Garven Dreis / Legends Garven " Dave " Dreis was the commander of Red Squadron , and a T - 65 X - wing starfighter pilot for the Alliance to Restore the Republic . Hailing from the planet Virujansi in the Inner Rim , Dreis originally served with the Rarefied Air Cavalry , fighting in the Clone Wars that took place from 22 BBY to 19 BBY . During the Battle of Virujansi , Dreis had the opportunity to fly alongside the " Hero With No Fear , " Anakin Skywalker . In the wake of the Clone Wars and the subsequent Declaration of a New Order , Dreis joined the Rebel Alliance — an organization dedicated to shaking the Galactic Empire ' s hold on the galaxy — after seeing the Empire commit atrocities on his homeworld . Dreis served the Alliance in numerous battles , adopting a fatherly approach to commanding his men , and supervised the instruction of new recruits personally . In 0 BBY , he was posted at the Alliance ' s base on Dantooine , leading Dantooine Squadron , and was transferred to Yavin 4 ' s Great Temple shortly afterward . Placed in command of Red Squadron , Dreis took the call sign " Red Leader , " and the nickname " Boss . " From there , he led Red Squadron in an attack on the Empire ' s Death Star superweapon , which was moving to destroy the Alliance base . When an attack run on the battlestation ' s vulnerable thermal exhaust port from pilot Jon Vander ' s Gold Squadron failed , Dreis was forced to make his own attempt . He almost succeeded , but his proton torpedoes failed to enter the Death Star ' s exhaust port . Dreis was subsequently shot down by the Sith Lord Darth Vader . Biography . Clone Wars . Garven Dreis , a Human male , was born on the planet Virujansi in the Inner Rim . Growing up on the family farm , Dreis spent much of his youth flying in the giant borecrawler caves , and knew every inch of the area . During the pan - galactic conflict known as the Clone Wars , which broke out in 22 BBY and raged for three years , Dreis served with his homeworld ' s Rarefied Air Cavalry . When Virujansi was occupied by the Confederacy of Independent Systems , the Rarefied Air Cavalry fought alongside the Republic Navy to liberate the planet . Much of the air - based combat was fought in the borecrawler caves , where Dreis — who had only just graduated from flying T - 16 skyhoppers to Z - 95 Headhunters — was given the opportunity to fly alongside the heralded " Hero With No Fear , " Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker , who was leading the Republic air forces in the battle . Dreis was considered to be the hottest pilot on Virujansi despite his youth , until Skywalker arrived . On Skywalker ' s first trip through the borecrawler caves , Dreis had flown in the lead position , and wondered if the Jedi would be able to keep up . After two minutes , Dreis ' musings were answered when Skywalker snap - rolled his Delta - 7 and took over the lead . Dreis struggled to keep up , and his astonishment at Skywalker ' s feat was acknowledged back at base by a smile from the Jedi . Thanks to the efforts of the Rarefied Air Cavalry and the Republic , Virujansi was successfully liberated . In his later life , Dreis would hold Skywalker in great esteem . The Rebellion . With the rise of the Galactic Empire following the end of the Clone Wars , Dreis remained on Virujansi and was witness to several Imperial atrocities . His village was burned , and the fields of his family ' s farm were torched by the Empire . He watched TIE fighters destroy transports with only the bare minimum of reasons . Eventually , Dreis decided to take a stand against the Empire and joined the Alliance , serving as starfighter pilot . He served in numerous campaigns flying X - wings , Y - wings , and R - 22s . At some point , he gained the nickname " Dave " . In his work , Dreis participated in the recruitment of new pilots for squadrons other than his own , such as Ryle Torsyn of Gold Squadron . For a considerable amount of time , Ord Mantellian smuggler Theron Nett flew as Dreis ' s wingman . In addition to his use of the T - 65 , Dreis amassed over a thousand hours of experience in the T - 16 skyhopper , which featured similar controls to the X - wing . In 0 BBY , he was assigned to the Alliance base on the world of Dantooine , where he commanded Dantooine Squadron . On Dantooine , Dreis was joined by an old comrade , Davish Krail of Gold Squadron . The Rebels were forced to abandon that base , however , when Torsyn discovered a hidden Imperial tracking device , and as a result , they relocated to the Great Temple on Yavin 4 . On Yavin 4 , Red Squadron was hastily assembled from pilots from Dantooine Squadron , the Tierfon Yellow Aces , and the Griffon Flight Wing . Dreis was assigned to command the new squadron , flying the lead X - wing starfighter under the call sign of " Red 1 " or " Red Leader . " Most of the pilots in his squadron had been trained by the experienced Dreis , who , along with his pilots , was tasked with the protection of Alliance High Command . When commanding Red Squadron — or as he referred to them , " Red Boys " — he adopted an almost fatherly approach , and was well - respected for it . He also earned the nicknames " Boss " and " Chief " from his squadron , but to the younger pilots he was only ever known as " Red Leader . " The Battle of Yavin . When Princess Leia Organa delivered the plans of the Empire ' s new planet - destroying Death Star battlestation to General Jan Dodonna on Yavin 4 , preparations were