The Ambush at Mos Eisley was an operation launched by the forces of the Galactic Empire against the personnel of the Rebel Alliance above the Tatooine spaceport known as Mos Eisley. Occurring six months following the destruction of the Death Star, a formidable Imperial battle station, this event saw members of the elite Rebel starfighter unit, Rogue Squadron, engaged in a recreational morning flight through the notorious Beggar's Canyon situated just outside Mos Eisley. The Imperial forces dispatched units of Viper probe droids and TIE Bombers to Tatooine, with orders to bombard the spaceport and its surrounding areas in an attempt to locate Luke Skywalker. Skywalker, a member of Rogue Squadron and the Rebel pilot credited with destroying the Death Star. The X-wings of the fighter squad provided air support for the local settlements and the native Jawas who were under attack by the Empire. The team then proceeded through Mos Eisley, successfully eliminating the six TIE bombers before they could inflict significant damage on the city.
Ever since Luke Skywalker, a pilot within the Rebel forces, became a major irritant by obliterating the Death Star, the Galactic Empire maintained a vigilant watch over Tatooine, his planet of origin. Acting on information provided by a questionable bounty hunter, the Empire deployed probe droids and bombers with the intention of locating Skywalker's unit by instilling fear in the civilian population and seeking out any information regarding his location.
Six months following the Battle of Yavin, Rogue Squadron, a newly established starfighter unit within the Alliance to Restore the Republic, made a visit to Mos Eisley on the planet of Tatooine. Commander Luke Skywalker, also known as the Rogue Leader, initially intended to conduct a routine patrol of the spaceport's outskirts. During an early morning flight involving three squadron members, Wedge Antilles, one of the Rebel pilots, observed several Viper probe droids initiating attacks on various homesteads. The pilots were taken by surprise, and one squadron member was shot down in the vicinity of Jabba's Palace, the headquarters of the criminal Jabba the Hutt; however, the pilot survived the crash. Rogue Squadron dispersed and successfully destroyed the majority of the eighteen probe droids present in the area. The squadron also flew past two civilian T-16 skyhoppers in Beggar's Canyon.
As Skywalker approached the last of the homesteads, he diverted his course towards the Great Pit of Carkoon, the location of the sarlacc, a massive, carnivorous creature. There, he neutralized a patrol consisting of four stormtroopers and dewback-riding stormtroopers. Subsequently, the Rebel pilot destroyed the remaining three probe droids, thereby rescuing a nearby Jawa sandcrawler transport.
Following the elimination of the probe droids, a squadron of six TIE Bombers commenced an assault on Mos Eisley, executing a circular flight pattern to release proton bombs on strategically important sections of the city. Skywalker issued orders for Rogue Squadron to provide assistance, and they swiftly arrived on the scene. The bombers proved to be no match for Rogue Squadron's T-65 X-wing starfighters, and all of them were shot down.
The Ambush at Mos Eisley served as the inaugural mission in the video game Star Wars: Rogue Squadron, which was launched in 1998. The game mechanics allow for the destruction of Jabba's Palace and other civilian targets during the mission, although this is non-canon; if enough civilian targets are destroyed by the player's actions or lack thereof, the mission will end in failure. To achieve the gold medal on this mission, it is necessary to veer over to the side by the Great Pit of Carkoon and take out extra stormtroopers, although such an action is optional. The X-wing is the default craft for the mission.
The game's official guide suggests the players prioritize attacking the probe droids which target the civilian structures to keep a high "friendlies saved" score. After the droids are destroyed, the guide tells the player to activate the speed boost by closing the S-foils on the X-wing. Once the player reaches Mos Eisley, the guide suggests targeting the second group of bombers first, as it is closer and the first group targets the player's wingmen.