Star Wars features some of the most iconic ships in all science fiction. The very first shot of the film series introduces two fans know and love. An Imperial Star Destroyer dwarfs the Tantive IV Rebel Blockade Runner, but the little ship looms large in the memory of fans around the world.
The Rebel Alliance didn't have the resources or the numbers of the Galactic Empire, but they had some of the coolest ships, including the Millennium Falcon and the Ghost. They keep adding to the ranks with new films and television series, building out an epic fleet that likely continues to appear throughout the expanding saga.
Updated September 22nd, 2022, by Darby Harn: Rogue One. With a timeline spanning the prequel trilogy to the years before A New Hope, the series offers a showcase for the entire saga's unique ships and vessels.
Nebulon-B Frigate
Fans got their first look at the frigate in The Empire Strikes Back, arguably the best Star Wars movie in the saga. The frigate looks something like an old key, with a spindly fuselage connecting the squat engines to a fanged kind of forward hull. The ship featured mostly in background shots but was prevalent in Return of the Jedi and Rogue One as well.
The ship mostly served as medical frigates in the Rebel fleet, as noted by Wedge Antilles in Return of the Jedi. The ships held up to 700 patients and engers, necessary during the major engagements in the Galactic Civil War.
Rebel Transport
The GR-75 medium transport, likely best known to fans as the Rebel Transport (as Kenner labeled it when they made the toy in the 1980s), served a major role in the Rebel Alliance. This distinctive-looking transport ferried Rebels off Hoth as the Empire closed in, helping avoid utter disaster for the Rebellion.
The ships played a role in every major engagement in the Rebel Alliance participated in. Numerous transports appear in the Battle of Scarif and Endor, carrying troops, cargo, and supplies to the front.
Hammerhead Corvette
The Hammerhead Corvette slammed into a Star Destroyer at the Battle of Scarif and in many ways turned the tide of the entire Galactic Civil War. The Sphyrna-class C80 corvette first appeared in Rogue One, serving as escorts to the larger ships in the fleet. Their distinctive forward hulls proved instrumental in seizing the advantage.
The ships also appeared in the Disney XD animated series Star Wars: Rebels where a young Princess Leia delivered the Lightmaker, Amity's Arrow, and Duchess Senna to Rebel forces on Lothal to bolster their effort.
Y-Wing
The Y-Wing plays a vital role in the original Star Wars film, A New Hope. The bombers take on the Death Star with the X-Wings and get their shot at destroying the main reactor. It doesn't work, but the fighters remain very popular with fans.
The simple design combines a snake head-style cockpit with a very stripped-down fuselage, indicative of the lived-in aesthetic of the Star Wars universe. Y-Wings continue to play a role in the saga, featuring in Return of the Jedi, Rogue One, and in an earlier form, Clone Wars.
B-Wing
The B-Wing starfighter debuted in Return of the Jedi but hasn't featured nearly as much as some other ships in the Rebel fleet. The unique craft features a gimbaled cockpit on one end of what is more or less a giant wing. Smaller wings extend from the body, all of which intersect with the engine stack.
The ship does appear briefly in some shots of the final battle of the best episodes of Star Wars: Rebels.
Snowspeeder
The Rebel Snowspeeder only featured once in the nine-film Skywalker saga, but it's easily one of the most dynamic and memorable ships in the franchise. The modified speeder allowed the Rebel Alliance to operate in the frigid environment of Hoth, and the epic battle they engaged in with the Imperial AT-AT Walkers in The Empire Strikes Back ranks among Star Wars' best scenes.
The Snowspeeder counts among the few two-man fighters seen in the films. A modified version appears in Obi-Wan Kenobi, participating in a raid on the Inquisitors' stronghold.
A-Wing
The A-Wing debuted in Return of the Jedi during the epic Battle of Endor. The sleek fighter added a brand-new dimension to the Rebel fleet, which to that point had mostly been defined by a craft that seemed hauled out of a boneyard. The A-Wing evened up things considerably for the Rebels by adding speed and accuracy.
The fighter also inadvertently brought down the Super Star Destroyer Executor, with a damaged fighter crashing into the bridge and breaking the back of the Imperial fleet.
Home One
Home One served as the Rebel Alliance flagship during the Battle of Endor. This massive Mon Calamari ship served as a carrier and command center, with hangar bays large enough to house many significant craft at the same time. Though fans didn't get to see it on screen, the ship features the ability to split into three different smaller ships.
iral Ackbar led the fleet from the ship and brought her impressive firepower to bear against the Super Star Destroyer Executor, helping to bring the imposing Imperial flagship down.
Z-95 Headhunter
The Z-95 Headhunter first appeared in the best Legends Star Wars books. An earlier version appears in the Clone Wars animated series, bringing the Rebel version closer to canonicity. This fighter predated the Alliance by many years, emphasizing speed and armament over the other fighters of its era.
Though many considered the fighters obsolete, the Rebel Alliance needed fighters and the Headhunter was readily available. The fighters continued to the fleet into the New Republic era.
The Ghost
The Ghost features prominently in Star Wars: Rebels, and it's one of the best ships in the Rebel fleet. The ship belongs to the one and only Hera Syndulla and comes from the same design lineage as the Millennium Falcon. A 360-degree dorsal laser cannon turret ties the ship to the Y-Wing from the original Ralph McQuarrie concept art.
The ship made a cameo appearance in Rogue One during the Battle of Scarif and seems likely to appear in Ahsoka, which brings many Ghost crew including Hera into live-action.
