McDonnell IP-35 Banshee

A blueprint of the McDonnell IP-35 Banshee  (to enlarge click on the picture)

Name - McDonnell IP-35 Banshee
Class - Fighter (Pusher)
Manufacturer - McDonnell Aircraft Corporation - St. Louis, Missouri, Dixie
Engine - Allison V12 inline Engine
Loaded Weight - 5,750 lbs.
Service Ceiling - 17,500 ft.
Range - 350 miles
Max. Speed - 303 mph
Max. Accel. - 66.7 feet/second
Max. Decel. - 63.5 feet/second

Wing Span - 25 ft. 5 in.
Length - 23 ft.
Height - 12 ft. 1in.

Weapons:
(2) Sperry-Browning 'Zephyr' 30-caliber Machine Guns
(2) Sperry-Browning 'Gatekeeper' 40-caliber Machine Guns

Design History:
    The McDonnell IP (Interceptor-Pursuit) model 35 Banshee was created by the St Louis company in an attempt to design a machine competitive with the Valiant.  They chose an Allison V12 inline engine and contra-rotating 3-blade propellors for propulsion.  Engineers quickly realized that the big Allison had to have plenty of liquid cooling, so they were forced to put a big radiator scoop under the belly.  Since the Banshee had to be Zeppelin compatible, this meant they couldn't put the fin on the top, so they experimentally put twin rudders at the tips of the slightly swept wings.  Twin .30 machine guns went into the nose and a .40 caliber machine gun went into each wing root.  After literally shredding one test pilot, the McDonnell engineers made the propellor/hub assembly jettison able so that a safe bailout was possible.  Because of poor rearward visibility, the design engineers put a "Malcolm Hood" on the canopy to somewhat alleviate this (borrowed from the British).

Role:
    The Banshee was designed as an Interceptor / Pursuit fighter that would compete with Bell's Valiant in the Dixie market place as well as inter-national sells.  Although the Banshee comes with a bigger price tag it is far superior in the armament department as well as other sections.  This might make the Banshee more appealing to well founded militias, although the Valiant will still rein supreme for those poorer militias.

Deployment:
    Initial tests were promising and a limited production run has produced 150 Banshees for the the private and militia market.  These have found their way all across the continent with varied success.

Variants:
    Possible variants would replace the wing root guns with 50's and up-rating the Allison to get 350 mph out of the design, but both of these options would come at the expense of armor and other structure.

Pilots and Campaigns:
    Captain Shannon 'Vixen' Powers commands the mercenary unit, Tigersharks which operate out of Van Nuys, Hollywood.  Powers along with her wingman Terri 'The Tiger' MacLeod both pilot Banshees.  During a recent engagement with a Dixie squadron of Valiants out of Missouri, Powers along with her wingman took on the entire squadron by them self managing to shoot down four of them before being forced to retreat due to the arrival of heavier reinforcements.

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