UFO Components (UFOAI)
Research entries of UFO: Alien Invasion's UFO components.
UFO Components
Raven Electronics
"Technical Specifications: \"Raven\" ECM Unit CLASSIFIED LEVEL BLACK PHALANX Extraterrestrial Response Unit Technical Document, Sigma Clearance -- Commander's Eyes Only Filed: 19 March 2084 By: Cdr. Paul Navarre, R&D: Engineering Division, PHALANX, Atlantic Operations Command Overview Under the continuing efforts of the Excalibur Program, we have scoured the globe for the best components on Earth in order to fit our aircraft with the equipment they need to survive against the alien threat. As always, only the very best equipment has been selected for the defence of our planet. Electronic warfare has been a part of military operations ever since radar first appeared on the battlefield in World War 2. Ways of defeating radar were constantly under development since it appeared on the shores of Britain, methods such as flying below the height of the transmitter, throwing radar-scrambling 'chaff', and in later years the advent of stealth technology. It has always been better to have the enemy detect your presence later rather than sooner -- or not at all. Even better, your enemy can't shoot what he can't see. Just like the Mk. 1 Eyeball, electronic detection and targeting can be fooled, and the devices which fool electronic detection and targeting can be fooled in turn. It's a never-ending struggle for superiority which falls under the term 'Electronic Warfare'. ECM (Electronic Counter-Measures) serve to protect the craft with which they are equipped by jamming, deception, decoys and other such stratagems. ECCM (Electronic Counter-Counter-Measures) on the opposing side try to counteract the effect of ECM. And one thing is clear; the aliens are very good at both. For this reason, we have adopted the \"Raven\" Electronic Warfare Suite, the most advanced ECM package available in the world, for PHALANX service. It is the best humanity has to offer in the field of disrupting enemy detection, tracking and homing mechanisms. Any aircraft equipped with this piece of kit will have a significantly higher survivability rate against missiles and other independent munitions. It's less effective against aircraft guns, as their targeting equipment is contained on-board and therefore can't be as easily fooled or jammed, but even against these the \"Raven\" unit provides a noteworthy benefit. It is very expensive thanks to its advanced electronics and takes up a complete modular slot on one of our aircraft, but one thing is certain; its price tag isn't half as high as the cost of losing one of our aircraft. Recommended Doctrine We recommend that every aircraft expected to go up against armed UFOs carry either one of these ECM units or an additional skin of Polymer Aircraft Armour. Even against superior alien systems the additional protection of the \"Raven\" will help our pilots achieve our goals in the skies of Earth. The expense may seem prohibitive, but the survival of our craft and pilots will certainly justify these costs in the long run. Addenda None."
Alien EW Electronics
Commander, we've recovered an interesting set of electronics from one of our disassembled UFOs. From our preliminary testing, it appears to be an alien EW (Electronic Warfare) suite.
This is an extremely important find, Commander. If we can decipher how these alien electronics work, we could improve our targeting and detection systems dramatically. This means a vast increase in our aircraft's survivability against UFOs if we can adapt the suite for our own purposes.
Please, Commander, approve this project as soon as you possibly can.
Cdr. Navarre
"Commander, I'm happy to report that we've cracked the code. We now have a list of primary EW (Electronic Warfare) frequencies used by the aliens, and a good understanding of how this powerful piece of electronics does what it does. Of course, before you get too excited, let me stress that we have not found a magic path through the aliens' defences. Regardless of what we take away from this research, it's not going to end the war or make UFOs any less dangerous. This is because of the EW suite's most important function -- it has an independent onboard intelligence that adapts to its combat environment. This intelligence is continually experimenting, trying to keep enemy systems off-balance, changing its methods and deviating from its preferred frequencies to try ones that might be more difficult to work with but could bypass enemy jamming. We even believe that, when patched into a UFO's main computer, this suite will hook into other onboard systems to make efficiency-increasing adjustments based on enemy EW activity. Particularly to the targeting computers. Besides the intelligent computer at its heart, the suite has projectors of every kind, capable of saturating virtually any frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum, even several frequencies at a time. It is also capable of 'throwing' heat several metres away from the craft, causing thermal spikes on infrared sensors that can fool missiles and draw them away from the real target. Lastly the suite comes with a set of decoys that can emulate practically any sensor signature, deployed as and when the computer thinks it's necessary. With some modifications, we've been able to make the suite work with our current aircraft electronics. Our main success has been in developing a set of software upgrades which patch the alien EW suite into the onboard intelligence systems of our aircraft. It's a hack if there ever was one, but it will do for now. Cdr. Navarre"
Light Shield
