Jetpack
From Wookieepedia, the Star Wars wiki.
- "A lot of the younger soldiers thought we oughta be zipping around the battlefield on jetpacks. But one direct hit, and you're grounded. Maybe forever."
- ―Bren Derlin[src]
The jetpack was an aerial personal transportation device in limited use across the galaxy. A jetpack offered a great degree of mobility in the air, though often at the personal risk of the user.
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[edit] Characteristics
Jetpacks were usually worn on the back, and controlled by a wrist-mounted device or through verbal commands issued into a visor or helmet. To launch, a jetpack funneled both air and fuel through miniaturized turbines. In the device's intake system, the air-fuel mix was ignited, providing the thrust needed to propel the wearer through the air. The launch of most jetpacks was also accompanied by a cloud of exhaust - useful for quick getaways requiring a handy smoke screen.
In flight, directional exhaust nozzles controlled the user's flight path, while a gyrostabilizer counterbalanced the jetpack's velocity for descent. Jetpacks were considered impractical for public use: downsides to the jetpack's agility included the device's thirty-kilo weight, and the fact that most models could carry enough fuel for around twenty bursts of thrust. Often, Repulsor pack provided a more viable alternative.
[edit] Notable usages
One of the more popular models of jetpack was the Mitrinomon Z-6, used by both Jango and Boba Fett. The former found that his jetpack failed to fire, leaving him vulnerable to Mace Windu's decapitating strike at the Battle of Geonosis. During the battle, a Reek arena beast nearly trampled Jango and damaged his jet pack. After Jango killed the Reek, Mace Windu charged at Jango, who at the last second attempted to activate his jetpack, but failed. Mace Windu quickly beheaded the legendary bounty hunter. The latter found that his jetpack was not always reliable when it was damaged by a wild attack by Han Solo on Tatooine. The misfiring jetpack sent Fett spiraling into the belly of the Sarlacc, but it was the only thing that helped him escape the Sarlacc soon after. The Z-6 was fitted with a top-mounted missile launcher. Jetpacks were also worn by Wookiee Berserkers, elite jet and blaze troopers, and Clone Commander Cody during the Clone Wars, and by the dreaded bounty hunter Durge. Battle droids and exoskeleton Dark troopers had jetpacks built into themselves.
