Blue Squadron, also known as Blue Group or Blue Wing, was a unit of airspeeders and starfighters organized as a squadron. This squadron served within the Rebel Alliance's starfighter corps during the conflict known as the Galactic Civil War. This group of pilots is remembered for their involvement in major engagements like the Battle of Scarif, the Siege on Tureen VII, the Battle of Hoth, and the Battle of Endor.
During the Galactic Civil War, Blue Squadron was a starfighter squadron belonging to the Rebel Alliance, consisting of starfighter pilots and Astromech droids, and was under the command of several leaders. These leaders included General Antoc Merrick, "Blue Leader," and Lieutenant Valeria. Barion Raner served as Merrick's second-in-command. The staff also included Lieutenant Taslet Colb, Warrant Officer Laren Joma, and Lieutenant Heff Tobber. The Great Temple on Yavin 4 served as one of Blue Squadron's operational bases for a period.
Blue Squadron was a diverse squadron, using a variety of airspeeders and starfighters. It grew to be larger than the typical 12 ships of a single type. The airspeeders included T-47 airspeeders. The starfighters included A/SF-01 B-wing starfighters, BTL-A4 Y-wing assault starfighter/bombers, RZ-1 A-wing interceptors T-65B X-wing starfighters, one of which was General Merrick's own ship, named Blue One, and UT-60D U-wing starfighter/support craft. The squadron's starfighters were identifiable by the blue markings or stripes on them.
In the early days of the rebellion, Blue Squadron was a combination of T-65B X-wing starfighters, tasked with guarding UT-60D U-wing starfighter/support craft in combat zones, along with a small number of BTL-A4 Y-wing assault starfighter/bombers taken from other squadrons in nearby sectors.
Blue Squadron participated in the Battle of Atollon, flying at least three BTL-A4 Y-wing assault starfighter/bombers. They suffered at least one loss when a Y-wing was shot down by TIE/ln space superiority starfighters.
Under the orders of General Davits Draven, Blue Squadron, consisting of eleven X-wings and five Y-wings, was sent on a mission to target Galen Erso at the Eadu Energy Conversion Laboratory. Farns Monsbee used the callsign Blue Five during this engagement. Two X-wings were lost during the attack.
Blue Squadron, led by General Antoc Merrick (Blue Leader), joined Red Squadron, Green Squadron, and Gold Squadron in the Battle of Scarif. Blue Squadron X-wings went with the rest of the Alliance Fleet to assist Rogue One on the planet Scarif. Blue Squadron's objective was to break through the shield gate, provide air support, and deliver infantry reinforcements to Rogue One. Only Joma's U-wing and twelve X-wings, including Merrick's, were successful in getting past the Imperial defenses and heading to the surface. Farns Monsbee (Blue Five) warned, "We won't have long!", a statement that proved true as the gate closed, forcing Vangos Grek (Blue Six) and another X-wing pilot to veer away. Both were destroyed upon impact with the planetary shield. Another X-wing crashed into the Shield Gate Orbital Command, but Barion Raner (Blue Four), Jaldine Gerams (Blue Three), Heff Tobber (Blue Eight), and at least one other X-wing managed to avoid crashing and helped the Rebel fleet in space.
On the surface, near the Citadel, Blue Eleven, the U-wing piloted by Warrant Officer Laren Joma, with Lieutenant Taslet Colb as copilot and Bistan as gunner, reinforced the troops on the ground, but they were shot down and killed. The X-wings in the air provided air support, destroying AT-ACTs and engaging Imperial TIE/sk x1 experimental air superiority fighters. During the battle, a TIE striker damaged the upper starboard engine of Merrick's T-65B X-wing, causing his ship to crash, killing him. None of the pilots who made it through the shield gate survived the battle. Most, if not all, of Blue Squadron's ships were destroyed at Scarif. Due to the squadron's heavy losses at Scarif and the death of its commander, Blue Squadron was absent from the subsequent battle at Yavin, leaving Red, Gold, and Green Squadrons to fight.
At some point during the Galactic Civil War, the Rebel Alliance established a refueling base on the planet [Vrogas Vas](/article/vrogas_vas]. In 0 ABY, Blue Squadron was one of the three X-wing squadrons present, conducting training exercises when Darth Vader arrived searching for his son, Luke Skywalker. Blue Squadron, along with Yellow Squadron, was completely destroyed in the ensuing battle against the Sith Lord in his TIE Advanced x1. Luke Skywalker (Red Five) intentionally crashed his X-wing into Vader's ship. Both father and son crashed on the planet's surface. In a report to General Jan Dodonna, Commander Arhul Narra of Red Squadron described the event as one of the worst losses of starfighter pilots he had ever witnessed, with the destruction of Blue, Gray, and Yellow Squadrons, and the abandonment of their starfighter outpost following the arrival of the Imperial fleet. Darth Vader escaped capture, but all Alliance command staff members escaped, and all sensitive information at the outpost was either recovered or destroyed. The Alliance captured Dr. Chelli Lona Aphra, a valuable prisoner, who was sent to a max security penitentiary at Sunspot.
Following the incident on Vrogas Vas, Blue Squadron (Blue Group) was deployed by the stolen Imperial I-class Star Destroyer Harbinger, to break through the Imperial blockage on Tureen VII. Their mission was to protect the Harbinger from Imperial TIE fighters, led by Darth Vader in his TIE Advanced x1, while Red Squadron (Red Team) attacked the moon bases. Leia Organa instructed Red Team to make more room so the supplies could reach the surface, but Vader made it difficult. Luke Skywalker (Red Five) successfully destroyed the moon bases and attempted to pursue Vader. However, due to heavy losses suffered by the Alliance forces, including the Harbinger which had to be abandoned, he was ordered to remain on mission to evacuate the wounded. Several X-wings from the squadron were destroyed.
In 3 ABY, Blue Squadron was part of the Rebel force stationed on Hoth when the Empire discovered the base, initiating an invasion that led to the Battle of Hoth. The pilots of Blue Squadron, using T-47 airspeeders, helped defend Echo Base against All Terrain Armored Transports (AT-ATs) and All Terrain Scout Transports (AT-STs). They used the speeder's primary blasters to destroy the AT-STs and harpoons with tow cables to disable the AT-ATs. This allowed three transports to escape the base.
In 4 ABY, Blue Squadron took part in the Battle of Endor, flying a combination of A/SF-01 B-wing starfighters and RZ-1 A-wing interceptors. The squadron included Ten Numb, a Sullustan who had been a bounty hunter before joining the rebellion. The A-wings provided fighter cover—a "luxury" that other B-Wing squadrons, such as Blade Squadron, did not have—and they successfully destroyed two Star Destroyers. Ten Numb piloted a B-wing starfighter with the callsign Blue Five.
Under the New Republic, 77 Squadron operated as Blue Squadron during the Battle of Jakku. A Blue Squadron also served in the Resistance Starfighter Corps.
Blue Squadron is featured in the second season of the non-canon LEGO Star Wars: The Freemaker Adventures animated series. The squadron was in four of the five promotional short films created to promote the series. Lieutenant Colvett Valeria leads Blue Squadron, leading them into combat against the Galactic Empire in multiple skirmishes. In the series, Blue Squadron supports the Freemakers, a family of scavengers who join the Rebel Alliance. Under Valeria's leadership, Blue Squadron attacks an Imperial repair depot near Alzoc III and participates in the Battle of Endor. In the 2020 video game Star Wars: Squadrons, Blue Squadron appeared as a cosmetic option for starfighters, also mentioning their first connection to Valeria and Bakura in Star Wars canon.