The TIE/d Defender, or simply the TIE Defender, is a variant of TIE Fighter that was built during the reign of the Galactic Empire. Unlike all other TIE Fighters, it has three wings, missile launchers, and shield generators, making it the most lethal of all the starfighters in the Imperial Navy.
Description[]
Originally designed by Morgan Elsbeth, Grand Admiral Thrawn spearheaded an initiative to develop a new Imperial starfighter. Thrawn's incentive for the initiative evolved after he examined the briefings from Imperial Security Bureau agents who captured and interrogated renegade TIE Pilots who attempted to defect to the Rebellion. From the briefings, Thrawn noted that all the pilots had expressed reluctance to operate starfighters that lacked energy shields and hyperdrives. Thrawn submitted a report to Grand Moff Tarkin, and persuaded him to consider how a new starfighter with a hyperdrive and improved offensive and defensive systems would be advantageous against Rebel fighters and increase loyalty among Imperial pilots. Although Tarkin asserted that standard unshielded TIE Fighters were a more economical method to maintain authority over TIE pilots, he authorized Thrawn to proceed with his initiative, and to meet with designers at Siena Advanced Projects Laboratory on Lothal.
Thrawn was a remarkably proactive collaborator with Sienar, as he submitted specific design aspects for the new fighter, including that it would have three wings, similar to the "cutaway" dagger wings on the TIE Interceptor, mounted to an extended aft section behind the spherical cockpit module. Various accounts attested that Thrawn showed the designers a rare Kamino saberdart to convey the positions of the wings, and also how the design would give the pilot unparalleled, and augment speed and maneuverability. Computer simulations verified that the design would be faster than Rebel Y-Wing starfighters.
Siena Fleet Systems created an experimental prototype, which they named the TIE/d Defender, generally referred to as the TIE Defender. Although the fighter exceeded expectations, a series of setbacks and budgetary concerns discouraged the Empire from a large production run.
TIE/d Defender Elite[]
After Grand Admiral Thrawn introduced the TIE/d Defender as part of his new starfighter initiative at the Imperial Factory on Lothal, Emperor Palpatine's lieutenant Darth Vader informed Thrawn that he believed the TIE Defender was an excellent ship, and that he had notified the Emperor of his support for Thrawn's project. Vader further recommended that the new Defender should have greater speed, more powerful armaments, and less complicated controls for pilots. Thrawn promptly relayed Vader's instructions to the Sienar Advanced Projects Laboratory's designers on Lothal.
Sienar dubbed the new prototype the TIE/d Defender Elite. Like the standard Defender, the Defender Elite had three dagger-tipped wings, eight heavy laser cannons, and a hyperdrive. Following a battery of tests in flight simulators, numerous sources from Sienar as well as Imperial pilots professed the craft's speed and maneuverability outperformed nearly every starfighter produced at the time.
Unfortunately, on the day that Thrawn and Imperial Governor Arihnda Pryce readied to watch Imperial Navy Commander Vult Skerris pilot the Defender Elite prototype for its first actual flight test, Rebel Alliance insurgents, Ezra Bridger and Sabine Wren, stole the prototype. Deciding to exploit the situation as an improvised flight test, Thrawn dispatched three Imperial pilots in TIE Interceptors to pursue the Defender Elite. After Ezra managed to shoot down all three Interceptors. Thrawn concluded that the Defender Elite could transform even a novice pilot into a deadly ace. He also authorized Governor Pryce to activate a kill switch, a security precaution that triggered an explosion on the Defender Elite and caused the fighter to crash. By the time Imperial authorities arrived at the crash site, the rebels had already escaped with the Elite's hyperdrive and flight recorder.
Just as Thrawn was determined to begin mass production of the TIE Defender Elite, the Rebel Alliance was determined to stop him. The Alliance Fleet attacked, and in the battle that ensured, the Empire lost most of the Defender Elite factories on Lothal, including a crucial fuel depot. The losses prompted Imperial officials to halt the TIE Defender project indefinitely, and shift their attention to finishing construction on the Death Star
Specifications[]
- Solar-collector wings: The TIE Defender's three solar-collector wings allowed increased energy use, and were equipped with computer-controlled maneuvering jets. Sienar Fleet Systems angled the wings away from the cockpit and created gaps between the wings to give the TIE Defender better visibility than the TIE Interceptor. The design of the wings were extended on the Defender Elite.
- Weapons: Each wing carried two laser cannons, while the bottom of the cockpit module held two warhead launchers. The TIE Defender's combined weaponry classified the vessel as a fighter-bomber. The Defender Elite was more armoured.
- Hyperdrive: Because Sienar had already created Class 4 hyperdrive for the TIE Advanced x1 prototype, Sienar proposed incorporating the same unit into the Defender. However, Thrawn insisted that the Defender have a Class 2 hyperdrive, allowing the starfighter to keep pace across hyperspace with Imperial Star Destroyers. Sienar designed the Defender with a ventral socket to house the hyperdrive, a cylindrical drum-shaped Class 2 unit that was remarkably compact and lightweight. Subsequently, Sienar used the same hyperdrive for the TIE/d Defender Elite.
Gallery[]
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