181st Imperial Fighter Wing

The 181st Imperial Fighter Group was the elite unit of Imperial TIE pilots made famous by Soontir Fel during the early years of the New Republic. It was originally a full wing of 72 starfighters (Six squadrons in total), but was downsized to a fighter group of 36 starfighters (Three squadrons in total) shortly after the Battle of Yavin. One of these squadrons, which Fel led personally, was designatedSaber Squadron.

When Fel was first assigned to the 181st, it was commanded by Colonel Evir Derricote, and had an extremely poor reputation as the "One-Eighty-Worst"; the unit was filled with disfunctional washouts, or Imperial pilots who had incurred the wrath of political enemies, such as Fel had done. The 181st itself was a lackluster unit with discipline lax and morale wanting, as the pilots simply were kept waiting until they were given an impossible mission which would result in certain death. Fel, given command of the second squadron of the 181st, worked quickly to transform it into a proper military unit. On the same day as the Battle of Yavin, Fel led his squadron of the 181st to a decisive victory in the Second Battle of Ord Biniir. To draw attention away from the disaster at Yavin, the victory at Ord Biniir was heavily touted in the Imperial media. It was at this point that the 181st was downsized from a wing to a group, and in the process was transformed into the Empire's most elite starfighter unit.



The 181st participated in some of the most major battles of the Galactic Civil War, including the Battle of Hoth, the Battle of Derra IV, and the Battle of Endor. After Hoth, the 181st was equipped with the newer and more advanced TIE Interceptors; as a further sign of their elite status, the group's TIE Interceptors were distinguished by red stripes on their outer wings, a sign that the pilot had achieved ten or more kills. Likewise, the flight uniforms as well as the dress uniforms of the 181st featured similar red striping on the sides, further marking the unit's distinctiveness. At the Battle of Endor, the 181st fought on until Captain Gilad Pellaeon ordered the retreat of the Imperial forces after the death of Emperor Palpatine. Six months later it fought at the Battle of Brentaal IV, where Fel was captured.

It was believed that this group was assigned to Warlord Zsinj's fleet, although the exact reasons were not discovered until Admiral Rogriss revealed that the actual 181st was still an Imperial unit. Zsinj himself had created a duplicate 181st, with Tetran Cowall acting as Soontir Fel, in the hopes of drawing Rogue Squadron into a trap.

The real 181st had been assigned by Ysanne Isard to the command of the newly-returned Grand Admiral Thrawn. Fel had been recaptured by the Empire under Isard's orders, and after meeting with Thrawn, agreed to command the 181st for him. After the defeat of Thrawn, a number of the more disillusioned pilots of the 181st, such as Colonel Lorrir, joined up with various warlords and other breakaway Imperials, such as Prince-Admiral Delak Krennel and his holdings in the Ciutric Hegemony, or the ex-Moff Leonia Tavira and her pirate gang the Invids.

The 181st Imperial Fighter Group and its new leader, Turr Phennir, were present at the Battle of Adumar, as well as representing the Empire in the negotiations and short civil war preceding it. Phennir piloted a TIE Defender during the final space battle over Adumar, along with a flight of the 181st that were similarly equipped. His wingmen were destroyed by Red Flight (The representatives of the New Republic made up of Rogue Squadron members), and although Phennir's craft was damaged, he survived by retreating to the Star Destroyer Agonizer before it jumped outsystem.

Appearances

 * X-wing Rogue Squadron 25: The Making of Baron Fel
 * Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi
 * X-wing Rogue Squadron: In the Empire's Service
 * X-wing: Iron Fist
 * ''X-wing: Isard's Revenge
 * I, Jedi
 * X-wing: Starfighters of Adumar