T-65B X-wing starfighter

The **T-65B X-wing starfighter**, also known as the **T-65 X-wing starfighter** or **T-65B space superiority fighter**, was a single-seat craft manufactured by Incom Corporation and used most famously by the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War. Renowned for its speed and maneuverability in battle, it became the backbone of the Rebel Alliance Starfighter Corps, being both harder hitting and tougher under fire than its main adversary, the mass-produced TIE/ln space superiority starfighter.

## Characteristics

The T-65B X-wing starfighter was manufactured by Incom Corporation. It was designed to excel in all aspects of starfighter combat, being highly maneuverable and heavily shielded, with a small profile that made it harder to hit. Unlike other starfighters the X-wing could excel in atmospheric flight. This included outmaneuvering the TIE fighter, which was otherwise faster and more maneuverable than the X-wing in space.

It had two pairs of wing-like strike foils, or S-foils, mounted at the rear of the craft on opposite sides. Normally, the foils on each side locked in place flush against each other; during combat, however, the foils were folded out. This gave the craft its distinctive "X"-like appearance when viewed from the front or rear. The S-foils were controlled by an S-foil servo actuator located in the back of the starfighter. With the S-foils open in attack position, the craft had a greater spread of fire as opposed to whilst shut.

The craft was armed with four Taim & Bak KX9 laser cannons, placed at the tip of each wing. The laser cannons could be fired singly, in alternating pairs or all at once. By default the convergence or "zero" point where the lasers would intersect was set 500 meters in front of the X-wing. Two Krupx MG7 proton torpedo launchers were located in grooves near the middle of the underside of the fuselage on either side of the T-65B.

A deflector shield generator located in the rear of the X-wing created a protective field which could be adjusted around the craft with the help of a Chempat "Defender" deflector shield projector. This included shield projectors along the leading edges of the S-foils which, when in attack position, helped to expand the protective field. A Bertriak "Screamer" sensor jammer provided additional defense by scrambling the sensors of enemy starfighters and homing warheads. The X-wing could also use its laser cannons to shoot down enemy missiles.

Four 4L4 fusial thrust engines were attached to the wings of the T-65B, next to the fuselage. Some X-wings were fitted with 4j.4 fusial thrust engines, which were virtually identical to the 4L4 models. These provided the X-wing with incredible maneuverability thanks to three factors: the use of differential thrust between the four engines to adjust trajectory; a high-mass electromagnetic gryoscope fitted to each engine for swinging through tight curves; and the ability to fire retro-thrust forward through the turbine nozzles. Infrared suppressors were used to conceal the hot exhaust.

The X-wing itself was powered by a Novaldex 04-Z cryogenic power generator located in the center of the ship. Cryogenic capacitors located in the S-foils stored additional power for the engines. Power couplings allowed for energy to be distributed and balanced between the various systems. The starship weighed 180,000kg.

The single pilot sat in an armored cockpit in the center of the fuselage protected by a transparisteel canopy. The canopy allowed for a wider view compared to that provided by a TIE fighter's, and was also designed to automatically polarize to protect the pilot from harmful light. Explosive charges were set to blast the canopy clear in the event the Guidenhauser ejector seat had to be used. Adjustable for use by most species, the pressurized cockpit had enough life support for up to one week, and featured an inertial compensator to protect the pilot from high-g accelerations. The cockpit had flight controls similar to those of the T-16 skyhopper, an airspeeder also produced by Incom Corporation, along with a targeting computer with holographic imaging system.

The X-wing was equipped with a long-range hyperdrive system consisting of four GBk-585 hyperdrive motivators. An astromech droid served as the X-wing's navigation system, plugging into a socket near the engines above and behind the cockpit. The droid assisted with calculations and could hold up to 10 hyperspace coordinates, as well as make repairs to the craft. It could readjust power levels between different systems multiple times per second to assist the pilot in a fight. The droid was capable of assuming full control of the X-wing if necessary too, with or without a pilot. In an emergency a separator charge would launch the droid clear of the craft.

The T-65B's sensor systems were located inside the X-wing's nose cone. The sensor system, a Carbanti transceiver package, was made up of a Fabritech ANs-5d "lock track" full-spectrum transceiver, a Melihat "Multi Imager" dedicated energy receptor, and a Tana Ire Electro-photo receptor. These fed information directly to the targeting computer, which could track up to 1,000 sublight objects and acquire 20 targets. Additionally, a Fabritech K-blakan mini sensor scanned directly behind the X-wing to detect sensor sweeps and craft approaching from the rear.

Under the X-wing was a cargo compartment, a repulsorlift, and three reinforced landing legs to protect the craft from rough landings and take-offs. Painted stripes on the rear of the S-foils identified each craft.

S-foils in attack position provided the X-wing with additional stabilizer surfaces during air travel. While listed with a maximum atmospheric speed of 1,050 kph, the X-wing could otherwise fly at supersonic speeds. Indeed, with the engines at maximum thrust an X-wing could travel so fast it would glow hot from atmospheric friction. Doing so put tremendous strain on the starfighter and the pilot themselves however: after just several minutes of maneuvering at these velocities, gradual system failures began and even the cannons themselves were at risk of melting from the heat. When traveling high in a planet's upper atmosphere, an X-wing could achieve speeds fast enough to cause the pilot's head to swim and their vision to glitter.