RX-104FF Penelope

The RX-104FF Penelope is a prototype transformable newtype-use mobile suit. It was featured in the novel Mobile Suit Gundam: Hathaway's Flash. The RX-104FF Penelope without its flight unit is officially referred to as the "RX-104 Odysseus Gundam." The unit is piloted by Rein Eim.

Technology & Combat Characteristics
Developed by Anaheim Electronics in cooperation with the Circe special force, the Penelope is a large-sized, fifth-generation MS featuring a compact Minovsky craft flight unit. The Penelope is actually a combination of the RX-104 Odysseus Gundam and the FF (Fixed Flight) armor unit. Despite Penelope's large size, it is incredibly fast. The unit's most notable trait is the Minovsky barrier which the Penelope deploys frontally when it transforms into its dragon-like mode. This form is necessary when the Penelope cruises at high speed. This barrier reduces drag from air friction against Penelope's frame, allowing it to cruise at high speed and easily break the sound barrier.

In terms of armaments, the Penelope is armed with a standard beam saber, beam rifle and vulcan guns but also has small mega particle gun built into its arm shield and two funnel missiles, an extremely accurate Psycommu-guided micro missile. The Penelope is a unit that greatly excels in aerial combat.

Armaments

 * Beam Rifle
 * The Penelope carries a custom beam rifle that, despite while having a different design, has about the same power as a standard beam rifle.


 * Vulcan Guns
 * The Penelope houses four vulcan guns in the overhanging "head" mounted on top of the unit. The neck of this unit is articulated and has a small degree of flexibility to aim at the target.


 * Sand Barrel
 * The Penelope is equipped with two "Sand Barrel" units, a weapon that fires multiple beams simultaneously. The weapon could best be described as a beam shotgun.  The Sand Barrel units are mounted on top of each shoulder, and can be aimed individually at the target.


 * Shield
 * The Penelope has two small shields on its arms. Each houses a beam saber, mega particle cannon, and launchers for the Funnel Missiles


 * Mega Particle Cannons
 * The Penelope has two mega-particle cannons, mounted on the the arm shield units. When combined, the power of the two cannons surpasses that of the High Mega Cannon of the MSZ-010 ΖΖ Gundam.


 * Beam Saber
 * The Penelope has 2 beam sabers, one in each forearm shield from where the blade is emitted from.


 * Funnel Missiles
 * Perhaps the unit's most potent weapons, these funnels are accurately controlled by the pilot via psycommu. Unlike a standard funnel, they explode upon impact, giving the weapons their name, Funnel Missiles. They are launched from the sides of arm shields

System Features

 * Minovsky Barrier
 * With this, the Penelope can jam and disrupt communication, radars and several other system features.


 * Minovsky Craft Flight System
 * This craft system gives the Penelope its distinct look. It enables the Penelope to fly and/or hover over extended periods of time much like an aircraft. This feature also gives the Penelope immense speed, mobility and versatility.


 * A system usually put into place on battleship sized vessels, the Minovsky Craft is lift-generating system which allows a vehicle to resist the pull of Earth's gravity When Minovsky particles are released into the air, the positive and negative particles spontaneously align themselves into a three-dimensional cubic lattice. Because of the repulsive and electrostatic forces between the Minovsky particles, this lattice resists compression, and the Minovsky craft system uses this phenomenon to push the underside of the vessel away from the planet's surface.


 * Though the Minovsky craft system doesn't produce genuine anti-gravity, it does allow a vehicle to float over Earth's surface. Since the lattice of Minovsky particles it generates beneath the vessel repels plasma and ionized gases, this system also provides some protection from the heat of atmospheric entry. Its design served as the basis for the development of the RX-105 Ξ Gundam.

History
The Penelope was assigned to Rein Eim of the Circe special force in U.C. 105.