Rebel pilots, who are also referred to as Alliance pilots, Rebel fighter pilots, or Alliance Starfighter Pilots, were pilots who served in the early rebel movement and subsequently in the Rebel Alliance under the Alliance's starfighter corps. They engaged in numerous battles against the Imperial forces both in the period leading up to and during the Galactic Civil War. They flew starfighters such as A-wings, B-wings, X-wings, and Y-wings, and also operated low-altitude vehicles like T-47 airspeeders.
During the early rebellion, isolated rebel groups fought against the Galactic Empire. Rebel pilots belonging to Phoenix Squadron piloted A-wing starfighters in space raids far from planets against the Empire's convoys. Following the action at Mustafar, the members of the Ghost's crew joined the Phoenix Cell, but their RZ-1 A-wing interceptors were no match for the Sith Lord Darth Vader during the Imperial attack on the cell. Although the Phoenix Home was destroyed, the cell managed to escape. Subsequently, Phoenix rebel pilots participated in the Imperial blockade of Ibaar, during which Phoenix Leader was killed during the initial assault on the Imperial starships. Following the second, successful attempt to break through the blockade, Hera Syndulla was promoted to his previous rank.
In 2 BBY, during Operation Handoff, pilots from Gold Squadron collaborated with the crew of the Ghost to safeguard Senator Mon Mothma from the Empire. After successfully escorting her to Dantooine, Mothma united the Phoenix cell and other rebel cells together, forming the Alliance to Restore the Republic. During the Battle of Atollon, Imperial Grand Admiral Thrawn and the Seventh Fleet defeated the Alliance's pilots and forces, compelling the Phoenix Cell to abandon its base on Atollon. The survivors relocated to Yavin 4 and became part of the Massassi Group. Later, Captain Syndulla and a squadron of BTL-A4 Y-wing assault starfighter/bombers undertook a failed supply mission.
Prior to the commencement of the Battle of Yavin, Rebel Alliance pilots were tasked with destroying the Empire's superweapon, the Death Star. Thanks to the crucial information provided by R2-D2 after Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor acquired it on Scarif, the Rebels discovered a vulnerable exhaust port on the Death Star. This port offered a potential entry point for proton torpedoes to destroy the space station, an opportunity created by Galen Walton Erso's deliberate design flaw, betraying the Empire and giving the Rebels a chance to destroy his station.
Following the mission briefing, members of Red Squadron and Gold Squadron were assigned to their respective X-wings and Y-wings. Shortly after launching into space, they entered the Death Star's magnetic field and initiated their attack. As they approached the station's surface, they encountered turbolaser defenses. The X-wings' agility and small size rendered the station's turbolasers less effective against them. Recognizing this, Darth Vader personally led a squadron of TIE/ln space superiority starfighters in his customized TIE Advanced x1 to eliminate the Rebels himself.
During the perilous run through the trench, Vader eliminated several Rebel pilots, including Gold Squadron members Jon Vander, Dex Tiree, and Davish Krail; Garven Dreis, the leader of Red Squadron; and Biggs Darklighter, a close friend of Luke Skywalker. Just as Vader targeted Skywalker's fighter, the Millennium Falcon, piloted by Han Solo, appeared and destroyed one of Vader's escort TIE fighter pilots. This distraction provided Skywalker with a clear opportunity to launch torpedoes into the exhaust port. Guided by the Force, the torpedoes entered the exhaust port, reached the Death Star's main reactor, and triggered a chain reaction that resulted in the station's complete destruction.
At the conclusion of the battle, the only surviving rebel pilots, alongside the crew of the Falcon, were Luke Skywalker, Wedge Antilles, and Evaan Verlaine. Following the Royal Award Ceremony, Verlaine accompanied Princess Leia Organa on a mission to rescue the survivors of Alderaan.
Despite their significant victory at Yavin, the Rebel Alliance was compelled to abandon their base and flee. Skywalker established Rogue Squadron during the Battle of Mako-Ta. The rebel pilot known as Tan Leader was killed during the evacuation of Tiferep Major. The rebels eventually established a new base on the remote ice world of Hoth. Their presence was discovered by an Imperial probe droid scanning the galaxy, which led to the arrival of Death Squadron in the Hoth system.
However, due to Admiral Kendal Ozzel's error, the Rebel Alliance detected the approaching Imperials and activated a planetary shield generator, protecting their base from orbital bombardments. Prevented from bombarding the rebel base from orbit, Vader used the Force to choke Admiral Ozzel to death and instructed General Maximilian Veers to lead the ground forces in destroying the shield generator.
While the Empire planned their assault, the rebel defense line was set up to delay the attackers, allowing the remaining Alliance members to evacuate the planet. Upon spotting the Imperial AT-AT walkers, rebel pilots deployed T-47 airspeeders to confront them.
