A-Wing
Rebel space-combat success took a dramatic turn upward with the introduction of the A-Wing starfighter. It's low body mass and high-thrust twin engines give it the highest sublight velocity of any Rebel fighter, a speed that may be matched only by the Imperial TIE Interceptor.
The very existence of the A-Wing was kept totally secret during both development and construction, causing great surprise to the forces of the Empire when the unidentified and unexpected fighter suddenly began running rings around most of what the Empire had to offer. With its superior sensor systems and steerable laser turrets, the A-Wing is often used for reconnaissance. The craft is often able to drop out of hyperspace into the Imperial vessel fleet, take sensor readings and holographic images of the enemy and speed clear before the Empire knows it was even there. The powerful jammers installed aboard the A-Wing will blind the sensors of many enemy vessels, allowing either escape or ensured ship-to-ship combat success. These jammers are most effective against smaller vessels such as TIE fighters, and work only fairly well against corvettes and escort frigates. Larger ships such as Star Destroyers have sensor matrices for too large and elaborate for successful jamming, and such an attempt on the part of an A-Wing pilot would only serve to give away his position.
Few A-Wings are operational within the Rebel defensive fleet. More are being built as resources allow, however, and pilots are in the mean time being trained in the tricky handling of the A-Wing's swivelling lasers and high responsiveness.