"Technical Specifications: Polymer Aircraft Armour CLASSIFIED LEVEL BLACK PHALANX Extraterrestrial Response Unit Technical Document, Sigma Clearance -- Commander's Eyes Only Filed: 19 March 2084 By: Cdr. Paul Navarre, R&D: Engineering Division, PHALANX, Atlantic Operations Command Overview Under the continuing efforts of the Excalibur Program, we have scoured the globe for the best components on Earth in order to fit our aircraft with the equipment they need to survive against the alien threat. As always, only the very best equipment has been selected for the defence of our planet. One of the fundamental truths in aircraft design is that it's easier to dish out damage than it is to take it and keep coming. Heavy objects don't really belong in the sky; it takes a constant input of power to keep things like aircraft, birds and balloons from coming back down, and if the source of this power is damaged in mid-flight, a crash is unavoidable. PHALANX uses exclusively multi-engine aircraft, but even though it's possible for our interceptors to land on only one engine, the loss of an engine during combat will immediately render the aircraft combat-ineffective. With such a drastic loss of speed and manoeuvring power, continuing the engagement would be suicide. Adding extra armour to our aircraft is a weighty but effective solution to keeping them in the sky, protecting critical systems from damage and allowing the aircraft to stay in the fight longer than would otherwise be possible. It will reduce the severity of hits to the fuel tank and other vital systems that might otherwise result in the craft's instant destruction. The expensive polymer used in our standard add-on armour is one of the toughest materials on the planet. It deforms wildly under heat and pressure, such as when impacted by kinetic or explosive energy, cushioning the blow across the entire armour surface. Once the energy has dissipated, the deformed plate amazingly resumes all or most of its previous shape, depending on the amount of damage received. We even have facilities in our Workshops to repair permanently-deformed polymer plates once the aircraft returns to base. On the downside, the added weight will slow the aircraft down and decrease its effective range. This is less of an issue for quick short-range interceptions, but can cause problems if UFOs are spotted in areas far distant from any of our bases. Installing this armour add-on will completely take up the modular armour slot on one of our aircraft. Recommended Doctrine It is recommended to carefully weigh the decision to install armour on a craft. The trade-offs in speed and range could make it difficult for some aircraft to chase down fast-moving UFOs. Addenda None."
Shield Plating
Commander, now that we have the ability to produce and work the alien materials, a whole new range of options has opened up to us. These materials are so strong and flexible that they can be used for almost anything. Their most promising uses, however, have been in aircraft design -- specifically armour.
We've had an extremely difficult time shooting down UFOs thanks to the resilient outer skin of alien materials. Unfortunately we can't simply slap this same kind of skin onto our own craft because the alien materials are far too heavy. Our craft would struggle to even get off the ground. That needn't be the end of it, though.
Commander, if you let us do some research on it, I believe we can come up with an armouring scheme that should give our aircraft a far better survival chance against the alien weapons during interceptions.
It's a very promising possibility, Commander, one that definitely deserves investigation.
Cdr. Navarre
"Commander, I've got some good news. My team and I have finished prototyping the alien aircraft plating project. Our new armour is now ready for full PHALANX production. This has been a difficult project from the start. We've faced several major challenges in designing equipment capable of bending the alien materials into the shapes we want, and 'programming' the materials to change when we want and how we want them to do so. Ultimately we overcame these problems, but then we had to deal with the natural limitations of the material. The main drawback of these alien materials is their weight. They are significantly heftier than modern human aircraft materials, and anything we make from them will suffer from the extra weight. The only way the aliens manage to keep their wingless UFOs in the sky is through overwhelming engine power. Airspeed and maximum operational range will be negatively affected by putting alien materials onto our aircraft. Even a very thin skin of alien materials offers a substantial protective benefit. The new aircraft plating we've designed takes full advantage of these capabilities and shows the supreme toughness of the alien materials. The new plating will be essential in keeping our current airfleet effective against the mounting alien threat. You and I both know the price tag of new aircraft, Commander -- we cannot afford to let any of our planes become obsolete. Cdr. Navarre"
Alien Polymer Shield
Commander, the skin of armour wrapped around that Gunboat UFO that we investigated suggested several innovations we might be able to deploy in our own aircraft. It wasn't just thicker, as most alien armour improvements have been. It was lighter and more durable than anything we've seen.
Give us some time in the lab, sir, and maybe we can come up with new armour fabricration techniques derived from this UFO to outfit our own aircraft.
Cdr. Navarre
"Commander, we've finished our examination of the new alien armour and come up with several improvements we can apply to our own manufacturing techniques for a more durable aircraft armour. The key innovations lay in the way the materials are layered and woven together, making remarkably thin applications very durable. This will improve the main drawback of our current armour, which is so heavy that we're forced to sacrifice protection for airspeed. Start fabricating this new armour in the workshop as soon as possible, sir. It will provide a dramatic step up in our aircrafts' defense over our existing armour solutions without adding any more drag to the aircraft. Cdr. Navarre"
Alien Astrogation
Commander, the recovery of an intact alien astrogation unit is an important milestone. Although this unit doesn't seem to contain a star chart, it will allow us to decipher alien astronomical notations and upgrade the power of our own astrogation systems by several orders of magnitude. Eventually the work we do here may help us backtrack the aliens to their home planet.
Along with Alien Propulsion and Alien Detection, Alien Astrogation is one of the three pillars of UFO design. Understanding it will bring us a big step closer to the ability to build an atmosphere-capable interplanetary defence craft.
