Battle of Endor The Battle of Endor was a decisive battle of the Galactic Civil War , one in which the Alliance to Restore the Republic shattered the rule of the Galactic Empire and saw the destruction of the Death Star II and the death s of Darth Sidious and Darth Vader . The triumph of the Alliance over the Empire , and the void left in the wake of the Emperor ' s demise , gave the Alliance the opportunity to give rise to the New Republic , which ultimately prevailed over the Empire in the Battle of Jakku one year later . The legacy of the Battle of Endor reverberated for decades after the fighting ended , including into the brewing war between the Imperial - inspired First Order and the Resistance that arose to combat it . The origins of the Battle of Endor emerged from the discovery that the Empire was using the Forest Moon of Endor as a staging ground to construct a second Death Star , the first of which had been destroyed four years earlier during the Battle of Yavin . Bothan spies employed by the Alliance gained the intelligence needed to determine the Death Star ' s location and learn that the emperor himself planned on personally overseeing the final phases of construction , though the Alliance was unaware that this was an elaborate plot to destroy Luke Skywalker , a Jedi and the son of Darth Vader , and the Alliance itself once and for all . The battle began after the Alliance Fleet assembled near Sullust , and special operations ground forces were deployed to Endor to disable the shield protecting the armor ed battle station . The Alliance Fleet soon arrived to discover the Imperial Navy waiting for them , along with a fully operational Death Star . Ground forces under the command of General Han Solo and Prince ss Leia Organa were able to destroy the shield , giving the Alliance Fleet the opportunity to attack the superweapon . Meanwhile , Skywalker engaged Vader in a final lightsaber duel aboard the Death Star , where the emperor tried and failed to convince the Jedi Knight to turn to the dark side of the Force . To save his son from the wrath of the emperor , Vader surprised and betrayed Sidious , killing the Dark Lord of the Sith , and sacrificing his own life in the process — an act that fulfilled the Jedi prophecy of the Chosen One and brought balance to the Force . Shortly thereafter , Alliance forces destroyed the Death Star . Imperial forces were left in tatters , giving the Alliance the opportunity to form the New Republic and forge a new future free of the Sith and the rule of the Empire . Prelude . Unlike the Battle of Yavin , the last major battle between the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the Galactic Empire , which had taken place on the ice world of Hoth , had resulted in a disastrous defeat for the Alliance . The loss of the recently established Echo Base forced the Alliance High Command to break the Alliance Fleet into small task force s that would constantly jump from one star system to another to prevent another defeat for Imperial propagandists to celebrate . Several months later , the Bothan spynet intercepted information that revealed the Empire was building a second Death Star in orbit over the forest moon of Endor . Thanks to the Bothan spies , the Alliance also learned that the Emperor himself was to oversee the completion of the Death Star , the construction of which was being overseen by Moff Tiaan Jerjerrod . Unbeknownst to the Alliance , the Emperor , secretly a Dark Lord of the Sith known as Darth Sidious , had foreseen the Alliance ' s plan and used this to his advantage . The Emperor would allow the Alliance to obtain incomplete information , tricking the Alliance into thinking that the battle station ' s superlaser was inoperative when in fact the battle station would be fully operational . In addition , the Emperor would hide a large fleet of Star Destroyer s on the far side of Endor . A week after the intelligence report reached Rebel Command , its leader , Chancellor Mon Mothma , organized a top - clearance meeting on Zastiga to relay this information to the other Rebel leaders . Alongside Admiral Gial Ackbar , commander of the Alliance Fleet , and General Airen Cracken , the chief of Alliance Intelligence , Mothma informed a number of top leaders to the meeting : Admirals Massa and Nantz , Generals Tantor and Veertag , and the rest of the Alliance High Command — General Carlist Rieekan , General Crix Madine , and Prince ss Leia Organa . After swearing all the Rebel leaders to secrecy , Mothma adjourned the meeting for the next day . The group of leaders devised a plan whereby Alliance warship s would engage the battle station ' s