F-302
Summary
The F-302 is the operational designation for the X-302, a completely human-built, space-worthy intercept fighter jet which has the capability of interstellar travel via a hyperspace window. The first time the F-302 is mentioned is in the episode, 7.01 "Fallen Part 1".
Technical Details
The F-302 intercept fighter has four different sets of engines: air breathing jets, modified aerospikes for high altitude, a rocket booster, and a hyperspace window generator. The Goa'uld death gliders are not capable of entering hyperspace because the engine to create a hyperspace window would be much too large. But, because the F-302 uses naquadria to power the hyperdrive window generator, the F-302 has a more compact hyperdrive engine and thus became the first human-built space craft thought to be capable of interstellar travel. Because of the instability of the naquadria, however, the hyperspace window can only be generated for a very brief moment, thus greatly limiting the F-302's interstellar travel capabilities. (6.01 "Redemption Part 1", concerning the F-302's experimental predecessor, the X-302; 7.01 "Fallen Part 1").
The X-302 reached the hypersonic speed of Mach 6 inside Earth's atmosphere at an altitude of 30 kilometers. The interceptor uses the modified aerospike engines in high altitudes. These capabilities were most likely inherited by the F-302. (6.01 "Redemption Part 1", 6.02 "Redemption Part 2")
The F-302 has hundreds of safety mechanisms to compensate for anything that could go wrong. It also has an autopilot which cuts in to ensure safety. As with other Earth aircraft, the F-302 also has ejection seats. (6.01 "Redemption Part 1", 6.02 "Redemption Part 2")
Colson Aviation was contracted by the government to develop the multiple engine control system (MEC) for the aircraft, but was not given all the information concerning the fighter's hybrid design. Along with inertial dampeners, the F-302 has the maneuverability of an F/A-22 Raptor and the ride of a Boeing 747 airliner. (8.08 "Covenant")
The F-302 is armed with missiles. If these missiles were the same as those developed for the F-302's predecessor, the X-301, then they were AIM 120A air-to-air missiles, armed with naquadah-enhanced warheads and shield frequency modulators designed to take out Goa'uld motherships. (4.12 "Tangent")
Because the F-302 cannot maintain a hyperspace window for a long period of time, it is not capable of prolonged interstellar travel. In order to get it from one planet to another within the galaxy, the SGC disassembles the aircraft and transports it through the Stargate. F-302's do not require a very long runway, making them easy to adapt to various locations. Even with their limited hyperspace capability, the F-302's have proven their usefulness in battle situations and are stationed both on Earth and the Alpha Site. (7.01 "Fallen Part 1", 7.22 "Lost City Part 2", 8.08 "Covenant")
The F-302 in Action
7.01 "Fallen Part 1": Destruction of Anubis' Superweapon
Col. Jack O'Neill and Maj. Samantha Carter performed the first F-302 mission, to destroy the ventilation shaft which was used to cool off Anubis' superweapon on his mothership. While O'Neill piloted the aircraft and deployed the weapons, Carter sat in the second seat and coordinated the technical aspects. O'Neill fought a squadron of Anubis' death gliders while Carter converted the encoded transmission sent by Daniel Jackson and Jonas Quinn from Anubis' mothership which gave them the coordinates of their target. Carter also calculated the precise timing of opening the hyperspace window in order for the ship to bypass Anubis' mothership's defense shield. Once the target was locked into the guidance system, O'Neill piloted the F-302 close to the ventilation shaft to ensure acquisition. They were successful in destroying the superweapon when Anubis powered it up to use it against the SGC's encampment on the planet below. The weapon overheated and exploded because the damage to the ventilation shaft prevented the weapon from cooling off. The F-302 was able to fly through Anubis' defense shields upon their retreat because this type of shield only works one way.
