MSER-04 Anf

When the Human Reform League stopped using fossil fuels, it redesigned its MSJ-04 Fantong into the MSER-04 Anf for export and rental. The suit’s name referred to the Arabic word for “nose,” and many Anfs were exported to Middle Eastern (and later African) countries that still used fossil fuels. The Anf was a popular mobile suit in poor countries due to its extremely low cost, low malfunction rate and a body structure that allowed for easy repair. Civilian trading companies throughout the world sold Anf units, sometimes exporting them to countries in violation of arms embargoes. Some companies also recycled retired Fantong units and resold them as newly produced Anfs. The Anf’s success caused the HRL to increase production, which further reduced the cost per unit, and this in turn led to increased demands in other regions. Fossil fuels were difficult to obtain outside to Middle East, so to accommodate global demand, the HRL created a chemical reaction fuel engine to replace the original fossil fuel engine. This newer engine was more environmentally friendly because it did not produce carbon dioxide. It was also relatively simple to replace the engine, so many earlier Anf units were upgraded to the new engine. Although the Anf was insufficient in combat against modern mobile suits, it fared well as an antipersonnel unit. Its armaments included a 30mm machine gun mounted underneath the head and a 200mm x 25 caliber smoothbore gun.

The Anf was not widely used in Union-controlled areas, though they were utilized in large numbers by South American countries prior to their entry into the Union. Although there were some combat capable Anfs in Australia, most were used for civil engineering work due to their durability and power output. Australia’s combat use Anfs functioned as emergency reserve units meant to support Southeast Asian countries in protecting the orbital elevator. As of 2312, the region with the highest number of Anfs in operation was the HRL. The majority of these machines were modified Fantongs that were still serving in the army. This was particularly true for the northern region of the HRL, which saw very little mobile suit combat. The number was relatively lower in the southern region, as the main combat machines there were being constantly replaced by the MSJ-06II-A Tieren Ground Type. Following the creation of the Earth Sphere Federation government, the number of Anfs still outnumbered the ESF’s newer GN-X series.