defenses , buying time for starfighter s to enter the unfinished Death Star ' s superstructure to destroy its exposed reactor core . Prior to the arrival of the Alliance Fleet , a strike team of commando s from Madine ' s Special Forces would be sent to the forest moon to destroy the deflector shield generator protecting the superweapon — though they yet had to secure an Imperial transport to do so . They also decided to use the Sanctuary Pipeline , a hyperspace route that would allow them to go from Sullust directly into the Endor system . Organa and a crew of rebels placed hyper - transceiver s in the Corva sector as a part of Operation Yellow Moon . The hyper - transceivers would attract Imperial attention to Organa , deflecting the Empire ' s attention away from the fleet ' s gathering at Sullust . The operation was a success . In addition to successfully placing the hyper - transceivers , Organa and her team were able to destroy the " Imperial " - class Star Destroyer " Shieldmaiden " and steal the " Lambda " - class T - 4a shuttle " Tydirium " , which would prove essential to the infiltration mission to the Endor moon . An Imperial fleet consisting of Star Destroyers , attack cruiser s , light cruiser s , and more gathered in the Hudalla system as a display of the Emperor ' s power . Their mission was to attract the Rebels ' attention and confirm the Emperor ' s arrival to Endor . In response , Ackbar sent Corona Squadron to observe the Imperial ships and obtain as much information as possible . Corona Squadron engaged in a dogfight against TIE fighters , during which Corona Three ( Smikes ) , was shot down . Imperial forces allowed Corona Squadron to escape , hoping that the resulting counterintelligence would lead the Rebels to believe that the Imperial Starfleet was dispersed . With the Alliance Fleet nearly assembled , wing leaders and other major players were briefed on plans for the upcoming battle by Mothma , Ackbar , and Madine . Ackbar would command the Alliance Fleet , providing cover for the starfighter attack . General Lando Calrissian would lead Gold Squadron and the rest of the starfighter groups in the attack against the Death Star ' s main reactor . General Han Solo , having recently been rescued from Jabba Desilijic Tiure on Tatooine , would take over command of the ground assault team from the recently deceased Major Lokmarcha . Organa , Chewbacca , and Commander Luke Skywalker along with his droid s , R2 - D2 and C - 3PO , took the opportunity during the briefing to volunteer as the command crew to pilot the " Tydirium " and assist Solo and his strike team . After his arrival at the Death Star , and in spite of reports about the Rebel fleet massing near Sullust , the Emperor had his apprentice and servant , Darth Vader , sent the Imperial fleet protecting his project to the far side of Endor , to stay there until called for . He also had Vader go to their main command ship , Vader ' s own " Executor " - class Star Dreadnought , " Executor " , to await further orders . The battle . The ground assault . Departing for the Endor system , Solo ' s strike team consisted of the Pathfinders , among whom Tuck Tyrell and Sergeant Kes Dameron served . As they entered Endor ' s orbit , they were faced by " Executor " and two " Imperial " - class Star Destroyers , and Solo requested that the deflector shield be deactivated and transmitted the clearance code for shield passage as ordered by a flight controller , under the watchful eye of Admiral Firmus Piett . As the Rebels awaited for the codes to be worth the price they had paid , Vader sensed the presence of his son , Skywalker , aboard the shuttle and allowed them to land on the moon . Agreeing to use comlink s only as a last resort to avoid alerting the Empire to their presence , the Rebel landing party made their way through the forest , but they were soon spotted by four Imperial scout trooper s , who made use of 74 - Z speeder bike s . Although Solo and Chewbacca took out two of them , Skywalker and Organa were forced to pursue the remaining two and two other trooper s with the speeder bike s . During the pursuit , however , Organa was separated from the group and ( after taking out another two scout s ) brought to Bright Tree Village by the Ewok Wicket W . Warrick , prompting Solo to split the strike team . While the Pathfinder squad made their way to the shield generator ahead of them , Solo , Skywalker , Chewbacca and the two droids searched for Organa before going to the rendezvous point . At the time , Vader returned before his master to report the arrival of the Rebel shuttle and Skywalker ' s presence in it . Although suspicious