made its name being used by mercenary units, security companies, militia forces and others who valued the ease with which the Hellcat could be maintained and resupplied as well as the rugged nature of the design.

Having been proven a sturdy design, the Hellcat found its way into SLDF garrisons and second-line formations. Though production ceased at Mitchell's Graham IV plant, the design has continued to be produced at at least three other facilities by other companies, with Hellcats emerging from such factories as the Lycomb-Davion IntroTech plants on New Avalon and Demeter - although the latter was destroyed by the Capellan Confederation early in the First Succession War - and the Lockheed/CBM Corporation plant on Tharkad for centuries. This, combined with the Hellcat's durability, allowed it to survive the Succession Wars, a feat many Star League-era craft cannot claim.

In addition to these Star League-era production facilities, in the thirty-first century a new Hellcat design would begin production from the United Outworlders Corporation plant on Ramora under the auspices of the Outworlds Alliance and Clan Snow Raven, quickly enjoying success at the hands of Alliance pilots against raiders in 3074, and subsequently entering service in second-line Snow Raven Clusters.

Weapons and Equipment
The Hellcat is armed exclusively with laser weaponry, making it a superb strafer. However, the craft is considered better in zero-G operations. The craft is really only limited by the amount of fuel it carries.

Variants

 * HCT-213D : The HCT-213D Hellcat is an anti-DropShip variant. This craft replaces all 3 large lasers with 2 SRM-6s in each wing, 4 tons of ammo, and an additional Heat Sink. BV (2.0) = 1,087


 * HCT-213R : The HCT-213R Hellcat is used for reconnaissance, and drops the nose-mounted large laser for more fuel. BV (2.0) = 1,181


 * HCT-213S : The HCT-213S Hellcat is a space-superiority fighter. The HCT-213S replaces the wing-mounted lasers for a PPC (the description requires 2 tons of something else to be removed, but it does not specify) . BV (2.0) = 1,271


 * HCT-313 : The HCT-313 is an upgrade of the Hellcat designed in concert between Clan Snow Raven and the Outworlds Alliance in 3074. The craft upgrades all heat sinks to Double Heat Sinks, the armor to Heavy Ferro-Aluminum, and all of the lasers to Lushann Industrials Limited high-quality extended range lasers.  This craft is even deployed among Clan Snow Raven's second-line Clusters. BV (2.0) = 1,674

Related Aerospace Fighters

 * Hellcat II - The Hellcat II is an extremely radical modification of the Hellcat, which reduces the overall mass by 10 tons.