A280 blaster rifle

The A280 blaster rifle was a type of blaster rifle mostly used by troopers of the Rebel Alliance^[1] and the soldiers of the New Republic.^[2] There existed two variants of the A280 blaster, the A280C and the A280-CFE, both of which being favored by commandos of the Rebel Alliance.

DescriptionEdit

The A280 was highly effective in piercing through armor and provided more power than other blaster rifles at long range. It featured a power charge system and integrated muzzle compensator.^[1] The A280-CFE (covert field edition) was a modular version of the A280 that featured a core pistol that could be reconfigured into an assault rifle or sniper rifle.^[3]

HistoryEdit

During the Galactic Republic's final years, the A280 blaster rifles were commonly used by local planetary forces which made them readily available on the black market, thus the Rebel Alliance acquired them with ease,^[1] and began to utilize it throughout their fight against the Galactic Empire.^[4][5]

During the Battle of Hoth, some of the rebel troopers were armed with A280 blaster rifles to hold off the incoming Imperial attackers until the evacuation transports flee away.^[4]

Major Lokmarcha used an A280 during Operation Yellow Moon.^[6]

The rifles were also used when the Rebel Alliance planned to assault the newly constructed Death Star II by infiltrating the surface of Endor and destroying the Death Star's shield generator.^[5]

Behind the scenesEdit

The A280 blaster rifle first appeared in Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back, a 1980 film as a weapon prop used by the Rebel Alliance.^[4] Although the name was never given on-screen, the reference book Ultimate Star Wars published in April 28, 2015 confirmed "A280 blaster rifle" as a canon name for the weapon.^[1] In Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure, it is referred to as a A-280. Parts of the A280 resemble the real life AR-15, specifically the receiver.

In Star Wars Battlefront II, the A280 uses the STG 44 model previously associated with the A280C blaster rifle and fires a three-shot burst, while the A280C uses the AR-15 model previously associated with the A280.^[2]

AppearancesEdit

• Star Wars Battlefront II
• Rebel Rising
• Rogue One: A Star Wars Story novelization
• Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures – "Princess Leia – The Rescue"
• Princess Leia, Part III
• Princess Leia, Part IV
• Darth Vader 5: Vader, Part V
• Star Wars 33: Rebels in the Wild
• Battlefront: Twilight Company
• Star Wars: Episode V The Empire Strikes Back (First appearance)
• Star Wars Galaxy of Adventures – "Luke vs. Imperial Walkers - Commander on Hoth"
• Moving Target: A Princess Leia Adventure
• Star Wars: Episode VI Return of the Jedi
• Shattered Empire, Part I
• Shattered Empire, Part III
• Star Wars: Uprising
• Galaxy's Edge 1 (Appears in flashback(s))

SourcesEdit

• Ultimate Star Wars (First identified as A280 blaster rifle)
• Star Wars: On the Front Lines
•  A280 Blaster Rifle in the Databank (backup link)

Notes and referencesEdit