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"We do not belong on the ground. Our home is the sky, as the enemies of the T'au Empire know to their cost."

T'au Air Caste Philosophy
Barrac taros

Barracuda flying over Taros.

The Barracuda air superiority fighter is the most common atmospheric combat aircraft used by the T'au Air Caste.

Faster than the Imperial Navy's Marauder bomber, but lacking the high maximum speed of the Thunderbolt or Lightning fighter, it makes up for this lack with its sophisticated electronic systems and the natural talents of its T'au Air Caste pilots.

In a dogfight, the Thunderbolt and the Barracuda are very closely matched, with the Thunderbolt having the edge in speed, and the Barracuda having the greater manoeuverability.

Imperial pilots of the Aeronautica Imperialis often have a hard edge of combat experience that the pilots of the Air Caste find hard to match, though the superior handling and armament of the Barracuda often proves decisive in encounters between T'au and Imperial combat aircraft.

Barracuda aeronautica

A pair of Barracudas escorting two Tiger Sharks over Typha IV.

Utilising the natural advantages of its Air Caste pilots, the Barracuda excels in its main role as an air-to-air combat interceptor. Barracuda are commonly used by the T'au to intercept enemy fighter squadrons that are assaulting T'au ground forces, attack enemy air transports and their fighter escorts on their way to the front, and escort T'au transports such as Orcas and Mantas as they deploy Hunter Cadres.

Barracudas are also commonly tasked with carrying out ground attacks in direct support of Hunter Cadres and providing overall air support for T'au ground forces in combat.

Barracudas often strafe and harass enemy troop movements and also disrupt enemy supply lines and bases, which was common during the Taros Campaign. Barracudas are also capable of operating in the hard void of space, where they fulfill the Attack Craft role for the T'au Navy.

Barracudas can be transported through interstellar space via larger Warp-capable carrier vessels such as the Custodian, Protector, and Emissary-class starships.

History[]

Barracuda air war

A flight of Barracudas fly as a fighter-escort for a pair of high-flying Mantas.

The T'au forces deployed to seize control of the former Imperial Mining World of Taros during the Taros Campaign in 998.M41 included a large contingent from the Air Caste which formed an integral part of the T'au's overall strategy for securing victory.

Winning the air war against the Imperial Navy was vital to the T'au's plans, and Barracudas and Thunderbolts fought daily for control of the skies. Flying from well-concealed desert air bases on the Iracunda Isthmus, the Barracudas eventually won the battle.

As well as engaging in dogfights, the Barracudas also targeted the Astra Militarum's supply columns, operating in unison with infiltrating Pathfinder teams to destroy Trojans and the supplies vital to keeping the Astra Militarum fighting.

Due to these severe losses, Imperial troops on the frontlines quickly began to run out of basic supplies such as water, causing much of the Imperial offensive to grind to a halt.

Imperial Guardsmen on the ground also faced the ever-present danger of low-level Barracuda strafing attacks where the T'au fighters would commonly slip low over the desert, hugging valleys and ridge lines only to rise suddenly in a whirl of firepower that raked the sand and sent everybody diving for the nearest cover. Although exact figures are unknown, it is thought by the Imperial Navy that the T'au Air Caste deployed an estimated 150 aircraft on Taros.

Barracuda

A Barracuda conducting a strafing run on enemy positions

The most deadly Barracuda pilots encountered so far by the Imperium are those whose squadron name is believed to translate into Low Gothic as "the Gift of Silence." This single Barracuda squadron has thus far accounted for the loss of 27 Imperial bombers and 18 interceptors. It has also claimed an Astra Militarum Tetrarch Heavy Lander as it made planetfall, resulting in the loss of an entire Imperial Guard regiment.

Barracudas have also been fielded in large numbers in the Canis Salient of the Jericho Reach, to try and achieve air superiority over the many conflict zones against Imperial forces in the Achilus Crusade.