of Vader ' s impartiality regarding his son , the Emperor allowed Vader to go to the moon , claiming Skywalker would go to him , and that then , Vader was to bring Skywalker before him so that he could turn the young man to the dark side of the Force . During their search for the princess , the group soon fell into an Ewok trap and was captured to become a banquet in C - 3PO ' s honor back at Bright Tree Village , as the primitive species believed the protocol droid to be a god . However , skillful use of the Force allowed Skywalker to trick the Ewoks into believing C - 3PO would unleash his " magic " over them if they did not release them at once . After reuniting with Organa , and now considered as their guests , the village in full listened to a story by C - 3PO , who used his translator skills to speak Ewokese and communicate with the tribe . During the narration , C - 3PO told the Ewoks of all that had led to their presence in their forest — his and R2 - D2 ' s service to the Galactic Republic , R2 - D2 ' s work during the Clone Wars , the Jedi Order ' s demise at the betrayal of the clone army , the birth of Palpatine ' s Empire and the end of freedom , the gradual birth of the Alliance and the message of a boy across the worlds that ignited a spark of rebellion , Organa ' s mission to Tatooine , the droids ' purchase by Skywalker , their encounter with Obi - Wan Kenobi and meeting with Solo and Chewbacca , the destruction of Alderaan by the first Death Star , the princess ' rescue and the Battle of Yavin , the Rebel defeat at Hoth , the " Millennium Falcon " ’ s escape to Cloud City and Skywalker ' s fateful duel against Vader . Finally , C - 3PO told the Ewoks that the Emperor had constructed another planet - killing " metal moon " above them . After finishing the story at night , the head of the Council of Elders , Chief Chirpa , discussed with his two best hunters , Teebo and Asha Fahn , with input from their shaman , Logray . Though Logray believed they should not interfere for the safety of the tribe , Chirpa decided to aid the rebels , and thanks to Teebo and Asha ' s support , he was able to overrule Logray and announce that they would help the Rebel group , now members of their tribe . With C - 3PO translating , Solo and the Ewoks agreed to set out for the shield generator first thing in the morning , but also to obtain fresh supplies and give their weapons back . At the same time , Skywalker chose to leave the village , as he had sensed during C - 3PO ' s narration that Vader had landed on the moon . Aware that he could not hide from his father , he revealed to Organa that he was her brother , and Vader was their father . Skywalker then left her to face the Sith Lord in combat alone . Subsequently , he turned himself over to a Imperial patrol in the woods . They proceeded to transport their prisoner on an All Terrain Armored Transport to the shield generator base , where he was greeted by Vader after his landing with the shuttle " ST 321 " . After a short conversation in which Skywalker attempted to turn Vader to the light side , the Sith lord had Skywalker sent to the Death Star above . Meanwhile , the Imperial Commander Igar escorted Skywalker went on to conduct a further search of the area for other rebels . Unbeknownst to both the Rebel team and the Empire , in the middle of the night , the Ewoks held a council of war in Bright Tree Village . Recalling the tribe members killed and the villages that were destroyed by the Empire , Chirpa convinced the village to take arms against the Empire , as did Asha , whereas Romba said it involved all Ewok tribes . In the end , Chirpa sent a messengers off through the forest to explain it all to the leaders of other tribes , and ask for their help . The morning after , when the Rebels awoke , they found the village nearly deserted , as those who were able to fight had left to prepare the battlefield under the leadership of Chirpa , Teebo and Asha . A few Ewoks — Romba , Wicket , and Paploo — remained there to help them find the easiest way to the rendezvous point , where Solo presented the Ewoks to the Pathfinders before going to a bit of high ground to get a first look at the military base and shield generator that he had promised to destroy , just as " ST 321 " departed , transport ing Skywalker and Vader to the Death Star . Upon finding how heavily guarded the main entrance was , the Ewoks showed Solo an alternate entrance , guarded only by a few Imperial soldier s . At the front of the entrance , Paploo stole a speeder bike to distract most of the guards . Led by Solo , members of the Rebel strike team entered the bunker with intentions