Phoenix

Phoenix was a famed mercenary pilot who served in various battlefields in Usea. He usually served as the flight lead of Scarface Squadron under the callsign Scarface 1 (alternatively Scarface One).

History

Phoenix had a reputation as a soldier for hire in battlefields across the world. In 1995, he was hired by the FCU Army to battle a terrorist group that toppled the government of Skully Island, a region in south Usea. Leading a group of mercenary pilots, he led the Scarface Squadron in anti-insurgency operations across the country, eventually destroying their headquarters and taking down an airship deployed in a desperate attempt to regain power.

After the operations in Skully, Scarface Squadron disbanded and Phoenix himself retired from the frontlines, and settled down in Usea. Two years later, in 1998, he returned to service after being hired by Unified Command after the outbreak of the Usean Rebellion, where he was tasked with aiding them in battling armed forces across the continent that opposed the Osean Federation.

In other games

Phoenix EF-2000 — Phoenix's appearance in *Ace Combat: Joint Assault*.

Following a common series tradition, references to Phoenix are made in subsequent ' Ace Combat games. However, such allusions are minor in number compared to other protagonists, such as Mobius 1.

In Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception, Phoenix appears in the special mission "Operation X" as one of the Ace Combat 2 legacy aces in an XFA-27, along with the "Z.O.E." ADF-01. Phoenix's livery also appears as the Special 2 color of the Typhoon.

He also makes an appearance in the mission "Ace of Aces" in Ace Combat: Joint Assault as the 100th and final enemy aircraft, flying a Typhoon. Phoenix is highly aggressive and adopts Milosz Sulejmani's flight patterns. As with the previous game, the Air Combat color is also available for the Typhoon, alongside the Ace Combat 2 colors for the A-6E Intruder and the MiG-21-93 Fishbed.

In Ace Combat Infinity, the Phoenix paint scheme was included for selected aircraft as part of the 20th anniversary celebration of the series. These paint schemes, alongside their inversed versions, can be unlocked via Challenge Event.

Trivia

Contrary to popular belief, Phoenix is the first playable character to speak. However, he only speaks once during a landing.
Chronologically in Strangereal, Phoenix is the first player character to canonically use an original aircraft, namely the XFA-27.
Phoenix is one of the only two playable characters in multiple games (namely Air Combat, Ace Combat 2, Ace Combat: Assault Horizon Legacy and its re-release), the other being Mobius 1.