Garven Dreis/Legends

"Almost there&hellip;"

- Garven Dreis

Garven "Dave" Dreis was an X-wing pilot and leader of Red Squadron.

Clone Wars
During the pan-galactic conflict known as the Clone Wars, which broke out in 22 BBY and raged for three years, Garven Dreis, also known as "Dave," served with the 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 done in giant borecrawler caves, where Dreis 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. Thanks to the efforts of the Rarefied Air Cavalry and the Republic, Virujansi was successfully liberated.

The Rebellion
At some stage after the Declaration of Rebellion, Dreis joined the Alliance to Restore the Republic and served as a fighter pilot in Red Squadron. He flew the lead T-65 X-wing starfighter, under the callsign 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 a second nickname: "Boss," but to the younger pilots he was only ever known as "Red Leader." In his work, he 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' wingman. In 0 BBY, he was assigned to the Alliance base on the world of Dantooine. 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 IV.

The Battle of Yavin
When Princess Leia Organa delivered the plans to the Empire's new planet-destroying Death Star battlestation to General Jan Dodonna on Yavin IV, preparations were made for a decisive strike against the weapon that would totally obliterate it. Accompanying Organa was Luke Skywalker&mdash;the son of Dreis' 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&mdash;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 the newcomer was accepted into Red Squadron under the callisign "Red 5."

Shortly afterwards, Dreis accompanied his men at Dodonna's briefing. The plan was to launch snubfighters against the gargantuan weapon, and subsequently fire proton torpedos down a two-meter wide exhaust port that was situated at the end of a long and narrow trench. The torpedos would then travel down the port and hit the Death Star's main reactor, destroying the station. Making the situation more dire was the fact that the Death Star had entered the Yavin system and was 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, who was a childhood friend of Skywalker's, vouched for the newcomer's skills, which satisfied Dreis.

Without further ado, Dreis and Red Squadron launched from the Great Temple, accompanied by Jon Vander's 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. Leading the assault, Dreis then ordered Red Squadron to accelerate to attack speed, and soon afterwards received word from Vander that Gold Squadron were moving 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 towers, Red Squadron sustained its first casualty when Jek Porkins perished. Soon afterwards, 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. Sure enough, TIE/ln starfighters 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' 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 Lord Darth Vader, who was piloting a prototype TIE Advanced x1. Davish Krail, 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 was 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 another pilot 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 one of Dreis' wingmen, while another Imperial shot down Nett. The sacrifice of Red Leader's pilots bought him time to fire his proton torpedos at the exhaust port, and Dreis initially thought that his attack was going to be a success. He 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 towards 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, Skywalker was able to destroy the Death Star, and in doing so, saved the Alliance. The vacancy left by Dreis' death would be filled by Commander 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, 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.

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 witnessed 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
Garven Dreis was portrayed by Drewe Henley in A New Hope.

A scene filmed for A New Hope had Dreis confront Luke Skywalker and Biggs Darklighter, in which the two pilots discuss Luke's flying ability. This scene included dialogue that implied Dreis knew Anakin Skywalker. The scene was incorporated into the Special Edition of the film, but the dialogue involving Anakin was removed. Dreis knowing Anakin was brought back into continuity thanks to Vader: The Ultimate Guide.

There was a voice included in one of the scenes in the Special Edition of A New Hope that told Dreis, "He's on your tail!", but wasn't included in the DVD version.

Not unlike many other pilots, red leader's helmet reappeared in other movies of the saga. In one instance, a Hoth snowspeeder pilot was seen with Dreis' gold helmet both during the briefing and when Luke Skywalker was getting into his snowspeeder. In the second of these, it is the speeder next to Skywalker's. It may have been pilot Zev Senesca's gunner.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: Empire at War
 * Star Wars Empire: Darklighter
 * Star Wars radio drama
 * Star Wars Journal: The Fight for Justice
 * Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope / novel
 * Star Wars 5: Lo, The Moons of Yavin
 * Star Wars: A New Hope - The Special Edition 3
 * Star Wars 6: Is This the Final Chapter?
 * Star Wars: A New Hope - The Special Edition 4
 * Star Wars Empire 13: What Sin Loyalty?

Notes and references
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