ADF-01 Falken: Wikis

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The ADF-01 Falken from Ace Combat 5

The ADF-01 Falken is a fictional fighter aircraft in the games Ace Combat 2, Ace Combat 5, and Ace Combat Zero.

The Falken is obtainable in the Ace Combat 5 game by destroying semi-hidden hangar facilities in levels 12A, 12B, 16A, 16B, and 27. To acquire the plane in Ace Combat Zero, the player must either have Ace Combat 4 and/or 5 save data (in the same region that Ace Combat Zero) on his or her memory card or achieve all of the Ace Medals.

It comes in one paint scheme in Ace Combat 2, three in Ace Combat 5, and five in Ace Combat Zero. All three games share the red "Z.O.E." color scheme, and Ace Combat 5 contains a black "Razgriz" theme as well as a blue camouflage version. Ace Combat Zero, however, has the normal, Mercenary, Soldier, Knight, and Special paint schemes.

ADF-01: Fighter

The ADF-01 first appeared as a non-playable enemy aircraft, piloted by the Z.O.E. Commander Ace Pilot, in the game Ace Combat 2. It appeared in the 22nd level "Fighter's Honor" and in the bonus model viewer.

Largely ignored in the ensuing two games, the Falken made a comeback in Ace Combat 5 as a playable aircraft slightly modified from its first incarnation.

Due to its popularity, the Falken has returned in the Ace Combat Zero game.

Plastic models of the plane from Ace Combat 5 are on sale in Japan.

Aircraft Statistics

The ADF-01 costs 826,000 credits to purchase and is significantly more expensive than any other plane in Ace Combat 5. It is also the most expensive plane to buy a full compliment of, costing 3,304,000 (in Ace Combat 5) credits to furnish the player and each wingman with a Falken.

The Falken's statistics are (as of Ace Combat 5):

Speed: 83

Mobility: 99

Stability: 82

Defense: 67

Air to Air: 99

Air to Ground: 93

Unlike its later brethren, the ADF-01 in Ace Combat 2 carries backwards-firing missiles as a defensive countermeasure and will regularly execute a "Bell" Maneuver, stopping in midair to make the player overshoot.

The playable version of the Falken carries 800 rounds of ammunition for its vulcan cannon, 84 standard missiles, and 14 charges for its Tactical Laser System which is capable of eliminating even the toughest targets within a few seconds.

Aircraft Configuration

The Falken is different from any other vehicle in Ace Combat games. With a body similar to the fictional YF-19 "Little Alpha" aircraft seen in the Macross Plus OVA, the Falken has forward-swept wings, canards, inward-inclined tailrudders, a ventral rudder, and extended engine nacelles with 2-D thrust vectoring.

While these aspects of the plane affect its maneverability, a completely enclosed cockpit that utilyzes cameras instead of a plastic or glass canopy, aka coffin mode, gives the pilot full 360-degree field of view via the cockpit's numerous monitors.

Another unique aspect of the Falken's design is its payload storage. While missiles are carried in conventional "stealth-like" wells along the sides of the engine nacelles, its special weapon is contained behind and below the cockpit. When the weapon is armed, the entire front of the plane splits along the horizontal axis and moves out of the way for the laser's beam.

The ADF-01 has in-flight refueling capabilities.

The Falken somewhat resembles the Delphinus series of aircraft from Ace Combat 3, with similar features such as a peculiar tailplane and no cockpit windows. The Delphinus-2 appears to be most similar, almost resembling the front half of the Falken with its laser deployed. It may be that the Falken's design was adapted into these new futuristic aircraft somewhere between Ace Combats 5 and 3.

Origins

No one knows for sure where the Falken originated. In AC2, the Falken (then just called the ADF-01, and lacking the TLS) was used by the Usean Terrorists during a coup, which takes place in the late 90's. However, the next time it appeared in AC5, it appeared as parts scattered around in Osea, Yuktobania, and Belka, which could be captured in order to be able to buy it. The question is who got it from whom: did the Belkans get it from Z.O.E., or did Z.O.E. get it from Belka? This question may or may not have been solved in ACZ, with the ADF-01 Falken appearing in 1995. given that AC2's cannonicity to the continuity to the PS2 AC games isn't confirmed, it seems safe to say that the Falken is in fact a Belkan Plane. The ADFX-01 and ADFX-02 Morgans, however, raise a different question: was Belka using Erusian technology for the Morgans, or is the X-02 part merely incidental?