Tiger Shark

Under Construction The Tiger Shark is the Barracuda's larger cousin and is a large aircraft deployed by the Tau in the fighter bomber role. Often encountered flying in support of Tau Hunter Cadres during major operations, it is faster and more manoeuvrable than the Imperium's direct equivalent- the Marauder bomber, but the Tiger Shark lacks the large bomb payload. Tiger Sharks are never as numerous as the Barracuda, but have many features and systems in common with it. All crew come from the Air Caste, giving them the natural advantage of superior three-dimensional awareness and tolerance for higher acceleration speeds, and more Gs in the turn, than a human pilot. Like the Barracuda, different Air Caste Septs operate slightly different versions. The Tiger Shark's main role seems to be the deployment of drones where it's drone racks can deploy a shower of remote weapons platforms anywhere over the battlefield. Tiger Sharks are commonly armed with twin-linked ion-cannons and wing mounted missile pods for ground attacks, as well as drone-controlled burst cannons for defence against enemy fighters, although a flight of Tiger Sharks will usually also be accompanied by Barracudas as fighter cover. More recently, Tiger Sharks armed with multiple Seeker Missiles have also encountered. Like the Barracuda, different Air Caste Septs operate slightly different versions.