Summary
Star Warshas many iconic ship designs, from the Empire’s triangular capital ships known as Star Destroyers to the instantly recognizable red and gray X-Wing flown by Luke Skywalker. The franchise’s ships look and sound cool, and audiences have been thrilled by its space battles for nearly fifty years.
Starfighters are small, maneuverable ships designed primarily for combat. These are akin to modern-day jets and typically have space for just one or two pilots. While some larger ships like the Millennium Falcon andBoba Fett’s Firespray gunshipwere unique, many starfighters were customized to stand out among the vast number of types of fighters found acrossStar Warsmovies, TV shows, and video games.
1TIE Silencer
Kylo Ren’s Custom TIE Fighter
When he joined the First Order, Kylo Ren continued the tradition of Imperial ace pilots flying prototype fighters. Like his grandfather, Darth Vader, he personally fought in space battles from the cockpit of his one-of-a-kind TIE fighter.
His TIE Silencer was a unique fighter, which was an evolution of the TIE Interceptors flown duringthe Galactic Civil War. It was an agile ship equipped with powerful laser cannons and dual-mag pulse torpedoes. Kylo Ren flew the Silencer during the battle of D’Qar, where he killed many Resistance soldiers during their evacuation and wounded his mother, General Leia Organa. This agile advanced TIE prototype was a deadly and efficient fighter.
2Black One
Poe Dameron’s Customized X-Wing
When the Rebellion became The New Republic, the Incom Corporation created a new line of X-Wings called the model T-70. When the New Republic demilitarized, these X-Wings were appropriated by The Resistance. They were faster and more complex than the previous model and were a great match for the First Order’s new line of TIE Fighters.
Poe Dameron flew a customized T-70 that he dubbedBlack Onebecause of the ferrosphere paint that he used on it. This paint made his fighter look unique and it also made it harder for other pilots to lock onto him, keeping him safer from enemy missiles. He also equipped the X-Wing with an experimental booster pod that made it even faster and more maneuverable than other X-Wings. With such modifications, it is no wonder that Poe was able todestroy Starkiller BasewithBlack One.
3The Soulless One
General Grievous' Fighter
The Soulless One was the customized fighter flown by General Grievous during the Clone Wars. It was designed to be an upgraded and piloted version of the droid fighters used by theConfederacy of Independent Systems. Grievous outfitted his fighter with a sensor-jamming system that helped him retreat from his numerous defeats in battle. Its weapon systems were also upgraded to have a triple-laser cannon on each side of the cockpit, allowing the cyborg to maintain heavy fire when engaging Republic pilots.
The ship was given the nickname “Spineless One” by the Republic due to how many times the general retreated from battles. After Grievous' death and the execution of Order 66, Obi-Wan Kenobi also used The Soulless One to escape. While it was not as formidable as other starfighters, The Soulless One has a legacy from its time in combat.
4Azure Angel
Anakin Skywalker’s Fighter In The Clone Wars
TheDelta-7 Aethersprite was the fighterof choice for many Jedi leading up to The Clone Wars. Obi-Wan famously engaged with Jango Fett in his own Delta-7 starfighter when he discovered the Separatist council on Geonosis.
Anakin Skywalker, having built his own podracer as a child, was known as a great pilot and mechanic. Thanks to these skills, he constantly sought to improve his ship and ended up essentially turning his Delta-7 fighter into a starfighter in its own class. He added lasers to the wingtips to augment its firepower and installed a missile launcher under its body. He also added a hyperdrive so that he could go into hyperspace without using a ring. All in all, Anakin’sAzure Angelwas a starfighter that was pushed to the brink of its abilities.
5Havoc
A Modified Bomber Flown By A Legendary Pirate
Five years before the Invasion of Naboo, the Nubian Design Collective created a prototype bomber with the hopes of selling it to the Naboo Royal Air Force. The planet rejected the concept, stating that they were too pacifistic to have such a heavily armed starfighter in their forces. The designer plotted to steal the prototype so that it wouldn’t go to waste and joined Lok’s Revenants, a band of space pirates led by Nym.
Nym had many modifications added to the prototype and renamed itHavoc.It boasted six laser cannons, a rotating turret on its top, and a bomb generator that could produce bombs even during battle. Nym broughtHavocto battle against the Trade Federation, spicerunners, and other nefarious groups and evenfought alongside a Jedi named Adi Gallia. This great fighter was a powerful force to be reckoned with.
6TIE Advanced X-1
Darth Vader’s Custom Prototype
Darth Vader was one of thegreatest pilots in the galaxyduring the time of the Galactic Empire. He continued to lead from the front during battles, as he had duringThe Clone Warswhen he was still a Jedi. In space battles, he insisted on flying his own starfighter rather than commanding Imperial forces from the bridge of a Star Destroyer.
Rather than having him fly a standard TIE fighter, he was given a special prototype called the Advanced X-1. It was equipped with a cluster missile launcher and had more powerful laser cannons, which made his piloting skills even deadlier for Rebellion pilots who had the misfortune of dogfighting him. It also had an experimental shield system, which made it much safer than other Imperial fighters.
Customized Naboo Fighter With Incredible Speed
When Din Djarin needed a new ship, mechanic Peli Motto offered to repair and modify an old N-1 Starfighter. The decades-old starfighter had been the staple of Naboo’s Royal Air Force during the Trade Federation’s invasion of the planet.
The original N-1 was already a fast ship, but Motto and Djarin’s modifications made it insanely fast. Its sublight engines were fast enough that a New Republic pilot thought that the Mandalorian had jumped into hyperspace when he accelerated at full throttle for the first time. In addition to the new engines, the astromech port was replaced with a dome that could house his companion, Grogu. While it wasn’t as useful for capturing bounties alive, this starfighter was an incredible upgrade in many ways.
