As such, it was equipped with a series of innovations over previous models. Sienar Fleet Systems followed specific Imperial instruction in developing the TIE Defender, among them the requirement that the fighter would exceed the mission capability of a flight group of four standard TIE Fighters. The TIE/D Defender, commonly known as the TIE Defender or T/D, was touted as the next "logical advance" of the TIE Series-a starfighter that was fast, well armed and capable of hyperspace travel. That, combined with the realization that the inclusion of a hyperdrive would allow the fleet to be more flexible, caused the Imperial Navy to rethink its doctrine of using swarms of cheap craft instead of fewer high-quality ones, leading to the introduction of the TIE Advanced x1 and its successor, the TIE Avenger.
The high success rate of more advanced Rebel starfighters against standard Imperial TIE Fighters resulted in a mounting cost of replacing destroyed fighters. " A logical advance for Imperial fighter design." ―Imperial propaganda The fighters participated in multiple battles during the Yuuzhan Vong War and continued to be used by the Imperial Remnant until at least 44 ABY.
TIE Defenders saw action during Shadowspawn's campaign against the New Republic in 5 ABY and were used by the Republic's Rogue Squadron during a brief alliance with former Director of Imperial Intelligence Ysanne Isard against Prince-Admiral Delak Krennel's Ciutric Hegemony in 9 ABY. Following the death of Emperor Palpatine at Endor, the TIE Defender continued to see limited use by Imperial forces. The fighters participated in several other engagements during the Imperial era, including the Battle of Mygeeto and the Battle of Endor. Imperial forces under the command of Grand Admiral Thrawn were ultimately able to prevent the spread of the technology and the starfighter played a major role in Thrawn's successful campaign against Zaarin.īeyond the Zaarin campaign, the TIE Defender's high cost, together with political factors, kept it from achieving widespread use in the Empire and units were assigned only to the most elite pilots. The advanced starfighter also attracted the attention of other factions, including the Rebel Alliance and pirate groups. The ship's speed and agility, combined with its arsenal of four laser cannons, two ion cannons, two warhead launchers and an optional tractor beam projector made it arguably the most advanced starfighter available at the time.Īfter Zaarin's failed coup against Emperor Palpatine, the renegade admiral attempted to gain control of the TIE Defender technology to give his forces a technological advantage over the Empire. Representing a shift in starfighter design from previous TIE models, the ship featured a hyperdrive as well as deflector shields to allow it to operate independently of Imperial capital ships. The TIE/D Defender, commonly known as the TIE Defender or T/D, was a high-performance TIE Series starfighter developed for the Imperial Navy by Sienar Fleet Systems in a project overseen by Grand Admiral Demetrius Zaarin shortly before the Battle of Endor. We're either the best pilots in the Imperial fleet or the luckiest." ― Rexler Brath " Imperial High Command decided that defender pilots would only be selected from TIE interceptor pilots who had flown at least twenty combat missions and survived.