Braha'tok-class gunship

"A gem among the smaller capital ships. Who still uses these?" "Dornea, my dear Statura. Dornea uses them."

- U.O. Statura and Admiral Gial Ackbar discuss the usage of Braha'tok-class gunships

The Braha'tok-class gunship, also known as the Dornean gunship, was a model of gunship built by the Dornean Braha'ket Fleetworks Conglomerate for military use in such as bombardment and fast attacks. They were mainly used by the Dornea but many of them also saw service with the Alliance to Restore the Republic leading up to and during the Galactic Civil War in battles such as the Battle of Atollon and the Battle of Endor.

Characteristics
The Braha'tok-class gunship also called the Dornean gunship for its use at Dornea. It was a type of gunship built in a dagger shape and although not designed as a carrier, two X-wing starfighters could be attached to its undercarriage. The Dornean Gunship Apailana's Promise most notably did this. The ship itself was 90 meters long and bore an armament of concussion missile launchers and double turbolaser cannons. A Dornean gunship could carry a crew of 75 personnel and was designed for bombardment and fast attack.

Early days of the Alliance
By 2 BBY, at least three, including the Orion, were part of General Jan Dodonna's Massassi Group, one of the largest rebel cells against the Galactic Empire. Following the formation of the Alliance to Restore the Republic in the same year, three traveled with Dodonna's fleet to Phoenix Cell's base on Atollon in preparation for an attack on Lothal. However, the fleet was ambushed along side Phoenix Squadron by the forces of Grand Admiral Thrawn. The Orion was destroyed in the space battle and the other two were forced to retreat with the other ships. During the ground battle, one of them managed to escape the base alongside the freighter Ghost but didn't make it off Atollon. The other was later destroyed before the rebels fled the system.

Galactic Civil War
In 0 BBY, at least three Dornean gunships saw action in the Battle of Scarif, the battle that saw the outbreak of the Galactic Civil War and the theft of the Death Star plans.

Before and during the Mid Rim Retreat, Apailana's Promise, served under Commander Tohna as the escort to the Sixty-First Mobile Infantry's CR90 corvette Thunderstrike and saw action in many battles sometimes covering the Thunderstrikes escape in desperate situations. On one occasion it covered the Thunderstrike's escape from an Imperial Destroyer. After the deaths of Captain Micha Evon and the Thunderstrike's main officers, Tohna was transferred to the corvette and First Officer Sharn took over. During the Siege of Inyusu Tor, the Thunderstrike was shot down and the Sixty-First were left stranded on Sullust. The Apailana's Promise kept the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Herald distracted whilst the Sixty-First defended the factory known as Inyusu Tor. The gunship survived the fight with its gun batteries drained and its shielding overheated but it's hull intact.

A few Dornean gunships were stationed at the rebel base on 5251977 when the crew of the Mighty Oak Apocalypse joined the Alliance. In 4 ABY, at least two of these ships rendezvoused with the entire Alliance Fleet at Sullust and went on to participate in the attack on the second Death Star.

Behind the scenes
The Braha'tok-class gunship first appeared in Richard Marquand's 1983 film Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi. The model&mdash;then only known as "ROJ BG ship"&mdash;was built by Bill George as a background ship for the "Battle of Endor" sequence. However, Art Director Joe Johnston did not think it looked good enough. Because of that, the model is barely visible in Return of the Jedi. But fans latched onto the obscure model and it would appear in the novel Lost Stars by Claudia Gray and have a sizeable role the novel Battlefront: Twilight Company by Alexander Freed. The Braha'tok-class gunship then made a return to the screens when Pablo Hidalgo and his team had new models built and added into Star Wars Rebels and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.

Appearances

 * Lost Stars
 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story
 * Rogue One: A Star Wars Story novelization
 * Battlefront: Twilight Company
 * Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi
 * Star Wars: Return of the Jedi junior novelization
 * Star Wars: Return of the Jedi junior novelization