Armament[]

Barra 5

Barracuda Schematic

A Barracuda is armed with a nose-mounted, pilot-aimed Ion Cannon. This is the aircraft's primary weapon for use in dogfights, backed up by two Drone-controlled Burst Cannons in the wings which can also be used as effective anti-infantry weapons during strafing runs.

For ground attacks, the Barracuda is armed with wing-mounted Missile Pods built into the chassis and can also carry an additional armament of up to four Seeker Missiles which are not controlled by the pilot, but by a Marker Light operator on the ground. Barracudas are also equipped with a Targeting Array as standard for improved accuracy.

Different Air Caste Septs have been identified operating slightly different versions of the Barracuda. Some are equipped with Blacksun Filters for night-fighting, whilst others with Disruption Pods and Decoy Launchers for additional protection.

BarracudaBlue

A T'au Air Caste Barracuda, dorsal and profile views.

All T'au pilots are derived from the T'au Empire's Air Caste. Air Caste members live almost exclusively off-world in orbital space stations and habitats where, over time, their long-term exposure to lower gravity has affected their physiognomy.

This means that even when operating in a gravity well, the pilots of the Air Caste have developed superior three-dimensional awareness and marginally better tolerance for high rates of acceleration and extreme gravitational effects at high speeds than that of their human opponents.

Physically, this makes a T'au pilot naturally better suited to the rigours of air-to-air combat than a Human pilot, able to make tighter turns and hold them longer while being capable of pushing the gravity envelope further.

The Barracuda's design is similar to the general design of most T'au aircraft, being low and thin in height with a relatively large wingspan that deploys weapons such as Missile Pods and mounted drone-controlled Burst Cannons. The aircraft's armour is made of the same unknown nano-crystalline alloy used in many other T'au vehicles and aircraft.

The shape of the Barracuda's airframe is highly aerodynamic, which allows it to perform feats of manoeuverability that Imperial aircraft simply cannot match. While this leaves it more fragile than its ground attack counterparts the Sun Shark and Razorshark, it also allows it to engage in aerial duels with enemy fighters very effectively.

Barra 2

Barracuda aircraft engaging enemy forces during the Taros Campaign.

The Barracuda features advanced electronic and avionic systems that achieve faster target locks than the Imperial Thunderbolt. The T'au aircraft's greater manoeuverability is combined with the natural adaptation of Air Caste pilots to produce a craft that is extremely nimble and agile in flight, providing it an often decisive advantage in aerial dogfights.

The design of the Barracuda also includes a built-in escape pod. In the event that the aircraft sustains mortal damage, the pilot can eject. The entire cockpit capsule disconnects and provides limited anti-gravitic mobility that can return the pilot safely to the ground. However, once on the ground, the pilot must look to their own resources to make good their escape and avoid capture or death at the hands of the enemy's ground forces.

Upgrades[]

Barracudas can also be equipped with any of the following T'au vehicle support systems:

  • Automated Repair System - Automated Repair Systems consist of dispensers which release tiny maintenance Drones which swarm over damaged weapon and drive systems, repairing them in the midst of battle.
  • Advanced Targeting System - An Advanced Targeting System assists the vehicle's gunner by identifying targets of particular value or danger, and plotting fire plans to counter them.
  • Blacksun Filter - Blacksun Filters allow the vehicle's gunners to accurately see and target enemies in low-light conditions.
  • Decoy Launchers - Decoy Launchers are a form of defensive measure that is mounted near the engines. They are capable of firing clouds of reflective strips and sophisticated electronic decoys, which are combined with flare and chaff launchers to protect the vehicle's thruster arrays from enemy missiles.
  • Disruption Pod - Disruption Pods display distorting holographic images in the visual and electromagnetic spectra to make the vehicle harder to target.
  • Point Defence Targeting Relay - Designed to provide superior covering fire for nearby Fire Caste units, a Point Defence Targeting Relay automatically targets and engages enemies that try to assault the vehicle or nearby friendly units.
  • Sensor Spines - Sensor Spines feed data to an advanced ground-following flight control system. This allows the vehicle to avoid hazardous terrain that could otherwise damage the vehicle's drive systems.

