Low Altitude Assault Transport/carrier
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Low Altitude Assault Transport/carrier
Production information
Manufacturer
Model
Technical specifications
Maximum speed
Shielding
Armament
Complement
Crew
Cargo capacity
Usage
Availability
Role(s)
- "Cody, get the tanks down. Come in, Cody!"
- ―Commander Jet tells Commander Cody to land his AT-TE tanks[7]
TheLow Altitude Assault Transport/carrier, known more simply as theLAAT/c, was a vehicle carrier variant ofRothana Heavy Engineering'sLow Altitude Assault Transport series ofrepulsorliftgunships developed for theGrand Army of the Republic. Beginning with theFirst Battle of Geonosis in22 BBY, the LAAT/c saw use throughout theClone Wars between theGalactic Republic and theConfederacy of Independent Systems and in theyears afterward. Manned by a singlepilot, the LAAT/c was originally designed to deployAll Terrain Tactical Enforcers onto battlefields, though it was soon modified to accommodate a number of additional vehicles as the Clone Wars progressed, using powerful magnetic clamps to hold payloads in place. The LAAT/c shared the same rear-wing configuration common to all LAAT gunships, though it lacked the undercarriage that the more commonLow Altitude Assault Transport/infantry used to carryclone troopers into battle, and also lacked the heavy armament of its cousins.
Characteristics[]
An LAAT/c "Wampa Runner" carrying an AT-TE.
Arepulsorlift gunship measuring 28.82meters long,[2] the Low Altitude Assault Transport/carrier, or LAAT/c, was a carrier model of theLow Altitude Assault Transport series of gunships. Like the more commonLow Altitude Assault Transport/infantry,[8] the LAAT/c featured two long wings located at the rear of the craft, and the body of the gunship was considerably thinner than the LAAT/i. A singlepilot manned the cockpit in the front of the vehicle, which was considerably wider and taller than the rest of the body, and the front featured two lightlaser cannons for defense.[1] Two large cylindrical engines topped the LAAT/c's wings where they joined the body, and the gunship's two magnetic clamp arms were attached to the body underneath the wings.[4] The gunship, which could travel at a maximum speed of 620 kilometers per hour, used its magnetic clamps to ferry a wide variety of ground vehicles to and from assault ships and transports in orbit.[8]
Role[]
The LAAT/c was specifically developed to deploy ground vehicles on the battlefield, ferrying them to and from orbiting transports and assault ships. The gunship was originally designed for use with theAll Terrain Tactical Enforcer (AT-TE), but Rothana soon modified the LAAT/c to accommodate a variety of vehicles. The LAAT/c was capable of deploying one AT-TE, fourAll Terrain Experimental Transports, aForward Command Center, oneRepublic Troop Transport, oneTX-130Saber-class fighter tank,[1] aPX-4 Mobile Command Base,[3] or aRX-200Falchion-class assault tank.[5]
History[]
An LAAT/c gunship delivers a AT-TE walker to the battlefield on Geonosis.
The Low Altitude Assault Transport/carrier was developed byRothana Heavy Engineering, a subsidiary ofKuat Drive Yards, which was contracted by theKaminoans to develop a number of vehicles for the secretGrand Army of the Republic.[9] LAAT/cs were first deployed in22 BBY at theFirst Battle of Geonosis, the battle that sparked theClone Wars between theGalactic Republic and theConfederacy of Independent Systems and also saw the unveiling of the Grand Army. Four hundred LAAT/c gunships were deployed during the battle, ferrying AT-TEs into combat; a number of them were used to ensure that theSelf-Propelled Heavy Artillery units deployed onGeonosis were defended against attack with AT-TEs.[8]
During theDark Reaper crisis, one of the first major campaigns of the Clone Wars, three LAAT/c gunships were deployed during abattle on the planetRhen Var. Three gunships participated in abattle at the planetRaxus Prime not long afterwards, and several LAAT/c gunships saw use when the Republicretook Rhen Var. Dropships were used during thefighting on theasteroidSivvi, and they also deployed the Republic's ground vehicles at thefinal battle of the campaign atThule, where the Republic succeeded in destroying theDark Reapersuperweapon.[10]
Around sevenweeks after the Battle of Geonosis, two LAAT/c gunships were used by the Republic's501st Legion to deliver two AT-TE walkers to the surface of theplanetTeth during theBattle of Teth.[11] One of the gunships had the face of a snarlingwampa creature on its nose, leadingclone troopers to nickname it "Wampa Runner."[2] Numerous dropships participated in theSecond Battle of Geonosis, ferrying AT-TE walkers to the surface of Geonosis in large numbers amid many LAAT/i gunships andBTL-B Y-wing starfighters. The gunships came under fire from the nativeGeonosians during their descent, but several of the dropships under the command ofMarshal CommanderCody managed to land and deploy their AT-TEs safely.[7] In the aftermath of the battle and the destruction of the planet'sprimary droid foundry, several LAAT/c gunships were used to move debris from the site of the factory as part of the search for theJediPadawansAhsoka Tano andBarriss Offee.[12]
The Zillo Beast is airlifted.
