Jon "Dutch" Vander was a Human male and a senior pilot that joined the Alliance during the time of the First War. He fought in the Great Aerial Battle of Tordas and was shot down by Ciri. He was trained at the Imperial Academy as a fighter pilot, but during one of his missions as a TIE Bomber pilot, he discovered the true nature of the Axis of Empire's ideals. He was ordered to bomb his home planet. He simulated a failure in his bomber and aborted the mission. He managed to escape the Axis and joined the Alliance. Jon got the nickname "Dutch" from his Rebel friends. He became Gold Leader and was assigned to a Y-wing, flying several campaigns for the Alliance with Gold Squadron.