X-wing

About

The X-wing is a fictional starfighter from the Star Wars film franchise, first appearing in Star Wars: A New Hope (1977) and recurring as the iconic Rebel Alliance / Resistance fighter throughout the saga. The X-wing's defining visual feature is its split-wing configuration: in flight or attack mode, the four wings split into the X-shape that gives the type its name; in cruise or landing mode, the wings close into a horizontal pair. The fictional T-65B X-wing carries four laser cannons (one on each wingtip) and a pair of proton torpedo launchers in the bow.

The X-wing has been one of the most-rendered fictional aircraft of the past five decades — appearing across Star Wars films, animated series, video games, novels, and an enormous body of fan-built models, costumes, and tributes. The aircraft's design, attributed in the credits of the original film to ILM concept artist Joe Johnston (later director of The Rocketeer), draws visual inspiration from real-world fighter aesthetics: the cockpit silhouette of a P-51 Mustang, the engine-pod arrangement of a Lockheed P-38 Lightning, and the general profile of various WWII fighter cowls.

This RC implementation is a novelty scale model — flying X-wings appear at fan conventions, science-fiction-themed fly-ins, and on YouTube channels dedicated to ambitious RC engineering. Building a flying RC X-wing requires either compromising on the split-wing operation (most simply fix the wings in their X-position) or building elaborate servo-driven mechanisms that move the wings in flight.

In the simulator

A novelty subject for fans of fictional aviation. The X-wing in our sim flies as a sport airframe, capturing the visual character of one of cinema's most recognizable spacecraft. Use it for novelty flying with science-fiction visual signature. A natural sibling of the Y-Wing in this same pack.