Ordo Xenos Departmento Analyticus Technical Specifications[]

Serial Number: 85673-908461 Main Armament: Nose-mounted Ion Cannon, Wing-Mounted Missile Pods
Designation: Air Superiority Fighter
Vehicle Codename: Barracuda Secondary Armament:

Two Wing-Mounted Drone Controlled Burst Cannons

Vehicle Type: Atmospheric Aircraft
Crew: 1: Pilot Traverse:
Weight: 7 tonnes (empty) Elevation: +0° to -0°
Length: 11.4 metres Ammunition: 8 Missiles, 8000 Rounds
Width: 12.5 metres Armour Type: 35 millimetres of Nano-Crystalline Alloy, Composition Unknown to the Adeptus Mechanicus
Height: 3.25 metres
Max Recorded Speed: 2100 kilometres per hour at 5000 feet; cruising speed 1400 kilometres per hour
Summary: Frontline Combat Aircraft; also carries Seeker Missile racks

Sources[]

  • Aeronautica Imperialis, pp. 93-99
  • Apocalypse (4th Edition), pg. 158
  • Codex Tau Empire (6th Edition), pp. 72, 95
  • Codex: Tau (3rd Edition) pp. 13, 15
  • Deathwatch: Rites of Battle (RPG), pg. 192
  • Imperial Armour Aeronautica, pg. 58
  • Imperial Armour Apocalypse (2nd Edition), pg. 80
  • Imperial Armour Update, pg. 30
  • Imperial Armour Volume Three - The Taros Campaign, pp. 79, 194-197, 213-215, 28
  • Imperial Armour Volume Three - The Taros Campaign (Second Edition), pp. 154-157
  • Warhammer Community - Take to the Skies with the T'au Air Caste

Gallery[]

T'au Empire Forces
Command EtherealT'au CommanderCadre Fireblade
Troops Fire Warrior (Fire Warrior Strike TeamFire Warrior Breacher Team) • PathfinderDrone Squadron
Battlesuits XV02 Pilot BattlesuitXV8 Crisis Battlesuit (XV8-02 Crisis Iridium BattlesuitXV81 Crisis BattlesuitXV84 Crisis BattlesuitXV85 Enforcer BattlesuitXV86 Coldstar BattlesuitXV89 Crisis BattlesuitXV88 Broadside Battlesuit) • Stealthsuits (XV15 StealthsuitXV22 StealthsuitXV25 StealthsuitXV95 Ghostkeel Battlesuit) • XV46 Vanguard Void BattlesuitXV9 Hazard Battlesuit • Class 10 Battlesuits (XV104 Riptide BattlesuitXV107 R'varna BattlesuitXV109 Y'vahra Battlesuit) • KV128 StormsurgeKX139 Ta'unar Supremacy Armour
Grav-Vehicles DevilfishDrone HarbingerHammerheadSky RaySwordfishTX-4 PiranhaTX-42 PiranhaTetra
Aircraft BarracudaMantaOrcaRazorsharkDX-6 Remora Drone Stealth FighterSun SharkTiger SharkTiger Shark AX-1-0
T'au Auxiliaries Kroot ShaperKroot Carnivore SquadKroot HoundKrootoxKnarlocGreat KnarlocVespid StingwingsGue'vesa
Notable T'au Aun'VaAun'ShiCommander FarsightCommander PuretideCommander KaisCommander ShadowsunSub-Commander DarkstriderShas'el LushaShas'la T'au KaisShas'la LongstrikeCommander Arra'konCommander BravestormCommander BrightswordCommander Sha'vastosSub-Commander TorchstarHonour-Shas'Vre O'VesaShas'vre Ob'lotai 9-0
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