7.22 "Lost City Part 2": Protection of SG-1 in Antarctica
Anubis discovered that the Tau'ri were close to finding the Lost City of the Ancients, a place supposedly where powerful weapons were stored which would give whoever possessed them galactic dominance. He sent a fleet of approximately 30 vessels to destroy Earth. The Prometheus and all of the F-302's were sent to protect the cargo ship being used by SG-1 to access an Ancient Outpost which was buried deep in a mile of ice in Antarctica. While the Prometheus hovered protectively over the cargo ship, the F-302 squadron engaged al'kesh and death gliders in a spectacular air battle. Normally, the Prometheus carries a complement of eight F-302's (6.17 "Disclosure"), but there were many more than that in the battle. Once their weapons were depleted, the F-302's were ordered to return to McMurdo Station in the Antarctic. (7.22 "Lost City Part 2")
8.08 "Covenant": Joy Ride at the Alpha Site
When billionaire businessman Alec Colson threatened to disclose the existence of alien life to the public after one of his company's communications satellites took images of the Prometheus in battle with Anubis' fleet in space, Lt. Col. Samantha Carter was given the go-ahead from the President to show him the F-302 built with his multiple engine control (MEC) designs. Carter took Colson to the Alpha Site where a squadron of F-302's were kept in hangars in the facility which was buried inside a mountain. Carter piloted the interceptor and then gave the controls to Colson. He exclaimed that it maneuvered like an F/A-22 (Raptor) and felt like a 747 (Boeing 747 airliner). The inertial dampeners on the aircraft were what gave the smooth ride and prevented the pilot from feeling extreme gravitational forces. Colson put the F-302 in a nose dive and Carter quickly took back control of the interceptor. The Alpha Site control center technician kept an eye on the F-302's status and called Carter out of concern. She assured him that they were fine, lecturing Colson on his reckless behavior. Colson, however, assured her that they would not have crashed and then stated that he had done the maneuver to demonstrate what it felt like to be out of control. Colson was eventually persuaded to keep the Stargate Program a secret and he relocated to the Alpha Site once his conglomerate fell prey to The Trust, an organization of wealthy businessmen and former NID agents who believed that they should protect the world by whatever means were necessary.
8.11 "Gemini": Satellite Deployment
When Replicator Carter was taken to the Alpha Site for interrogation, she revealed that Fifth had developed a cipher to make himself and his first-generation bug-like brethren immune to the disruptor wave emitted by the gun O'Neill had designed when he had the knowledge of the Ancients downloaded in his mind. Thor of the Asgard had connected O'Neill's mind to his ship's computer system so that O'Neill could use the knowledge to design a weapon to kill the Replicators. After the successful use of the technology, Thor programmed his ship to emit the wave over the Asgard's new homeworld. For further protection, the Asgard built disruptor satellites. Thor sent one of these satellites to the Alpha Site via the Stargate and instructed Teal'c on how to deploy it in orbit. Teal'c flew one of the F-302's into orbit and deployed the satellite from the craft's cargo bay. The satellite was used to kill Fifth in his Replicator ship, but Replicator Carter had learned how to become immune to the disruptor wave when she studied the technology at the Alpha Site, tricking Carter into believing that she was helping when really she was planning to kill Fifth and take his place.
9.01 "Avalon Part 1": Flashbacks of the Antarctic Dogfight
The F-302 pilot's perspective on the dogfight in Antarctica was given in the way of flashbacks of the Blue Squadron Leader, Lt. Col. Cameron Mitchell. The pilots met in their hangar and were given their briefing by Mitchell. Originally, they thought that they were going to fight against Anubis' fleet in outerspace, but their orders changed to protect SG-1's cargo ship in Antarctica as they burned a whole in a mile of ice over the Ancient Outpost. Red Leader was destroyed right after saving Blue Leader. Blue Leader, with co-pilot First Lt. Adam Banks killed, systems failing, and in the midst of going down, took out an al'kesh which was poised to destroy SG-1's cargo ship. Then, Blue Leader crashed, but Mitchell survived. It was never specified how many F-302's went down in battle or how many pilots were killed while protecting SG-1.
Pilots
Col. Jack O'Neill was the first pilot of the F-302, after having been the only pilot for its predecessor, the X-302. He and Maj. Samantha Carter were first to use the F-302 in a battle situation, the destruction of Anubis' superweapon on his massive mothership over the skies of the planet Vis Uban. (7.01 "Fallen Part 1")
Following this mission, O'Neill was scheduled to give an orientation on the capabilities of the F-302 to the first group of pilots, the Snakeskinners. But, because of his being cloned and in the body of a teenager, Gen. Hammond decided to have Maj. Carter give the briefing instead.
