STAR RAIDERS
Membership: None named
Purpose: Piracy; raiding cargo from other spaceships
Affiliations: None
Enemies: A mechanic, Space Patrol
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: An asteroid hideout in outer space in an unidentified alternate future
First Appearance: Strange Worlds I#3 (April, 1959)
History:
(Strange Worlds I#3) - The Space Raiders were a band of space pirates who had a base on an asteroid. They were planning to raid a cargo ship when it passed nearby, but by random chance, a Rocket Service mechanic who had ejected himself from his ship drifted to the asteroid. The mechanic stole into the Space Raiders' radio cave and sent out a distress message to the Space Patrol. The Space Raiders caught the mechanic but the Space Patrol soon arrived and arrested all of the Space Raiders before they get to their spaceship.
Comments: Created by an unidentified writer and Steve Ditko.
Note that the Star Raiders in Tales to Astonish I#37/3 were also created by Steve Ditko! I guess he liked the name.
Profile by Prime Eternal.
CLARIFICATIONS:
The Star Raiders should not be confused with:
An unidentified mechanic was serving in space aboard a Rocket Service vessel when he suffered a bout of claustrophobia and ejected himself using an escape pod. A meteor wrecked the escape pod's radio so he couldn't call anyone to retrieve him. He hovered for a time as a "human satellite" but eventually by pressing against the escape pod bubble he could propel himself through space. He eventually drifted to the asteroid where the Space Raiders were based and used their radio to alert the Space Patrol. The Space Patrol arrested the Space Raiders and when the mechanic admitted how he'd fled his ship in terror, the Space Patrol officer told him he'd proved his bravery by standing up to the Space Raiders. The mechanic returned to work with the Rocket Service and found thereafter he was no longer claustrophoic.
--Strange Worlds I#3) 3 (fb), 3
The Space Patrol were an interplanetary law enforcement body who traveled using spaceships. When the mechanic discovered the Space Raiders on their asteroid base preparing to raid a cargo ship he radioed a warning to the Space Patrol and they quickly arrived to arrest all of the Space Raiders. When the mechanic told a Space Patrol officer about how he'd fled his own ship, the officer noted he'd proved his bravery by risking his life to stop the Space Raiders.
--Strange Worlds I#3
images: (without ads)
Strange Worlds I#3, page 4, panel 2 (main)
Strange Worlds I#3, page 3, panel 8 (spaceship)
Strange Worlds I#3, page 1, panel 6 (mechanic)
Strange Worlds I#3, page 5, panel 4 (Space Patrol)
Appearances:
Strange Worlds I#3 (April, 1959) - unidentified writer, Steve Ditko (artist), Stan Lee (editor)
First posted: 11/02/2026
Last updated:
11/02/2026
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and © 1941-2099 Marvel
Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you
should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com
Special Thanks to http://www.g-mart.com/ for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!