Star Wars fans listen up! If you’ve always dreamed of owning Han Solo’s iconic parka that he wore while on the surface of the ice planet Hoth in The Empire Strikes Back, Columbia Sportswear may be about to make your wishes come true. Starting tomorrow Friday, December 8, the outdoor gear manufacturer will offer limited edition versions of the Echo Base Parka signed by Harrison Ford himself. But to get your hands on one, you probably need to be fast enough to make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs and have plenty of credits to your name.
When designing this officially licensed version of the famous parka, Columbia went to great lengths to re-create it as accurately as possible. The jacket includes the same faux-fur hood, extended length, and distinctive cut that fans saw when the movie first debuted back in 1980. It even retains the same brown color, which has long been a source of contention with diehard fans. Many of us remember the jacket appearing to be blue on the big screen, but in reality, it was brown. The change in appearance was a result of post-production color grading which gave the parka a navy hue and spawned many heated discussions in the years that followed.
That isn’t to say that the Echo Base Parka hasn’t received a few upgrades with this latest edition. The designers at Columbia added some of the company’s technical fabrics to the mix to improve cold-weather performance. The jacket incorporates Omni-Heat materials on the inside for added warmth and the exterior is made up of durable, water-resistant, cotton fabrics as well. The result is a jacket that resembles the one from Empire Strikes Back in just about every way, but is probably even more well-suited for riding a tauntaun across a frozen landscape.
Only 1,980 (which happens to be the year the film was released) of these jackets have been made and they will go on sale both online and in Columbia stores across the U.S. for $400. The extra special “Archive Edition” — autographed by Harrison Ford — will be a bit tougher to get, with limited quantities on the Columbia website and in its stores in Seattle, Portland, Oregon; New York, and Disney Springs, Florida. That version will sell for $1,980 with all proceeds being donated to Conservation International.
In addition to the Han Solo parka, Columbia is also offering versions of Luke Skywalker’s Hoth jacket, as well as the one worn by Princess Leia, too.
