X-wing fighter

Origin and design Colin Cantwell sketched and built models that eventually became the final X-wing fighter in Star Wars. The X-wings were designed to appear more "traditional" than the Empire's TIE fighters. Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) built miniatures in various scales, with wing markings indicating which prop represented which pilot. Each X-wing model was built around a hollow core made from surgical tubing, which allowed lighting, cooling, and electrical connectors for the wing motors to be installed and maintained. Background noise pitch and tone also varied between X-wings to further differentiate the characters piloting them. Subsequent films The "lake" in which Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) crashes his X-wing in The Empire Strikes Back (1980) was only deep, requiring the creation of a rig resembling the starfighter sitting in the water at an angle. The rig was built in hinged sections so it could be manipulated to sink or rise, a key feature for the scene when Luke fails to levitate his ship from the water. This resulted in numerous parts of space battle scenes being "re-shot" as digital animations for the original trilogy's Special Edition releases. When supervising effects for Rogue One (2016), Knoll discovered that the original X-wing cockpit set did not match the cockpit's arrangement on the shooting models. This required the effects team to rotoscope archival footage of Star Wars X-wing pilots onto digital cockpits created for the film. ILM designers incorporated X-wing engines into the design of the contemporaneous U-wing created for Rogue One. The Force Awakens art director Gary Tomkins said ships and tools would be expected to evolve technologically in the time between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. Using the X-wing as an example, he said the sequel film's version was "a little bit slicker [and] smoother". ==Depiction==

in Star Wars (1997 Special Edition) The T-65B X-wing is produced by the Incom Corporation, which had previously supplied the ARC-170 and Z-95 Headhunter starfighters to the Galactic Republic during the Clone Wars. When the Galactic Empire ordered them to produce a new starfighter for the Imperial Navy, Incom engineers took inspiration from their previous work to create the X-wing. Production was already underway when politicking resulted in the Empire choosing instead to go with Sienar Fleet Systems' TIE fighter. Faced with an overproduction of expensive starfighters, a new market was found when agents of the Rebel Alliance contacted Incom about acquiring their stock of X-wings, to which Incom eagerly agreed. The X-wing quickly became a symbol of the Rebellion thanks to its use in several spectacular victories and the role it played in ultimately defeating the Empire. After the Empire's defeat, the X-wing starfighters became a staple of the New Republic fleet and later the Resistance, with Incom-FreiTek supplying upgraded T-70 and T-85 models. Compared to the TIE fighter, the X-wing is slower and less maneuverable in space, but boasts superior firepower, defenses, atmospheric maneuverability, and a supraluminal hyperdrive. Its four laser cannons can be fired singly, in pairs or all at once, and each launcher can carry up to three proton torpedoes. In addition to deflector shields, the X-wing possesses a titanium alloy armored hull, electronic countermeasures, and armored cockpit. An inertial dampener protects the pilot from high-g maneuvers, while an anti-gravity "repulsorlift" provides for flight in planetary atmospheres. The Rebel Alliance adopted the military strategy of Doctrine of Space Denial, wherein the Rebellion would raid Imperial boneyards and shipping frigates, both to disrupt Imperial logistics and operations, and also to requisition desperately needed materials. X-wing hyperdrive capabilities allowed for this kind of harassment and escape before the Empire could react. The presence of a hyperdrive and deflector shields differentiate the X-wing from the Empire's TIE fighters, emphasizing the importance the Rebels place on pilots surviving their missions. Novels and roleplaying material set after Return of the Jedi showed the X-wing continued to be refined and upgraded in service to the New Republic; the "XJ"-series X-wings, depicted in the war against the Yuuzhan Vong, have a third proton torpedo launcher, stronger lasers and improved engines. == Merchandise and licensing ==

