V-19 landspeeder

"Hit them low, hard, and fast. Then get ready to run."

- Captain Panaka, briefing Gian speeder pilots before an attack on Trade Federation AATs

The V-19 landspeeder, commonly referred to as a Gian speeder, was a small landspeeder used by the Royal Naboo Security Forces, alongside the lighter Flash speeder.

Characteristics
SoroSuub had designed the V-19 Landspeeder to operate as both civilian and military transports. The vehicle's medium-grade hull plating and reinforced armor made it a common sight on congested urban worlds where collisions were commonplace.



The V-19 was also equipped with thrust pods tucked in at its back to reduce target silhouette. This made it popular with the Naboo Royal Security Forces which deployed it for a range of situations including crowd control, wilderness excursions and urban battles.

Although Naboo was a fairly peaceful planet, the Gian speeder was nonetheless rather heavily armed, with 2 forward light repeating blasters that could easily disable non-military vehicles. Each blaster had its own dedicated auxiliary power unit which allowed it to operate even if the speeder's primary power generator was damaged.

Furthermore the vehicle had one removable medium blaster cannon, that was able to pierce the lower forward armor below the pilot's hatch of an AAT. Some Gian speeders didn't carry this cannon, their pilot's favoring a larger windshield.

Each carried a pilot, gunner and 2 passengers which were usually more than enough to handle a situation. Command versions of the vehicle featured holographic projection systems for tactical planning and more advanced communication systems.

History


By the time of the Invasion of Naboo, there were 36 Gian speeders in use by the RSF. When the Trade Federation launched its invasion of Naboo, many Gian speeders were destroyed in direct combat with heavier Armored Assault Tanks. Following that, the few intact Gian Speeders were used by the resistance movement.

During the battle, Gian speeders were deployed to ambush lone AATs. This created a diversion that allowed Padmé Amidala and a small force to storm the Theed Palace.

Appearances

 * Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace
 * Star Wars: Starfighter
 * Star Wars: Battle for Naboo
 * Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds
 * Star Wars: Battlefront
 * Secrets of the Jedi
 * Labyrinth of Evil
 * Labyrinth of Evil
 * Labyrinth of Evil

Notes and references
V-19 Sicherheitsgleiter V-19 -maakiituri