Aeritalia A-300 Retaliator
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Development of the A-300 began in the mid-1960s as a result of an expanding Bongrovian military. Bongrovia would test its first nuclear weapon in 1958, and development of various nuclear-capable platforms would rapidly surface thereafter. Admiral Alessio Nervetti, then-Commander of Bongrovian Naval Aviation, realized that a carrier-based supersonic nuclear bomber would be vital to Bongrovia’s nuclear force in a future war. The Bongrovian Navy also wanted a replacement for the obsolete A-2S Savage. Taking many elements from the American A-5 Vigilante, the A-300 was originally designed to carry only two nuclear bombs in an internal payload bay—designed after the more reliable F-111 payload bay—but shifting doctrines caused by Bongrovia’s involvement in Vietnam required changing the design to also carry heavy conventional loads on external mounts.
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Making its first flight on November 2nd, 1972, the Retaliator would enter service with the Bongrovian Navy in April 1975. It would be deployed aboard the Essex-class carrier BGS Erasmo Capitani (CV-04) and conduct trials with Heavy Attack Squadron NINE (VAH-9), who would later become the first squadron to deploy with the Retaliator operationally. Marine Heavy Attack Squadron (All-Weather) TWO (VMAH(AW)-2) would receive the first Retaliators for the Bongrovian Marine Corps the next year. The four Navy squadrons and two Marine Corps squadrons at the time would see extensive use during NATO exercises throughout the 1970s and 1980s, most notably Exercise Grand Slam II in 1979 and the infamous Able Archer 83 in 1983. Retaliators aboard BGS Re Umberto (CV-03) in the Mediterranean and BGS Valkyrie (CV-09) in the Norwegian Sea would later be considered one of the primary factors behind the potential escalation. Retaliators would finally see combat use in 1991 when Bongrovian forces would deploy to Kuwait as part of Operation Voodoo, Bongrovia’s commitment to the Coalition. A-300s performed numerous day and nighttime strikes against Iraqi targets, including bunkers, command structures, and vehicles. Photo reconnaissance and electronic warfare variants of the Retaliator would see action as well, with reconnaissance aircraft taking pre- and post-strike photos and EW aircraft destroying Iraqi radars and surface-to-air missile sites. Retaliators continue to serve with both the Bongrovian Navy in the upgraded A-300C and EA-300C variants and the Royal Australian Air Force in the export A-300D variant, which was built in 2009/2010 to replace the aging F-111C fleet.
The Retaliator would be developed in six distinct variants. The A-300A was the initial variant, resembling the U.S. A-5A Vigilante and being powered by two Rolls-Royce RB.168 Mk.202 Spey engines built under license by Aeritalia. The A-300B was built in three subvariants; A-300B1 (initially just “A-300B”) was visually identical to A-300A, with primary improvements being the correcting of failures with landing gear strength and the terrain-following radar system, A-300B5 would introduce the distinctive dorsal fuel hump as well as new General Electric F110-GE-100 engines, and the A-300B10 would introduce updated avionics and the Tactical Laser Attack System (TLAS) allowing it to carry and use laser-guided precision munitions. The A-300C entered service in 2007 and introduce modernized avionics, a fully digital glass cockpit, new F110-GE-132 engines, and a largely increased munitions capacity (including Storm Shadow, IRIS-T, GBU-39/B, and many others). The A-300D was a series of 30 new-build aircraft based on the A-300C to replace the F-111C fleet with the Royal Australian Air Force; they entered service in 2011. The EA-300A/B/C is an electronic warfare aircraft, utilizing a tail AN/ALQ-99 jamming pod and AGM-45 Shrike or AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation missiles. The RA-300A/B/C was a tactical photo-reconnaissance variant; originally being equipped with a permanent multi-camera pallet in the weapons bay, the RA-300 was retired in 2011 and replaced by the removable Leonardo Eagle Eye camera and ELINT pod which can be equipped on any regular A-300.
Armament (A-300A ONLY)
Rockets
- 4-round 5-inch Zuni pods
- 6- or 12-round 81mm SNORA pods
- 7- or 19-round 70mm CRV7 pods
Missiles
- AGM-12 Bullpup AGM
- AGM-45 Shrike ARM
- AS.34 Kormoran 1 AShM
- AIM-9E/J Sidewinder IR-AAM
Bombs
- Mk 80 series unguided GP bombs
- BL755 cluster bomb
- Mk 20 Rockeye cluster bomb
- BN-70/71/71CP nuclear bomb
- AGM-62 Walleye/Walleye II TV glide bomb
Misc
- SUU-23/A 20mm gun pods
- 400-gallon drop tanks
- Mk 60 CAPTOR naval mine (from 1980 on)
- Various practice stores, baggage pods, and countermeasure launchers
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