Rogue Squadron, under Skywalker's command, spearheaded the air defense against the Imperial AT-ATs. Wedge Antilles and gunner Wes Janson employed tow cables to ensnare the legs of an AT-AT, disabling the Imperial Walker. Although this tactic proved effective by exploiting the walker's weakness, the rebels were ultimately overwhelmed by the superior firepower of the armored walkers. The Empire secured victory in the battle, forcing the rebellion and its pilots to abandon the planet. The Alliance Fleet dispersed into various cells, but Imperial Commander Ellian Zahra managed to locate the Fourth and Eighth Divisions using a signal analysis protocol she had developed. However, during attacking the Fourth Division and its pilots, the Millennium Falcon intervened. The Falcon and the remaining Rebel forces escaped her pursuit.
One year after the devastating defeat on Hoth, the Rebel Alliance convened to plan a large-scale assault on the newly constructed second Death Star. As the Alliance Fleet emerged from hyperspace near the second Death Star, they realized it was a trap. The fleet, under the command of Admiral Gial Ackbar, and numerous rebel pilots, led by General Lando Calrissian, engaged the Imperial fleet at close range.
During the battle, Blade Squadron, consisting of A/SF-01 B-wing starfighters, encountered the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Devastator, commanded by Admiral Jhared Montferrat. Despite being outgunned, two rebel pilots, Gina Moonsong and Braylen Stramm, successfully targeted the Star Destroyer's navigational shielding, leading to the ship's destruction.
With the Death Star's shield deactivated, several pilots, including Norra Wexley, infiltrated the Death Star's superstructure aboard the Millennium Falcon, piloted by Calrissian and Nien Nunb, with the objective of reaching and destroying the station's reactor core. Simultaneously, an A-wing pilot named Arvel Crynyd deliberately crashed his fighter into the bridge of the Super Star Destroyer Executor. This sacrifice resulted in the destruction of the bridge and the demise of the massive star destroyer.
Inside the Death Star, Wedge Antilles fired a shot at the Death Star's power regulator. The subsequent shot from the Falcon destroyed its main reactor, and they successfully escaped. The Death Star exploded moments after the Falcon emerged, and later on Endor, the rebel pilots celebrated their victory alongside the Ewoks and the rest of the Alliance members.
The Battle of Endor resulted in the death of numerous pilots, including Green Leader Arvel Crynyd, Blade Leader Adon Fox, Ekelarc Yong, Grizz Frix, and Sila Kott. Following the transition of the rebellion into the New Republic, New Republic pilots served in the Defense Fleet.
Ultimately, the vibrant flight suits and symbols of rebel pilots became synonymous with the very idea of freedom. By the conclusion of the Galactic Civil War, many citizens looked back at the conflict with a sense of nostalgia, while others worried the lessons of the war were lost on younger generations. To some, the pilots and heroes of the past were mere figures in a textbook, while pilots of the New Republic enjoyed massive popularity and rejoiced in the peace of their time, without the requirement of sacrifice or hardship.
Three decades following the Galactic Civil War, Wedge Antilles and several other former rebel pilots joined the Resistance to fight against the First Order. With the rise of the First Order, pilots of the Resistance Starfighter Corps adopted the uniforms, codes, and tactics of the old Rebellion, guided by veteran Rebel pilots from the Galactic Civil War. By embracing the iconography of the original rebel pilots, the Resistance pilots recognized they were inheriting visual representations of freedom for their struggle against the First Order. The Resistance's ranks included Nien Nunb, the former smuggler turned war hero, as well as Gial Ackbar and other prominent members of Alliance High Command. Furthermore, the new Resistance pilots were trained in flight maneuvers named after pilots from the old war, such as the Skywalker Swoop, Antilles Intercept, and Porkins Belly Run, and utilized updated X-wing fighters, like the T-70.
New Rebel pilots were required to view The Pilot and the Rebellion, an introductory video and document, during recruitment sessions.
Rebel pilots received "on-the-fly" training from their superiors, with most new recruits already possessing strong starfighting abilities. A common practice was teaching and utilizing the scatter protocol, involving randomly selecting a hyperspace route after each operation before rendezvousing with the Alliance Fleet to evade potential Imperial pursuit.
Although many rebel pilots lacked formal training, their battle experience compensated for it, often leading to better performance than many Imperial pilots. However, some pilots had formal training from the Imperial Navy before defecting to the Rebel Alliance, including Jon Vander, Braylen Stramm, Attico Wred, Biggs Darklighter, Jake Farrell, Lindon Javes, Derek Klivian, Yrica Quell, and Wedge Antilles.
Rebel pilots wore orange, blue, green, white, grey, or red flight suits along with a flak vest and a Diagnostech life support unit.
Their flight helmets were often adorned with the Alliance starbird, but could be customized with squadron insignias or personally significant images. Typically the K-22995 light flight helmet, these helmets included standard features like a retractable polarized visor and a localized atmospheric field generator.