Trident-class Assault Bomber
Assault bomber
Anti-capital strike, heavy attack, tactical bombing
24 meters
• 1,500 G
• 7.4 MGLT/s
2,325 km/h
High-output plasma engines (4)
• Class 2.0
300 SBD
Heavy hull armor (120 RU)
Olarian cloaking device (modern fleet-service examples)
Heavy laser cannons (4)
Singularity torpedo launchers (2; 12 torpedoes each)
Bomb bay (6 singularity bombs)
2 (pilot, gunner/systems officer)
None
Minimal
Repulsorlift system
The Trident-class Assault Bomber is a two-seat Olarian heavy strike fighter manufactured by Terran Shipwright. Designed primarily for attacks against capital ships, hardened installations, and other heavily protected targets, the Trident combines heavy armor and shielding with a substantial guided-weapons load and unusually high straight-line speed for a bomber of its size.
Unlike many heavy bombers, the Trident was not designed as a slow weapons platform dependent upon escort fighters for survival. Its four high-output engines allow it to make high-speed attack runs, disengage rapidly after weapons release, and keep pace with much lighter spacecraft. This performance comes at the expense of maneuverability and acceleration, making the Trident considerably less agile than contemporary Olarian fighters and interceptors.
Design
The Trident is built around a long, narrow central fuselage flanked by large engine and systems housings. Its sharply tapered forward section and swept lifting surfaces give the craft a distinctly aerodynamic appearance, reflecting Terran Shipwright's preference for spacecraft capable of effective operation both in atmosphere and in space.
At twenty-four meters in length, the Trident is substantially larger than fighters such as the Kaden-class Fighter and Aleph-class Interceptor. Much of this additional volume is devoted to propulsion, defensive systems, ordnance storage, and the internal bomb bay. Heavy hull armor protects the major systems and crew compartments, while a 300 SBD deflector shield provides considerably greater protection than that fitted to most conventional Olarian starfighters.
The cockpit accommodates a pilot and a second crew member serving as gunner and systems officer. Although the pilot retains control of the fixed forward weapons and can employ guided ordnance independently, the second crew member reduces workload during complex strike missions and manages bombing operations, sensors, defensive systems, and portions of the weapons suite.
Development
The Trident was developed to provide the Olarian Navy with a dedicated heavy strike aircraft capable of engaging targets that conventional fighters could not reliably destroy. Rather than produce a large, slow bomber, Terran Shipwright emphasized speed and survivability, allowing the craft to penetrate defenses, release its weapons, and withdraw before hostile interceptors could establish a favorable engagement.
This approach reflected the broader Olarian preference for high-performance spacecraft even in roles traditionally associated with larger and less maneuverable vehicles. The resulting design sacrifices the extreme agility and acceleration of an interceptor but remains exceptionally fast for a heavily armored bomber.
The class became the principal dedicated assault bomber aboard many Olarian capital ships and continues to serve alongside newer fighter types because its combination of payload, protection, and speed remains useful even as its internal systems have been repeatedly modernized.
Propulsion
The Trident is powered by four high-output plasma engines arranged around the aft portion of the airframe. These engines give the craft a maximum atmospheric speed of approximately 2,325 kilometers per hour and a maximum acceleration of roughly 1,500 G, or approximately 7.4 MGLT/s under the standard naval acceleration scale.
While formidable for a bomber, this acceleration is considerably lower than that of contemporary Olarian interceptors. The Trident consequently performs best when allowed to build velocity before beginning an attack run rather than attempting to maneuver continuously with lighter fighters.
Its aerodynamic fuselage and swept lifting surfaces permit sustained atmospheric operation, while repulsorlifts assist during low-speed maneuvering, takeoff, landing, and hover-supported flight. Despite its substantial mass, the Trident is considered an effective atmospheric strike aircraft as well as a spaceborne bomber.
A Class 2.0 hyperdrive allows the bomber to deploy independently of a carrier when required, though most are normally based aboard capital ships.
Defensive systems
The Trident carries 300 SBD of shielding and approximately 120 RU of structural protection under contemporary Olarian rating standards. This combination places it among the more heavily protected small combat craft in regular naval service.
The bomber's heavy armor is intended to preserve the crew and critical systems during attacks against defended capital ships and surface installations, where weapons fire may be unavoidable. Protection is concentrated around the cockpit, engines, ordnance bays, reactor systems, and other critical areas rather than distributed uniformly throughout the airframe.
Modern fleet-service Tridents are normally equipped with Olarian cloaking devices. Earlier production blocks predate the widespread adoption of cloaking technology and lacked the system, while older surviving aircraft have often received it during modernization.
As on other Olarian spacecraft, the cloak and defensive shields cannot ordinarily operate simultaneously. The Trident's two-person crew gives it a modest advantage over single-seat fighters when attempting brief shield-cloak concurrency, as one crew member can devote greater attention to field management while the other maintains control of the aircraft. Sustaining such an overlap nevertheless remains difficult and is not considered a normal operating condition.
Armament
The Trident carries four heavy laser cannons as its primary direct-fire weapons. Two are mounted in the forward fuselage, while another pair are positioned farther outboard. All four can be controlled by the pilot and provide enough firepower for the bomber to threaten starfighters, light transports, and vulnerable sections of larger vessels without expending its heavier ordnance.
