DS-61-4, nicknamed "Dark Curse," served the Galactic Empire as a starfighter pilot during the time before, and during, the Battle of Yavin. An eventual member of Black Squadron, he participated in various Imperial campaigns before being killed by Rebel pilot Wedge Antilles during the Battle of Yavin, where the Rebel Alliance attacked the first Death Star battlestation that DS-61-4 and others in his squadron tried to defend.
"Dark Curse" piloting his TIE fighter
DS-61-4 was a male individual who served as a TIE pilot in the Galactic Empire's navy during the Galactic Civil War fought between the Empire and the Rebel Alliance. At some point, he was given the nickname "Dark Curse," and had survived numerous assaults against dissenter worlds, such as the planets Ralltiir and Mon Calamari. Sometime prior to the Imperial attack on the moon Yavin 4 in 0 BBY, DS-61-4 was assigned to the Empire's first Death Star battlestation as a member of Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader's elite TIE Fighter unit, Black Squadron. While serving on the Death Star, DS-61-4 had planned on retiring from military service, with the conclusion of his next combat mission.
Flying the TIE Fighter Black 4, DS-61-4 flew with his fellow Black Squadron pilots against the Rebel assault on the Death Star during the Battle of Yavin. During the initial confusion of the battle, DS-61-4 had managed to maneuver his TIE Fighter behind the X-wing Red Five, flown by the rookie Rebel pilot Luke Skywalker, and was able to score a direct hit on the enemy starfighter. DS-61-4's damage to the X-wing caused Skywalker to call for assistance from his fellow Red Squadron pilots. Discovering that he was unable to outmaneuver the pursuing DS-61-4, Skywalker received help from a fellow Rebel pilot, Wedge Antilles, who was able to destroy DS-61-4's TIE Fighter in a Corellian Slip maneuver, ensuring Skywalker's survival.
DS-61-4 wore the standard uniform for TIE pilots.
Turr Phennir, whose older brother, Cartha, was considered to be the same character as DS-61-4, although that was never canonized
DS-61-4's first appearance was in the 1976 novelization of the original trilogy film Star Wars: Episode IV A New Hope, before appearing in the 1977 film itself, in which he flew against Luke Skywalker during the Rebel attack on the Death Star. His scenes were shot on Stage 8 at Elstree Studios between June 17 and June 28, 1976. He was first identified as DS-61-4, with the nickname of "Dark Curse," by the 1996 A New Hope Limited expansion set of the Star Wars Customizable Card Game. Of note, in 1998, the card game would create a card for another character, Dodson Makraven, in the Special Edition Limited expansion set, using an image of DS-61-4.
According to the Star Wars Customizable Card Game's 2000 Death Star II Limited card entitled "Major Turr Phennir," Phennir had an older brother who was killed by Wedge Antilles during the Battle of Yavin. Phennir's older brother was later on named as "Chaser" Cartha in the 2014 StarWars.com article Star Wars: The Essential Guide to Warfare Author's Cut which featured cut content from 2012's The Essential Guide to Warfare. Notably Paul R. Urquhart, an author for The Essential Guide to Warfare, stated his original intent to make Cartha and DS-61-4 the same character, although that material did not make it into the final book or the Author's Cut article.
Images of what the Star Wars Customizable Card Game identified as DS-61-4 in Black 4 were identified as several different designations in the Star Wars Trading Card Game, with this image being used to represent TIE Fighter DS-55-2.
In the 1998 Star Wars Encyclopedia, it is erroneously stated that DS-61-4 "[…]was an Imperial TIE pilot who survived the Battle of Yavin." This was later on repeated in 2008's The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia. However, his death was clearly portrayed in A New Hope when Wedge Antilles destroyed his TIE Fighter, after it had scored a hit on Red Five.
Further, the 2002 A New Hope expansion of the Star Wars Trading Card Game used a film still of Black 4 to represent TIE Fighter DS-3-12, while TIE Fighters DS-55-2 and DS-73-5 were depicted with film stills of Black 4 in the 2003 Battle of Yavin set. This article, as well as other articles linked to DS-61-4, treat DS-61-4 in Black 4 as the true identities of the TIE pilot and fighter from the A New Hope film, and treat the other designations as canon subjects separate from DS-61-4 and Black 4.