Skystriker XP-14F
Interceptor-Fighter

The F-14 Tomcat is a Navy jet. No other US service branch ever operated it, in large part because it was designed specifically for use on an aircraft carrier. Now technically, the Skystriker is not an F-14, it's an XP-14F, which could be some Air Force variant of the airframe since it's clearly based on the same jet. But since the Joes have the USS Flagg, and since the Tomcat's airframe is so clearly built for aircraft carrier operations, it's a Navy plane in my Joeverse.

The Skystriker is actually a very good scale model of the Tomcat, in 1/32 scale. The only thing that's really out of scale is the interior of the cockpit, which allows two 1/18 scale figures to sit in it. This custom is mostly about the paint job. Rather than plaster it with all the stickers that came with the original, I used a fairly minimal amount of reproduction stickers and did some painting, adding red and blue to the wings and painted the vertical stabilizers black as they appeared on the box art. This gives it a cleaner look.

The Skystriker being a Navy plane did create a dilemma. Since Ace is a USAF pilot according to his filecard, I was going to have to either give the Skystriker a new pilot, or make a change to Ace's background. Since Ace not flying the Skystriker would be tantamount to heresy, he's now a Navy man in my universe. And since all Tomcats require a RIO (Radar Intercept Officer) to fly in the back seat, I created Scope.

The only non-Skystriker part I used are the Sidewinder missiles. The Sidewinders that come with the Skystriker have extra flangey bits in the middle which don't appear on real Sidewinders, so I prefer to use the Dragonfly version (or a close approximation) when possible. They fit nicely on the Sidewinder's pegs and the colour matches with the other missiles pretty well.

Airframe, Sparrow missiles, Phoenix missiles – Skystriker
Sidewinder missiles – Dragonfly

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Ace
Fighter Pilot

The F-14 Tomcat is a Navy jet. No other US service branch ever operated it, in large part because it was designed specifically for use on an aircraft carrier. Now technically, the Skystriker is not an F-14, it's an XP-14F, which could be some Air Force variant of the airframe since it's clearly based on the same jet. But since the Joes have the USS Flagg, and since the Tomcat's airframe is so clearly built for aircraft carrier operations, it's a Navy plane in my Joeverse. Which means that Ace is a Navy pilot, since having someone other than Ace being the Skystriker pilot would not be acceptable. His revised filecard reads as follows:

File Name: Armbruster, Brad J.
Service Branch: Navy
Rank (Grade): LT (O-3)
Primary MOS: Naval Aviator
Secondary MOS: Intelligence Officer
Birthplace: Providence, RI

Ace would rather fly than do anything else. During high school he worked after school and weekends to pay for flying lessons. Spent one year flying pipelines in Alaska and two years stunt flying for movies. Enlisted in the Navy at 22. Duty most previous to G.I. Joe assignment: senior instructor USN Fighter Weapons School “Top Gun” (pilot combat training school). Qualified Expert: A-4, F-5E, F-14, F-16, XP-14F.

“Ace has one major character flaw: cutthroat poker. A predilection for gambling would ordinarily disqualify an applicant for the G.I. Joe team but in Armbruster's case you can hardly call it gambling since he NEVER LOSES. That's why we call him Ace!”

Head – Ace
Arms – Windmill
Torso – Frostbite v7
Waist, legs – Wild Weasel

Helmet – Marauder Inc.

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Scope
Flight Officer

The F-14 Tomcat is a Navy jet. No other US service branch ever operated it, in large part because it was designed specifically for use on an aircraft carrier. Now technically, the Skystriker is not an F-14, it's an XP-14F, which could be some Air Force variant of the airframe since it's clearly based on the same jet. But since the Joes have the USS Flagg, and since the Tomcat's airframe is so clearly built for aircraft carrier operations, it's a Navy plane in my Joeverse. Tomcats (the Skystriker included) are always two-seat aircraft, with the second occupied by the Radar Intercept Officer. Scope is therefore Ace's RIO.

