Aggressive ReConnaissance - 170 starfighter / Legends The Aggressive ReConnaissance - 170 starfighter , also known as the ARC - 170 starfighter and Advanced Recon fighter , was a heavy starfighter that saw widespread use by the Republic Navy throughout the Clone Wars . Designed and manufactured by the Incom Corporation , the ARC - 170 was an ancestor of the T - 65 X - wing starfighter , which would be mainly used by the Alliance to Restore the Republic . Characteristics . Design . The ARC - 170 was jointly produced by Incom and Subpro Corporation . Like their other starfighter designs of its time , such as the lighter Z - 95 , and the heavier PTB - 625 , and NTB - 630 , the ARC - 170 had a narrow spaceframe flanked by large engines . The ARC - 170 also possessed an S - foil system , which helped to radiate heat , something that aided the fighter ' s shielding . This also provided additional stability during atmospheric flight . Using its front deflector shield projectors to disperse heat generated from air resistance , the ARC - 170 could reach supersonic speeds in atmospheric flight . The ARC - 170 was a departure from other starfighter designs of the Clone Wars era . Fighters such as the Alpha - 3 " Nimbus " and the Eta - 2 " Actis " were built to be small , fast , and maneuverable , at the cost of heavy weapons , shields , and hyperdrives . On the other hand , the ARC - 170 was large , rugged , and capable of long independent operations . Military role . The ARC - 170 were typically deployed from Venator - class Star Destroyers , and were often sent on dangerous scout missions and raids deep in enemy territory . To allow the ARC - 170 to perform these missions , the fighter was equipped with a Class 1 . 5 hyperdrive , and its nose was filled with powerful sensors , scanners , and jammers . The ARC - 170 carried enough consumables for five days of operation . However , the supplies and additional equipment had a price and the ARC - 170 was quite slow . Durable armor and shielding , as well as two tail guns , helped the ARC - 170 to survive when surrounded by swarms of smaller , faster enemy fighters , although it remained vulnerable to enemy anti - fighter guns . Weaponry . The ARC - 170 possessed powerful weaponry . It carried six proton torpedoes , and its wingtip - mounted medium laser cannons were unusually large for a starfighter . ARC - 170s were often used as the heavy - hitters in strike forces , escorted by V - wings and Eta - 2s . The ARC - 170 was crewed by three clones : a pilot , a forward gunner who operated the wingtip - mounted lasers , and a tail gunner who operated the rear - mounted cannons . The fighter also carried an astromech droid to perform onboard repairs and navigation . It was also possible for the pilot to operate the wingtip laser cannons if a co - pilot wasn ' t available . Customization . During the Clone Wars , it was common for elite pilots to customize their vessels with elaborate designs , such as the elite Razor Squadron . The ARC - 170 that shot down Plo Koon ' s Delta - 7 Aethersprite - class light interceptor during Order 66 was kitted out to display information on its cockpit display screen using an unidentified script . History . Clone Wars . Originally introduced and adopted by the Republic shortly before the Clone Wars , ARCs were used fairly extensively during the late Clone Wars . During the Battle of Malastare , a squadron of ARC fighters escorted a squadron of BTL - B Y - wings carrying the electro - proton bomb and provided cover against AATs by strafing enemy ground formations . They were also used in the Defense of Kamino and later in a rescue mission to Lola Sayu . Shortly before the Battle of Coruscant , a squadron of ARCs provided cover for Obi - Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker on Tythe , but were mostly destroyed . During the Battle of Coruscant , Clone Flight Squad Seven ( operating with ARC - 170s ) covered for Kenobi and Skywalker as they made their way to the " Invisible Hand " . Although Squad Seven suffered many casualties , they allowed the two Jedi to successfully board the ship and rescue Supreme Chancellor Palpatine . Large numbers of ARC - 170s were destroyed by droid tri - fighters in the battle . Galactic Empire . Later , after Palpatine issued Order 66 , ARC - 170s flying over the skies of Cato Neimoidia under the command of Clone Captain Jag turned on Jedi Master Plo Koon . The ARC - 170 squadron fired upon his Delta - 7 starfighter , destroying the fighter ' s engines . Plo Koon could not regain control of his ship and plunged to his death as he and what remained of the forward part of the fighter crashed into a building on one of Cato Neimoidia ' s bridge - cities . Several years after the Declaration of a New Order , the ARC - 170s of Green Squadron were deployed from a Star Destroyer . They took part in the second portion of the Shrouded Offensive at Ostor . They strafed the city shield , but were ambushed by followers of the rogue clone trooper Kaddak in V - 19 Torrent starfighters . The attackers were fought off , but quickly disappeared . Vader led the squadron back to cover the Star Destroyer . After Commander Hock Malsuum disabled the shield , the ARC - 170s attacked the city , leaving it in ruins . During the Galactic Civil War , ARC - 170s could be found in both Imperial and Rebel fleets , where they were considered elite craft . As with all craft commissioned by the new Empire , ARC - 170s were henceforth given the standard ' Imperial gray ' color scheme , doing away with the variety of colorful markings that military vessels bore to identify their squadron affiliations with during the Clone Wars . Incom would go on to produce the T - 65 X - wing starfighter , the successor to the ARC - 170 . One old ARC - 170 was found in an old secret hangar of the Rebel Alliance on the planet Dathomir . The Wookiees Imarrra and Orrekazzapirr took this ARC - 170 after they had been freed from the Imperial prison facility and managed to punch a hole through the Imperial blockade around the planet . Queen Kylantha of Naboo also owned several old ARC - 170s . Her personal ship technicians had rehauled a few of them and turned them into formidable fighters again . She gave one to an adventurer as a token of appreciation for helping the Wookiees Imarrra and Orrekazzapirr escape from captivity . Behind the scenes . The ARC - 170 was named after " ART - 170 , " the title of the artwork form by concept artist Ryan Church that inspired the finalized design . Originally , it was referred to simply as a " clone fighter " in the script for " " . The seen on Odd Ball ' s ARC - 170 cockpit during the Battle of Coruscant has the same targeting display as Luke Skywalker ' s X - wing in " " . The joint development of the ARC - 170 by Incom and Subpro Corporations seems to contradict a HoloNet News report that claims the companies severed their partnership shortly before the onset of the Clone Wars . This issue may possibly be retcon ned by the fact that most of the design for the ship took place before the split . Even so , it was released as an Incom / Subpro design , and it is extremely unusual for design credit to continue to be shared between companies who have broken off relations . In " " , the ARC - 170 fighter is considered a medium starfighter , and equivalent to a T - 65 X - wing starfighter . The game also only allows one individual to board it , rather than three to fill all the positions . In " Labyrinth of Evil " , the ARC - 170 is stated to be equipped with multiple missile launchers . This , however , may be attributed to General Grievous ' limited knowledge of the vehicles at the time , as the ships are described from his viewpoint . In the " " , the starfighter was said to have a projectile cannon above their wing mounted laser cannons . In 2005 , LEGO released an ARC - 170 set , which included three clone pilots ( which oddly had V - wing pilot uniforms ; this was due to technical limitations , however ) and R4 - D5 . A strange thing about this set is that it had only one rear laser cannon . LEGO released another ARC - 170 in 2010 , which is more accurate in depicting the fighter ( and pilots ) and includes one standard clone pilot , Captain Jag , Kit Fisto and R4 - P44 . An Episode 3 Collectors Set ( set 65771 ) was released in 2005 . In the set was an ARC - 170 , a droid Tri - Fighter , a buzz droid , three clone pilots , R4 - D5 , an Episode 3 LEGO poster and a CD - ROM " From the LEGO Vaults . " In the episode " The Zillo Beast " , the ARC - 170 squadron escorting the Y - wings that drop the electro - proton bomb during the course of the episode have the same engine noise as the X - wings in the original trilogy . This is probably implemented to highlight that the ARC - 170 is the precursor to the X - wing . In 2009 , an Imperial variant of the ship was first depicted visually as a toy for Hasbro Inc . ' s " Star Wars : The Clone Wars " toy range .