A-61 Attack VTOL "Mantis"
A Cerberus A-61B "Dragonfly" gunship, the human variant of the standard A-61
Production information
Manufacturer:	Meratus Arinnius Nyx
Line:	A-00 Mantis
Model:	A-61
Class:	Gunship
Variant:	A-61B "Dragonfly"
Operator(s):	Almost everyone
Technical information
Length:	28m
Width:	11.6m
Height/depth:	17m
Max acceleration:	120 kilometers per second
Engine unit(s):	Four mass effect thrusters: two on the rear tail and one on each wing.
Power plant:	1 Element Zero engine
Shielding:	Kinetic Barrier
Sensor systems:	Radar LADAR
Armament:	1 chin-mounted M25 Autocannon 2 Xiphos 34 rocket pods
Crew:	1 pilot 1 co-pilot (optional)
Usage
Commissioned:	August 27, 1972 CE
Role(s):	Gunship
Era:	Asari Cycle Pax Galactica Era
Affiliation:	Systems Alliance Hegemony of Khar'Shan Citadel Security Cerberus Thessian Republics Hierarchy of Palaven Union of Sur'Kesh The Talons Eclipse Blue Suns And many others

"Our eye in the sky...when you hear the thrum of its engines, you know death is about to rain around you. A chin-mounted armor-piercing main gun, supplemented by air-to-surface ballistic anti-vehicle missiles, and you've got the most ubiquitous aerial death machine in the galaxy."

— Garrus Vakarian describing the A-61.

The A-61 Attack VTOL, nicknamed by the Alliance as the Mantis for the A-61A, and the Dragonfly for their A-61B, was a class of VTOL attack gunship designed and initially built by the Turian Hierarchy. First designed in 1972 CE by the turians, the gunship quickly became the most effective of its type, outclassing any other type of gunship. The gunship became standard for the turian military, officially replacing its predecessor, the A-18 Attack VTOL. By 2040 CE, the gunship entered service throughout the Council military, with the asari, salarians, hanar, elcor and even the batarians employing its use. After the First Contact War, the Systems Alliance even saw how superior it was to their Bell AH-2B Pythons. By 2175 CE, the Mantis had become the standard gunship in the Alliance military, making the Mantis the staple in almost every galactic military.

The Mantis saw heavy use during the Reaper War and in its aftermath. After close to two centuries of active service, the Mantis was finally decommissioned at some point before the PA war, and the Galactic Dominion replaced it with its successor, the quarian designed A-68 Seraph.