by Michael McGuire

After the war with the Trade Federation wound down, the Naboo high command's battle analysis revealed that the N-1 fighters where totally ineffective against the newer, heavier fighters and capital ships in current use. Used primarily for policing the Naboo system, they where badly outdated. Since the new heavy fighters where very expensive, only three squadrons where built; these saw extensive service in the Clone Wars protecting Naboo against several attacks. Armed with quad forward-firing turbo lasers, the N-104 Heavy Fighters can be a serious threat to all but the most heavily shielded capitol ships. Since the fighter has to make a fairly slow attack run, it can be an easy target for defensive fighter support. For anti-fighter defense, the usual behind-the-cockpit droid socket has been replaced with a twin laster turret.

At the time of the Clone Wars, only a single prototype N-109 heavy fighter had been finished, requiring a rushed final assembly plan, which slightly altered the production version of the fighter. Instead of having the large turbo lasers and rear-mounted anti-fighter turret blend into the ship's hull, they ended-up being hastily added-on, which gives these fighters an oddly menacing and slightly out-of-place appearance.

I had been trying to think of a way to turn a P-38 into a Starwars heavy fighter for a while and it here it finally is. It became a Naboo fighter to fit in with the yellow fighters seen in Phantom Menace. While the body is from a P-38 kit, the fighter has parts from a dozen different kits, including a cordless-phone antenna for most of the tail.

Image: Left side

Image: Front view

Image: Right front, low

Image: Left/rear

Image: Beauty shot

Image: Right/rear, in the spray booth