Games - Aerial units of the Global Defense Initiative

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	Games - Aerial units of the Global Defense Initiative

This page lists the aircraft used by the Global Defence Initiative (GDI) in the real-time strategy series Command & Conquer and the first person shooter Command & Conquer: Renegade. All the aerial units that appeared in Tiberian Dawn and Tiberian Sun are listed here, along with the arieal units from Renegade. When ever possible an in game screenshot or 3d rendering has been provided to illistrate the units in question.

A-10 Thunderbolt II

The A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft are used by GDI forces for close air support for ground troops. In the real-time strategy version a player can gain the ability to call in one to three of these planes by eliminating all Nod SAM sites. These planes carry napalm bombs, and drop them in a row over their designated target.

In Renegade, A-10s can be observed in the sky, but they only come to the player's aid once: in the second mission, an A-10 flies in and destroys a column of Nod light tanks attempting to gain entry to a derelict GDI base.

Chinook

An unarmed transport aircraft, the CH-47 Chinook occasionally appears on screen to drop off additional soldiers or to evacuate GDI civilians in the RTS verion of Command & Conquer. In Renegade these helicopters also fly in armoured units for the player to use. The vehicle is attached to the bottom of the helicopter with cables and flown to the battlefield, where it is dropped off for use by the player. These helicopters also drop ammunition for the various guns carried by the player.

Orca aircraft

Orca are a series of aircraft of the Global Defence Initiative in Command & Conquer. The Orca aircraft constitute GDI’s air force, and form the backbone of all air operations and close air support throughout the Command & Conquer universe.

Orca strengths and weaknesses

Orca aircraft have several strengths. They are easy to maintain, relatively cheap, and very maneuverable. These aircraft are all VTOL capable, which frees them from the restraints of their traditional aircraft cousins. The ability to land practically anywhere allows the Orca family to project power anywhere across the map. Several video scenes in Command & Conquer: Renegade also suggest that Orca fighters are agile enough to allow them to stage off of GDI’s amphibious assault ships to support GDI armour and troop formations conducting amphibious invasions during the First Tiberian War.

Orca aircraft also have two main weaknesses: a vulnerability to Nod's anti-aircraft missiles, and ion storms. Ion storms are introduced in Tiberian Sun and remain in the expansion pack Firestorm. These storms disable all aerial vehicles, keeping them permanently grounded for the duration of the storm; additionally, any Orca unit caught in the air when an ion storm hits will instantly lose power and crash.

Orca in the First Tiberian War

The primitive version of Orca is the main light attack craft replacing helicopters. These aircraft are fast and maneuverable as well as equipped with both air-to-surface missile and air-to-air missiles. These units can be built by the player either by constructing an Orca pad, or by clicking on the Orca unit icon in the command bar. Although adequate for air operations, the Orca is vulnerable to Nod's SAM launchers.

Orca in the Second Tiberian War

Orca Fighter

Orca Fighters are the advanced version of the Orca VTOL Fighter from the first Tiberian War. They fill the same niche as in the original C&C, and carry the same construction and armament restrictions.

Orca Bomber

Orca Bombers are a type of VTOL aircraft which replace the A-10's from the first Tiberian War. These units were slow moving and expensive to build; however, they more than make up for this with their devastating payloads, which can decimate incoming troops or destroy Nod structures with relative ease.

Orca Carryall

The Orca Carryall is a new class of unarmed transport aircraft for medium-range deployment of a single vehicle. The Carryall has no onboard weapon, although if the Carryall is in the process of transporting a combat unit (such as a Titan or Wolverine) the Carryall can set that unit down to engage the threat against the Carryall. When the Carryall is transporting non-combat units (such as APCs or harvesters) or flying without a payload it must rely completely on aerial and ground forces for protection against enemy forces. Like the Orca Bomber, this unit must be built independently of an Orca Pad.

Orca Transport

The Orca Transport is an unarmed VTOL aircraft that replaces the Chinook transport helicopters from the first Tiberian War. These units are designed for all-purpose personnel transport. They can not be built by a player, and even when present on the field remain under the computer's control. The primary function of this unit is civilian evacuation, although GDI infantry units and lightly armoured units do on occasion fly into combat zones aboard these units. Orca Transports do not have any external weapon for defence, and are extremely vulnerable to enemy anti-aircraft missiles. Because of this these transports will either land in a secure area (such as the player base), or will fly into and out of combat zones with escort Orca fighters.

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