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CREATION The Blackbird was designed by Chief Galen Tyrol in the second season episode, '' Flight Of The Phoenix ''. Inspiration With crew morale steadily getting worse, tensions were running high. Tyrol was snappy with Apollo’s insistence to get as many Vipers in the air as possible. Tyrol asked whether Apollo would have him work his crew to death, to which Apollo replied that Tyrol should just try his best and nobody expected a miracle. Under his breath Tyrol suggested that maybe that was the problem. Tyrol subsequently proposed to his flight crew that they build a new fighter completely from scratch, using scrap parts and components from unsalvageable ships. This would be “strictly an off-duty project” in addition to regular maintenance. However, his crew reacts pessimistically, reminding him of the multitude of tasks that building a new fighter would present (i.e. installing avionics and life support systems). The chief quickly dismisses them and proceeds to build the fighter by himself. Crew Perception Apollo was also dismissive of Tyrol’s "hobby project" whilst talking to Starbuck in the shooting gallery. He did not believe it would ever fly and even if it did, no-one would fly it. Starbuck, possibly under the influence of asphyxiation, volunteered to test fly it. This is partly because she liked the fact that Tyrol was doing something positive whilst everyone else was “whining”. After seeing Tyrol struggle with assembly of the larger parts, the flight crew eventually joined him in the endeavour. Soon, many of the crew were involved in specific areas of its construction. Eventually, the superstructure and all internal systems for the ship were completed. However, because of the scarce availability of metal, there was not enough left for the creation of a skin. Helo , had earlier come to blows with Tyrol over their relationships with Sharon . Hearing about the skinning problem, and in an effort to make peace with the crew, he suggested that the skeleton be covered with Carbon Fiber . This would render the fighter virtually invisible to the DRADIS system as well as Cylon detection. Test Flight The test flight was a success, although it did have a bit of a shaky take-off and first few minutes. Starbuck decided to play a prank and go Radio Silent , causing her shipmates much concern. However, she was just testing out the stealth capabilities of the ship, albeit it in a jocular fashion. Unveiling The Blackbird was unveiled during a ceremony attended by the Galactica’s flight crew and leadership as well as President Laura Roslin . The flight crew had named the Blackbird ''Laura'' in her honor. This nearly brought her to tears. Roslin then startled everyone by pretending to crack a bottle of sparkling alcohol over the Blackbird’s hull. Tyrol jumped in front of her but she revealed that she was just kidding. ARMAMENT There are no projectile weapons such as those carried by the Vipers on the Blackbird. In fact she appears at first to have been completely unarmed. It was capable of being fitted with a Surveillance Kit . This was used by Starbuck in the initial Reconnaissance to determine the function of the Resurrection Ship. However, in the episode " Resurrection Ship, Part II ", the fighter was shown to have a Hardpoint for an external weapon. This was used to deliver an anti-ship missile, which destroyed the FTL drive on the Resurrection Ship . CURRENT STATUS Shortly after neutralising the Resurrection Ship, the Blackbird collided with a Cylon Raider and was destroyed. The pilot, Apollo, managed to eject safely, though his pressure suit was ruptured by debris from the collision and he had a brush with death. So far, the ''Galactica'' crew has not built a second model. |
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