File Name: Rivers, John C.
Service Branch: Navy
Rank (Grade): LTJG (O-2)
Primary MOS: Naval Flight Officer
Secondary MOS: Meteorology/Oceanography
Birthplace: Kingsland, AR

Scope never wanted to fly. When he joined the Navy straight out of college he was looking forward to a career in meteorology. But his real passion was country music, and he'll talk incessantly about the greatest musicians of the genre, as he sees them. One night in the officer's mess he ended up in a poker game with a certain Lieutenant Armbruster, and “Ace” found Scope's constant nattering to be a very useful distraction, cleaning up the table. Since then the two have been inseparable, and Ace insisted that the younger man become his flight officer. The rest is history.

“Scope is a great multi-tasker, manning the weapons systems, monitoring the radar and possible contacts, navigating and coordinating tactical efforts, all while providing a running commentary on the relative merits of Hank Snow versus Hank Williams.”

Head – Barrel Roll
Arms – Thunder
Torso – Snake Eyes v18
Waist, legs – Wild Weasel

Helmet – Marauder Inc.

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Conquest XF-17N
Night Fighter

The worst part about the Conquest X-30 are the yellow bits, obviously. That was the starting point for this custom, replacing the missiles and engine exhaust with parts from the 2003 version of the plane. Them some black paint followed to give it an overall darker look, which made it a night fighter to me. I replaced two of the missiles with Sidewinders from the Dragonfly, since no self-respecting 1980s fighter jet would be without them. The moniker XF-17N comes from my attempt to rationalize the number of GI Joe jets. The Conquest was called X-30 (almost certainly) because it's inspired by the Grumman X-29, an experimental plane with forward-swept wings. The designers just increased the number by one. But when an X-plane goes from being an experiment to actually entering service, it gets a new number based on the existing numbering system. Sometimes when there is a competition among two new fighters for a contract, they'll both get a YF designation. This is what led to the YF-17 Cobra, which lost to the F-16 Fighting Falcon but which was later developed into the F-18 Hornet. The difference was substantial enough that a new number was needed. But to me that leaves a gap in the numbering, and given the year that the Conquest was released, it would make sense that it could fill the F-17 slot. So that's why it's the XF-17N in my Joeverse (where th X refers to special operations rather than experimental). I realize that the term “night fighter” is outmoded now, but like the “P” in the Skystriker's number (which I interpret to refer to “pursuit”, another old-fashioned term for a fighter), it just means the Joes use throwback terminology. The Conquest is therefore equipped with the most advanced radar and detection systems known to man, which explains why it has such a large nose as well.

Airframe, drop tanks – Conquest X-30
Engine exhaust, “Light Sparrow” missiles – Conquest X-30 (2003 version)
Sidewinder missiles - Dragonfly

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Slip-Stream
Fighter Pilot

To go with my custom Conquest, of course, is a custom Slip-Stream. This was mainly a head replacement, but some additional details were painted as well. Free Fall's head was used since his helmet and mask are some of the only accessories in the ARAH line that can pass for a flight helmet and airmask, and this ensures a good fit. Just some paint on the eyes and hair, and a little added moustache and he's good to go.

Head – Free Fall
Arms, torso, waist, legs – Slip-Stream

Helmet, oxygen mask – Free Fall

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Talon II
Fighter Jet

The True Heroes Truhawk is a pretty cool swing-wing jet, and since it has a blue base colour and doesn't represent any real-world fighter, I assigned this custom version to Cobra. I repainted the camo colouring to make it a bit more striking, removed the lights and the ejection mechanism (just because it's way too eay to accidentally activate it) and added some Cobra stickers. An aluminum rivet in the nose makes a convincing pitot tube. The pilot is the Air Viper. The name Talon II comes from the fact that the Cobra jets that appeared in the first episode of the original mini-series (The Cobra Strikes) have been referred to as Talons, so this is the successor to those planes. And as soon as I figure out a good way to make a Joe-scale F-102 Delta Dagger, Cobra will get their original Talon too.

