The Pyro-GX is a multirole fighter craft designed and manufactured by Antares Fleet Yards, and is one of the newest fighters in service with Starfleet. The Pyro-GX is capable of performing in both planetary and carrier-borne operations, and has an effective range of over 27 AU (astronomical units). It is primarily used as an interceptor for planetary colonies or to protect Federation carriers from attack, but is also used in planetary attack and close air support roles, or as escorts for freight liners when a starship cannot be spared or is otherwise unavailable. The Pyro-GX was created to supplement and eventually replace the aging Peregrine-class fighter, and by 2386, Starfleet plans to decommission the last Peregrine squadron, to be replaced primarily by the Pyro.

The Pyro-GX, maneuvering through a subterranean tunnel

The Pyro-GX was created with the notion of a small, agile, heavily armed attacker in mind, and as such, is armed with two pairs of phaser cannons, and is capable of mounting various explosive ordinances on the upper wings, including (but not limited to) photon torpedoes and microtorpedoes, and low-yield tricobalt warheads.

Development

The Pyro-GX project began as a planned retrofit of the Peregrine-class fighters, including upgrades to the fusion reactors, impulse engines, and primary weapon systems. However, the Starfleet Corps of Engineers came to the quick conclusion that the Peregrine was incapable of supporting the vast number of upgrades that were planned, and the Peregrine's lackluster performance in the Dominion War proved these upgrades necessary. It was then that the SCoE scrapped the idea of a refit of the Peregrine, and returned to the drawing board. Eventually, the basic outline and specifications for the Pyro-GX were imagined, and of all the candidates, Starfleet Command chose the Pyro over it's competition.

Plan and isometric views of the Pyro-GX model

Starfleet Command's requisites included a smaller airframe, as the Peregrine, with it's large dorsal surface area and wide wings, proved an easy target for Dominion fighters and attack ships. The Pyro-GX has significantly decreased total area, and a much smaller frame in general, making it a much harder target and a lighter craft, but the challenge arose of how to cram all of the necessary hardware for a fully-featured fighter into such a small casing. The compromise came in the removal of the onboard warp drive, limiting the fighter to sublight speeds and slaving it to the mothership for long-range travel. Starfleet, when presented with this idea, eventually accepted the proposal, deeming that a powerful, short-range interceptor would be preferable to a mediocre combat vessel with excellent range, and cited the fact that Peregrine squadrons made significant use of their warp drives in only about 5% of combat sorties.

The Pyro-GX was fitted with a small Strfleet Mark VI fusion microreactor as it's primary powerplant, and the SCoE originally chose the Pratt & Whitney IE-1050 ion impulse engine, but opted to install the slightly less-powerful IE-950 instead, given the 1050's tendency to lose containment much easier under heavy combat conditions.