Brief Prop and Costume History:
Based around the design of a real-life US Pilots helmet,
the rebel X/Y-Wing fighter pilots used in ANH were fabricated by Shepperton
Design Studios in London, then sent to Elstree for painting and detailing.
The helmets were subsequently used for ESB and RotJ although its possible
some new helmets were also produced. The Rebel Fleet Trooper helmets were
derivatives of a couple of the Imperial Helmets (Gunner and Imp Fleet) using
some of the same swoops and curves- again these were produced by Ainsworth
at SDS.
For RotJ new Y, B and A-Wing designs were created by Nilo
Rodis-Jamero - including the full-face Y-Wing helmet, which
encompassed the entire head
Replicas:
Over the years a number of licensed vendors have produced replica Luke
Skywalker X-Wing helmets including Don Post and Altmanns. Later this year
we're expecting to see more of E-FX's version which could well be something
special!
Several fan-made/non-licensed helmets have been produced
including Shepperton Design Studios and Richies Armor. However the key issue
with these helmets have been that they've been unpainted version (in SDS's
case for legal reasons)
