Thranta Riders, also called wing riders, were sentient humanoid beings who had the skill to tame and ride flying thrantas. They were known for putting on aerial shows, similar to a circus, all around the planet of Bespin. They were fond of decorating their bodies with intricate designs through paint or tattoos.
During the New Jedi Order era, Jacen Solo experienced a fall from Cloud City while being pursued by members of the Black Sun syndicate. He was saved by one of the Thranta Riders; without this intervention, he would have fallen to his death due to the intense pressure.
These enigmatic sentients, the Thranta Riders, were humanoids characterized by their smooth skin and possession of four limbs: two arms, each ending in a four-fingered hand, and two legs, each ending in a two-toed foot. They had a lean and bony physique, with clearly defined muscles. Typically, the riders were unclothed, displaying their smooth, hairless skin. Their skin naturally had an ochre yellow tint, but they commonly adorned it with various colors, such as red, pale yellow, blue, pale purple, and green. They breathed the same air as Human beings and were capable of crying tears when feeling sadness.
Many individuals among them exhibited dolichocephaly, meaning their heads were significantly longer than they were wide, while others had head shapes more akin to Humans. Although they lacked external fleshy ears, these thranta-riding people possessed exposed ear holes on the sides of their heads. Their faces featured two forward-facing eyes, some almond-shaped with yellow irises, and others black and round, without a visible iris. In the center of their elongated faces, they had two small, pug-like holes serving as a nose, and some even had a long, pointed chin. The Riders possessed high-pitched, melodic voices, useful for communicating with the thrantas they had domesticated. Notably, at least one individual had shiny, ebony teeth that resembled polished gemstones.
The Thranta Riders, an enigmatic group, maintained a level of secrecy regarding their fascinating yet obscure culture. They generally kept to themselves, granting only a select few outsiders a glimpse into their traditions. Even Councilman Po Ruddle Lingsnot, a member of Cloud City's ruling bureaucrats, had limited knowledge about them. Lingsnot's report on the city contained only a single paragraph and two brief mentions of the Riders. A known detail about their culture is that they addressed each other as "Air Brother." The Riders often decorated their bodies with complex patterns and swirling colors, creating a visual illusion. When preparing for battle, they would apply war paint different from their usual designs. While they typically wore no clothes, some Thranta Riders were seen wearing fur loincloths and puttees.
Their lives centered on breeding and caring for thrantas, which they trained to perform in "sky rodeo" events, a blend of circus, air show, and rodeo. The Riders put on monthly performances in the skies surrounding Cloud City, showcasing their unique acrobatic skills to the public. These alien riders would leap into the open sky, only to be caught by their thrantas swooping in below. Each Air Brother shared a strong connection with their mount, with the thrantas regarding their trainers as the "head thranta" of their flock and protecting them from harm. Wranglers communicated with their thrantas using whistles or high-pitched electronic sounds, with different tones or short musical phrases serving as signals for specific maneuvers.
Despite their general tendency towards secrecy, the Riders were compassionate and willing to help those in need. When the Thranta Rider trainee M'kim witnessed Jacen Solo, a young [Jedi apprentice](/article/padawan-legends], falling from a Cloud City platform, he immediately intervened to save him. M'kim also expressed deep sadness at the thought of others falling. They were also open to accepting members of other species into their community. When this occurred, the Riders defended their new Air Brother as if they had always been one of their own. In combat situations, the Thranta Riders used wooden, club-like maces to fend off attackers.
Around 400 BBY, when Lord Ecclessis Figg, a Corellian entrepreneur, commissioned the construction of Cloud City, he arranged for a group of young thrantas to be relocated from their native Alderaan to Bespin's atmosphere. As Figg's wife was an Alderaanian, he intended to give her the thrantas as a present to remind her of her home planet. Along with the thrantas, Lord Figg also brought several Riders to care for the flying creatures. By 27 BBY, the Riders and their mounts had become a popular attraction, thanks to their monthly sky rodeo performances. In that year, a shape-shifting Shi'ido hired by the Twi'lek Dark Jedi named Reess Kairn went to Bespin and infiltrated a troupe of Riders. However, Aurra Sing, a bounty hunter hired to eliminate Kairn and his followers, found the changeling and used an airhook to reach him. When the Shi'ido called out for help to his new Air Brothers, the Thranta Riders grabbed their clubs and prepared to fight Sing. One of them managed to knock the bounty hunter off her vehicle, but another was killed when Aurra Sing landed on his thranta to break her fall. Despite their efforts, the Riders were unable to stop the bounty hunter, and the Shi'ido was killed.
More than five decades later, in 24 ABY, the Rider trainee M'kim saved the life of a young Human by catching him as he fell from Cloud City. That Human was Jacen Solo, an apprentice of Jedi Master Luke Skywalker, who was being pursued by Black Sun agents and fell into the atmosphere while trying to escape. Solo and M'kim became friends, and M'kim provided crucial information about Czethros, a cyborg who was a high-ranking lieutenant in the Black Sun at that time.
The Thranta Riders, initially called "What-Nots," were part of Ralph McQuarrie's concept art for The Empire Strikes Back, though they were ultimately not included in the film.