The Essential Guide to Force Exile/B-wing starfighter

B-wing starfighter

Description
Compared to many of the later model Yanibar Guard designs, the B-wing starfighter was unique in that it was not designed by Kraechar Arms. Instead, the design was "acquired" by Yanibar Guard Intelligence during the height of the Galactic Civil War in order to fill a glaring weakness in the Yanibar Guard Fleet's arsenal: a heavy, survivable strike fighter. Once acquired, though, the B-wing rapidly became one of the most popular craft in the Yanibar Guard arsenal.

The cross-shaped fighter was built around a long vertical spacefoil. On top was a circular cockpit with dual laser cannons, while the bottom of the spacefoil mounted a weapons pod carrying another laser cannon and a light ion cannon. Two horizontal S-foils folded out from the fuselage in combat form, each carrying a light ion cannon. Two proton torpedo launchers with eight missiles each rounded out the arsenal of the B-wing, giving it a formidable payload of ordnance for use against capital ships. While Rebel Alliance and New Republic B-wings carried customizable hardpoints allowing the lasers and ion cannons to be swapped out, Kraechar Arms opted to hardwire the weapons configuration in place, limiting versatility in exchange for cost.

The B-wing was already a complex starfighter. The entire craft could rotate around the gyroscopically mounted cockpit and the aerodynamic qualities of the design made it tricky to fly in-atmosphere, particularly the windy skies of Yanibar. Just to fly the B-wing in the Yanibar Guard required six months of flight training in simulators before being allowed to step inside the cockpit. Pilots with Force-sensitivity were preferred in order to ensure fliers with enough control to handle the difficult craft.

However, the B-wing was survivable, if slow. Unlike its predecessor, the Valkyrie starbomber, it could take punishment due to its de-centralized construction, reduced forward profile, and a capable shield generator. Kraechar Arms technicians were also able to add anti-missile counter-measures and targeting jammers to improve survivability on attack runs.

History
The B-wing design was first "acquired" by Yanibar Guard Intelligence, along with an actual starfighter, in 4 ABY, by Yanibar Guard Intelligence agent Hasla Almani. Almani sent back not only the technical specifications and the starfighter, but also manufacturing techniques that she had stolen from the Rebel Alliance. Having also logged numerous hours of combat flight time in the B-wing, she was one of the first B-wing squadron commanders. Kraechar Arms immediately diverted most of their starfighter construction to division as soon as the information was obtained.

In a short time after the B-wing plans were obtained, Kraechar Arms had already built 24 of the new starfighters. It was a colossal effort that involved workers going nonstop for weeks to produce the complex craft, but it paid off. All of the new B-wings saw use in the Battle of Yanibar when the Zann Consortium attacked. They were flown by the most experienced Valkyrie pilots and acquitted themselves well. Their launchers were used to deploy space mines and they also participated in attack runs against the Zannist fleet, causing heavy damage.

Elated with the success of their new starfighter, YGF placed an initial order for 120 more B-wings, which was filled over the next several years. Another measure taken to exploit the potential of the fighter was the establishment of Paladin Squadron, an elite of the dozen best B-wing pilots, led initially by Hasla Almani, who was YGF's first B-wing ace. Paladin Squadron quickly established itself as a formidable unit by undertaking numerous strike missions on remote Imperial convoys and pirates, forming a reputation for knocking out successively larger ships. In 7 ABY, they participated in a mission to hijack an Imperial bacta convoy in order to help Yanibar combat an outbreak of the Krytos virus. They ran into the New Republic's elite Rogue Squadron, but though there were some tense moments with the famed X-wing unit, the two units avoided a shooting match thanks to Almani's diplomacy and returned to Yanibar with the bacta.

B-wings continued to see service with the Yanibar Guard for the next decade.

Appearances

 * Force Exile IV: Guardian
 * Rogues and Paladins