Nicholas A. Andersen
- "I've lost time and time again, but now, I've finally won."
- ― Nicholas Andersen[3]
Admiral Nicholas A. Andersen (ニコラスA.アンダーセン Nikorasu A. Andāsen) was an Osean Maritime Defense Force naval officer and captain of the OFS Kestrel, an Osean aircraft carrier and flagship of the 3rd Osean Naval Fleet, during the 2010 Circum-Pacific War. Andersen's actions played an important role in hastening the war's conclusion.
Biography
Early life
Andersen was born in the Osean Federation in 1949.[4] Andersen grew up during the Cold War and likely experienced the ongoing tensions caused by Osea's and Yuktobania's rampant nuclear proliferation programs. These experiences likely influenced the anti-war principles he held later in life. He grew up under a family who were sailors for 4 generations.[5] At some point in his early adulthood, Andersen enlisted in the Osean Maritime Defense Force. When he started out, he wanted to serve on board a submarine. However, after the S.S. Tarpon incident, where Andersen was one of only four survivors, he was transferred to a surface ship after the navy concluded that the incident traumatized him. Over the next four decades, he rose through the ranks to Naval Captain. Throughout this time, he was involved in several other accidents, but always survived.[5] Sometime between 1995 and 2010, Andersen succeeded Commander Weeker as the Kestrel's commanding officer. It is unknown if Andersen captained any other OMDF vessels before his assignment to the Kestrel, though this is likely due to the fact that the Kestrel was a capital ship.
Early engagements
On September 27, 2010, Andersen, the Kestrel, and the other vessels of the 3rd Fleet were stationed at St. Hewlett, Osea. When Yuktobanian aircraft launched a surprise air raid on the harbor, Andersen ordered the Kestrel to raise anchor and make way towards the port exit. VFA-206, under the command of Cpt. Marcus Snow, and Wardog Squadron, now under the command of Blaze, flew top cover for Andersen's vessel, and the Kestrel safely evacuated the harbor.[6]
As the surviving vessels sailed into the open Ceres Ocean, radar detected a blockade of Yuktobanian warships directly ahead. Andersen radioed the other Osean vessels and reorganized them into a provisional battle fleet under his command. With the support of friendly fighters above, Andersen and the Kestrel's fleet eventually broke through the blockade and escaped to safe waters.[6]
Rendezvous at Eaglin Straits
Three days later, on September 30, Andersen was ordered to rendezvous with the 3rd Fleet's other two carriers, the OFS Vulture and Buzzard, at Eaglin Straits. When the fleet came under attack by Yuktobanian aircraft, Andersen launched the Kestrel's fighter squadron to intercept the hostile fighters. However, the fleet was then attacked by two burst missiles launched from the Yuktobanian submersible aircraft carrier Scinfaxi. Andersen ordered the helm to begin evasive maneuvers; in the end, the Kestrel was the only carrier to survive.
Rescuing Harling
As fewer pilots returned from combat sorties, the Kestrel found itself without airmen to fly its planes and was subsequently placed in reserve. At some point, Andersen stationed the Kestrel and its fleet at Kirwin Island in the southern Arctic Ocean. As the war progressed, Andersen became increasingly suspicious of his nation's aggressive handling of the war, which conflicted with President Harling's pre-war peace policies. Andersen's suspicions only grew stronger after his fleet intercepted a transmission encoded in Belkan and a cargo ship that was smuggling Belkan aircraft into Yuktobania.[7]
On December 7, Andersen learned that Wardog Squadron and Peter N. Beagle had been "exposed" as traitors and fled north over the Ceres. Andersen dispatched Cpt. Snow to locate the wanted fugitives.[8] With the help of Snow and the Sea Goblin helicopter team, Andersen orchestrated a ruse to convince the Osean command that Wardog was dead;[9] in reality, Andersen had the Wardog pilots and Beagle brought to the Kestrel.[7]
With Beagle's help, Andersen ascertained that President Harling was being held captive by the Belkans in Stier Castle near the Waldreich Mountains. Following Harling's rescue on December 9,[10] Andersen, the Kestrel and its fleet, and the renamed Razgriz Squadron were placed under the direct command of the president.[11] Over the coming weeks, Andersen assisted Razgriz Squadron's efforts to eliminate the nuclear weapons that the Grey Men planned to use on Osea and Yuktobania.
Protecting Nikanor
After being rescued from captivity on December 23, Yuktobanian Prime Minister Nikanor was brought aboard the Kestrel. One week later, on December 29, the Kestrel and its small armada encountered a large fleet of Yuktobanian warships. When several of the Yuktobanian vessels decided to join forces with the Oseans, Andersen scrambled the Razgriz to protect the Kestrel and the Yuktobanian defectors. He then urged Nikanor to seek out President Harling and show the world that Osea and Yuktobania stand together.[12]
During the engagement, a nationalist Osean fleet stumbled upon the fight. The Osean commander deemed Andersen and his men traitors for allying themselves with Yuktobanians. The Osean fleet opened fire on both the Kestrel and Yuktobanian defectors, but was sunk by the Razgriz fighters. After the battle, Andersen formed a new coalition fleet of Osean and Yuktobanian ships.[13]
Loss of the Kestrel
Unfortunately, on December 30, the Kestrel was hit on its starboard side by two Yuktobanian sub-launched cruise missiles off the western coast of Osea. Despite his ship's extensive hull damage and rapid listing, Andersen ordered the Razgriz to take off and get to the safety of the air; he then ordered all hands not conducting aircraft launch to abandon ship.[14] In line with maritime tradition, Andersen was presumably the last person off the sinking vessel.[3] A short time after the end of the war, Andersen was invited to dive in a submersible captained by Marcus Snow to visit the wreck of the Kestrel. He died of unknown causes shortly afterwards.[1]
Legacy
Andersen was hailed as a hero for his actions in the end of the Circum-Pacific War. At some point, he was promoted from naval captain to admiral. Some time before 2019, a new aircraft carrier named the Admiral Andersen was built in honor of him.
Gallery
Andersen, moments before the second cruise missile struck
Andersen's OMDF profile
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Aces At War: A History 2019, page 057.
- ↑ Cutscene 15: "Admiral Andersen", Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Cutscene 26, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ WORLD / OSEAN FED / N.A. Anderesen, ACES WEB. Published February 29, 2004. Retrieved August 12, 2016.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Green Hills
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Narrow Margin, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Cutscene 20, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Final Option, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Cutscene 19, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Ancient Walls, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Cutscene 21, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Cutscene 24, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Sea of Chaos, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.
- ↑ Cutscene 25, Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War.