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- "The first step was to attach baffles to the engines, diffusing the ion exhaust to the sides as well as to the rear."
- ―Rose Tico writing about her use of baffles on the bombers
Baffles were a component that could be installed on a starship engine in order to diffuse the ion exhaust it produced. This could make a ship's energy output look like trace emissions that would not show up on an enemy's sensors. Spy probes notably used engine baffles to hide their energy signature.[2]
The VCX-100 light freighter Ghost had baffled engines while it was used by the Spectres rebel cell during the reign of the Galactic Empire.[3] During the war between the First Order and the Resistance, the Resistance mechanic Rose Tico was tasked with modifying the Resistance's MG-100 StarFortress SF-17s so that they could avoid detection. Tico equipped the bombers with baffles to diffuse their energy output in a way similar to the Resistance's probe droids, but as the SF-17s emitted far more energy then a droid, she had to also have the crews weld fuel tanks and energy shunts onto the baffles so that some of the exhuast would be stored and then bled out over time in small amounts.[1]
Appearances
- The High Republic: Light of the Jedi (and audiobook)
- The Rebellion Begins (First appearance)
- Shadow Fall: An Alphabet Squadron Novel (and audiobook) (First appearance)
Sources
- The Last Jedi: Bomber Command (First mentioned)
- Star Wars: X-Wing Second Edition — Rebel Alliance Conversion Kit Card: Electronic Baffle Reissued in A/SF-01 B-Wing Expansion Pack, Galactic Empire, Scum and Villainy, First Order, and Resistance Conversion Kits, and Guardians of the Republic and Servants of Strife Squadron Packs