Azov

Armament

Unit type: naval escort ship
Dimensions: length 167 meters, width 22 meters
Armament: 5 x 2-barrel GN beam cannon, 3 fore, 2 aft; 4 x 60mm GN vulcan gun; 16 x GN missile launcher
Powerplant: argon-cooled nuclear reactor, output rated at 77000 kW; 2 x GN drive, output theoretically unlimited based on remaining particle supply
Performance: cruising speed 35 knots; maximum speed 48 knots
Propulsion: 2 x GN hydrojet system
Hangar capacity: none, landing pad for 2 mobile suits

After the formation of the Earth Union in UC 221, further development of GN drive-powered military units became a joint directive of the former research staffs of both the Earth Sphere Alliance and Human Reform League. One of the first topics addressed would be the formation of a new "GN Navy", as the League had little blue-water capability to begin with, while the Alliance's surface combatants were aging badly - the crushing loss of an entire carrier battle group in UC 216 to a handful of terrorist-operated mobile suits was proof enough for any skeptic. By utilizing the particle-pushing ability of a GN drive, the Union was able to create a series of naval vessels that could propel themselves using particle-charged water in a hydrojet engine, and entirely new Earth Union surface fleets were patrolling the seas by UC 224.

The Azov is a high-speed escort ship that can also be used in seek-and-destroy and patrol operations. A high degree of automation allows for a crew of barely 70 officers and men, with computer-assisted aiming and rangefinding (derived from the League's spaceship designs) replacing the clunky Alliance electrically-operated weaponry. As with most Union ships, the Azov utilizes multiple GN drives to provide for both motive force, electrical power, and energy supply to its weapons, while a conventional nuclear reactor drip-feeds the GN drives with additional power to maintain a constant particle supply. The cruiser's hull shape, with large shields opposite its deck structures, lends to a low observability on sensors, making it difficult to detect at long range.

Five twin-barreled GN beam cannons, similar to those used on the more advanced Guyana-class gunship, are mounted in concealed batteries in the ship's deck. With full rotation and bi-axial stabilization, the beam cannons are capable of engaging almost any target above the waterline. A series of GN missile launchers are mounted vertically in the deck ahead of the landing pads, providing long-range strike capability as well as allowing engagement of both airborne and underwater targets. Finally, several GN vulcan guns are mounted around the deck structure for local defense against mobile suits and other targets attempting to close distance.

Although space exists for mobile suits to land on the rear deck area, the Azov is not intended to support such operations for any meaningful period of time, and therefore is not provided with any means to quickly charge a mobile suit's GN drive.