Aircraft – True Heroes S1 Truhawk (modified)

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Air Viper
Cobra Fighter Pilot

We know that AVAC stands for Air Viper – Advanced Class. This, of course, implies that there is also Air Viper – Basic Class. AVBC does not, of course, lend itself to being pronounced by native English speakers, so just Air Viper it is. A custom-cast copy of the AVAC head forms the basis of this figure, with the idea that they'd share some tech with the Advanced Class. The Air Vipers are the pilots of the Cobra Talon II fighter.

Head – AVAC (custom-cast)
Arms. waist – Barbecue
Torso – Slipstream
Legs – Armadillo

Pistol - unknown

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Bulldog
Close Air Support Jet

The Joes have numerous fighters in the their aircraft inventory, but are a bit lacking on attack jets. They have a prop-powered bomber in the Mudfighter, and they have the Tiger Rat, a repainted Cobra Rattler which is based on the A-10 Thunderbolt II. 2003's Sky Sweeper Jet is also a bomber. So the Tiger Rat is the only Close Air Support aircraft they have, and that's a role that special operations would be especially in need of at times. In 1997 Hasbro also released a recoloured Rattler as an A-10, but there are enough differences between the planes (the number of engines and their placement, and the tilting VTOL wings of the Rattler) that it doesn't quite work. The World Peacekeepers line has a very nice A-10, which is a fair bit larger than a Rattler, and is more in-scale with what an A-10 should be, assuming you take the Skystriker as the definitive Joe scale, which you should. The biggest job on this custom was the paint job – it's freehand camouflage using three colours of spray paint – one tan and two shades of camo green.

Aircraft, ordnance – World Peacekeepers A-10 Thunderbolt II
Stickers – Toyhax.com and World Peacekeepers A-10 Thunderbolt II

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Striker
Fighter Pilot

This custom is based on the Tiger Force pilot called Skystriker, who flew the Joe's yellow-and-black version of the Cobra Rattler in 1988. The first that had to change was his name – Skystriker already means something big in the Joe universe, and since we don't have to worry about registering new trademarks for each code name, we just make a change to Striker instead. The body is mostly the same as the original, but to make the figure a little more unique it has a different head, one that wasn't used in the vintage ARAH run.

Head – Duke v21
Arms – Ace v2
Torso, waist, legs – Wild Weasel

Helmet – Free Fall
Airmask – Rip Cord (modified)

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Storm Eagle XF-23R
Light Stealth Fighter

The Storm Eagle is based on the YF-23 prototype which lost to the F-22 Raptor in the Advanced Tactical Fighter competition. The Storm Eagle is far too small to actually be a YF-23 in Joe scale. But we can assume that the USAF took the prototype and then reduced the size to make a light stealth fighter rather than a full-on air-superiority fighter like the F-22.

Other than painting and decals, there are two bits of customization. First was to remove a lot of material from the inside of the cockpit in order to fit a pilot sitting down (and he just barely fits). Second was to move the two missile pylons on top of the wings to underneath the fuselage. Although there are no aerodynamic reasons not to mount missiles on top of the wings, and indeed there has been at least one fighter in history with that capability, they're not ideal from a practical perspective.

Aircraft and missiles – Storm Eagle

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Maverick
Fighter Pilot

I needed a pilot for the Storm Eagle, and since it's difficult to fit the Vector jet into a realistic set of air force for the Joes, Maverick was available to sit in the Storm Eagle's pilot seat. I chose parts to keep something of his more-fantastical flight suit, while toning it down to something that could be used in the real world. He needed to be as short and compact as possible in order to fit into the cockpit, since the Storm Eagle has a very small space to work with inside.

Head – Maverick
Arms – Shadow Viper
Torso – Star Viper
Waist – Slip Stream
Legs – Gyro-Viper

Helmet – Checkpoint

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Firebird (Zhar-Ptitsa)
Oktober Guard Fighter Jet

The Oktober Guard needs air support. They're well-known for utilizing the Mi-24 “Hind” helicopter, but they also need a fast-mover since a helo is going to be a sitting duck when a Skystriker comes streaking along. The only readily-available Soviet/Russian jet fighter in Joe scale is the World Peacekeepers Su-27 Flanker, which suits me just fine since it's badass.

