Barrier drone

The Barrier Drone was a specialized UAV developed by an unknown country during or prior to the Lighthouse War. It was a small drone that carried an onboard electromagnetic generator that allowed it to produce an EM shield similar to the Active Protection System (APS) used by the two Arsenal Birds. Their only known deployment was during Operation Fisherman, where the rogue Erusean super-submarine Alicorn deployed them to protect themselves against an Osean assault.

History
The barrier drones were developed prior to the Lighthouse War. It is unknown if they were specially manufactured for the Alicorn by its original builders, the Union of Yuktobanian Republics, or if it was an add-on to the original design by the Kingdom of Erusea after the sub was purchased in 2012, but they found their way onto the sub when Captain Matias Torres began his mission to destroy the Osean capital of Oured.

By September 14th, the Alicorn had a large number of barrier drones on board when they were attacked by Osean forces, desperate to stop the attack on Oured by any means necessary. Captain Torres ordered the deployment of the barrier drones in a desperate attempt to stop the assault, but ultimately the Alicorn's ballast tanks were destroyed. After faking his surrender, Torres positioned a large amount of barrier drones between the submarine and the Osean forces before deploying the Alicorn's rail cannon, preparing to fire on Oured. The Osean ace Trigger managed to weave through the drones' shields and managed to prevent the cannon from hitting Oured with its nuclear shell. The last barrier drones protected the Alicorn as the next shell was loaded into the rail cannon, but were unable to stop Trigger from destroying the cannon, and the Alicorn with it.

This was the last known deployment of barrier drones in Strangereal history.

Design
The barrier drone was certainly unusual when compared to most other military UAVs. Instead of providing active combat support, its role was purely defensive and required it to be able to hold up a barrier in front of a target to prevent its mothership (the Alicorn) from being hit.

It used a design not unlike a stereotypical flying saucer or UFO, using large rotors within the airframe to keep the aircraft aloft. This design helped keep the aircraft stationary while also being able to move when necessary.

Game Analysis
How to Unlock
 * -|Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown====Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown===
 * This aircraft is not available to the player.