Imperial Shuttle
Based loosely upon the tri-wing symmetry of Incom's T-16 skyhopper, the standard Imperial shuttle has become a mainstay of imperial governmental transportation. The vessel's unusually strong defensive shielding made it a favourite of Palpatine's who usually travelled alone in a luxuriously-appointed private shuttle dedicated to his use only.
While the shuttle is generallybest suited to space travel, atmospheric flight is made more stable by the ship's three huge wings surfaces. While the large center wing is fixed and static, the port and starboard wings must be raised to a vertical position for landing. This feature makes the Imperial shuttle quite graceful during takeoffs and landings. Boarding and debarkation take place via a long, telescoping ramp that extends from the lower forward fuselage, just beneath the cockpit.
An unusual feature of the Lambda-class shuttle is its twin-gear landing system. A forward, third landing leg was made unnecessary by the shuttle's extremely heavy power core and hyperspace motivator unit, which ride squarely atop the ship's legwells. The great energies generated by the vessel's power plant allow it's highnumber of weapons emplacements, making the shuttle quit formidable when attacked. Rotating twin laser turrets on the leading edge of each lower wing give the ship a variety of possible firing arcs, and cannon emplacements affixed facing fore and aft provide secondary firepower.
The labda-class played a vital role in the Rebel attack during the Battle of Endor. An Imperial shuttle, launched from the Mon Calamari flagship, was used by the Rebel forces in order to gain access to the Imperial power field generator on the planet's surface. Using an intercepted entry code, the shuttle Tydirium made it's way safely through the Imperial defences surrounding the planet and successfully landed only a few kilometers from the intensely-guarded power station. The next day, General Han Solo and his troops breached the security of the generator station and destroyed it, leaving the orbiting Death Star open to attack by Rebel forces