made for a decisive strike against the weapon that would totally obliterate it . Accompanying Organa was Luke Skywalker — the son of Dreis ' s former Clone Wars comrade Anakin Skywalker . Pilot Biggs Darklighter programmed a simulator run for Skywalker to fly before he could join Red Squadron and the assault on the superweapon . Together with Commander Vanden Willard , Dreis reviewed Skywalker ' s performance , which was impressive — the young Human had only been shot down twice when pitted against an entire starfleet . Dreis approached Skywalker , congratulated him on his run , and subsequently accepted him into Red Squadron under the callsign " Red 5 . " Shortly afterward , Dreis accompanied his men at Dodonna ' s briefing . The plan was to launch snubfighters against the gargantuan weapon , and subsequently fire proton torpedoes down a two - meter wide thermal exhaust port that was situated at the end of a long and narrow trench . The torpedoes would then travel down the port and hit the Death Star ' s main reactor , destroying the station . Gold Squadron would move to attack the port , while Red Squadron flew interference , keeping any Imperial resistance at bay during the run . Making the situation more dire was the fact that the Death Star had entered the Yavin system and was already moving against the fourth moon itself . Following the briefing , the pilots began making their final preparations . Even after the simulator run , Dreis was not entirely sure that Skywalker was up to the task . Darklighter , however , who was a childhood friend of Skywalker ' s , vouched for the newcomer ' s skills , which satisfied Dreis . Without further ado , Dreis and the X - wings of Red Squadron launched from the Great Temple , accompanied by Jon Vander ' s Y - wing Gold Squadron , and Merrick Simms ' Blue Squadron . As they rounded the gas giant Yavin Prime , the Death Star came into view . In preparation , Dreis ordered his pilots to report in before giving the order to lock S - foils in attack position . As he flew through the station ' s magnetic field , Dreis advised his men to set their deflector shields to double front , and then reprimanded a particularly informal Red Two for extraneous chatter . Leading the assault , Dreis ordered Red Squadron to accelerate to attack speed , and soon afterward received word from Vander that Gold Squadron was moving to make their run on the Death Star ' s trench . In an attempt to draw the station ' s defensive fire away from Vander ' s men , Dreis flew across the Death Star ' s axis . Red Squadron followed suit , prompting the Imperials to open fire , beginning the first exchange of the Battle of Yavin . As Dreis and his men began attacking the station ' s deflection tower s , Red Squadron sustained its first casualty when Jek Porkins perished . Soon afterward , they were contacted by Del Goren , who was at the Great Temple monitoring the battle . Goren advised Dreis , Vander , and Simms that enemy fighters were moving to intercept them . When Skywalker protested , claiming that there was no indication of enemy fighters on his scope , Dreis quickly ordered his men to pick up their visual scanning . As expected , TIE / LN starfighter s from Black Squadron entered the fray , engaging in various dogfights with Red Squadron . Pilot John D . Branon was killed shortly thereafter , but through cooperation , Dreis ' s men were able to hold their own against the Imperials . Finally , Vander and his two wingmen started their trench run , but were quickly pursued and shot down by the Sith Lord Darth Vader , who was piloting a prototype TIE Advanced x1 . Davish Krail , Dreis ' old friend and the last of the three to be killed , advised Dreis that Vader ' s attack had come from the rear , before perishing himself . Trench run and death . In the wake of Gold Squadron ' s failure , Dreis had his men regroup . He then received orders from General Dodonna to split his group in two , and then make an attack run on the trench . With only six pilots left , Dreis ordered Skywalker , Darklighter , and Wedge Antilles to wait behind until they were given the signal to start their own attack on the trench , should Dreis fail . Entering the trench with Nett on his wing as always , and Puck Naeco flanking him , Dreis was met by heavy turbolaser fire . When the fire stopped , Dreis cautioned his wingmen to watch out for Vader and Black Squadron . Sure enough , Skywalker informed Nett and Dreis that Vader and his wingmen were moving to intercept . Before Vader had the opportunity to begin harassing the half of Red Squadron that was making the run , Dreis came within range and began using his targeting computer as he bore down on the exhaust port . As they hurtled down the trench , Vader swiftly picked off Naeco , while another Imperial shot down Nett . The sacrifice of Red Leader ' s pilots bought him time to fire his proton torpedoes at the exhaust port , and it was initially thought that his attack had succeeded . Dreis soon realized , however , that his warheads had merely impacted on the battlestation ' s surface , and had failed to enter the port . Making matters worse for Dreis was the fact that Vader was still bearing down on him . Skywalker offered to cover for him , but the man refused when he noticed that he had lost his starboard engine . Ordering Skywalker , Darklighter , and Antilles to start their run , Dreis was fired upon by Vader , who caused substantial damage to the Alliance pilot ' s craft . Yelling as his craft fell toward the Death Star ' s surface , Garven Dreis perished upon impact with the battlestation . What he never realized was that the man who had shot him down , Darth Vader , was in fact his Clone Wars comrade , Anakin Skywalker . Legacy . Despite also being harried by Vader , Luke Skywalker succeeded in destroying the Death Star , and in doing so , saved the Alliance . The vacancy left by Dreis ' death would be filled by Commander Arhul Narra of Renegade Flight . Leadership of the squadron would eventually fall to Skywalker himself , who would reform it into the elite Rogue Squadron . For the majority of the time after the Battle of Hoth , leadership of Rogue Squadron would fall to Antilles . For the Battle of Endor , however , in which the Death Star II was destroyed , Rogue Squadron was called " Red Squadron " once more , in honor of those who had perished at Yavin . Nichos Panib , a noble from Dreis ' homeworld , joined the Alliance and was stationed at Echo Base on the planet Hoth in 3 ABY . Dreis had been a friend of Panib ' s family on his mother ' s side , and Panib painted his helmet to match Dreis ' to honor the fallen pilot . Personality and traits . A capable and well - respected pilot , Dreis took an affectionate , almost paternal approach to commanding his " Red Boys . " He tried to look out for his new recruits , and when in mortal danger would not allow his men to risk their lives for him . Over the years , he had borne witness to and suffered through great injustice , and this inspired him to fight . Although committed to the cause of the Alliance , his prior experiences were the more apparent catalyst for his actions , rather than the fervor of rebellion . Before a battle , Dreis would be desperately eager to begin the engagement , but he did not let it show to his pilots . Behind the scenes . The character of Garven Dreis was created for George Lucas ' s , but technically made his first appearance in Alan Dean Foster ' s of the film . Both Foster ' s novelization and Roy Thomas ' comic adaptation , " " , identify Red Squadron as " Blue Squadron " and as such Dreis ' character was known as " Blue Leader . " In the novel , the character is also identified as " Dave . " For Lucas ' film , the character was portrayed by British actor Drewe Henley , who was mistakenly credited as " Drewe Hemley . " Henley interpreted the character as an experienced one , and so decided to play Red Leader as a man who did not give away his excitement in his voice . Lucas disagreed with the interpretation , however , leading the actor and director to come to a compromise — Red Leader would at first be more formal , and then as the battle progressed , would become more and more enthused and excited . Using an for the part , Henley realized that his performance would be almost entirely in his voice . This was due to the fact that he would not be given the opportunity for much physical movement , since he was in a relatively small space for most of his scenes . Henley found it difficult to act in the " cockpit " scenes , as he was totally isolated from the rest of the actors and couldn ' t interact with them . Unlike many of the actors in " A New Hope " , Henley ' s performance was not dubbed over by another actor in post - production . The performance would prove to be Henley ' s final one on film , as he was diagnosed with shortly after shooting had finished , and decided to retire from acting . Henley would later reflect upon " A New Hope " as the most interesting film he had ever been involved with . The 1997 " Special Edition " release of " A New Hope " featured several scenes that had been cut from the original theatrical version of the film . One of the scenes showed Henley , as Red Leader , talking briefly with Luke Skywalker and Biggs Darklighter , played by Mark Hamill and Garrick Hagon , respectively . Henley was pleased with the inclusion of the scene , even though the " Special Edition " had failed to correct his name in the credits . Although the scene had been mostly restored , a line delivered by Henley in the middle of the sequence remained cut from the " Special Edition " . The line , which implied that Red Leader knew Anakin Skywalker , and the accompanying footage was omitted from the release , and to mask the cut , another character walks in front of the shot . The line , however , had originally featured in both Foster ' s novel and the Marvel Comics adaptations . The connection between Red Leader and Anakin Skywalker was later brought back into continuity by Raymond L . Velasco ' s " A Guide to the Star Wars Universe " in 1984 , and was elaborated upon by Abel G . Peña in the article " Vader Tech " , included in " " . The " Star Wars Encyclopedia " identified " Dave " as a nickname of the character , since he had been identified as " Garven Dreis " by the " Premiere Limited " set of the " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game in 1995 . The character ' s craft appeared briefly in " " , as did one of his lines from " A New Hope " , as that comic portrayed the conclusion of the Battle of Yavin from another perspective . Dreis also appears in his craft in the game " " , as a part of the Red Squadron unit . In the game , Dreis ' actions are not anchored to the plot , and therefore are not canon . Dreis also received a war portrait in " The Essential Guide to Warfare " , which Jason Fry wrote as if it were a missing page from Foster ' s " A New Hope " novelization .