A flight data recorder was a piece of equipment present on almost all space-traveling ships throughout the galaxy to log flight information. It held comprehensive logs of a vessel's distance, top velocity, shield configuration, armament, and other details, making it an exceptionally useful tool for ascertaining the abilities of a certain ship. During a mission to the planet Lothal in 1 BBY, Ezra Bridger and Sabine Wren absconded with the flight data recorder from a prototype TIE/D Defender Elite so that the Rebel Alliance could be aware of the advanced fighter's capabilities. Subsequently, Hera Syndulla and Chopper delivered the recorder to Alliance High Command located on Yavin 4, where the information was examined.
In actuality, a flight data recorder is one component of what is known as the black box, which is also present within Star Wars canon. A black box, or flight recorder, is comprised of a flight data recorder (FDR), used to log particular aircraft performance metrics, along with a cockpit voice recorder (CVR), utilized for recording the sound environment of the flight deck.