I want to restate that this is an analysis for my own head canon. I'm well aware of the Z-95s use in actual canon as well as legends canon. This is my hypothetical Empire in an alternate universe so I get to use these vehicles the way I want to.
We are going to take a quick look at one of the Empires oldest and most reliable strike craft.
Incom's Z-95a Head Hunter. The Z-95a first saw early service in Republic fighter squadrons a decade before the Clone Wars. Here the Z-95a made a name for itself protecting space lanes from pirates and criminal gangs. The Z-95a was equipped with 6 heavy blasters and a concussion missile launcher impeded in its fuselage. The Z-95a had swept S foils that would sweep back during atmospheric combat.
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| Early Z-95a models. |
Later during the Clone Wars Income introduced the Z-95b an improved model that was an ideal medium fighter. The Z-95b replaced its 6 heavy blasters with a pair of laser cannons and replaced its missile launcher with a torpedo launcher. The Z-95b made a name for itself as a well rounded fighter that was easy to learn to fly as its controls were similar to many of Incoms models of recreational air speeders. Because of this it was a favorite fighter for many of the non clone republic squadrons fielded during the Clone Wars as the Z-95b didn't require the kind of precision training or flash training the clone pilots were bred for.
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| Z-95b squadron flying escort during the Clone Wars |
After the Clone wars the Imperial Navy switched more and more to the TIE series of star craft as the TIE series were more in line with Naval doctrine. This meant that the Z-95 was transferred to the Imperial Army. This doesn't mean the Z-95 is in any danger of being fazed out, far from it even. The Imperial Army must not only fight on planets but also defend the planetary space around the worlds they are garrisoned at. This means the Imperial Armies air forces are quite massive considering they must defend entire worlds and the fact that the Empire has over one million worlds.
The Imperial Army still fields squadrons of the older Z-95b's as an air/space superiority fighter. These squadrons have also been supplemented by the newer Z-95c. The Z-95c has been equipped with heavier laser cannons as well as being able to equip ordnance pods on hard points under its wings as well as it pre existing torpedo launchers within the main fuselage. This allows the Z-95c model to fill the role of a light bomber that is far more capable of defending against enemy fighter craft.
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| A Z-95c with its heavy ordnance hard points. |
With both models of Head Hunters in service the Imperial Army has a cheap but effective strike craft that can be seen on countless Imperial worlds. The Head Hunter is well loved by its pilots and maintenance crews because of the ease to fly and maintain them. Their rugged build has allowed the z-95 to have a higher operational readiness status than most other fighter craft as they require less maintenance than most fighters and are generally far more reliable. It must be noted though that the Head Hunter does not have a hyperdrive like many of the Imperial Armies strike craft as they mainly patrol the atmosphere and planetary space of Imperial worlds.
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| A Z-95c along with Navy TIE LN fighters in combat. |
The Z-95 was so successful that its design spawned several other fighter designs, including the ARC-170 Heavy strike fighter used by the Imperial Navy as well as the Imperial Armies premier space superiority fighter the X-wing. Incom has made its mark on the galaxy in no small part to this venerable fighter, as well as the Imperial Army and its ability to defend the countless worlds from a dangerous galaxy.
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