Kenner Toys produced an X-wing toy as a complement to its action figure line in 1978; this model was made from formed plastic and had a battery-operated light and buzzer in the forward fuselage. The "s-foils" were activated by depressing the molded astromech droid. In 1982, a "battle-damaged" version was released using the same mold but with damage stickers, a grey fuselage, blackened engine inlets, and a darker canopy. In countries outside the U.S., the electronics were removed and the R2-D2 “button” was chrome (apart from the U.S., the electronic X-wing was only available in Brazil, Canada, and France). Kenner also produced a die-cast 1:72 miniature X-wing in 1978 and a smaller scaled version with "battle damage crash feature" for the short lived Micro Collection line in 1982. The X-wing appeared in four Micro Machines three-packs, including the first Star Wars pack released, a bronzed version, and a pack of three "battle damaged" X-wings with different colored markings. The Micro Machines X-wing has also been released in two single-packs, as a promotional souvenir with German video releases, in a nine-pack of Original Trilogy vehicles, and once in clear plastic. The X-wing appears in the Micro Machines Action Fleet toy line. Lego also released numerous X-wing models, ranging from a 76-piece miniature X-wing/TIE advanced kit to a 1,304-piece "Ultimate Collector's" model. In 2019, the Lego Group's annual Christmas gift to employees was a 1,038-piece Christmas X-wing, which also included Yoda's igloo and a sleigh. In addition to the original T-65 X-wing, Lego has released several models of the newer T-70 X-wing. X-wings also appear in numerous Star Wars games and Expanded Universe stories. The player pilots an X-wing in the Atari Star Wars game. It is also a playable ship in numerous LucasArts games, and is the eponymous vessel in the first of several space combat simulator games. Both the Rebel Assault and Rebel Assault II rail shooters include X-wing levels, and X-wing squadrons are controllable units in the Rebellion and Empire at War strategy games. Decipher and Wizards of the Coast published X-wing and X-wing-related cards for the Star Wars Customizable Card Game and Star Wars Trading Card Game, respectively. Michael A. Stackpole and Aaron Allston wrote the X-wing novel series that focuses on the X-wing pilots of Rogue Squadron and Wraith Squadron, the former expanding the story of pilots like Wedge Antilles who appear in the films. Dark Horse Comics has also published an X-Wing Rogue Squadron series. In 2012, Fantasy Flight Games released the Star Wars: X-Wing Miniatures Game featuring several pilots and variations of the ship. The X-wing also included in its Star Wars: Armada miniatures game and Star Wars: Rebellion board game. ==Cultural influence==

A model of Luke Skywalker's X-wing was among 250 Star Wars-related items on display at the National Air and Space Museum celebrating the franchise's twentieth anniversary. An original X-wing filming prop sold at auction for $160,000 in July 2016. In 2007, the San Diego Tripoli Rocket Association built and launched a X-wing model propelled by four rockets, which disintegrated seconds after liftoff. A life-size X-wing is suspended from the ceiling at the Star Trader gift shop in Disneyland in California, as well as one displayed outdoors by the Star Tours attraction at Disneyland Paris. A life-size X-wing made from Lego blocks appeared in Times Square, and a -size replica is on display at the Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum in Denver. In 2018, a number of Star Wars starfighters had their aerodynamic abilities tested using the Autodesk Flow Design virtual wind tunnel program. When tested, the classic T-65 X-wing design had a drag coefficient of 0.45, which is only slightly better than the coefficient of a sphere. The newer T-70 X-wing flown by Poe Dameron was more aerodynamically sound with a rating of 0.24, but still fell short of the F-4E Phantom with its 0.02 drag coefficient. These poor results were rationalized with the in-universe explanations that drag coefficient plays no role in space travel, and that Star Wars fighters can use repulsorlifts and deflector shields to give themselves better flight profiles. In 2016, Hot Wheels once again created a Star Wars-themed full-sized car, this time was a depiction of the X-wing (dubbed as the 'carship', a combination of 'starships' and 'cars') to coincide the release of the Star Wars Carships line. The car's design was said to be inspired by most of the open- wheeled race cars. It was showcased at San Diego Comic-Con that year and currently as part of the Garage of Legends car collection. In 2023, Heritage Auctions sold an original 20-inch model of an X-wing starfighter used in the climatic space battle in 1977’s Star Wars for a record-setting $3.135 million. ==See also==