Greatest SW Pilot(0BBY-25BBY)

[Lord Xizer]

Who is the best? On this poll are some of the best pilots in the Galaxy. Who do you think takes the cake as the number 1?

[Vulcanus]

It's Luke, but with him being busy doing Jedi stuff, I vote Wedge. Shout out to Horton Salm for surviving the Endor 2nd Death Star run and shooting down Fel in a Y-Wing.

Pilot power rankings:

Luke Skywalker
Wedge Antilles
Han Solo
Darth Vader
Soontir Fel
Maarek Stele
Tycho
Wes Janson
Hobbie
Corran Horn
Turr Phennir
Jagged Fel
Lando Calrissian
Dash Rendar

Not ranking Salm because his job as a bomber pilot differs too much from all the hotshots listed here.

[Lord Xizer]

Interesting way you ranked them.

[Vulcanus]

Interesting way you ranked them.

Simply going by their resume rather than any perceived talent. Vader may be better than Han or Wedge, but has very few feats in the timeframe outside of smoking Vindoo Barvel in a training.
Corran could be higher maybe.

Should be be ABY, not BBY btw, if we are going before Battle of Yavin, Vader is number 1.

[tlmiller]

Going with Jagged Fel, although Soontir would have probably been a better choice since he survived being a Tie/ln pilot to become an Ace, which means you're the absolute best of the best if you survive a long time flying those deathtraps.

[jordanthejq12]

Wedge gets my vote, though I'd certainly point out the Fels. The biggest thing is that Wedge became the NR's greatest ace without the Force. Yes, Luke, Vader, and Corran were stellar pilots in their own right, but to me it's always more impressive when you become renowned without any external aid, relying simply on your own training, experience, and innate skill.

[Lord Xizer]

Going with Jagged Fel, although Soontir would have probably been a better choice since he survived being a Tie/ln pilot to become an Ace, which means you're the absolute best of the best if you survive a long time flying those deathtraps.

This is a very good point, Fel's crafts had zero margin for error making the feats extremely impressive, however I do think Wedge still takes the cake, if for no other reason than the amount of different beings he's flown against. He was still vaping baddies in a generals uniform in 23aby at borleias.

Wedge gets my vote, though I'd certainly point out the Fels. The biggest thing is that Wedge became the NR's greatest ace without the Force. Yes, Luke, Vader, and Corran were stellar pilots in their own right, but to me it's always more impressive when you become renowned without any external aid, relying simply on your own training, experience, and innate skill.

This is one of Wedge's most endearing traits as a character, he's an everyman that rises up, not due to destiny or special powers but through hard work, dedication, and no small helping of skill and luck. Plus he's just so very likeable as a character. He genuinely fights for the freedom of every being to choose their own way. I'm an old Imperial but even I can't find fault in Wedge Antilles. He's unquestionably my favorite Rebel, kudos to Aaron Alston and Mike Stackpole for fleshing out this great character from the OT.

Should be be ABY, not BBY btw, if we are going before Battle of Yavin, Vader is number 1.
[/quote]

You are right, I made this around midnight so I was less coherent than I should have been. Fixed in the opening question.
Regards

[Meyer]

My choice as the greatest pilot is Soontir Fel. I too discarded the pilots who had the Force to aid them. Fel beats Wedge in my mind because he managed to survive so long in a fighter without shields. I would have picked Jag but at this point he hasn't really done so much.

[jordanthejq12]

Spending the bulk of your career in a deathtrap does make your accomplishments mean quite a bit more. It seems to be one of the clearest demonstrations of the man himself, without the Force or superior craft or even shields.

[CaptainPogo]

Wedge really gets my vote. Even without the EU, he was literally the pilot of the Rebellion in the Original Trilogy. He was present in all three major battles and he has only gotten better and better with time.

Ep 4: Returns the favor for Luke helping him by making the save in a very daring move by charging head first to the Tie with guns blazing as he swiftly goes through the explosion. Sure he eventually had to bail out of the trench run but he stuck through to the very end of what amount to a suicide mission.

Ep 5: Being the only pilot (along with Janson) on-screen to be able to take down a AT-AT with the tow cables and piloting when going against one was already a sure way to get shot down. Again, he has no force powers.

Ep 6: Practically the pinnacle of his piloting skills, as he went through an even bigger suicide mission known as the Battle of Endor...Which only got worse as it turns out to be a trap meant to have him and his allies destroyed. He not stuck through but he helped landed the death blow to the Death Star II...That really counts for something.

With the EU, he's a near legend among the rest of Aces though they are few who can easily be considered his equal in dog fighting.

Soontir Fel is one of them, being an Imperial Ace when again he pilots what is essentially a death trap throughout his Imperial career.

[Revanchist]

It's almost a complete tie in my book between Wedge and Soontir. They are both legends in their own right: one the only pilot to survive both Death Star battles; the other an Imperial who survived countless battles in a shieldless deathtrap and was the best Imperial pilot in the Navy. Between the two, my vote goes to Soontir for two reasons though. First, I am an Imperial to the core, so that is where my loyalties lie. Second, Fel reformed an entire WING of fighters from a laughingstock into the most feared squadron in the galaxy. That takes a lot of skill and ability.

[Pali]

"If you want to go by numbers and survivability, of course, there's only one man who's survived two Death Star runs.  From that perspective, Wedge Antilles is the best pilot ever." - Wes Janson

[Revan]

Like they zay it in the prince ken zaga Han...

[Lord Xizer]

Like they zay it in the prince ken zaga Han...

Favorite quote about Corellian Pilots(And Han in particular)
Leia, "More are coming in, we'll be overwhelmed!"
Han, "Wait did you say more? Yeah...that's perfect! If we get enough of them in here shooting at us we can't lose!"
Leia, "Now I know why you say never tell me the odds...you don't understand what they mean!"

[Pali]

Ackbar Slash Solo-style?

[Lord Xizer]

Ackbar Slash Solo-style?

Well actually they were in a magnetically sealed scraproom being fired at by droids on full auto. Solo drug a piece fo durasteel above them(Basically made a bunker and sprayed his blasters on full auto into the ceiling. Between his richochets and the Droids they were all scrap due to the sheer volume of their own reflected fire.

[Delta]

Best Fighter Pilots

1. Wedge Antilles

2. Soontir Fel

4. Tycho

5. Corran Horn

6. Wes Janson

7. Tur Phennir

8. Marek Steel

9. Jagged Fel

I think Luke, Vader, Solo, Calrissian, and Rendar all were great when they needed to be pilots but their primarily roles became something more vague than just piloting. As they already receive a lot  of credit for their tactics, and force ability in the case of Luke and Vader. So this needs to be left to the true pilots.