TIE ADVANCED X1 PROTOTYPE
Type: Sienar TIE Advanced x1 prototype starfighter
Manufacturer: Sienar Fleet Systems
Affiliation: Galactic Empire
Weapons: Twin laser cannons
Length: 13 meters
Crew: 1
Debut: A New Hope
Not only was it the first TIE fighter to boast a hyperdrive, but the TIE Advanced x1 was also the personal starfighter of Darth Vader, used during the Battle of Yavin. Unfortunately for Vader, his prototype starship was sent spinning out of control, leaving the Rebels free to destroy the Death Star.
Vader ordered the construction of the TIE Advanced to begin the next evolution of the TIE fighter, as Rebel X-wings were proving more than a match for the standard TIE. As well as a unique hyperdrive, this TIE also boasted quadanium steel armour; the common TIE fighters lacked any kind of shielding, and Vader wanted to rectify this flaw. However, the design had a few disadvantages; for one, the hyperdrive was stationed in a place that influenced the flight of the craft, so only the very best pilots could fly it. For this reason the TIE Advanced was never made a production model, though it did culminate in the creation of the TIE interceptor.
Vader used his TIE Advanced when the Rebel snubfighters proved too agile to be targeted by the Death Star's turbolasers. Vader deployed a TIE fighter squadron, then he and two wingmen joined the fight when the Rebels began their runs on the exhaust port. Vader destroyed many starfighters in the battle, but when Han Solo appeared in the Millennium Falcon, Vader was sent spinning into space after his wingman smashed into the TIE Advanced's solar panel. |
