Type-57 Black Phantom Electronic Support Ship

The is a rare variant of the Type-52B Phantom Troop Transport, used for electronic warfare and aerial command.

Description
The Black Phantom started out as a specialised Phantom variant built by the Justiciars during the civil war to gather intelligence. Knowing they were out numbered and out gunned, they elected to focus on domination of intelligence, by gathering as much of it as they could, and depriving their enemy of it. Using reverse engineered UNSC Technology, they applied electronic warfare systems and active camouflage emitters to Phantoms, and used them quietly gather intelligence on the enemy, and on the offensive jammed the enemies ability to co-ordinate and engage. These Phantoms were seen first hand by the Republic Faction, when a Squadron of them paved the way for an air strike on a rogue Kaidon advancing on Katruna City. Such was their effectiveness, the Republic requested the Justiciars to make an official variant, for use with their ground troops. While reluctant to make their technology more widespread, the Justiciars nonetheless allowed the Black Phantom to enter limited production.

The Black Phantom is equipped much like True Phantom stealth dropships, with a variety of stealth technologies derived from the Grigori stealth fighter, including sensor resistant materials and a phased array active camouflage generator. On-board, the ship has a variety of electronic warfare pods, such as units to intercept and decrypt radio transmissions, to preform wide band jamming of military and civilian communicators and broadcast on those frequencies, jam enemy sensors, detect them long range and designate them for aerial attack, and preform cyber warfare attacks on vulnerable systems.

The Black Phantom can also be outfitted as an aerial command platform, the spare space being taken up by communications equipment and even an A.I. matrix, and used by the command of local forces to direct forces for combat.

While the Black Phantom carries many systems in common with the original Phantom, it lacks the ability to carry vehicles internally or externally, carries no gravity lift or side guns and no troop complement normally. It still carries the nose gun, but this is rarely deployed. It does however carry six weapon pods, capable of firing air to ground ordnance for destruction of enemy air defence systems.