Editing GA-TL1 Longsword

{{Ratings}}
{{Era|H1|H2|H3|RE|FOR|TF|FS|GOO|HGN|HE}}
{{Ship
|image = [[File:Longsword7.jpg|300px]] 
|name = C709 ''Longsword''-class Interceptor
|manufacturer =[[UNSC]] 
|line =
|model = C709
|class =Longsword
|length = {{Convert|64|m|ft|sigfig=3}}<ref name="enc">'''''[[Halo Encyclopedia]]''''', page ''251''</ref>
|width = {{Convert|75|m|ft|sigfig=3}}<ref name="enc"/>
|height = {{Convert|12.9|m|ft|sigfig=3}}
|mass =
|max accel =
|max speed space =
|max speed air =
|engine = Twin fusion reactors<ref name="enc"/>
|slipspace drive =
|slipspace speed =
|poweroutput =
|power =
|shield gen =
|hull = Titanium-A battleplate<ref>'''''[[Halo: First Strike]]''''', ''page 40''</ref>
|sensor =
|target =
|navigation =
|avionics =
|countermeasures = [[Anti-Aircraft Battery|Covenant anti-aircraft battery]]
|Engines =
|armament =
;''Varies''
*[[110mm Rotary Cannon]]s<ref name="FoS28">'''''[[Halo: First Strike]]''''', ''page 28''</ref>
*[[120mm Ventral Guns]]<ref name="FoS28"/>
*[[ASGM-10 Missile]]s (4)
*[[Shiva-class Nuclear Missile]] (1) <small>(Optional)</small>
*[[Moray Space Mine]] system (36) <small>(Optional)</small>
|complement = None
|crew =
*Pilot (1)
*Co-Pilot (1)
*Navigator/Engineer (2)
*AI (1) <small>(Optional)</small>
|skeleton =
|passengers = 
|capacity =
|consumables = One week provisions for crew{{citation needed}}
|othersystems = *Cryo chambers{{citation needed}}<small>(Optional)</small>
*Moray Space Mine laying system<ref name="FoS37">'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', ''page 37''</ref><small>(Optional)</small>
|firstuse =
|role =
*Starfighter
*Interceptor
*Bomber
|era = [[Human-Covenant War]]
|affiliation = [[United Nations Space Command]]
}}
The '''C709 Longsword-class Interceptor''' is the main single ship of the [[United Nations Space Command]] [[United Nations Space Command Defense Force|Defense Force]], and is a mainstay starfighter, filling a variety of roles simultaneously. It was in service as early as [[2517]].<ref>''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]'', ''[[Pariah]]'' page ???</ref>

==Design Details==
===Role===
Described as both a fighter and an interceptor, the Longsword is intended to engage enemy [[Starfighter|fighters]], [[dropship]]s, and [[Covenant Boarding Craft|boarding craft]] that are en route to UNSC capital ships. The Longsword has been seen performing a variety of roles, making for an extremely versatile craft, and is relatively inexpensive to produce.{{citation needed}} They are capable of holding their own even against the technologically superior [[Seraph-class Starfighter|''Seraph''-class fighters]] used by the [[Covenant Empire|Covenant]]. The Longsword is also used to escort UNSC dropships as they deliver their passengers and cargo to planet surfaces or to larger ships.<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', ''page 6''</ref><ref name="Cairo">'''[[Halo 2]]''', level ''{{Levelname|Cairo Station}}''</ref> The Longsword is also used in attack runs against Covenant [[capital ship]]s, delivering high-yield missiles<ref name="Cairo"/>, [[Shiva-class Nuclear Missile|Shiva-class nuclear warheads]]<ref>'''''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''''', ''page ??''</ref>, or even free-floating Moray space mines<ref name="FoS37"/> to or near their targets. They can also be used in planetary environments by functioning as fighter-bombers, destroying ground targets from the air<ref>'''''[[Halo 2 E3 Demo]]'''''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo 3]]''', level ''[[Floodgate]]''</ref>, and escorting capital ships.<ref name="HCEIntro">'''Halo: Combat Evolved''', level ''{{Levelname|Pillar of Autumn}}''</ref>

===Structure===
[[File:Longsword-Specs.jpg|300px|left|thumb|A schematic of the C709 Longsword-class Interceptor.]]
The inside of the Longsword presents a small corridor leading to the rear, stairs, and a higher corridor to the cockpit.<ref name="HCE">'''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''', level ''[[The Maw]]''</ref> In the two corridors, there are several equipment lockers, along with two secondary crew stations. The cockpit consists of two pilots' chairs and two auxiliary crew stations. With a known total crew complement of four, along with the equipment and weapon lockers, the ship presents itself as less of a fighter-bomber and more of a dedicated bomber and close support craft.

