Depiction
The Expanded Universe states that Incom Corporation designers defected to the Rebel Alliance and handed over the X-wing's design. One design of the Z-95 Headhunter is based on an initial Johnston X-wing sketch; the Z-95 has since been described as an X-wing precursor.
According to roleplaying and other material, X-wings depicted in the movies and Expanded Universe material that takes place around the same era are equipped with four laser cannons and a pair of proton torpedo launchers. The fighter has two flight modes: one in which the wings are flat and another when they are expanded into "attack position", affording the wingtip lasers a larger fire area. "S-foil" servomotors control the transition between the two, hence the expression "to lock s-foils in attack position". Lacking an on-board navigation computer, they rely on an astromech droid to calculate hyperspace jumps. The presence of a hyperdrive and deflector shields differentiate the X-wing from the Empire's TIE fighters, emphasizing the importance the Rebels place on pilots surviving their missions. Novels and roleplaying material state that the X-wing continues to be refined and upgraded in the years beyond Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi; the "XJ"-series X-wings depicted in the war against the Yuuzhan Vong have a third proton torpedo launcher, stronger lasers, and improved engines.
Read more about this topic: X-wing