Cdr. Navarre
"Commander, we've finished work on the captured alien astrogation unit. Here is a summary of my report. We concluded early on in our survey that this astrogation unit is, at its core, a purpose-built computer of extraordinary power loaded with specialised software -- all intended solely for the purpose of plotting a course from one point in space to another. It uses a new, alien system of astronomical notation which we've decided to adopt in order to make use of this alien hardware. Now that we've figured out its notation system, we can see that the astrogation unit is very good at what it does. Given correct input, the system can plot a course from anywhere to anywhere in seconds, and it can intelligently recompute that course with filters like 'least travel time', 'shortest distance', 'fewest navigational hazards', and so on. These filters can be layered on endlessly until the system spits out the exact course you want. It is even able to take into account faster-than-light capability when plotting a course, which all but verifies the theory that the aliens do indeed have access to some type of FTL technology. The only problem with the unit's plotting method is that it requires a star chart to give accurate courses beyond the UFO's sensor range. We have never found a star chart loaded onto any UFO we've recovered. Perhaps only UFOs with an FTL drive have a chart loaded; they would surely need it for navigation. Instead of the elusive star chart, the astrogation units we've recovered so far contain enormous detail on Earth and the solar system. Surface maps of the outer planets and all their moons (even a previously-undiscovered moon of Pluto), spectrum analyses of every body in the asteroid belt as well as the distant Kuiper belt, and the orbits of every body in the solar system plotted out hundreds of years in advance. We're not sure if this information will be of any use to us, but it will greatly enhance humanity's body of knowledge about our home system -- whenever we're allowed to release it into the public. It's possible to program our own star charts into the astrogation unit, but I can only imagine how primitive and incomplete our charts might be compared to what the aliens have. I wouldn't condone any interstellar travel with these units until we can capture an alien chart. However, in the meantime we could certainly use these units to navigate around the solar system if we could design a PHALANX craft capable of launching into space. They will greatly simplify the whole process of interplanetary travel to the point where we'd be able to launch missions to Saturn or even Pluto at the click of a button. And that is something we should do as soon as humanly possible. Cdr. Navarre"
Alien Propulsion
Commander, the alien antimatter engines we recovered have been fascinating my team ever since they arrived. With our new understanding of the alien materials, I think we can work out the details and duplication of this technology. Excitingly, it now seems to be within our capabilities to replicate these engines, if we can just figure out the function and creation of the different parts.
Along with Alien Astrogation and Alien Detection, Alien Propulsion is one of the three pillars of UFO design. Understanding it will bring us a big step closer to the ability to build an atmosphere-capable interplanetary defence craft.
Cdr. Navarre
"Commander, I'm happy to report the success of our alien propulsion program. We've cracked the mysteries of the alien engine set-up and we finally understand the path of the antimatter from fuel tank to reaction chamber. Quoting from my previous report: (UFO Theory) \"The alien propulsion system is a type of rocket engine unlike any ever built on Earth. It uses direct matter-antimatter annihilation to generate thrust by injecting protons and antiprotons into the reaction chamber, and then channeling this explosive force out the back of the engine. This gives a UFO extreme power and needs no air or other gases to fuel the reaction, allowing it to burn in hard vacuum. There is a highly-advanced cooling system continuously pumping liquid nitrogen through the engine housing in order to keep it cool and reduce the infrared signature. Engine heat is also used to supply the craft's electricity.\" With this project we've learned a lot about how these engines are constructed, how to control them, and how we might be able to use them in new aircraft designs. I have to warn you, though; they will be extremely expensive to produce. Between the complex use of alien materials, the sensitive electromagnetics and the liquid nitrogen cooling system, this really stretches the limits of our production capacity. Some more research may be required to figure out antimatter storage and control, but the engine upgrades are self-contained units -- basically just an alien engine with adapters on it for human tech. I've mentioned before, the power disparity between our liquid fuel and these matter-antimatter engines is nothing short of astonishing. When we start using these engines on our planes, our pilots are going to need some serious re-education about the capabilities of their craft. Let me explain. In a regular military jet, giving her a little too much throttle around a tight corner can result in impaired judgment and unconsciousness from the force of acceleration. Pilots have died from over-acceleration. In an antimatter jet, however, these problems are amplified hundred-fold. The engines are so powerful that over-acceleration can easily turn a human body to bloody pulp in its flight chair. Even the craft itself may have trouble coping with the acceleration, and our flight engineers will have to be extremely careful in checking for metal fatigue, hairline fractures and other wear and tear on the airframe. A tiny crack in the structure may result in one of our planes breaking up in mid-flight. Mechanical thrust limiters can only do so much -- most of the G-stresses are incurred during turns. Still, it shouldn't become a problem as long as everyone -- pilots and mechanics alike -- is extremely careful in their assigned tasks. We've done some serious tightening-up of our safety and inspection protocol just for antimatter planes. The retraining of our pilots is the only remaining obstacle to our use of these alien engines. Cdr. Navarre"