of planting the explosive charges to destroy the shield generator . However , as planned by the Emperor , an entire legion of his best troop s awaited them , and flushed the strike team out of the bunker and held them at gunpoint . With the generator still intact , the arriving Alliance Fleet above was forced to engage the Imperial forces for longer than expected . Soon , however , the Ewok forces entered the fray ; as they provided a successful distraction for the Rebel strike team , they also inflicted many casualties among the Imperial ground forces . During the confrontation , the Imperial forces scattered to fight the Ewoks , leaving the strike team to take up positions on each side of the bunker . As the door code was changed , Solo and Organa attempted to have R2 - D2 open it , but a stormtrooper shot the droid , temporarily disabling him and leaving Solo to manually try and open the doors . Unbeknownst to them , Zabrak bounty hunter Jas Emari targeted Organa ; however , she decided against it , even though the Imperial bounty on her head was very high . The space battle . Ready to lead the planned attack on the second Death Star , Ackbar , from the bridge of the MC80a star cruiser " Home One " , initiated the countdown to enter the Sanctuary Pipeline , and ordered all groups to assume attack coordinates . On his mark , the entire fleet jumped into hyperspace to arrive at the Endor system — all , except for Mothma ' s ship , which after a moment , she ordered to take her to a safe hiding place to await news of the impending battle . High above the moon , the fleet reverted to realspace with Calrissian leading the charge aboard the " Millennium Falcon " , alongside his co - pilot Nien Nunb , and their gunner s Lieutenant Blount and Cracken . Using the comlink , Calrissian had all wing commanders of his strike force report in : Red Leader ( Wedge Antilles ) , Gray Leader ( Horton Salm ) , and Green Leader ( Arvel Crynyd ) . Upon their leaders ' orders , all starfighter squadrons locked their S - foils in attack position to initiate the attack on the Death Star . However , as Nunb realized there were no readings about the deflector shield , and their transmission likely were being jammed , Calrissian broke off the attack as he correctly surmised the shield was still up , and the leading " Falcon " and T - 65B X - wing fighters peeled away just before hitting the shield , followed by the other starfighters . On the " Home One " , Ackbar ordered the capital ship to take evasive action , and that Green Squadron sticked close to holding sector MV - Seven , when one of his controller s informed him of the appearance of enemy ships in sector 47 . As calculated by the Emperor , the Imperial fleet on the other side of Endor , composed by more than eleven Star Destroyers and possibly the largest flotilla of Star Destroyers ever assembled , shot out from their hiding place behind the moon , each one unleashing a swarm of TIE fighters , TIE / IN interceptor s and TIE / sa bomber s against the Alliance Fleet . At the same time , the starfighter wings on rearguard mission ( like Blade Squadron ) had orders to cancel their mission and were reassigned to attack the Imperial fleet . After Calrissian destroyed three TIE fighters with the help of his crew and an incredibly risky maneuver , the " Falcon " barely avoided the stray fire from three TIE fighters chasing Antilles ' X - wing across their path . After Calrissian ' s heads - up , Antilles ordered Red Two ( Sila Kott ) and Red Three to pull in , when another two TIEs came in , and Antilles ordered his accompanying fighters to cut to the left , while he took out the TIE leader . At the same time , the " Falcon " destroyed two other TIEs , but Antilles noticed the remaining three of the group headed for EF76 Nebulon - B escort frigate " Redemption " . Antilles then knocked out the leader , but not before two X - wings were shot down and the " Falcon " took a brutal hit to its forward deflectors , and still more TIE fighters bombarded the frigate until the hull started to crack . It was then that Calrissian ordered all fighter squadrons to accelerate to attack speed and follow him to the encounter of the " Executor " , in order to draw Imperial fire off their cruiser s . The remainder of the Alliance Starfighter Corps and a horde of TIE fighters that rushed to meet their attack collided in a furious cloud of ships , laser bolts , and proton torpedo es , flying in , out , around and sometimes into the Star Destroyers , and mostly producing minor victories for the rebellion . However , the Destroyers themselves would not use their countless cannon s to pick off