Darth Vader's TIE fighter death squadron get a nasty surprise as they corner Luke Skywalker's X-wing fighter in the Death Star trench: Han Solo and the Millennium Falcon make a triumphant return to aid their friend in the crisis, as one fighter is destroyed, the other rams into the wing of Vader's personal ship (sending it spinning out of control and into the depths of space) then crashes at speed into the canyon wall.
Originally, Vader's craft was to have perished as well, but, quite late in the editing post production phase, and against the advice of some of his ILM colleagues who'd think the move was too sequel gimmicky, George Lucas instinctively decides to spare the Dark Lord (especially if a sequel, then potentially Splinter of the Mind's Eye, might be made) and have his damaged TIE relentlessly spin out into space, using newly shot model footage alongside existing outtake cockpit footage of Vader that is spun around to simulate his being inside the out-of-control fighter.
A superb and timeless effects sequence, and an exhilarating one for cinema audiences too, that shows the cinematic power of the film and the true talents of George Lucas, composer John Williams, the film editors and the ILM team (including pyrotechnics/explosives expert Joe Viskocil).
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