Northwind Aerospace NW-26 Squall

The Northwind Aerospace NW-26 "Squall" is a Multi-Role Light Bomber designed by Northwind Aerospace and used by the Atreian Navy, and Atreian Air Force.

NW-26 Squall Northwind Aerospace NW-26 Squall Light Bomber
Subsonic Multirole Light Bomber
An Atreian Navy NW-26 on a training exercise in the Tau Sea, c. 2189
National Origin		Atreus
Production History
Designed
2166 - 2168
Produced
2168 - N/A
Designer		Northwind Aerospace
Unit Cost		28,696(√)
Number Built		40
Service History
In Service
2168 - N/A
Used By		Atreian Air Force, Atreian Navy
Aircraft Characteristics
Dry Mass		17,508kg
Length		13.7 m
Width		15.4 m
Height		4.3 m
Propulsion		2 x J-28 "Tiger" Afterburning Turbofans
Maximum Velocity		138m/s (Dry) 196m/s (Wet)
Crew		2-4
Variants		NW-26B, NW-26C

Development

Origins

Designed for a need for a bomber smaller than the Zokesian Z-5 Naval Bomber, and larger than Fighter-Bombers such as the Z-90, or NW-25 Cheetah not requiring the supersonic speeds needed of such aircraft the Atreian Air Force initially sent out bids for a new light bomber in the mid 2160s following the outbreak of the Belkan Civil War and the deficit of aircraft. Two designs from Northwind and Odyssey Industries were submitted however due to the lack of progress on the design from Odyssey, the Atreian Air Force granted Northwind the contract for the new light bomber to Northwind's NW-26.

Early Prototypes

With the first prototype named "P1" finished in March 2167, problems were noticed immediately including poor weight distribution causing the P1 to be nose-heavy and somewhat difficult to fly. This issue alongside the weak rear landing gear causing the first accident in the NW-26's career.

On January 26th, 2168, a test flight evaluating the NW-26's performance at high AOAs and G-Forces nearly ended in disaster as Air Force Test Pilot William Virfurt and Flight Engineer Robert Jacobson descended to land at Victory AFB in Rison, Atreus. As the aircraft landed on runway 35R the back left landing gear of the aircraft collapsed upon braking potentially caused by the winter runway conditions alongside the already weak landing gear. This caused the aircraft to enter an uncontrolled spin leading it off the runway, leading to the flight engineer ejecting causing the pilot to eject automatically, both coming out of the crash with minor injuries. The airframe of P1 is now displayed in the Air and Aerospace Museum in Kolburg.

Following the accident, Northwind was able to find the fault in the gear, also taking the opportunity to adjust the weight and balance of the airframe to be easier to fly, and have a lower accident rate.

Design

The NW-26 prioritized avionics and weaponry over flight performance, mounting 2 variants of the APG-77 including the v1 variant as the backbone of the sensor suite, allowing the aircraft to detect vehicles commonly outside of the range of its weapons, leading to the NW-26 primarily focusing on its ability to carry large cruise missiles instead of its original role of Close Air Support (CAS).

One of the standout features of the NW-26 is its semi-spherical cockpit, allowing unrivaled visibility above and below the aircraft, praised by its crews, especially by pilots for its ease of use and an ability for new pilots to feel confident flying in training and exercises due to the fact that it is not required to "guesstimate" the location of runways or carrier decks that can be observed on larger airframes.

However, the most commonly produced variant of the NW-26, the NW-26A only features two, J-28 "Tiger" Afterburning Turbofans similar to engines mounted on fighters such as the Z-55 Light Fighter. Crews of the NW-26 have observed to be dissatisfied with the thrust produced, and how dramatically the airframe loses performance when mounted with even medium amounts of ordinance. This flaw was considered the most common loss of airframes during the Belkan Civil War.