Cyclops Squadron

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Cyclops Squadron, officially the 122nd Tactical Fighter Squadron, is an Osean Air Defense Force squadron. The unit saw deployment in the Lighthouse War as part of the Long Range Strategic Strike Group (LRSSG) alongside Strider Squadron.

History

On July 12, 2019, Cyclops Squadron joined Strider Squadron to perform reconnaissance at Stonehenge. Chased by drones, they were forced to change their return route to fly through Yinshi Valley; the 444th Air Base sent Spare Squadron to support Cyclops and Strider in Operation Two Pairs.[1]

Cyclops Squadron was later deployed to track a prototype drone. The drone violated Bulgurdarest airspace during Operation Full House; Trigger shot down the drone, prompting Cyclops' flight lead Wiseman to invite him, Count, and Colonel McKinsey to New Arrows Air Base.[2] McKinsey was transferred to the war's front lines,[2] while Trigger and Count were reassigned to the LRSSG as Strider 1 and Cyclops 2, respectively.[3]

Cyclops Squadron accompanied Strider Squadron during Operations Siren's Song[3] and Dragon Breath. During Dragon Breath, two Cyclops pilots were hit by hostile fire: Húxiān's plane was damaged but she made it back to base, while Fencer was forced to eject and sustained injuries.[4] Due to the material losses, Cyclops was benched for Operations Magic Spear,[5] Sighthound,[6] and Domino.[7] The squadron, excluding Wiseman, was reactivated to join Operation Fisherman to hunt down and sink the Alicorn.[8]

To maintain stealth during Operation Werewolf, Cyclops Squadron was sidelined once more, but all Cyclops pilots were then deployed for Operation Giant's Step to capture Farbanti. Erusea's top ace pilot, Mihaly A. Shilage, shot down and killed Wiseman near the end of the battle, forcing Count to take temporary command of the squadron;[9] Fencer took over command of Cyclops for the rest of the war.[10]

After the loss of communication following the battle at Farbanti, both Cyclops and Strider landed at Gardos Air Base.[9] Two weeks later, Strider sortied for Operation Gorgon while Cyclops remained on standby; Gardos was shortly attacked by unknown forces, leading Cyclops to defend the base until Strider returned to assist.[11] Cyclops then joined Strider in attempting to rendezvous with Osean forces at Tyler Island and switching to defend the retreating Osean forces and the civilians on the island.[10]

The LRSSG then raided Shilage Castle to replenish their supplies. Strider Squadron destroyed the ground defenses around the castle and shot down the majority of Sol Squadron, allowing Cyclops Squadron to escort a transport aircraft to the castle and back to Gardos.[12]

Cyclops Squadron joined Strider Squadron and a coalition of Osean and Erusean forces in the penultimate battle of the war over the International Space Elevator. Like other members of the coalition, Cyclops assisted Trigger's effort to shoot down the Arsenal Bird "Justice" by fighting off its swarm of MQ-101 drones.[13] After the two ADF-11F Ravens entered the area, at least one Cyclops pilot was injured and at least one of their planes was damaged, though all of them successfully landed at the OFS Admiral Andersen. The squadron was forced to sit out the final dogfight between the coalition forces and the two ADF-11Fs, though the pilots expressed their desire to join Trigger in the end.[14]

References