Critical to the success of the Rebel Alliance was its Starfighter Corp, daring pilots who
would be repeatedly sent on missions of extraordinary danger against impossible odds.
Yet even among the crack pilots of the Rebellion, one squadron distinguished themselves as the
true elite; the illustrious Rogue Squadron.
At the operational level, Rogue Squadron was a standard twelve-member starfighter squadron,
occasionally split into smaller flights and tasked with a variety of roles and responsibilities
throughout its history.
The squadron earned much of its reputation while flying the Incom T-65 X-Wing, but over
time would eventually transition to use a variety of starfighters including the RZ-1
A-Wing interceptor and the A/SF-01 B-Wing heavy starfighter.
What truly elevated Rogue Squadron however was both the exceptional individual skill
of its members and their ability to work together as a unit.
Rogue Squadron pilots regularly engaged in unique training scenarios, developed specialized
tactics and together held an irreplaceable collection of concepts, experiences and knowledge.
The immense institutional memory of the group was so effective, that even new recruits or
replacement pilots could quickly be counted among the best in the galaxy after only a
short time of serving within Rogue Squadron.
This was in part, due to the requirement that its pilots not only fly together, but live
together as well, often stationed in cramped quarters aboard Rebel starships for vast stretches
of time.
Rogue Squadron was formed in the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Yavin, in which
many of the Rebel Alliance’s most experienced pilots were killed during the attack on the
Death Star.
Originally an under strength unit known as Rogue Flight, the unit was centered around
Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles.
Both pilots, while relatively new to the Alliance had demonstrated exceptional skill and were
the only surviving members of Red Squadron, Rogue Flight’s immediate predecessor.
The Rogues quickly established themselves as the premier starfighter squadron in the
Rebel Alliance, achieving a series of decisive victories across the galaxy.
During the Battle of Hoth, the newly expanded Rogue Group fought both enemy walkers on the
planet’s surface and escorted Rebel transports as they fled the system, achieving their objectives
but suffering terrible losses.
Command of the group later fell to Wedge Antilles and the Rogues were quickly expanded to become
a full squadron.
Stationed aboard the Alliance flagship Home One, the Rogues acted as a rapid response
force able to take any mission that presented itself.
During the Battle of Endor, Rogue Squadron was ceremoniously renamed Red Squadron, in
honor of the original group that had participated in the Battle of Yavin.
Its pilots spearheaded the attack into the second Death Star, flying directly into the
battlestation’s still incomplete superstructure and Wedge Antilles, together with Gold Leader
Lando Calrission, detonated the Death Star’s reactor, barely managing to escape before
its complete destruction.
In the decades that followed, Rogue Squadron would continue to serve the New Republic and
its successor states, seeing extensive action in the Thrawn Crisis, the Yuuzhan Vong Invasion
and the Second Galactic Civil War.
Even after its original members had retired or faded away into myth, Rogue Squadron continued
to uphold the group’s proud reputation as the best starfighter squadron in
the galaxy.