ORCA

Introduction
Flying brick of air-to-air armaments. Sluggish and expensive, but can devastate most if not all air targets at any range while also remaining versatile enough to take out ground targets.

Usage
The ORCA may seem inferior to the VECTOR with similar durability and lower speed, acceleration, and agility.

The ORCA makes up for these shortcomings in supreme anti-aero capability. The ORCA is best used to pick off targets from a distance and make use of the more avionics heavy AAMs in-game like the Meteor —it is the ability to comfortably wield a pair of Longbows and/or Meteors alongside supplementary weapons that gives it a greater degree of versatility when engaging targets, and gives it a leg up over the VECTOR.

Unlike its smaller counterparts however, it has a few unique characteristics: The ORCA is tied with the more expensive (and postgame exclusive) AURORA for the most payload capacity out of all three interceptors, so in a pinch it can be used for quick hit-and run strikes against a ground target using UB-Ms and RKT-Hs.
 * 1) Very tight micromissile shot points. The ORCA's micromissile launchers are stacked on top of each other vertically, meaning that MICRO-RKTs and TWIN-GUNs are essentially a single stream. This makes it perfect for utilizing either of these weapons for air to ground work, and also giving more avionics room to play with.
 * 2) Dedicated gun position. The ORCA's model carries a rotary cannon slung under its right wing, where all guns fire from (bar guns in the micro slot). This causes a unique situation where your guns are slightly offset to the right side, while your other weapons still fire from underneath the aero.

ORCA
Functionally no different from enemy VECTORs, this enemy will fly in a basic flight path and target the player with Micromissiles.

ORCA-ACE
A MK2 Orca equipped with a Meteor. This ACE variant will occasionally appear during campaign days 8-12, and must be taken seriously. Though a sluggish dogfighter, its Meteor missile allows it to attack the player from any angle. Proper strategy is needed to consistently avoid this missile.

While a serious threat to fragile aeros, the Meteor's short range mean that the aero is much less of a threat beyond 500m.

Pilots' Corner

 * Loading up on Longbows, Diamondbacks and Meteors can turn this aero into a massive multidirectional anti-air powerhouse, allowing it to cleave through swarms, pick off pursuers, and snipe larger or slower craft from range.

Trivia

 * Alongside the AURORA, it does not have a conventional cockpit, instead using cameras to provide a similar effect. This is a model aesthetic however, and does not affect the in-game camera views.
 * It appears to have a radome slung under the fuselage.
 * Early alpha models for the heavy interceptor included a more conventional-looking "DRACHE" heavy interceptor, which was similar in shape to a J 35 Draken, The early alpha models can be found here: (https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/drache-heavy-interceptor-9e315132daad44c09807ccc12d46c623)