Two dedicated torpedo launchers form the primary anti-capital armament. Each normally carries twelve singularity torpedoes, giving the Trident a standard load of twenty-four. These weapons are intended for use against capital ships, fortifications, shield generators, and other targets requiring considerably more destructive power than conventional fighter weapons can provide.
An internal bomb bay carries six singularity bombs. Unlike the guided torpedoes, these are intended primarily for close attack against large spacecraft, surface installations, and other targets where the Trident can approach closely enough to deliver them accurately. Bomb release is normally managed by the gunner/systems officer, allowing the pilot to concentrate on maintaining the attack profile.
The combination of heavy laser cannon fire, guided torpedoes, and internally carried bombs gives the Trident substantially greater destructive potential than a conventional multirole fighter.
Operational role
The Trident's principal mission is the destruction of heavily defended targets. Typical assignments include:
- attacks against capital ships;
- strikes against orbital installations;
- tactical bombing of hardened surface targets;
- attacks against shield generators and command facilities;
- suppression of large defensive emplacements;
- anti-shipping operations;
- support of planetary assaults.
Tridents normally operate in formations supported by fighters such as the Kaden-class Fighter, though their speed and defensive armament allow them considerably more independence than many conventional bombers.
In fleet combat, Trident formations typically approach at high velocity, release torpedoes or bombs during a relatively brief attack window, and then disengage rather than remaining near the target. Their armor and shielding are intended to allow them to survive the approach and withdrawal rather than encourage prolonged exposure to capital-ship weapons.
Flight characteristics
The Trident is unusually fast for a spacecraft carrying heavy armor and a large ordnance load. Its engines provide excellent maximum velocity in both space and atmospheric flight, allowing bomber formations to conduct rapid attack runs and reposition without requiring slower escort profiles.
Acceleration and maneuverability are less impressive. At approximately 1,500 G, the Trident accelerates at less than half the rate of many Olarian interceptors, and its large airframe makes rapid changes of direction comparatively difficult.
Trident pilots therefore tend to rely upon careful positioning and energy management rather than close-range maneuvering. Once committed to an attack, a formation generally uses its speed to pass through the target area before turning for another run.
Olarian Force sensitivity partially offsets these limitations. Experienced crews are able to anticipate threats, coordinate attack timing, and select flight paths that reduce the need for abrupt evasive maneuvers.
Atmospheric performance
Unlike the ancient orbital-focused Aleph-class Interceptor, the Trident was designed with substantial atmospheric capability from the outset. Its long central fuselage, broad swept wings, and aerodynamic engine housings provide useful conventional lift, allowing the bomber to operate efficiently without depending entirely upon repulsorlifts.
The craft's maximum atmospheric speed of approximately 2,325 kilometers per hour allows it to perform rapid strike missions across large planetary distances. Repulsorlifts supplement conventional aerodynamic control during takeoff, landing, and low-speed operation but are not solely responsible for keeping the vehicle airborne at normal flight speeds.
Its comparatively poor turning performance remains more noticeable in atmosphere than in space, and pilots generally avoid prolonged engagements with dedicated atmospheric fighters.
Crew coordination
The Trident's two-person crew distinguishes it from most Olarian starfighters of similar technological sophistication. The pilot controls flight, fixed weapons, and normal missile employment, while the gunner and systems officer manages sensors, bombing solutions, portions of the guided-weapons suite, electronic warfare, and defensive-system workload.
This division of responsibility became increasingly valuable as the class accumulated additional systems through successive modernization programs. Modern cloak-equipped Tridents in particular benefit from having a second trained operator available to manage field transitions and sensor operation while the pilot maintains the aircraft's flight profile.
Two trained Olarians working together can also coordinate Force-assisted systems more effectively than a single pilot attempting to manage every function simultaneously, although the Trident does not approach the degree of specialized paired operation seen aboard later craft such as the SS-62 Savun-class Interceptor.
Modernization
The Trident has undergone repeated internal modernization while retaining its original role and general airframe.
Later production blocks incorporate improved avionics, sensors, power distribution, targeting systems, and defensive equipment. Cloaking devices, once uncommon aboard strike aircraft, became standard equipment on Tridents assigned to expeditionary and front-line fleet formations as cloaking technology became ubiquitous throughout the Olarian military.
Improvements in singularity weapons have likewise allowed newer Tridents to deliver substantially greater destructive effect without requiring major changes to their physical launcher architecture.
Older aircraft remain in service where their structural condition permits, as the basic design has proven sufficiently robust and adaptable to justify continued upgrades rather than wholesale replacement.
Design philosophy
The Trident reflects an Olarian interpretation of the heavy bomber that differs considerably from the slow, heavily escorted strike craft fielded by many other militaries. Rather than accepting vulnerability as the inevitable price of payload capacity, Terran Shipwright designed the bomber around the ability to attack quickly and leave just as quickly.
Its heavy defenses provide insurance against the fire it cannot avoid, while its engines allow it to minimize the time spent within enemy weapons range. The resulting spacecraft occupies a position between a conventional bomber and an oversized strike fighter.
Although newer Olarian spacecraft have surpassed the Trident in individual areas of performance, few combine its speed, protection, payload, and comparatively straightforward maintenance requirements as effectively. It therefore remains a common heavy strike platform throughout the Olarian Navy.