Imperial jumptrooper

The Imperial jumptroopers, also known as skytroopers or air assault troopers, were a variant of the Galactic Empire's stormtrooper. The direct successor of the Republic clone jet troopers, they were assigned to the battlefields with the most treacherous terrain.

Overview

The jumptroopers were an air-to-ground attack unit that was trained to engage airborne, entrenched, or otherwise inaccessible enemies. They were also trained in hit-and-run attacks in which they ambushed the enemy from above. They often provided stormtrooper units with air cover during pitched battles.

They were the primary Imperial unit designated to "keep order" on low-gravity worlds or on atmospheric platforms such as Cloud City.

Equipment

These soldiers wore standard stormtrooper armor, though their shoulders were black with patches of red paint. Their armor was similar to the armor worn by Commander Cody. Furthermore, the forehead of the helmet was shaped in a black V and had a single red line on it with two red lights by the chin.

They were equipped with:

Merr-sonnJT-12ImperialJetpack — A JT-12 jetpack used by some jumptroopers

AJP-400 Hush-About personal jet packs
Heavy blaster rifles
Rail detonators
Plasma casters
Merr-Sonn Missile Systems (built in to their jetpack)
Rocket launchers

They were equipped with an AJP-400 Hush-About personal jet pack that allowed them to burst through the air in short spurts of about 20 seconds and allowed them to hover over a location for an extended time. Being hit with Force lightning would cause the jet pack to explode or malfunction, and the jumptrooper to spiral into the ground.

Rocket trooper — A Rocket Trooper as seen during the Post-Imperial period

They were armed with plasma disruptors, which were far more powerful than standard Imperial-issued weaponry and were noted for their lack of a recoil. Thus the jumptroopers could discharge the weapon's fiery white bolts without changing their flight path or being knocked off balance while flying. This allowed them to seek a high vantage point in the air and take out their foes at a distance. Besides this, they were occasionally outfitted with rocket launchers.

The troops utilized a heavy blaster rifle as one of their primary arms. For added punch, a Merr-Sonn Missile System was integrated into their jetpacks that could fire rockets with no homing capability, thus requiring the trooper to aim at the target directly. The missiles detonated with a grenade-like blast. The pack only contained a few missiles.

They were also known to use devastating rail detonator guns, which allowed them to eliminate targets from any angle, as well as flamethrowers, which they discharged when they were at close range to their enemies.

History

These troopers were stationed on Felucia, Bespin, Kashyyyk, and the Death Star shortly before the Battle of Yavin. On Raxus Prime, jumptroopers were part of the garrison guarding the Imperial Ore Facility. They engaged in numerous battles against Galen Marek, who came by the planets on which they were stationed. They fought alongside Navy commandos and heavy troopers.

Jumptrooper Starkiller — Starkiller attacks an Imperial Jumptrooper on Kamino.

A number of jumptroopers were stationed on the planet Kamino, where they attempted to stop the clone test subject of the deceased Starkiller. Despite their best efforts, the clone easily defeated them all and escaped the planet. Later, they fought the clone on Cato Neimoidia under command of Baron Merillion Tarko in the city of Tarko-se. He killed them all. When the Alliance to Restore the Republic attacked Kamino, the clone encountered and killed them also.

Several were present during the Raid at Spaceport THX1138 to capture the Rebel agent aboard one of the StarSpeeder 1000s.

Jetpack-equipped stormtroopers known as air assault troopers, or airtroopers, helped to protect the AT-ATs of the Thundering Herd unit during the Battle of Hoth. Some of these airtroopers also accompanied Darth Vader during his attempt to capture Luke Skywalker on Bespin's Cloud City.

Behind the scenes

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An Imperial Jet Trooper as seen in Star Wars: The Force Unleashed video game (PSP, PS2 and Wii versions only)

Super Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back featured airtroopers as one of its many enemies. Their designation as air assault troopers was later revealed in Star Wars Galaxy Magazine 4.

The Hasbro jumptrooper toy's design was based on the unit in the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of the game, as it possessed a hose connecting the helmet to a breathing tank on the chest armor. The version in the PS2, PSP, and Wii ports looked more like a standard stormtrooper with heavy shoulder armor. The figure's bio also stated that they were equipped with rail detonators, though these do not feature in the game. The title of "jumptrooper" comes from Hasbro toy catalogs and does not feature a jetpack.

The jumptrooper is called the Raxus Prime Trooper in the Star Wars Miniatures game.