UH-144 Falcon

Falcon redirects here. For other uses, see Falcon (disambiguation).

Template:Vehicle Infobox The UH-144 Falcon^[1] is a troop transport aircraft of the United Nations Space Command.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Overview

The UH-144 Falcon is a versatile, tilt- and transverse-rotor, multi-purpose utility helicopter. Two Falcons can transport a fully-equipped fireteam faster than any other previous system, and provide overwhelming fire support in most weather conditions. In campaign, the aircraft's crew consists of one pilot, two crewmen who may serve as door gunners, and three passengers. However, in multiplayer, there is only room for one pilot and two gunners. ^[5] There are two versions of the Falcon, which differ only in their armament. Both models feature a chin-mounted M638 Autocannon. While the UH-144A has two side-mounted MG460 Automatic Grenade Launchers, the UH-144S instead has two side-mounted M247H Heavy Machine Guns.^[6]^[7]

Tactics

Campaign

During Winter Contingency, Noble Team's Falcon can provide fire support during the first section of the mission.

The Falcon used in the level Tip of the Spear is equipped with semi-automatic grenade launchers which can produce an EMP effect when the trigger is held down, then released to manually detonate the grenade. This EMP can shut down enemy vehicles.

Pilot the Falcon during the level New Alexandria, as it is equipped with a pilot controlled chin-mounted chaingun that has a larger field of fire, is more accurate, and is more powerful than the side-mounted machine guns (this is not in multiplayer).

When piloting the Falcon, remember to face one side of the Falcon towards attacking Banshees, allowing an ally to open fire on them. Skilled pilots can coordinate with their gunners in co-op to keep the nose pointed directly at an enemy and focus each weapon's fire on a single target.

Multiplayer

The Falcon's side-mounted machine guns are extremely short-ranged; keep your gunners in range of the targets.
Keep moving, to avoid being hijacked by players with the Jetpack.
The Cockpit area takes roughly double damage from all weapons; Around eight sniper rifle rounds is required to destroy a Falcon. Explosives are slightly more effective; one or two Plasma Launcher round stuck to the cockpit is enough to kill the Falcon in most situations, as well as Plasma Grenades.
The Falcon has a unique ability most players are unaware of; greatly extended Motion Tracker Range. It is even capable of detecting hostile players that normally wouldn't show up (Not moving, Crouched, Active Camo'ed, Etc). This applies to everyone in the Falcon, regardless of position or species. Use this to your teams advantage when piloting one; Call out the locations of enemies to your gunners and teammates.
Be cautious at short ranges; a hit with a Plasma Pistol overcharge or other EMP effect disables the Falcon's engines totally. This can result in hijacking or the Falcon being destroyed when it hits the ground if it is high enough up.
While the Falcon can be used to insert players near enemy objectives, players carrying objective items cannot ride in falcons(unless the carrier rides on the top of the Falcon).
Remember to keep at least one side of your Falcon trained on opposing players to allow allies to provide fire support for teammates on foot. Skilled pilots can coordinate with their gunners to keep the nose pointed directly at an enemy and focus each weapon's fire on a single target.
The Falcon can be used to re-locate snipers, as it can reach otherwise inaccessible perches for the sniper.
Do not engage heavy armor with the Falcon, as it possesses no heavy anti-vehicle weapons, and cannot carry passengers with such weapons. A single hit from a Scorpion or Wraith will destroy the Falcon.
If nothing else is available, you can kill a Wraith with a Falcon; just make sure to keep dodging the Wraith's rounds, and keeping it in view so that your machine gunners can continue to hit it, and eventually the Wraith will succumb. Do not attempt this against a Scorpion; it can and will destroy any Falcon with ease.
Splattering an enemy may result in a hijacking, this should not be attempted except as a last resort.
If only one gunner is available, make sure that that player is always facing the enemies on the ground. This can be done by pilots with moderate skill at controlling the Falcon.

Trivia

The Falcon bears a certain resemblance to the Sparrowhawk gunship, seen as an upgrade for the Hornet in Halo Wars.
The Falcon is nicknamed the "Warthog of the skies" by fans and Bungie employees.^[8]
Superficially, the Falcon looks rather similar to the United States Marine Corps' V-22 Osprey tilt rotor.
As seen in early concept art, it appears the Falcon would originally have possessed ducted air fans, like those of the AV-14 Hornet and D77-TC Pelican, rather than rotors.
Much like UNSC aircraft in Halo Wars, Falcons that cannot be piloted have yellow windshields. In campaign, if one punches out the windows of these Falcons, they'll notice that there is no character inside piloting the Falcon.
The words "BEWARE OF BLAST" can be found painted on the edge of the floor of the passenger cabin. This may be a reference to the rotorwash caused by the turboprops, or it may be referring to the small jets located on the bottom of the turboprop nacelles.
Two small jets are located toward the back of the Falcon, facing to the rear. These may contribute to the Falcon's forward propulsion.
A Falcon avatar gear is one of the bonus items included with the Halo: Reach Limited and Legendary editions.
Unlike most vehicles in Halo: Reach, the smoke from a badly damaged Falcon blocks a substantial portion of the screen, increasing the difficulty of flying a critically damaged aircraft.
Unless the player jumps on top of a rotor hub, he cannot be killed by the Falcon's rotors. However, if the player touches the rotor hub, he will be killed instantly.
It is possible to fly the Falcon in the first level. The player must hit the Falcon that Jun is not in with an overcharged plasma pistol shot. When it falls, the Falcon has a small chance of flipping on the ground and forcing the pilot out.
Due to balancing purposes, the Falcon in multiplayer lacks the chin-mounted autocannon that is normally usable by the pilot.