The "Manta" Amphibious Fighter is a squadron of submersible aircraft operated by the Royal Navy. They were presumably designed by Dexter Dearborn who also created Joe Sullivan's modified Curtiss P-40 Warhawk.
Armament and Technical Specifications[]
As their name suggests, the Manta amphibious fighter planes are a sleek, fast, and agile aircraft capable of gliding underwater. The Mantas are armed with cluster torpedoes and presumably machine guns as well (if they happen to have any). When entering the water, the Amphibious fighter planes propellers retract to the rear of the wing in a pusher-prop orientation. These planes are also equipped with sonar, and a single spotlight mounted on the bottom of the craft to allow the pilot to see underwater.
History[]
When Totenkopf's Island was located, Manta Squadron was ordered by Commander Francesca "Franky" Cook to provide a distraction and clear a path though enemy lines in order to allow Joe Sullivan and Polly Perkins time to infiltrated the inlet in order to rescue Dex. As soon as Manta Squadron's Amphibious fighter planes and Joe Sullivan's modified Curtis P-40 Warhawk take off from Manta Station and entered the water, they soon discovered the wrecked hulls of civilian and merchant ships that were sunk by the island's Submersible Crab Robot Warship sentries. Manta Squadron soon encountered a large number of Submersible Crab Robot Warships that managed to take out a few of the Manta Squadron's Amphibious fighter planes, as they continued onward, despite taking heavy fire. Manta Squadron soon reaches the Inlet, but it is suddenly blocked by a Submersible Crab Robot Warship that refuses to allow them entry and prepares to arm it's torpedoes. Manta Squadron then arms and fires a a mass cluster torpedo volley at the evil machine, but it is still alive and active, unfortunately the resulting shock-wave cause Joe Sullivan's P-40 Warhawk to graze against a nearby coral reef, in which a rock is firmly lodge in the steering rudder. To make matters worse the recovered Submersible Crab Robot Warship then prepares to fire on Joe Sullivan's damaged P-40 Warhawk, and the machine fires several torpedoes at his plane. Just as they are about to hit Manta Squadron team leader Francesca "Franky" Cook then intervenes using her fighter as a decoy in order to lure the torpedoes away from Joe Sullivan's plane and heads straight towards the enemy Submersible Crab Robot Warship in a kamikaze run. Luckily "Franky" Cook ejects in time as her planes slams right into the enemy Submersible Crab Robot Warship, destroying it, and causing it to sank, thus clearing the way for Joe Sullivan and Polly Perkins.
Later Manta Station returns with a large fleet consisting of dozens of her own sister ship Mobile Airstrip's and many Amphibious fighter planes in order to provide rescue operations and assistance for both Sky Captain and Polly Perkins, and the animals that had managed to safely escape the Rocket Ship's destruction, and prepared to assault the island in order to get rid of all of Totenkopf's remaining robotic war-machines, in order to make sure they never attack innocent Humans ever again.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The Manta, according to its designer Kevin Conrad, was created by borrowing design cues from the "USOS Seaview", a fictional nuclear submarine and setting for the 1961 motion picture "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea", starring Walter Pidgeon.
- The callsign "HB" is the initials of Kevin Conrad's father.
- Unlike the Curtiss P-40 replica, the only part of the Manta not created in CGI was the control stick.