The Viper is a series of one-man space superiority fighters developed and operated by the Colonial Fleet in the early years of the 1st Cylon War. The origins of the Viper lie with the Caprican Air Force Viper jet, which was in service for some time before 58 BCH. It is presently unknown if the spaceborne iteration which fought in the Cylon War was another series of craft with the same name, but the Mark II was in service by the midway point of the war. This craft was, like the battlestars it launched from, designed purposely to be as low-tech as possible to thwart the Cylons' computer hacking capabilities. The similarly-designed Mark III entering service by 1958, two years before the war's conclusion.