A small, wedge-shaped craft, the A-wing fighters is introduced at the Battle of Endor and quickly becomes a major element of the Alliance combat fleet. The lightweight A-wing, designed by General Jan Dodonna to outrun any ship in the Imperial Navy, has especially powerful avionics, including a power-jamming system that lets pilots blind enemy targets prior to attack.
While originally designed for escort duty, the A-wing is proving more adept at hit-and-run missions, blasting enemy sites and spacecraft with twin, wing-mounted pivoting blaster cannons and concussion missiles.
The downside of the A-wing's speed and agility is its relatively high vulnerability in dogfights: The position of the cockpit and its lack of shielding leaves pilots exposed to enemy fire, making the craft's speed even more important.