Night Raven

The Cobra Night Raven S3P, or “Raven” as it is more commonly referred to, is regarded by many to be the most advanced, most powerful aircraft used by either G.I. Joe or Cobra during the course of conflict by both sides. The plane is capable of 2,310 mph (Mach 3.5) making it the fastest land based aircraft in the entire world, even faster than the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, upon which the plane is based. The Viper turbo-jets are based around a ram-jet design that only increase in power as the aircraft moves faster.

Vehicle profile
No other plane used by either side could touch the incredible versatility of the Raven. During the course of time, Cobra Night Ravens were initially used for reconnaissance, where the planes limited stealth abilities and incredible cruising speed made it immune to interception. The Raven also found a place as a VIP transport, ferrying Cobra leaders to any location safely. The plane has also been used extensively as an interceptor, using long range radar-guided air-to-air missiles stored internally to shoot down attacking bombers and fighters. The least performed task of the Raven was as a supersonic bomber, where it could be easily converted to carry a thermonuclear weapon to wipe out large military installations with a single long-range mission. Any information regarded specific missions performed by these fine aircraft is strictly classified for security purposes. The Night Raven was the one and only aircraft in all of Cobra's forces that did NOT have a vertical take-off and landing capability, making a short runway a necessity.

The crew of a Raven consisted of a pilot, and a gunner/RIO (radio intercept officer.) Although it has never been documented to have occurred, the gunner controls a pair of rearward-facing 20mm automatic cannons to shoot down fighter aircraft. Cobra purchased only a small number of Ravens from M.A.R.S., the expense of the aircraft made larger numbers prohibitive and total number operational is thought to be less than ten.