There are many varieties of the Su-27, which speaks to its versatility and ability. This particular one has a tailhook at the back, which suggests that it's designed for carrier operations. But the actual Su-27 variant designed for carriers is the Su-33, which also has canards added at the front, so this is clearly not one. However, given the special operations nature of the Oktober Guard, it makes sense that their fighter support would be able to operate in as many environments as possible, so this is not an issue.

This custom is named after the firebird (zhar-ptitsa), a mythological creature from Slavic mythology, which allows the translation and the NATO reporting name for this jet to be the same – Firebird. The paint job is a splinter camo pattern, based on a pattern found online which is apparently intended for winter operations. Splinter patterns with sharp edges and angles apparently work quite well to deceive observers as to an aircraft's position, distance and speed.

The toy comes with 12 hardpoints, but only 10 pieces of ordnance. Fortunately, the World Peacekeepers A-10 comes with more ordnance than hardpoints, so two bombs from that toy complete the Firebird's loudout. It's armed to the teeth.

Aircraft – World Peacekeepers Su-27 Flanker
Ordnance – World Peacekeepers Su-27 Flanker and A-10 Thunderbolt II

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Ilyusha
Oktober Guard Fighter Pilot

Every fighter jet needs a pilot, and since the Oktober Guard have a helicopter pilot in Daina but no fixed-wing pilot, when I did a custom fighter for them (the Zhar-Ptitsa or Firebird), a new character was needed to operate it. Ilyusha is that pilot. His code name refers obliquely to the fox, a prominent animal in Russian folk tales, which represents guile and cunning as it does in many cultures. So he's a crafty and slippery pilot, unpredictable and able to execute maneuvers at just the moment you don't expect.

File Name: Ivanovic, Elisei
Service Branch: VVS (Voyenno-Vozdushnye Sily Rossii / Russian Air Force)
Rank (Grade): Major (O-3)
Primary MOS: Fighter Pilot
Secondary MOS: Intelligence Officer
Birthplace: Murom, URS

Head – Cross Hair
Arms, waist, legs – Free Fall
Torso – Windmill

Helmet – Star Wars

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Rapier XF-22P
Air Superiority Fighter

As fighter technology advances, the GI Joe air wing has to keep pace. So when the USAF gets a shiny new air-superiority fighter like the F-22 Raptor, the Joes get their own version. A Joe-scale Raptor was released under the True Heroes name (as well as other brands as well, I assume), so it was a simple matter of doing a paint job and adding some decals. “Rapier” was one of the early names applied to the F-22 before “Raptor” was assigned, so that's the name used for this jet. But wait, you might say, don't the Joes already have an F-22 in the form of the Thunderwing Jet, released in 2004? But I have other plans for the Thunderwing, so that opened up an F-22-sized hole in the Joe fighter lineup in my Joeverse.

Aircraft, AMRAAM missiles - True Heroes F-22 Raptor
HARM missiles – World Peacekeepers F/A-18 Hornet

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Silverbolt
Fighter Pilot

Silverbolt is the pilot of the Rapier, my Joe version of the F-22 Raptor. It was a very simple custom to make, being essentially Slip-Stream v2 with a new head. Here is his filecard information:

File Name: Adler, Michael C.
Birthplace: Paterson, NJ
Service Branch: Air Force
Rank (Grade): Capt (O-3)
Primary MOS: Fighter Pilot
Secondary MOS: Generalist Pilot

Silverbolt suffers from a fairly severe fear of heights. But rather than letting this keep him out of the air, he has instead developed an attitude of grim determination whenever he's flying. He refuses to let his phobia keep him grounded. And the Joe brass knows that when he is in command of a mission, responsible for the safety of his teammates, he never spares a thought for himself or his fears. He is focused on his team, and on the mission.

“He started out as a transport pilot, but his leadership and bravery in the face of his phobia ultimately pushed him towards fighter jets. Silverbolt can always be counted on to overcome his problems to do what needs to be done.”

Head – Cross Hair
Arms, torso, waist, legs – Slip-Stream v2

Helmet, airmask – Ace v2

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