Nebulon-B Frigate
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{{SW Craft
|image=Image:Esb-Nebulon--B-Frigate.jpg
Nebulon-B Frigate before entering into hyperspace
|name=Nebulon-B Frigate
|Manufacturer=Kuat Drive Yards
|Specification=N/A
|Type=Frigate
|Length=300 meters
|Weapons=12 turbolasers and 12 laser cannons
|Shield=N/A
|Hull=N/A
|Crew=N/A
|Speed=12,000G
|Troop=N/A
|Affiliation=Rebel Alliance
|Cargo=Varies depending on configuration
|Passengers=700 soldiers and medical droids
|casualties1=
|casualties2=
|notes=
}}
The Nebulon-B Frigate is a starship from the fictional Star Wars universe, and it has also been known as the Escort Frigate, Medical Frigate, or Rebel Cruiser (in the Star Wars Essential Guide to Vessels and Vehicles). Built before and during the Galactic Civil War, this ship was used by both sides of the battle as a support ship for the large capital ships, such as Imperial Star Destroyers and rebel Mon Calamari Cruisers. It was often used by the Rebellion during the war, with the most famous instance of this ship being the Medical Frigate seen in the movies The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. Built by a subsidiary of the massive galactic Kuat Drive Yards corporation, the ship mounts twelve turbolaser batteries and twelve laser cannons. A Nebulon-B Frigate carries 24 starfighters.
The Nebulon-B was successful in its design role as convoy escort for Imperial convoys, filling a crucial gap between costly Imperial-class Star Destroyers and weak Corellian Corvettes. Its moderate firepower and two squdrons of TIE Fighters made very effective for deterring Rebel starfighter raids from hyperspace. Enemy forces soon found countermeasures and a number of those frigates defected to the Rebel Alliance. For a time the Rebel Alliance used them as command ships for raids into the Empire but they were replaced by the far more capable Mon Calamari cruisers and modified for other uses or became dedicated fleet escorts.
However, it was a relatively cheap escort and was found in great numbers across the galaxy despite its slow speed and vulnerability at the rear end. As demonstrable in most Star Wars-themed space combat video games, only a few turrets are mounted near the engines. Once these are taken out, the frigate cannot target enemy fighters attacking from behind due to its cylindrical design.
Nebulon-B2 Modified Frigate
Some time before the destruction of the second Death Star, an improved version called the Corona was created specifically for the Galactic Empire. The Corona looked similar to two of the original type fixed together at a 45 degree angle, so that the bottom-facing "wings" made an upside-down "V" shape, increasing the ship's surface area when enabling the mounting of more weapons. It has sometimes been called the Nebulon-B2. The Nebulon-B2's first appearance was likely in the PC flight simulator Star Wars: TIE Fighter (1994), where it was also known as a Modified Frigate.
See List of capital ships in Star Wars: X-wing for the names of some of the Imperial and Rebel Nebulon-Bs.