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1) CONTROLS

• AG1: Dump ASRAAMs.
• AG2: Release ventral drop tank.
• AG3: Release port Foxhound.
• AG4: Release starboard Foxhound.
• AG5: Deploy landing chute.
• AG6: Activates the refuelling probe, VTOL up to rotate into position.
• AG7: Activate targeting pipper.
• AG8: Activates the navigation lights.

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2) USAGE NOTES

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This aircraft has a service ceiling of 55,000 feet. Exceeding this height will cause a loss in performance and difficulties in controlling the aircraft.

Centre-line stores must be ejected before commencing landing. Failure to do this may cause structural failure upon contact with terrain.

This aircraft is an interceptor . This means that it is not designed for long-range operations or for fighter-vs-fighter combat. Instead, it should be used for attacking targets such as bomber aircraft at relatively short ranges.

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3) WEAPONS

AIR-TO-AIR

AIM-19 Foxhound

(Dual-mode active radar homing BVR air-to-air missile)
(Inner wing pylons)

• Select Air-to-Air target mode
• Select AIM-19 type weapon
• Acquire target
• Fire weapon
• Press AG3 or AG4, where appropriate

AIM-132 ASRAAM

(Imaging infra-red homing short-range air-to-air missile)
(Outer wing pylons)

• Select Air-to-Air target mode
• Select AIM-132 type weapon
• Acquire target
• Fire weapon

GAU-12 Equalizer

(Dual-purpose five-barrel 25mm autocannon)
(Port-side fuselage)

• Select either target mode
• Select GAU-12 type weapon
• Activate gun pipper
• Acquire target
• Fire weapon

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4) AIRCRAFT OVERVIEW

The SMC Aerospace F-62A Hemlock is a supersonic, twin-engined, specialized interceptor aircraft developed for the air squadrons of the Saltwater United Guard Corps (SWUGC). It was developed during the early 2030s for the SWAF, and then later the SWUGC, focusing on all-weather high-altitude intercept capability and making use of a wide variety of modern air-to-air missiles and rockets.

During the early 30s many archipelago air forces identified the need for a specialized interceptor aircraft, like the old F-106 Delta Darts or the MiG-31s, in order to effectively cope with the sudden swarming attacks so often made by numerous advanced terrorist factions. At the same time, the Saltwater Air Force, in co-operation with SMCA, was finalizing the F/A-56 Lightning IV, but initial test pilot's reports were quite below expectations and were criticizing of the aircraft’s high cost. As a response, in mid-1933, SMCA formed an industrial team-up with HuntersWD to examine the designing and production of a dedicated interceptor aircraft. The new project was heavily supported and financed by the (failing) Saltwater government and was based to an older 2020s program, named “Project NCI2”, to produce a new advanced light attack/trainer to replace the T-7 Scorpion. The “NCI2 project” was cancelled on cost grounds and instead a foreign aircraft, the AT-12B Vento, was purchased. However lessons learnt from the cancelled program were transferred into the design of the new interceptor.

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The specifications that had been laid out from Saltwater Air Force dictated the new aircraft to be equipped with an all-weather digital weapons-delivery system, modern avionics, a FLIR marked-target seeker (F-MTS) to facilitate ground-attack, advanced AESA radar, a 25mm autocannon, armor protection for vital aircraft parts and double redundancy of flight control system components.

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5) Design

The Hemlock is a twin-boom, twin-engined all-weather interceptor with a crew of two in a central nacelle. This layout gives the aircraft a comparative range advantage over previous dedicated interceptors, allowing aircraft to be intercepted at much greater range than previously possible, especially when coupled with the aircraft's air-to-air refuelling capability. The two Rolls-Royce EJ400 turbofans provide 30,000Ibs of static thrust (38,000Ibs with afterburner), giving the Hemlock a top speed of 1970 mph at 45,000 feet.

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The Hemlock has a large AESA radar system, operated by the rear-facing weapons systems operator. This radar has a detection range of 200 miles at 50,000 feet and can track up to 60 targets at once, whilst engaging six of them. The F-62A is armed with up to four air-to-air missiles or rockets, and is certified to fire the AIM-19 Foxhound, AIM-132 ASRAAM, AIR-2 Genie, MBDA Meteor and AIM-9 Sidewinder. The use of the Genie, which is a low-yield air-to-air nuclear rocket, means that a single Hemlock can destroy large swaths of incoming bombers in a single mission. Up to four may be carried externally. The Hemlock is also fitted with a GAU-12 Equalizer 25mm autocannon and has an integrated FLIR and laser designation system on the opposite side of the fuselage.

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The aircraft can be re-armed, repaired and refuelled with minimal equipment, and when combined with its outstanding take-off performance allows the Hemlock to operate from dispersed and unprepared sites, ranging from straight roads to small private airfields. This mission flexibility creates a durable and effective air defence. Its retractable refuelling probe permits the Hemlock to use tanker aircraft without suffering the drag penalties of a fixed probe.

Eighteen F-62A Hemlocks were ordered by the Saltwater United Guard Corps, and later twenty-five more were purchased by the Bulbasauri Air Force. All aircraft are now night-vision goggle compatible and are expected to serve until at least 2055.

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The F-62A Hemlock is available for export at a price of $50 million per unit. The single seat F-62B costs $45 million per unit, lacking the radar operator's position.

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