KSA Technologies UTM-6S

First volley is away, good track on target. Time to impact, twenty-two minutes.

— Anonymous weapons officer, 380

The KSA Technologies UTM-6S, also known as the Ultimatum, is a Vestan ultra-long range tactical missile designed and manufactured by KSA Technologies. Initially designed as an anti-starship weapon, the Ultimatum nevertheless proved to be capable of engaging moving targets on land and at sea, thanks to its highly agile delivery vehicles. The Ultimatum is built as a three-stage missile, with the first stage used to eject the missile from its launcher, the second stage used to provide extreme ranges of up to 180 000 km and the final stage used to deliver six much faster and agile delivery vehicles, each equipped with a destructive payload or a decoy electronic warfare module.

Designed in 323, the Ultimatum was quickly adopted into military service in 324 to replace aging predecessors. Capable of being installed in nearly all ships of the Vestan Aerospace Defense Force, as well as any land-based silos and sea-based ballistic missile submarines, the Ultimatum serves as both an ICBM and an anti-starship weapon. Its payload can easily be adapted to varying uses, going as far as using a different warhead for each of its six delivery vehicles. The most common remains the 15kt fusion warhead, but more conventional warheads can also be installed.

Design

The Ultimatum is a tactical missile built as a hot-launched, three-stage system. The first stage consists of four boosters on the sides of the missile used to propel it out of its launcher, be it an underground missile silo or a starship's vertical launch tube. Once safely launched, the boosters are ejected and the main stage ignites, further propelling the missile for most of its trajectory. The Ultimatum is most vulnerable at this stage, using a slow but highly efficient fusion drive to reach its activation range. Once within 15 000 kilometers of its target, the third and final stage ignites, deploying the six delivery vehicles and initiating evasive manoeuvers to counter anti-missile defenses. The last stage employs high-powered chemical rocket engines to reach extreme velocities, making it more difficult to intercept.

General Characteristics

Type

Tactical Missile

Place of origin

Vesta

In service

324-present

Used by

Vestan Defense Forces

Specifications

Mass

38 950 kg

Length

18.3 m

Diameter

1.68

Warhead

6 individual payloads

Detonation mechanism

Proximity fuze, timer, electromagnetic fuze, contact, air-burst

Effective range

180 000 km (vaccuum)

Overall, the Ultimatum is well tailored to engage and destroy hostile starships, with an effectiveness rating of 8-to-one, meaning an average of eight missiles, leading to forty-eight delivery vehicles, is enough to score at least one hit on most target. While it remains highly effective against other types of targets, it becomes quite obvious that such an advanced and costly weapon system was not designed to fulfill these roles. Still, numerous conventional and unconventional payloads have been developped for other purposes than space combat. Such payloads include strategic 450kt nuclear fusion warheads, EMP generators, incendiary airburst warheads and many more.

History

TBD

Operators

Vestan Ground Defense Force

The Ultimatum is used by the GDF as both a strategic ICBM and as an orbital defense weapon. Numerous underground missile silos are placed strategically accross the worlds of the Federation, giving them the ability to defend themselves from hostile ships on their own should it become necessary.

Vestan Aerospace Defense Force

The ADF is the main user of the Ultimatum, as Vestan vessels and stations are often armed with dozens if not hundreds of these missiles. Due to the high effectiveness of modern missile defense systems, the ADF uses an astonishing number of these weapons annually.

Vestan Maritime Defense Force

Similarily to the GDF, the MDF uses the Ultimatum as both an ICBM and as an orbital defense weapon. Loaded within nuclear submarines and other capital ships, these missiles often serve as the second strike capability of Vesta and Asteria, for both ground attacks and orbital defense.