the Rebel fighters , with rare exceptions . The commander of the " Executor " had the ship maneuvered slightly away from the battle to have a clear shot at the Alliance cruisers , including Ackbar ' s command ship . However , on the Emperor ' s orders , " Executor " was to keep the Alliance Fleet from escaping only , although neither its commander or Piett knew why , and were eager to join the fight . Aboard the " Vigilance " , Vice Admiral Rae Sloane ordered Sapphire Leader Maus Monare to reposition their TIE fighters in a perimeter defense and had his controllers send targeting solutions to the turbolaser crews . Assuming a defensive posture , she complied with Piett ' s fleet - wide orders to hold the line and keep the Alliance fleet from escaping , aware that it was part of their Emperor ' s plan . Above them , interdictor vessel s awaited in position to block the Rebels ' retreat . On Blade Leader Adon Fox ' s orders , his A / SF - 01 B - wing squadron and RZ - 1 A - wing interceptor escorts headed for Vader ' s former flagship , " Devastator " , only for the Imperial cruiser to deploy two dozen TIE Interceptor s , commanded by TIE commander Gradd . In their audacity , even as several B - wings were shot down , the squadron managed to engaged the TIEs in close proximity to Admiral Jhared Montferrat ' s " Devastator " . Moments later , both the Rebel and the Imperial fleets understood the extent of the Emperor ' s design — Palpatine , in the presence of Vader and Skywalker , ordered the Death Star ' s commander , Jerjerrod , to fire when ready . Despite his reluctance , Jerjerrod gave the order , and both Rebel and Imperial commanders watched dumbfounded as the thought to be incomplete Death Star charged up and fired its newly upgraded superlaser . The target was the Rebel MC80 star cruiser " Liberty " , striking the huge cruiser amidships and vaporising it completely . The " Nautilian " fell victim to the superweapon shortly after . Taken aback by the attack , and with ships unable to repel the Death Star ' s superlaser , Ackbar issued the order to prepare their retreat . However , Calrissian convinced the Mon Calamari to continue the fight in order to give the ground team more time to disable the shield . Losing yet another capital ship to the inhumanly powerful superlaser , Calrissian recommended that Ackbar have the remaining Rebel cruisers move right up against the Imperial fleet and engage them at point - blank range , hoping the Death Star wouldn ' t dare shoot into its own fleet and if it did then they might at least take a few Destroyers with them . Ackbar agreed and soon the opposing capital ships were exchanging laser fire with barely inches between them . Despite the disadvantage , the Alliance forces managed to achieve a few victories — including the destruction of an " Imperial " - class Destroyer ' s shield generator dome , although it came at the cost of Red Five ( Grizz Frix ) ' s life . Gray Squadron ' s Gray Three ( Ekelarc Yong ) , whose craft was crippled by TIE fighters , was able to aim his craft toward the bridge of a nearby Imperial Star Destroyer . Green Squadron attacked the " Executor " on Crynyd ' s orders ; against eight TIE fighters , they lost Green Six ( Kokely ) as they took down two enemy ships . Corona Squadron ' s leader , the Contessa , as well as Corona Two ( Yendor ) , Corona Four ( Thane Kyrell ) , and Corona Five ( Kendy Idele ) , attacked the Star Destroyer " Subjugator " . Kyrell and Idele , both of whom had formerly served the Empire , used their knowledge of the Imperial vessel ' s weak points to destroy one of the Star Destroyer ' s engine s , before engaging other TIE fighters . Under the watchful eye of Emarr Ottkreg , Sloane suspected something was amiss when her executive officer Nymos Lyle pointed out that the Rebel fleet was not retreating despite the Death Star ' s attacks . She asked Lieutenant Habbel to keep her appraised of the Endor garrison . Concurrently , the " Vigilance " ’ s Sapphire Squadron skirmished with Rebel fighters and went to intercept a trio of Rebel CR90 corvette s that had survived the passage between the Rebel and Imperial lines . As their laser cannon fired continual barrages at the same point of the " Vigilance " ’ s protective shields , Sapphire Squadron complied with its orders to engage the targets and fire at will , destroying the corvette s with help of the " Vigilance " ’ s turbolasers . Meanwhile , Commander Ciena Ree took her TIE interceptor up over the main bridge area of the " Annihilator " , and cleared the top of the Star Destroyer . Demise of the Sith . Escorted by Vader , Skywalker was brought to the Emperor ' s throne room in an attempt to turn him to the dark side , shortly before the Alliance Fleet arrived . After telekinetically releasing Skywalker from his binders , the Emperor dismissed his protectors , the Royal Guard , and revealed the extent of his plan to destroy the Alliance . Aware of Skywalker ' s anger and hate , the Emperor tempted him to give in to his emotions and strike him down with his lightsaber . In spite of his initial refusal to succumb to the Emperor ' s temptations , when faced with the imminent destruction of the Rebel fleet and the loss of his friends , Skywalker allowed himself to be coerced into a confrontation . Within the darkened confines of the Emperor ' s throne room , Luke engaged his father in a fierce lightsaber duel . Although Luke first fought Vader in anger , the Emperor ' s taunts made him realize that he was following the path Yoda had warned him against . Instead , he once again tried to reach his father , sensing conflict in him about his alliegance . However , Vader dismissed him and threatened to turn Luke ' s sister , Organa , to the dark side in his stead , something that enraged Skywalker , allowing him to draw upon his anger to overwhelm the Dark Lord . With one final strike , Luke severed Vader ' s cybernetic right hand , taking the Sith ' s lightsaber with it as it plummeted into the depths below . Pleased with Skywalker ' s display of power , Palpatine ordered Luke to kill Vader before taking his father ' s place at the Emperor ' s side . Seeing at once what he would become if he failed to pull himself back , Skywalker tossed his lightsaber aside and declared himself a Jedi , as his father had been before him . Seeing his refusal to give in to his demands to kill Vader , the Dark Lord of the Sith decided to torture and kill the Jedi Knight using Force lightning . Hearing his son ' s pleas for help , Vader returned to the light side and was once again Anakin Skywalker , grabbing the rage entranced Emperor with what was left of his arms and lifting his master up high into the air , lumbering toward the reactor shaft . Angered by his apprentice ' s sudden betrayal , Sidious turned a yet more powerful lightning attack upon the returned Anakin , wishing out of hatred nothing more than to cause as much pain as possible to him , even with the option to use his own powers and save himself . At the cost of the Emperor heavily damaging his life - supporting armor , Anakin hurled his master down into the reactor , ending with the Emperor plummeting down the shaft , screaming violently as lightning still blasted from his fingertips , expelling a rush of dark side energy upon finally hitting the reactor far below . By killing the Emperor , and ending his reign , the redeemed Anakin fulfilled his destiny by restoring balance to the Force . Final actions . In the space battle , following the death of Blade One , Blade Squadron ' s leader was targeted by Gradd and proceeded to maneuver evasively just as Gradd fired his laser cannons ; taking heavy damage , Fox executed a roll , taking Gradd by surprise as Fox killed him . Unable to continue , Fox gave the order to his group that if they made it past the fighter screen of the " Devastator " , they were to execute the primary mission . As Blade Two ( Braylen Stramm ) became acting commander , and Blade Four ( Fanty ) peeled out of formation , Blade Three ( Gina Moonsong ) went onto unleash proton torpedoes on the weak points of the " Devastator " ’ s navigational shielding , destroying its hyperdrive and primary generators , and causing the ship to undergo systematic demolition . Like the " Devastator " , the " Pride of Tarlandia " had been heavily damaged and not responding to hails , while both the " Vehement " and the " Tector " - class Star Destroyer " Harbinger " had been destroyed . As for the " Vigilance " , although three bow deflector generators and one dorsal unit had been damaged , the auxiliary units had kicked in , and the shields had held , while Sapphire Squadron had lost six pilots . Sloane then had her crew prepare navigational and firing solutions for two different scenarios — either a mop - up operation to disable or destroy the remaining Rebel ships , or pursuit of the nearest concentration of enemy ships should the Rebel fleet break off the attack and flee . On the moon below , while the Ewok forces continued to fight the Imperials , Chewbacca , Widdle Warrick and Wunka hijacked an All Terrain Scout Transport , after taking its drivers out , Blanaid and Major Newland , and made their way to the bunker . After Organa was injured by a stormtrooper , they arrived and Solo used the vehicle ' s video