The cockpit design stayed the same between ''Halo'' and ''Halo 2'' but was changed in ''Halo 3'' and ''[[Halo: Reach]]''. Previously, the cockpit had four windows (two on each side, but none in the front) and a view screen. In ''Halo 3'' and ''Halo: Reach'' the Longsword has windows wrapping around the cockpit similarly to traditional aircraft. Other aesthetic changes were made between ''Halo 2'' to ''Halo 3''. The first version in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' and ''Halo 2'' had diamond-shaped intakes which were removed from the ''Halo 3'' version, so it can be proposed that the ship in ''Halo 3'' and ''Halo: Reach'' is a different version of the Longsword. It may be noted that all the Longswords seen in ''Halo: Combat Evolved'' and ''Halo 2'' are used entirely in space combat, while those seen in ''Halo 3'' are primarily used in an atmospheric fighter-bomber role,<ref>''[[Halo 3]]'', levels [[The Storm]] and [[The Ark]]</ref> in addition to space combat.<ref>''Halo 3'', level The Ark</ref>

===Propulsion===
The Longsword utilizes two main fusion engines<ref name="enc"/> which are discernible on the exterior of the craft. Their precise nature is not known, but they are able to function in space and they are strong enough to reach [[Earth]]'s and [[Installation 04]]'s escape velocity. Likely, it is nuclear-powered, and the electrical energy or heat generated is used to power an electric drive or to heat regular fuel into a much higher impulse. There are multiple [[wikipedia:Reaction control system|RCS points]] for maneuvering.

===Weapons===
The Longsword's main weapons are [[110mm Rotary Cannon|110mm rotary cannons]],<ref name="FoS28"/> as well as [[120mm Ventral Guns|120mm ventral guns]], for dog-fighting Seraph fighters in space and strafing ground targets when the need arises. This versatile fighter can be armed with an assortment of secondary weapons including [[ASGM-10 Missile]]s, bombs, [[Moray Space Mine]]s, [[Scorpion Missile]]s, and can even heft a single [[Shiva-class Nuclear Missile]]. It can also be remotely piloted, carrying a single Shiva nuclear warhead, as was the case when [[Captain]] [[Jacob Keyes]] destroyed a Covenant [[Covenant Supercruiser|supercruiser]]<ref>''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]'', ''page 322-324''</ref>

==Known Longswords==
*[[7-89]]
*[[Knife 26]]

==Trivia==
*The Longsword is one of the few UNSC vehicles that are not named or modeled after animals, such as the [[Shortsword-class Bomber|Shortsword]], the [[Sabre]], and the [[Cyclops]].
*The Longsword fighter underwent many design iterations, as seen in ''[[The Art of Halo]]''.
*It appears that the wings of the Longswords in ''[[Halo:Reach]]'' are angled slightly farther back than in previous games.
*It is disputed whether the Longsword is black or gray, as it looks gray in the [[The Maw|final level]] of ''Halo: Combat Evolved'', but when it is seen in space, and at all times in ''Halo 3'', it looks darker. This may be due to lighting or graphical enhancement. This could also be indicative of different paint schemes, similar to those of modern-day jet fighters.
*Longswords may or may not have working gravity. At the end of ''Halo: Combat Evolved'', [[John-117]] gets out of his seat and walks to the side screen to witness the destruction of Installation 04. However, in ''Halo: First Strike'', the Spartan "floats" to the weapons locker at the back of the Longsword, and that when he picks up the remaining Marines, they too float about. However, this might be because the Longsword (or its artificial gravity) was powered down at the time. A simpler, and more likely explanation, however, is that the Longsword doesn't have artificial gravity, and that the electromagnetic boots of the [[MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor|MJOLNIR armor]] allowed John to walk on the floor.

==Gallery==
<gallery widths="150" orientation="landscape">
File:Longsword.jpg|A formation of Longswords in ''[[Halo: Combat Evolved]]''.
File:Longsword Fighter.jpg|A formation of Longswords near [[Installation 04]]'s atmosphere.
File:LongswordBattle2.jpg|Longswords chasing after a Seraph-class Starfighter in the [[Battle of Earth]].
File:Longsword down.jpg|Close up on a Longsword.
File:H3 E3 Shootdown.jpg|A Longsword being neutralized by a Covenant [[Anti-Aircraft Battery|anti-air battery]].
File:Longsword flying.jpg|Longsword flying above [[Voi]].
File:H3 E3 Longsword 3.jpg|Three Longswords assaulting the [[Forerunner]] [[Dreadnought]] in the [[Battle of Tsavo]].
File:Longsword.png.png|Two Longswords engaged in an upper atmospheric flight above Earth.
File:HRS C709 Longsword top.jpg|A top-down view of a C709 Longsword Interceptor, illustrating the manta ray-like profile, long and thin tail section, and bulky engines.
File:HRS C709 Longsword front.jpg|A front-on view of the Longsword, demonstrating its thin horizontal profile.
File:reach 650311 Medium.jpg|Three Longswords launch an air strike on a UNSC [[Boneyard|ship decommissioning site]].
File:HaloReach - InvasionLongswords.jpg|A squadron of Longswords fly in formation.
</gallery>

==Sources==
<references/>

==Links==
===Internal===
*[[Sabre]] - An experimental UNSC starfighter.
*[[Seraph-class Starfighter|Seraph-class Starfighter]] - The Covenant equivalent of the Longsword.
*[[SkyHawk]] - the UNSC's dedicated atmospheric strike fighter.
*[[Tarasque-class heavy fighter]] - presumably a similar Covenant fighter.

===External===
*[http://nikon.bungie.org/misc/sloftus_longswordtour/ A tour of the Longsword interceptor]

{{UNSCDF Aircraft}}
{{UNSC Ships}}

[[fr:C709 la Longsword-classe Starfighter]]