The 23rd Independent Fleet is the name of an Earth Federation Forces unit in the series Mobile Suit Gundam Aggressor.
Overview[]
The 23rd Independent Fleet was an Earth Federation Forces fleet assembled in December of U.C. 0079, following the Battle of Jaburo. It launched from Jaburo to carry out a diversionary attack on Solomon while the Federation's main force advanced on A Baoa Qu. The fleet was initially commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Walker, and included the Aggressor Squadron and the 23rd Mobile Suit Unit among its forces. The fleet consisted of the Magellan-class flagship Zephyrus, and the Salamis-class vessels Albatross, Eridanus, and Margarita.
After coming under attack partway through the mission and losing the Margarita, the fleet was reorganized at the Federation's L4 resupply depot. Captain Genma relieved Walker of his command, and the ships accompanying the Zephyrus were increased to four total Salamis-class vessels and two Columbus-class freighters. The Albatross was destroyed in an ambush while the fleet traveled to Side 2.
History[]
While awaiting resupply in Earth's orbit before it set out for Solomon, the 23rd Independent Fleet was attacked by the Zanzibar-class ship Anastasia, commanded by Captain Yaroslav. With advance knowledge of an imminent solar storm, the largest to have occurred thus far in the Universal Century, Yaroslav distracted the Federation fleet by deploying Major Dianne Neuss in a MS-10 Pezun Dowadge. When the storm arrived, the Federation ships were caught by surprise and driven through a minefield where they suffered minor damage. The Margarita was subsequently destroyed by laser fire from the Anastasia. The remainder of the fleet was spared thanks to the efforts of Corporal Chase Skullgard, pilot of the RX-80RR Red Rider, and the tactical acumen of Lieutenant Kaori Sano, who assumed command of the Zephyrus after Walker lost contact with the rest of his ship due to damage to the bridge. The Anastasia was damaged by space debris and withdrew before it could be destroyed by the Albatross and Eridanus, which by then had managed to reboot their systems following the outage caused by the solar storm.
At the Federation's L4 resupply depot, the 23rd Independent Fleet was quickly reorganized. Lieutenant Colonel Walker was relieved of duty due to his injuries and sent to Luna II along with the other wounded, and Captain Genma assumed command of the fleet and the Zephyrus. The fleet was also expanded to seven total ships: the Zephyrus, four Salamis-class ships, and two Columbus-class freighters. One Columbus-class, the Anatum, had been retrofitted to serve as a mobile suit carrier for 12 RGM-79 GM units. The fleet was ordered to travel to Side 2 to prepare for the attack on Solomon.
Shortly after departing the resupply depot, Zeon forces began pursuing the fleet. Although Genma was not concerned since the pursuers were far behind and the path forward to Side 2 was unsaturated by Minovsky particles, which meant hostile mobile suits could be easily detected, the fleet was still ambushed by Lieutenant Titus, a skilled Zeon sniper with a MS-06E-3 Zaku Flipper equipped with a 135mm Anti-Ship Rifle. Titus was able to snipe the bridges of the Salamis-class ships and damage the Zephyrus from afar, and made use of a special shield to disguise his mobile suit as a cluster of small asteroids. After he was flushed out by Chase Skullgard and the fleet attempted to close the distance, Titus triggered a trap, activating thrusters he had attached to 25 asteroids and launching them at the Federation ships. While the fleet was able to fend off the attack by using the Red Rider's AI, Ares, to coordinate its missiles and point defenses, one asteroid got through and destroyed the Albatross. Despite only having a SP-W03 Space Pod at his disposal since repairs to the Red Rider were incomplete, Skullgard succeeded in defeating Titus.
With the 23rd Independent Fleet in need of repairs before it could join the Solomon attack, Captain Genma decided to dock at the Saint Gotthard Colony at Side 2 to requisition the needed supplies. This was risky, as Saint Gotthard was controlled by the wealthy Zeon exile Lichtenstein Barbarossa, who was only allied with the Federation due to his hatred for the Zabi family. Worse, if the fleet did not complete its resupply run inside a six-hour window, the pursuing Zeon fleet would catch up and set off a battle in the colony's vicinity.