Posted in Original Trilogy and tagged A New Hope, Battle of Yavin, Death Star, Gold Squadron, Han Solo, Luke Skywalker, Millennium Falcon, Starfighters, X-Wing, Y-Wing on by Imperial Talker.You're gonna need a bigger shelf for your Jon “Dutch” Vander figure and the rest of the Black Series, and he comes with an extra head for both in-combat and after-combat looks, Jon "Dutch" Vander is a Rebel Y-wing pilot in Gold Squadron, Gold Squadron Rebel Pilot, Figure comes armed with blaster rifle, Star Wars The Black Series Jon “Dutch” Vander. And so did Wedge Antilles, the other X-Wing pilot who survived the battle. Dialogue taken from Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope And with that, I leave you with this original haiku by yours truly:īe sure to leave a comment and tell me what Starfighter(s) you like! If they love it, how am I to deny them?Īs for me, I will stick with the Y-shaped craft. The fact that I do love it, and think it looks really cool, should be all the justification that matters…which I suppoooose means I should be nicer to those Chandrilan kids who want to fly an X-Wing. When it comes right down to it, I hardly need to justify why I love the Y-Wing or any other Starfighter in Star Wars. Photo Credit – Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope The survivors of the Battle of Yavin, INCLUDING A LONE Y-WING, fly away from the Death Star before it explodes. I can imagine our lone surviving Y-Wing pilot did a bit more in the battle than Captain Solo. Heck, Han Solo got a medal and all he did was shoot down one TIE Fighter. Plus, I have always felt that whoever she/he was, that pilot deserved just as much praise as Luke. Of course, one Y-Wing did survive the Battle of Yavin, which naturally strengthened my fascination, and always left me wondering how that single Y-Wing survived. We watch as Gold Leader, Gold Two, and Gold Five try to “stay on target” as they are pursued, and destroyed, by Vader and his wing men - and just like that, it is time for the X-Wings to make their runs. We get to see the X-Wings of Red Squadron dogfight, but it is the Y-Wings of Gold Squadron that initially brave the trench in an attempt to destroy the battle station.
Yet, this fighter-bomber, with its sleek and somewhat odd looking design, has always held a place in my Star Wars loving heart ever since I first saw A New Hope.Īs a kid, while I loved to watch Luke Skywalker and his X-Wing destroy the Death Star, I was equally captivated by these curious, Y-shaped ships that appear for only a few moments. In fact, playing the TIE Fighter computer game when I was growing up, I probably shot down more Y-Wings than any other Rebel ship. Sure, the Y-Wing is slow and lacks maneuverability, making it an easy target for faster Starfighters. These are all on a rotating basis as my favorites, but more often than not, the Y-Wing holds the top spot. A few others: the TIE Interceptor, the ARC-170, and the Naboo N-1 Royal Starfighter. Photo Credit – Star Wars: Episode IV: A New HopeĪctually, I wouldn’t just say that the Y-Wing is the fighter I would choose to fly for the Alliance, but that it is one of my favorite Starfighters in the Star Wars universe, period. Y-Wings of Gold Squadron fly down the Death Star trench I am just going to come right out and say it: If I was a pilot in the Rebel Alliance, I would want to fly the Y-Wing Starfighter. Little Chandrilan brats! What about the Y-Wing!?!?! Ummmm, imagine all of the little kids on the planet Chandrila hearing about the heroics of the Rebel pilot who destroyed the Death Star! Some of those little ones would surely want to grow up and join the Alliance fleet and be just like that pilot.Īnd what would they want to fly? AN X-WING! Plus, imagine all of the little kids on the planet Aldera…crap, that planet was destroyed. Honestly, who wouldn’t want to be an X-Wing pilot after seeing A New Hope for the first time? I bet kids in 1977 went crazy over Luke and his X-Wing! Saving the day (with a little help from the Millennium Falcon), Luke flew away in his X-Wing the hero of the Battle of Yavin. Given the call sign “Red Five,” Luke magnificently piloted his X-Wing through the Death Star trench, narrowly escaping death and destroying the battle station just before it could fire its deadly, planet destroying weapon at the fourth moon of Yavin. “We’re starting for the target shaft now.” įlown by Luke in A New Hope, the X-Wing Starfighter is easily one of, if not THE, most iconic and easily recognizable fighters in the Star Wars galaxy, perhaps only competing for the top spot with the TIE Fighter.