Two F-302 pilots, one an Air Force Major, gave Carter a really rough time in her briefing on the performance of the fighter because she had only sat in the second seat. It was not until the teenaged clone of O'Neill proved his identity that the pilots showed any kind of respect for Carter. These pilots, no matter their level of cockiness, were thought to be the best of the best. (7.03 "Fragile Balance")
We're introduced to the F-302 pilots who fought in the battle with Anubis' al'kesh and death gliders in Antarctica (7.22 "Lost City Part 2") through flashbacks of the Blue Squadron Leader, Lt. Col. Cameron Mitchell. The pilots gathered in their hangar to hear Mitchell give them their orders to protect SG-1 after they discovered the location of the Ancient Outpost and were attempting to gain access to it. While the Prometheus hovered over SG-1's cargo ship while it was burning a hole in a mile of ice, the F-302's fought around them. Red Leader was destroyed. Blue Leader's co-pilot, First Lt. Adam Banks, was killed when the interceptor was damaged. Their ejection seats were rendered inoperative, so Blue Leader stayed in his plane and continued to fight until he crashed. On his way down, he was successful at taking out an al'kesh which was about to gain access to the cargo ship. Mitchell was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroics. (9.01 "Avalon Part 1")
File:901-f302-pilot.jpg F-302 pilot |
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Carter finally got to sit in the pilot's seat when she took billionaire businessman Alec Colson on a joy ride in an F-302 stationed at the Alpha Site. The reason she wanted to let him sit in the second seat of the aircraft was to show him that his work in engine design was being put to a good use and to ask him to keep the Stargate Program and the existence of alien life a secret. Colson was avid about letting the world know about alien life and Anubis' attack (7.22 "Lost City Part 2") because he felt people had the right to know and to prepare. Colson enjoyed the joy ride, testing the aircraft's capability to maneuver out of a nose dive. Carter had given him the controls, but soon took them back after his reckless behavior. He did it to teach her a lesson about control. (8.08 "Covenant")
Teal'c piloted one of the F-302's at the Alpha Site in order to deploy an Asgard satellite in the planet's orbit. He carried the satellite in the interceptor's cargo bay, located on the ship's underside. (8.08 "Gemini")
Episodes
- 7.01 "Fallen Part 1"
- 7.03 "Fragile Balance"
- 7.22 "Lost City Part 2"
- 8.08 "Covenant"
- 8.11 "Gemini"
- 9.01 "Avalon Part 1"
Related Characters
- Col. Jack O'Neill
- Col. Jack O'Neill's Teenaged Clone
- Dr. Daniel Jackson
- Maj. Samantha Carter
- Teal'c
- Jonas Quinn
- Gen. George Hammond
- Lt. Col. Cameron Mitchell
- Anubis
- First Lt. Adam Banks
- Alec Colson
- Fifth
- Replicator Samantha Carter
- Thor
Related Articles
Keywords
- Al'kesh
- Alpha Site
- Ancients
- Antarctic Outpost
- Antarctic
- Asgard
- Colson Aviation
- Death Gliders
- Goa'uld
- Lost City of the Ancients
- Naquadah
- Naquadria
- Prometheus
- Replicator Disruptor Gun
- Replicators
- Stargate
- Vis Uban
- X-301
- X-302
Other
Further Reading
- Wikipedia: Aerospike Engine
- Wikipedia: Mach Number
- Lockheed F/A-22 Raptor
- Wikipedia: Boeing 747
- Boeing 747 Family (Flash plug-in required)
- Navy Fact File: AIM 120 AMRAAM Missile
Actors
- F-302 Pilots with an attitude in 7.03 "Fragile Balance": Evan Lendrum and Chris Kramer
- Unnamed F-302 Pilot in 9.01 "Avalon Part 1": Michael Jonsson
--DeeKayP 12:27, 19 Aug 2004 (PDT)