RAG-79 Aqua GM – MechaBay | Mobile Suit Gundam

The RAG-79 Aqua GM was an amphibious mobile suit developed by the Earth Federation Forces during the One Year War to challenge the Principality of Zeon’s supremacy on the seas.

The “R” in the model code meant it was a Federation model¹ and the “AG” indicated that it was an amphibious (aquatic) Gundam mobile suit. The “79” in the model number denoted it was developed from the RGM-79 GM line.

History

The RAG-79 Aqua GM was developed by the Earth Federation Forces during the One Year War to oppose the Principality of Zeon’s amphibious mobile suits. The Federation had found itself at a significant disadvantage in underwater combat, as Zeon had developed several highly capable amphibious mobile suits such as the MSM-07 Z’Gok and MSM-03 Gogg.

The Aqua GM was based on the RGM-79 GM and incorporated data from the RGM-79U GM Sloep. The Federation chose to use the general-purpose GM as the base unit for rapid development, though this decision would later prove problematic.

Unfortunately, the Aqua GM’s rushed development led to it being an unbalanced and unwieldy machine. Furthermore, the use of the general-purpose GM as the base unit meant that the Aqua GM was unable to fully adapt to the very unique underwater environment. As a result, the Aqua GM’s combat performance failed to match that of Zeon’s amphibious mobile suits.

The output of the Aqua GM’s hydrojet units was superior to Zeon’s MSM-07 Z’Gok, but lower than that of the MSM-03 Gogg. Because of its poor performance, the Federation Forces decided to develop a more capable amphibious mobile suit in the form of the RAG-79-G1 Gundam Marine Type based on the Aqua GM.

Nevertheless, the Aqua GM was still useful for coastal defence and destruction of enemy naval vessels. With the end of the war, the importance of amphibious mobile suits declined and no successor to the Aqua GM was ever developed, causing the machine to remain in service in UC 0096, even as it was clearly obsolete.

In UC 0096, during The Sleeves’ attack on Dakar, two Aqua GMs and a RAG-79-G1 Gundam Marine Type fought with and were defeated by the AMS-129M Zee Zulu while the NZ-666 Kshatriya and other Zeon remnants’ mobile suits assaulted the Federation capital.

Design

The RAG-79 Aqua GM was designed as an amphibious mobile suit capable of operating both underwater and on the surface. It was based on the RGM-79 GM frame but featured significant modifications for aquatic combat.

The Aqua GM had hydrojet units equipped in its backpack, shoulders and legs for underwater propulsion, with nozzles for the hydrojet units also present on the soles of the feet. These modifications allowed it to manoeuvre effectively in the underwater environment, though not to the same degree as purpose-built amphibious mobile suits.

The mobile suit was fitted with weaponry more suited for underwater combat, such as torpedo pods, missile launchers, and special beam picks. The design prioritised underwater combat capability while maintaining some surface combat effectiveness.

The Aqua GM had an ultracompact Minovsky fusion reactor that generated an output of 1,280 kW. The hydrojet thrusters generated 89,500 kg of total thrust. However, the mobile suit’s sensors had a reduced range of 4,300 metres compared to the standard GM’s 6,000 metres, likely due to the challenges of underwater detection.

Armaments

The Aqua GM’s armaments were specifically designed for underwater combat, focusing on missiles, torpedoes, and specialised melee weapons.

Micro missiles

Eight micro missiles were mounted on the Aqua GM’s shoulders. These self-propelled weapons exploded around an enemy suit’s proximity and were effective against both mobile suits and naval vessels.

Torpedo pods

Integrated in the backpack were two torpedo pods for underwater warfare. These provided the Aqua GM with effective underwater ordnance for engaging enemy mobile suits and ships.

Hand anchors

The Aqua GM was equipped with two hand anchors that could be launched to grab enemy units for various purposes such as pulling them closer or to restrict their movements. These wired grappling devices enhanced the mobile suit’s close-combat capabilities underwater.

Beam picks

Among the Aqua GM’s weapons designed for use in the water were its four beam picks, stored on the left and right side armour. These close combat weapons were similar to beam sabers but had several differences. They were equipped with a mechanism that generated a short beam blade only when they came into contact with the enemy’s armour to prevent heat loss in water.

The beam picks used an I-field to contain Minovsky particles within the shape of a blade. This need to approach the enemy unit so closely made them unpopular with Aqua GM’s pilots, leading to their replacement with only two beam picks in later variants.

10-tube missile launcher

A hand-carried large missile launcher served as the primary weapon of the Aqua GM and was useful against enemy ships and mobile suits. The launcher could fire multiple missiles in sequence, providing substantial firepower for underwater engagements.

Harpoon gun

Originally designed for the RAG-79-G1 Gundam Marine Type, this weapon was an attempt to improve the combat performance of the Aqua GM. Usable underwater or on land, the harpoon gun fired four harpoons one by one in a rotary manner similar to a revolver. The tip of each harpoon was loaded with explosives that detonated once the projectile had penetrated the enemy’s armour.

Known pilots

The Aqua GM was operated by Federation pilots during coastal defence and anti-ship operations, though specific pilot records from the One Year War remain limited due to the mobile suit’s poor combat performance.

Variants

The Federation developed the RAG-79-G1 Gundam Marine Type as a more capable successor to address the Aqua GM’s shortcomings.

Behind the scenes

Okawara Kunio was the original mechanical designer for the RAG-79 Aqua GM as part of the M-MSV (Okawara Kunio Collection) series. The design was later redesigned by Katoki Hajime as part of Harmony of Gundam and subsequently appeared in Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn.

An Aqua GM designed by Yutaka Izubuchi was planned to appear in Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket but did not make the final cut.

Appearances

M-MSV (original design series)
Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn

External links

RAG-79 Aqua GM on the Gundam Wiki
RAG-79 Aqua GM on MAHQ

Federation in Japanese is renpou, hence the use of “R”. ↩