15 Best Star Wars Pilots, Ranked

We often see the Star Wars world as one that involves lightsabers and blasters. But the thing is that there’s a good reason why it’s even called “Star Wars,” as we also often see a lot of different starships going to war with one another. And the ones piloting the starfighters tend to be the ones who are relied on the most by their respective factions because they act as the ground troops that have to fight on the frontline to destroy smaller starfighters or even disable the larger starships.

As such, the world of Star Wars is home to many great pilots that can do impossible stunts and moves while piloting their ships. The Force aids a lot of these pilots because they are Jedi. But some pilots are simply skilled because they have the training and experience that allow them to excel. So, with that said, let’s look at the best pilots we’ve ever seen in Star Wars.

15. Chewbacca

In many cases, Chewbacca is often seen as the muscle of his partnership with Han Solo, but that was never the case. While Han relies a lot on his strength, Chewy has always been a great pilot, even though the Wookiees prefer to live in forests. He got his skills as a pilot by spending a lot of time with Han, as they both lived together after Han saved him. After that, he got used to piloting the Millennium Falcon, which has always been considered a bad yet fast ship.

Chewy showcased his skills as a pilot many times during the events of the original trilogy and the sequel trilogy when he flew the Falcon threw a crystal maze when the Forest Order was tailing him. And he and Han wouldn’t have succeeded as smugglers if he wasn’t a good co-pilot.

14. Luthen Rael

While we haven’t seen much from Luthen Rael as a pilot, he has already proven himself incredibly skilled in piloting a ship during the events of the ‘Andor’ series. The thing about Luthen is that he has always been very intuitive, to the point that there are rumors that he could be sensitive to the Force. Of course, his skills as a pilot also allowed people to think of him as a Jedi due to his reflexes.

He might be older than some of the characters on this list, but he was incredibly skilled in outmaneuvering two TIE Fighters, which are supposed to be faster and easier to maneuver compared to other starfighters in the world of Star Wars. He was also able to escape the tractor beam of an Imperial cruiser due to his ship’s capabilities and impressive piloting skills.

13. Kylo Ren

The fact that Kylo Ren was a Skywalker gave him great skills as a pilot, considering that Skywalkers are strong in the Force and have always been innately skilled at piloting. In that regard, Kylo Ren showcased his skills throughout the events of the original trilogy, especially in ‘Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi’ when he was responsible for shooting down several Resistance starfighters.

Having the blood of the greatest pilot in the history of Star Wars may have given Kylo Ren an advantage, but we also know that he trained hard enough to reach a high enough skill level as a pilot to become the deadliest pilot that the First Order had during the events of the sequel trilogy. And while we didn’t see much of his skills, he was superior to almost all of the pilots we saw in that trilogy.

12. Rey

Rey was revealed to be the grandchild of Emperor Palpatine after one of his clones escaped and actually had a family of his own. In that regard, we know Rey is strong in the Force and has innate talents that only someone of Palpatine’s bloodline would have. And she became strong as a lightsaber duelist and Force wielder with minimal training.

Of course, Rey’s piloting skills also improved by leaps and bounds when she started working with Han Solo during the events of ‘Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens.’ While initially clumsy, she eventually learned how to skillfully pilot the Millennium Falcon and was able to pilot it in a manner that was on par with how Han and Chewy piloted it.

11. Adi Gallia

Plenty of different Jedi Generals took part in the Clone Wars, which means that some of the Republic’s best pilots also fought in that war. Adi Gallia, who wasn’t featured in a lot in the sequel movies, could appear quite a few times during the events of ‘Star Wars: The Clone Wars.’ And she shined bright not only as a fighter but also as a pilot.

While Adi was a great Jedi in her own right, she was just as great as a pilot as she was ranked among some of the best pilots that the Jedi Order had to offer. She became the commander of other Jedi pilots during several dogfights in space. And that’s because she had the skills, training, and experience necessary to become a commander of other Jedi pilots, who themselves were also skilled pilots.

10. Iden Versio

Featured in ‘Star Wars: Battlefront II,’ a canon video game, Iden Versio was a canon character skilled enough to prove that she was one of the best pilots in the entire galaxy at times. She was an exceptional pilot that not many other pilots could match during the reign of the Empire.

Iden was a former fighter and pilot working for the Empire before she defected to the New Republic. She showcased her skills by piloting a TIE/LN starfighter, which was so fast and maneuverable that she became the leader of Inferno Squad. In that regard, she was the elite of the elite and was right up there regarding how skilled of a pilot she was. And Inferno Squad saw a lot of different victories with Iden leading the team.

9. Din Djarin

As the star of ‘The Mandalorian,’ Din Djarin has showcased exceptional skills as a pilot many times during the three seasons of this series. He was trained in the art of the Mandalorians and was one of the best in his fighting and piloting skills. And he excelled as a pilot no matter what ship he used.

Initially, Din used a larger craft called the Razor Crest, which acted as his home and a way to bring his bounties to his clients. But as he evolved as a character, he replaced the Razor Crest with the smaller yet much more maneuverable N-1 Starfighter, which was so fast that it could outpace X-Wings without relying on its hyperdrive. 

8. Saesee Tiin

Again, there were a lot of different Jedi that took part in the Clone Wars, and many of them actually fought in starfighters. Saesee Tiin, who may have been a great Jedi in terms of his skills as a fighter, was one of the Jedi Generals that fought in numerous dogfights during the events of the Clone Wars. And even the Jedi Order respected his skills as a pilot.