When anenormousZillo Beast was subdued after theBattle of Malastare, a flight of four LAAT/c gunships were used to airlift the unconscious beast to a transport.[5] Numerous dropships were used to deliverAll Terrain Recon Transports and AT-TEs to the surface ofKiros during theBattle of Kiros[13] around21 BBY.[14] Several LAAT carriers participated in theBattle of Sarrish in20 BBY, deploying AT-TEs onto the battlefield.[15]
The Clone Wars ended in19 BBY with the rise of theGalactic Empire in the place of the the Galactic Republic, and the newImperial Military made use of the LAAT/c in the early years after the end of the conflict. Dropships saw use during thefighting on the ice planetAtoa in 19 BBY, deploying AT-TE walkers to Atoa's surface.[16]Decades later, during theGalactic Civil War, theRestored Empire faction fielded a number of LAAT/c gunships alongside other Clone Wars-era vehicles and ships in their effort to overthrow theImperial Remnant in13 ABY.[6]
Behind the scenes[]
The LAAT/c first appeared in the2002 filmStar Wars: Episode IIAttack of the Clones in the Battle of Geonosis sequence, and they were first named inStar Wars: Attack of the Clones: The Visual Dictionary, a reference guide for the movie released onApril 22, 2002. LAAT/c gunships have appeared in a number of Clone Wars material since then, such as theStar Wars: The Clone Wars video game and theStar Wars: The Clone Wars animated series. TheLEGO toy company released a LAAT/c dropship with anAll Terrain Open Transport, but it is uncertain if the gunship can carry AT-OTs incanon.
Appearances[]
Non-canon appearances[]
Sources[]
- Star Wars: Attack of the Clones Incredible Cross-Sections
- Star Wars: Attack of the Clones: The Visual Dictionary(First identified as Low Altitude Assault Transport/carrier)
- Star Wars Trading Card Game —Sith RisingCard:Republic Drop Ship (backup link)
- Inside the Worlds of Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
- The Official Star Wars Fact File 88GUN 3-4: Republic Attack Gunship
"Guide to the Grand Army of the Republic" —Star Wars Insider 84- Star Wars Chronicles: The Prequels
- Star Wars: Epic Battles
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars: The Visual Guide
- The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide
- The Clone Wars Campaign Guide
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars Visual Guide: Ultimate Battles
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars: New Battlefronts: The Visual Guide
- Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Incredible Vehicles
- Star Wars: Complete Vehicles
- The Official Star Wars Fact File Part 25GUN 1-2: LAAT/i Republic Gunship
Non-canon sources[]
Notes and references[]
- ↑1.001.011.021.031.041.051.061.071.081.091.101.111.121.131.141.151.161.171.181.19The Clone Wars Campaign Guide
- ↑2.02.12.2Star Wars: The Clone Wars: Incredible Vehicles
- ↑3.03.13.2The Force Unleashed Campaign Guide
- ↑4.04.14.2Star Wars: Episode IIAttack of the Clones
- ↑5.05.15.2
Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "The Zillo Beast" - ↑6.06.1Crimson Empire III: Empire Lost 2
- ↑7.07.1Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Landing at Point Rain"
- ↑8.08.18.2Inside the Worlds of Star Wars: Attack of the Clones
- ↑Star Wars: Attack of the Clones Incredible Cross-Sections
- ↑Star Wars: The Clone Wars video game
- ↑Star Wars: The Clone Wars film
- ↑Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Weapons Factory"
- ↑Star Wars: The Clone Wars — "Kidnapped"
- ↑Star Wars Annual 2011
- ↑"Routine Valor" —Free Comic Book Day 2006 Special
- ↑Darth Vader and the Lost Command 1
