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In the arena of just pure piloting skills and using the movies and EU as sources who do you think is the better pilot from this list of notables.

Anakin Skywalker (all versions)

Luke Skywalker

Han Solo

Wedge Antilles

Feel Free to add someone else but I think these are the big ones that span the majority of movies noted for their skill.

Wedge Antilles, survied two Death-Star runs as a minor charater. Tons of experence with loads of odd-ball missions and an impressive kill record.

Wedge, no force abilities and no character sheilds. The guy can fly.

I give it to Solo

Wedge has the ability of surviving many exploits and has really the longest term, but he's an exceptional pilot, but he's using a craft suited for these adventures, while Han is more doing things with a craft that is a handicap on it's own.

With force powers included, I'd give it to Anakin Skywalker. You've got to be insanely skilled to fly an unshielded fighter through a conflict like the Battle of Coruscant. Besides, Precog always helps.

Barring that, Wedge.

If you allow Force powers into the mix, Anakin.

If not, Wedge.

This one I have to give to Wedge. That has to be one heck of a pilot in order to keep up with and sometimes outfly Luke Skywalker.

Though Han can pull pretty good tricks with his flying brick.

Wedge/Anakin...

They both rule, and Wedge doesn't have a Character Shield... and he survives all the way through the NJO Series... where everybody's character shields had been removed.

No one - StrategyPage.com had an article called Why You Can’t Tell Who Was The Best Fighter Pilot Ever.

A handicap isn't indicative because we don't know how such pilots would have performed without it, and vice versa. Soontir Fel did eight years in TIEs, six years in combat, yet he never went up against Anakin, Luke or Han -- and Wedge is questionable, since Wedge didn't "vape" him. (It is entirely possible that he allowed himself to be captured, it is entirely possible that he didn't and that he finally got unlucky enough to get disabled by a Y-Wing of all slovenly machines.) It's eight years in unshielded tin cans, but how do you compare?

And on NJO, I disagree -- the only core characters to die are Chewbacca and Anakin Solo. (Ackbar and Mothma don't count.)

I prefer my shielded characters a lot easier to beat up.

Due to the intent of the thread, I'm adding Maarek Stele (Star Wars: TIE Fighter) to the mix. He's not famous, but he's an Emperor's Hand.

They killed off Chewie... that's a Cardinal Sin!

It depends, leave them all in their own fightercraft and I'll give it to Anakin, sheer force power.

If we put them in a situation greater then a meelee, Wedge or Solo, they have the experiance.

Wedge Rules!

Long before the PT ever came out I was always gunning for Wedge as being the better pilot, especailly against Luke, regardless of force powers. Luke took damage twice in the battle of Yavin, and Wedge was hit only once. He crashed twice in Empire. Wedge took out an ATAT. Luke DIDN'T crash in ROTJ, but then he didn't really have a chance to. Wedge blew up the second Death Star.

And those are just the things from the movies. Yeah, I've always thought Wedge was clearly a step ahead of Luke. At the very least, he's equal to Luke WITHOUT the Force. Raw talent like that means he's just damn good.

Anakin would probably win a fight between he and Wedge (Wedge was shot by him once, after all, though he was forced to stay back there and cover, not manuevering), but we'll never really know. So I'll stick with Wedge.

Wedge has deffinatly got the best flying skills but Anakin or Luke are probably better pilots overall when you take precog into accoun.

Solo, He has been flying a brick. Wedge flies a fighter. Han temporarily disables three stardestroyers (Imperator class) at once (ESB). End of story for me.

Luke himself stated Wedge was the better pilot. Even accounting force abilities, Wedge is the better pilot. Why? Because Wedge is a fighter pilot. Luke is a Jedi Knight. He doesn't get a chance to train and fly like he once did. Wedge is constantly honing in and keeping his edge as sharp as it can be. Luke is not. Thats the primary difference and Luke even said that (in not so many words).

Alyeska wrote:Luke himself stated Wedge was the better pilot. Even accounting force abilities, Wedge is the better pilot. Why? Because Wedge is a fighter pilot. Luke is a Jedi Knight. He doesn't get a chance to train and fly like he once did. Wedge is constantly honing in and keeping his edge as sharp as it can be. Luke is not. Thats the primary difference and Luke even said that (in not so many words).

Agreed, but in the poll where Anakin Skywalker is an option, he clearly beats the crap out of wedge. The Force is fun.

Obi-Wan wrote:He was the best star pilot in the galaxy, and a cunning warrior.

Key word, of course, being was.

gladius wrote:Key word, of course, being was.

Stravo wrote:Anakin Skywalker (all versions)

Emphasis mine. Do you have any more questions?

Dakarne wrote:They killed off Chewie... that's a Cardinal Sin!

Did you just hear about that? It happened six years ago.

For those people saying that the Falcon is some sort of major handicap for Han, I'd like to point out that it has much heavier shields than a starfighter, plus crewed weapons and damage control, which are big advantages in a fight.

On the Polls; Wedge

Entire Star Wars universe; Tie between Wedge, Fel and Steele.
I mean, come on, Steele nearly destroyed Home One using 1 FREAKING FIGHTER

I don't see how Anakin could have been a better pilot. He hardly had a chance to be involved in fighting to gain the decades of experience that someone like Wedge had.

Alyeska wrote:I don't see how Anakin could have been a better pilot. He hardly had a chance to be involved in fighting to gain the decades of experience that someone like Wedge had.

Even so, he did have Jedi abilities and precog. Even if Wedge was a better pilot in terms of raw ability, Anakin's Force control and the fact that he was a decent pilot probably put his on top, at least in my view. After all, he did have a lot of wartime experience, if not as much as Wedge.

I think Wedge if only based on sheer piloting ability wins.
Though, one thing that's always stuck in my mind is, when Han Solo saves Lukes ass in ANH you see the MF coming with Yavin's sun behind him. That has struck me as a very combat saavy move, what with the DS jamming sensors and pilots needing to rely on just their eyes to identify threats, and considering the size of the MF anything that makes it difficult for your opponent to spot you is a good thing. Plus, that scene explains how Han was able to toast that TIE before anyone could stop him.

Solauren, I think it's Stele - see The Stele Chronicles, the name used on SW Wikicity (I ignore the Wikipedia version) and in the SW Databank entry on the TIE Defender.

But when did Stele "kill" Home One, and with what fighter?