During his time as a pilot, Saesee was great at using the Force to his advantage in piloting as he undertook several dangerous missions. The best thing about him was that he knew how to use the Force to actually redirect missiles and projectiles while flying his starfighter. And that showcases just how skilled of a pilot he was.

7. Wedge Antilles

Many heroes fought for the Rebellion during the events of the original trilogy, and Wedge Antilles was one of them. He was an unsung Rebel with a story that was actually overshadowed by the trio of Luke, Leia, and Han. But the one thing that was clear about him was that he was one of the best pilots the entire Rebel Alliance had to offer during their fight against the Empire.

Wedge survived many encounters with the Empire even though he and the other Rebels lost a lot of allies in their many fights with the Imperials. He co-founded the Rogue Squadron during the original trilogy and was one of the heroes that destroyed the Death Star II.

6. Hera Syndulla

Piloting the Ghost during the events of ‘Star Wars: Rebels,’ Hera Syndulla was often called the best pilot that the Rebel Alliance had to offer during the earlier days of the Rebellion. She was an exceptionally skilled pilot who started piloting when she was still a little girl. And because of her experience and fearlessness, she excelled as a pilot and could outmaneuver and defeat several different Imperial pilots during the events of ‘Rebels.’

The thing about the Spectres, which were the crew members of the Ghost, was that they all excelled in their own fields. Hera acted as the leader and captain of the Ghost because she was the most level-headed among all of the Spectres. On top of that, she often showed poise and composure even when they were up against large fleets of Imperial forces.

5. Han Solo

Often dismissed as a pilot due to his incredible luck, Han Solo is still one of the greatest pilots in Star Wars history because he has showcased time and time again that he can outmaneuver his enemies. After all, luck is the residue of design, and Han is lucky fact is a product of his skills as a pilot. And while he was often made fun of for piloting a piece of junk, he proved that the Falcon was a great ship that was able to match his skills and luck as a pilot.

Han’s experience as a pilot came when he made a living as a smuggler after he left the Empire as a Stormtrooper cadet. He made several impossible runs throughout his time as a smuggler, allowing him to rise up as the best smuggler in the entire galaxy. But it was also the fact that he was a great smuggler that got him into trouble several times.

4. Poe Dameron

From the very moment Poe Dameron was first introduced in ‘The Force Awakens,’ there was no doubt that he was the best pilot that the Resistance had to offer, as he could do things that no other pilot could do. The fact that he was entrusted to carry the information related to Luke Skywalker’s whereabouts was a testament to his incredible skills as a pilot. And while many pilots could perform difficult moves in space, Poe was doing them on entire planets with gravity.

In that regard, the Resistance often relied on Poe to lead their starfighters against the First Order. He was brave, bold, and headstrong. He was also known for being economical with his ammo, as he ensured he didn’t waste a lot of them whenever he was in dogfights. As such, he focused more on taking down enemy ships with as few shots as possible.

3. Plo Koon

During the Clone Wars, there weren’t a lot of Jedi that could actually match Anakin Skywalker’s skills as a pilot, and Plo Koon was often the only Jedi Master that the Jedi Order thought was just as good as Skywalker was in terms of piloting. He wasn’t given much screen time in the original trilogy, but Master Plo was one of the Jedi Masters featured a lot during the events of ‘The Clone Wars.’

A lot of Plo Koon’s appearances during the Clone Wars were about his skills as a pilot because he was always the best pilot among the Jedi before the arrival of Anakin. The only difference between him and Skywalker was that he was much more careful in his approach as a pilot. And that allowed him to preserve the lives of his men as he didn’t take many risks whenever he was involved in dogfights and missions in outer space.

2. Luke Skywalker

Like all of the Skywalkers, Luke was seemingly a natural the moment he got into the cockpit of a starfighter. He showcased incredible skills as a pilot during the Battle of Yavin, wherein he survived a battle that saw the deaths of many Rebel pilots with more experience than Luke. But Luke quickly showed that he was a natural a pilot as he destroyed several enemy fighters and was indispensable in destroying the Death Star when he trusted in the Force to guide his torpedoes.

After his heroic efforts during the Battle of Yavin, Luke started piloting his own X-Wing, which became synonymous with him. His skills as a pilot were more than enough to impress Darth Vader, who quickly noticed that he was strong in the Force. And we all know that no pilot’s more skilled than Darth Vader.

1. Anakin Skywalker

Ever since he was a young boy, Anakin Skywalker was already an exceptional pilot as he often took part in podraces because he was the only human capable of participating in such events even though he wasn’t even ten years old. He only grew to become a better pilot after he joined the Jedi Order, which allowed him to fly his own ships during several different missions, especially during the events of the Clone Wars.

As a pilot, Anakin was often called the greatest of the Jedi because he survived and won many different space battles for the Republic during the Clone Wars. Some people credited his strength in the Force as the reason he was so good as a pilot, and that made sense because the Force often protected him whenever he undertook some of the riskiest missions a pilot could ever participate in. And it was his headstrong nature and daredevil personality made him the greatest pilot the galaxy has ever seen, even after he became Darth Vader.

Who is your favorite Star Wars pilot? Let us know in the comments!

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