X Tornado

"The X Tornado can fly over 300 miles an hour and can withstand attacks by changing it to Battle Armor."

- Miles "Tails" Prower, "Eggman for President"

The X Tornado (エックストルネード), also written as the X-Tornado, is a vehicle in the anime series Sonic X and its comic series published by Archie Comics. It is an aircraft created by Tails and Chuck Thorndyke as the replacement for the Tornado 2 and would become the common means of transportation for Sonic and his friends.

History
The idea for the X Tornado was conceived after the Tornado 2 proved ineffective against Eggman's E-90 Super Sweeper. Tails figured they could use their Chaos Emerald to boost the Tornado 2, but it would then likely blow up from all the excess energy, so Chuck and Tails began building the X Tornado from an aircraft in Chuck's secret laboratory, designing it with two engines in order to accommodate the continual gain of energy from the Chaos Emerald. On its maiden voyage, the X Tornado proved its worth by helping the heroes keep up with E-90

In the third season, the X Tornado is painted gold, where it is part of the Blue Typhoon's small aircrafts. In "The Cosmo Conspiracy" though, Shadow destroyed the X Tornado despite the Blue Typhoon's crew trying to stop him. After they returned home though, Tails rebuilt the X Tornado.

Abilities and traits
The X Tornado has a hidden afterburner in the plane that can dramatically increase the speed of the X Tornado, reaching speeds beyond 300 miles per hour. The X Tornado is also equipped with a Ring launcher to power up Sonic in the heat of battles.

Specifications

 * Wing Span: 7 m
 * Length: 12.3 m
 * Height: 4.9 m
 * Engine: Tails & Chuck's original engine (CE Improved)
 * Maximum Speed: Unknown

X Cyclone
The X Cyclone is one of two transformations that was integrated into the X Tornado's system. The transformation causes the two main boosters to open up into a pair of robotic legs thereby giving the X-Cyclone the same abilities as the X Tornado with land-based capabilities. Tails claimed the X Cyclone as an all-purpose robot but was later proven wrong when Amy suggested to use the X Cyclone to dig the Chaos Emerald out of a cornfield.

Battle Armor Mode
The Battle Armor is a transformation used to battle the Egg Carrier in episode 29 after it was shot down in a failed assault in jet mode. This mode turns the two main engines into a pair of arms, concealing a shield which can withstand attacks and a sword. It is propelled by the afterburner, giving this transformation increased speed and maneuverability. The only defect is that this form has no safe way of landing.

Trivia

 * The name "X" Tornado may come from the show's title, "Sonic X".
 * In the first episode the X Tornado appeared in, it is mistakenly referred to as the Tornado X.
 * In Sonic Adventure, the original Tornado was replaced by another plane, the Tornado 2, instead of it being enhanced with different transformation abilities. It would suggest that the X Tornado is either more durable than the biplane model Tornadoes or was high in evasive speed to cause only damage to a repairable degree.
 * The X Tornado is mistakenly referred to as the "Tornado 2" in Volume 5 of the Australian Sonic X DVD.
 * The Battle Armor X Tornado and the Tornado 2 transformation in Sonic Adventure both never had any landing gear prior to landing on the Egg Carrier.
 * In one issue of the Sonic X comics, the tip of the X-Tornado's twin engines/"feet" were colored yellow instead of its usual red.
 * In the first and second season of Sonic X, the X Tornado is white, but during Sonic and his team's journey through space, it is colored gold (This could possibly be because it was in space and thus needs a layer of gold to protect it from radiation).
 * The variable forms of the Cyclone and the X Tornado bears a resemblance to the variable modes of the Variable Fighter series from the Macross series. The X Tornado in flight form resemble Macross Plus and Macross 7's VF-11 Thunderbolt III's Fighter mode, a resemblance that is further reinforced later on with the appearance of the Blue Typhoon, whose flight deck resemble the flight deck of Battle 7 from Macross 7.