The HAVw A6 Juggernaut, often called the Juggernaut, clone turbo tank, or simply turbo tank, represented a formidable ten-wheeled tank engineered by Kuat Drive Yards, boasting extensive weaponry and armor. During the Clone Wars, these vehicles served as military transports for the Grand Army of the Republic. With the Galactic Republic's transformation into the Galactic Empire, the Empire continued to utilize the A6. The HAVw A6 Juggernaut followed the Juggernaut A5 in the line of succession and was later succeeded by the HCVw A9 turbo tank.
The HAVw A6 Juggernaut, a colossal heavy assault vehicle with ten wheels, was produced by Kuat Drive Yards for the Galactic Republic's clone army and functioned as both a troop carrier and a primary battle tank. With dimensions of 49.4 meters in length, the Juggernaut was twice the size and five times the weight of the Republic's All Terrain Tactical Enforcer, making it one of the largest ground vehicles constructed by KDY. Its box-shaped hull was encased in sloped thermal superconducting armor, designed to dissipate the heat and energy from incoming fire across a wide area instead of reflecting or ablating the damage. A robust, high-output reactor powered the tank's intricate all-wheel-drive system, enabling power delivery to each wheel as needed, achieving a maximum speed of 160 kilometers per hour. The independent mounting and suspension of each wheel, while adding complexity to the drive system, provided a surprising degree of articulation.
Internally, the Juggernaut offered considerable space, accommodating up to a company of 300 fully equipped clone troopers on individual jump seats across two decks. The forward section of the hull housed the vehicle's command deck, with positions for the pilot, co-pilot, vehicle commander, navigator, engineer, communications operators, and two forward gunners. Directly behind the command deck was a compact trauma bay, staffed by a medic or medical droid to treat wounded troopers. An extendable observation pod, raised on a mast above the command deck, provided a spotter with an unmatched view of the battlefield. A small bunker, located aft of the troop compartment, contained a backup command deck and the remaining gunnery stations.
The Juggernauts also delivered the destructive capacity of a complete armored regiment to the combat zone. The A6 models were equipped with a diverse array of weaponry, including two anti-personnel laser cannons, a dorsal turret-mounted rapid-repeating rotary laser cannon operated by a clone gunner, two retractable hull-mounted anti-personnel flex ordnance launchers, two twin forward-mounted anti-personnel light blaster cannons, and one dorsal turret-mounted heavy laser cannon. This arsenal afforded the vehicle commander considerable tactical flexibility. According to Kuat Drive Yards, the A6 could focus an attack on a small area, inflicting heat damage equivalent to a small tactical nuclear device on an unshielded target.
During the Clone Wars, the Galactic Republic deployed HAVw A6 Juggernauts against the Confederacy of Independent Systems. In 22 BBY, following a Confederate attack on the resource-rich world of Langston early in the war, Republic forces from the 302nd Battalion were sent to Langston for an aid mission. As part of a convoy, a Juggernaut was loaded with medical supplies and dispatched to Langston's largest continent. Carrying more medical supplies than troopers, the Juggernaut proceeded to the continent, where Jedi General Anakin Skywalker instructed a clone trooper to deliver the first ten supply crates to a neighborhood in Sector N-seven-A-I.
The general further instructed the trooper to meet Captain Raptor in Fong-Tim Square to distribute the remaining crates after the initial delivery. The trooper then returned to the Juggernaut to complete Skywalker's instructions. Aware of the potential damage sand could inflict on wheeled vehicles from his experiences on the desert planet Tatooine, Skywalker cautioned the trooper to be wary of the local sand, lest it interfere with the vehicle's mechanics. As the Juggernaut and the rest of the convoy began their journey, Skywalker took the opportunity to remove sand from his cybernetic hand.
A HAVw A6 Juggernaut saw action during the First Battle of Felucia. During this engagement, Jedi Commander Ahsoka Tano's Juggernaut, accompanied by two AT-TEs, conducted a jungle patrol. Under Tano's leadership as a Padawan, the tanks advanced against a substantial Separatist force. Tano mistakenly believed the droids were in full retreat, unaware they were regrouping to overwhelm the Republic forces. LAAT/i gunships from the 104th Battalion arrived to evacuate the Republic forces on Felucia and after evacuating Jedi Generals Anakin Skywalker and Obi-Wan Kenobi and their forces, they headed to Tano's position.
Tano refused to withdraw, convinced of their victory over the Separatist forces. Skywalker ordered the gunships to land in front of the Juggernaut and Republic forces to evacuate the clone troopers and persuade Tano to retreat from the battle. After Tano and her troopers were evacuated and airborne, Tano witnessed her Juggernaut being destroyed in a fiery explosion caused by the combined firepower of Separatist droids and vehicles, which also disabled other nearby Republic vehicles.
The HAVw A6 Juggernaut was again deployed on Felucia during another battle against Separatist forces. During this engagement, at least two Juggernauts accompanied AT-TE walkers as they bombarded a Separatist outpost. Juggernauts also saw service on the Republic capital of Coruscant, where they were stationed at the Republic Center for Military Operations. Multiple HAVw A6 Juggernauts were extensively used in the Battle of Kashyyyk alongside AT-APs, AT-RTs, and Infantry Support Platforms, engaging Separatist NR-N99 tank droids and DSD1 dwarf spider droids.
By the war's conclusion, the HCVw A9 turbo tank, a successor to the HAvw A6, had been introduced and deployed in the conflict, although the HAVw A6 continued to see service. Due to its success and effectiveness, the HAVw A6 remained in use by the Galactic Empire, the successor to the Galactic Republic. The Empire also employed the HCVw A9.
The HAVw A6 Juggernaut made its initial appearance in Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith, which was released in 2005. The Juggernaut's design originated from a ten-wheeled tank concept created by Joe Johnston for the Battle of Hoth in Star Wars: Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, but the AT-AT walkers were ultimately chosen over tanks. George Lucas later revisited this design to connect the visual styles of the original and prequel trilogies. In contrast to the original concept, the HAVw A6 was enlarged and given enhanced armor.