Technology & Combat Characteristics
The Gundam Avalanche Exia is the Celestial Being's Gundam Exia equipped with additional high mobility unit known as "Avalanche Unit". The Gundams have exceptional flight control capabilities through the use of GN Particles, but their speed in the atmosphere and in space are generally inferior to that of specialized high-speed units such as aircrafts. Celestial Being's general mechanic, Ian Vashti, designed and created the Avalanche Unit to grant Exia a high level of mobility comparable to an aircraft's. The "hs" in its model number stands for "High Speed" and the "A01" means "Avalanche type Unit 1". It is possible to extend the discharge time of the GN Particles and increase the travel range by concentrating the Avalanche Exia's supply of GN Particles to the verniers as well as lighten the Gundam by removing its armaments.
The Avalanche Unit's GN Condensers are larger than regular ones and can be charged with more GN Particles. Unlike the regular GN Condensers that can display information about their status on the surface, the Avalanche Unit's GN Condensers are completely internalized and so their status are instead displayed on the Gundam's chest GN Condenser. As the Avalanche Unit's primary purpose is for high-speed movement, it does not come with additional weaponry. All the weapons of the normal Exia remain usable by the Avalanche Exia, but due to its higher speed, the Exia's characteristic seven swords have improved penetration and destructive power. To prevent the seven swords from being a hindrance during high-speed movements, they are all stored on the Avalanche Exia's upper body, with the majority mounted on a pair of weapon holders known as "Weapon Arms".
The Avalanche Exia was seen relatively early during Celestial Being's armed interventions, and the Avalanche Unit's weight is kept below 5 tons as that was initially thought to be the maximum possible weight without negatively affecting the Gundam's balance. However, this assumption was later found to be wrong, and additional equipment is developed for the Avalanche Exia, resulting in the GN-001/hs-A01D Gundam Avalanche Exia', which is better adapted for operating in space. To prevent the Avalanche Unit from being a dead weight after use, its parts can be instantaneously purged from the Exia prior to the Gundam engaging in close combat.
History
In AD 2307, Robert Spacey was a young historian specializing in political history. He accompanied an UN inspection of the Union's armed forces due to his interest in politics, as at that time, the Union was having difficulties increasing its military capabilities in South America. As he was talking with Ms. Deborah Galiena, a mobile suit pilot of the UN inspection team, the Union base's alarm rang and the Avalanche Exia appeared overhead not long after. The Union immediately launched its squadron of SVMS-01 Union Flags. However, the Union Flags, which have faster flight speed than the Exia, failed to catch up to the Avalanche Exia and were quickly left behind. The entire incident was over in an instant. The shiny GN Particles trailing behind the Avalanche Exia as it flew past made a deep impression on Robert. The thought of trying to catch up to that silhouette brought Robert down the path of becoming a mobile suit development historian, completely changing his life.
Through information from Veda and Celestial Being's operatives, the Ptolemaios team became aware of a plot to launch a virus based bioterrorist attack. Allelujah, piloting his GN-003 Gundam Kyrios, was sent to bomb the virus' production facility and prevent the attack. Unfortunately, some of the virus was transported out of the facility before the attack. An hour after Kyrios' bombing, the virus was spread in a city near the AEU's Orbital Elevator. The team's doctor, Moreno, volunteered to go to the affected city with the cure, and Setsuna proposed using the Avalanche Exia to take him there. Moreno had preemptively produced sufficient amount of antiviral drug based on the virus samples he had received from the operatives early on. The problem was that according to Veda's prediction, the virus spreads extremely quickly and treatment must be administered within 30 minutes after the outbreak to avoid a disastrous outcome. However, Avalanche Exia's flight time is only 10 minutes and insufficient to reach the city.
To solve this problem, Sumeragi suggested they lighten the Avalanche Exia by removing its armaments and concentrating its supply of GN Particles to its verniers. Five minutes later, both Setsuna and Moreno launched in Avalanche Exia. Seated behind Setsuna, Moreno complained that the seat prepared by Ian was too cramp and uncomfortable. While the ride was a little bumpy, it was very fast and Moreno noted that they should make it in time. However, a squad of AEU-09 AEU Enacts suddenly appeared. As they did not have time for a battle, Setsuna decided to outrun the enemies. The Avalanche Exias shoulders and arms then linked together, and large amount of GN Particles are discharged, allowing the Gundam to fly at a faster speed. Moreno was caught off guard by the sudden acceleration and had difficulties breathing. At the same time, he was impressed by how the Gundam Meisters were able to battle under such tough situations. The Avalanche Exia sped past the Enacts and reached the affected city within the time limit.
