Liberator-class starfighter

For other uses, see Liberator-class and Striker.

The Liberator-class starfighter, known by the reconstituted Sith Empire as the Talon fighter, was a model of fighter used by the Galactic Republic prior to and during the Great Galactic War.

One of the ship's variants was the Striker-class, mostly used by Jedi Master Satele Shan.

Characteristics

The Liberator-class starfighter served as the primary defense against the Mk VI and Mk VII Imperial interceptors employed by the reconstituted Sith Empire during the Great Galactic War and the Cold War.

Like other starfighters and smaller transport designs of the era, excluding a few notable exceptions like the Defender-class light corvette, the Fury-class Imperial interceptor, the BT-7 Thunderclap assault ship, and the X-70B Phantom-class prototype transport, the Liberator-class did not have hyperdrive engines. This forced their pilots to rely on larger ships, such as the Thranta-class corvette and Valor-class cruiser to carry them to their destination.

Swivel-mounted wings allow the Liberator to be stored aboard larger vessels with impressive efficiency, often catching enemy forces by surprise when multiple squadrons are deployed from a single starship.^[3]

The Liberator-class could remain in active deployment for up to 37 standard hours.^[3]

A different model of the fighter, known as the Striker-class, had additional room for an astromech droid and lightsaber storage.^[4]

Role

Fast, agile, and versatile, the Liberator-class starfighter is a true multi-role craft, capable of functioning as an escort, interceptor, or precision strike platform. It can also perform attack runs against enemy capital ships or space stations when bombers are unavailable.^[3]

History

These starfighters were used to escort a diplomatic convoy of Republic transport ships to investigate unidentified starships that had invaded the Tingel Arm of the galaxy. They were obliterated by the forces of the Sith Empire's navy. Several fighters were also used to reclaim Alderaan following the battle of the same name.

These fighters later served as the primary starfighters during the Great Galactic War and the subsequent Cold War against Mk. VI Imperial interceptors used by the Imperial Navy. They were loaded onto the Republic's Thranta-class corvettes and Valor-class cruisers.

The Jedi Master Satele Shan was known to use the Striker-class variant on missions for the Republic.^[4]