comlink to impersonate an Imperial and trick the bunker personnel into thinking the Rebels had been routed and were fleeing into the woods . Claiming they needed reinforcements to continue the pursuit , the base commander opened the door and sent three squads , who were promptly captured by the Rebels . Solo and his men then placed the explosives and destroyed the shield generator . High above the exploding generator , Ackbar announced the shield ' s deactivation and order the start of the attack on the Death Star ' s main reactor . As Stramm informed Ackbar that Calrissian ' s path was clear after the " Devastator " ’ s destruction , he had all surviving units of his group to pull into formation ( himself and Moonsong ) , and the squadron went onto help the other fighter wings in their attack against the battle station . Another B - wing pilot , Blue Five ( Ten Numb ) , helped in the assault . On Crynyd ' s orders , his squadron ' s members — Green Four ( Shara Bey ) , Seven , and Three — protected the " Millennium Falcon " on its attack run to enter the Death Star . Complying with its original mission , Corona Squadron also protected the " Falcon " and its accompanying squadrons as it made its way to the battle station . Seizing the opportunity , Calrissian called for the remaining fighters from Red Group and Gold Squadron to follow him into the Death Star ' s superstructure to destroy its reactor core . Leading the charge was Red Leader Wedge Antilles , followed by the " Millennium Falcon " and two A - wings . The sole Y - wing , flown by Norra Wexley , and another X - wing , flown by Keir Santage , were behind them . The group were pursued by several TIE fighters as they flew through the station ' s unfinished ventilation shafts and an Imperial pilot shot down Keir Santage ' s X - wing . Calrissian ordered the rest of the group to split off and head to the surface . As they drew away some of the pursuing TIE fighters , he and Antilles made their way to the core . Simultaneously , Sloane forbade Flight Leader Monare from entering the Death Star and recalled all Sapphire Squadron fighters . The assault caused the entire Death Star to jolt wildly , prompting Skywalker to recover his lightsaber , drag his father back to the elevator , and use his memory to find the floor of the docking bay where Vader ' s shuttle , " ST - 321 " , had deposited him hours earlier . After reaching the right floor , Skywalker discovered the Death Star to be in a state of chaos , as troopers , officer s , underlings , and construction workers scrambled in every direction . Some raced to repair the damage , some raced to defend the station , and some were expecting the call to evacuate . Skywalker managed to bring his father ' s body to the shuttle unopposed . The redeemed Anakin would die soon afterwards , but not before confirming his son ' s assertion that there was still good in him . To buy Calrissian ' s group more time , Ackbar ordered to concentrate all fire on the " Executor " , and the Rebel cruisers closed on the ship , hammering it with fire from every direction . The Dreadnought soon lost its bridge deflector shields ; Piett then ordered the ship to intensify its forward batteries . Although the " Executor " ’ s gunners destroyed another Rebel X - wing , they also damaged Crynyd ' s fighter , sending it into a wild spin . Ree tried to stop him from crashing — but was unable to get it in her sights because of its speed and distance away from her , — and the Rebel pilot ' s damaged A - wing starfighter plummeted into the " Executor " ’ s bridge , killing Piett and the bridge crew . The " Vigilance " moved to flank position on the " Executor " , as Sloane was aware it would become the fulcrum of not only the battle but also the balance of power in the entire Outer Rim , which meant the flagship had to be defended with every Imperial asset available . However , it was too late as the loss of its bridge caused the " Executor " to lose its main power and control , and to smash into the Death Star . Then , as she was informed that the Death Star ' s chain of command had been fragmented without the Emperor ' s input , the now ranking Sloane told her Communications Officer , Ives , to order the surviving captain s to recall their TIEs and form up on the " Vigilance " . Ree complied with the order , but also protected her fellow comrades on their damaged TIEs . In response , Admiral Garrick Versio had commanded a report from Inferno Squad , who had already been deployed to the moon . The group ' s commander confirmed that the shield generator had been destroyed beyond repair . The admiral then ordered them to return to the " Corvus " and finish off the remaining rebels . Inside the Death Star , Calrissian and Antilles soon reached the main reactor . Antilles fired proton torpedoes at the station ' s power regulator on the side tower , destroying it , prompting Ackbar to order the Alliance Fleet to move away from the Death Star . As the Alliance Fleet broke off their assault on the Imperial line and accelerated away from the Death Star , Sloane killed Ottkreg so that he would not interfere with what was to happen next . Calrissian followed Antilles by launching concussion missile s at the reactor core , causing a chain reaction that would destroy the entire battle station . Receiving orders from " Home One " , the remainder of Green Squadron and Yellow Squadron were to intercept Imperial launches from the collapsing battle station . Green Four ( Shara Bey ) attempted to shoot down shuttle " ST 321 " , piloted by Skywalker , until he identified himself . Bey broke off her attack and proceeded to cover him from several TIEs . At the same time , both the Imperial and Rebel fleets alike moved away from the Death Star , the " Millennium Falcon " outran the explosion enveloping the battle station and narrowly escaped as the unfinished superweapon ' s destruction , lighting Endor ' s early evening sky . As per her second programmed scenario , Sloane had coordinates sent to all Imperial ships and ordered them to jump immediately to the Annaj system . However , Garrick had stayed behind with his Star Destroyer , the " Eviscerator " , to evacuate his special forces on the ground . Escape from Endor . Upon seeing the Death Star ' s destruction , commander Iden Versio was ordered to evacuate Inferno Squad back to the " Corvus " . At this point , the Rebel fleet had begun sending U - wings to deploy reinforcements to their ground forces , and the remaining Imperial forces on Endor were being quickly overrun . Iden and others quickly helped a squad of stormtroopers which were being picked off and then fought their way to Del Meeko ' s position , where he and a squad of stormtroopers waited by a downed TIE fighter . Together , the group moved to take back the Platform 4 landing pad from the Rebels . After taking the base of the platform , Inferno Squad stormed the top and left the moon in TIE fighters as more reinforcements arrived on U - wings . Once they had reached the wreckage , the squad found that the " Corvus " was damaged in the explosion and had to undergo repairs to get the power back and the engine working . 3 MC80 star cruisers cornered in the " Corvus " while a 4th one attacked the " Eviscerator " . The cruisers began deploying X - wings and Y - wings in order to destroy the corvette but the fighters were destroyed by Inferno . Once repairs were made , Meeko retreated back to the " Corvus " while Iden was summoned to the " Eviscerator " . The two ships then left for Vardos . Aftermath . In the immediate aftermath of the battle , Organa revealed to Solo that Skywalker was her brother , and they and the Pathfinders organized a rendezvous at Bright Tree Village . Above them , Rebel pilots docked their starfighters in the fleet ' s capital ships , counted the casualties suffered , and sent their wounded to the medical frigates . To prevent the battle station ' s meteoric debris from devastating Endor , the Alliance Fleet deployed an array of shields and tractor beam s . Although Madine was worried of an Imperial counterattack , personnel was shuttled down to the moon , where both the Alliance and the Ewok tribes celebrated their victory through the night , with many troopers drinking copious amounts of jet juice . In solitude , Skywalker cremated his father ' s armor in a funeral pyre , but then joined the celebration with his sister and friends , and reported to the Alliance that both the Emperor and Vader had indeed died during the battle . Following the battle , the Ewoks attempted to roast several captured stormtroopers . They were stopped by Organa and Solo , who managed to convince them to spare the lives of the Imperial prisoners in return for receiving ration sticks through the auspices of General Hera Syndulla . Syndulla agreed to supply the ration sticks in return for Solo stating that her VCX - 100 light freighter " Ghost " was superior to the " Millennium Falcon " . In private , Organa confided to Solo that the " Falcon " was a better ship that the " Ghost " . During the Alliance celebrations on Endor , ISB Loyalty Officer Sinjir Rath Velus , who had been stationed at the Endor base , took the opportunity to reconsider his life . Velus abandoned his post , killed a Rebel Pathfinder and stole the soldier ' s clothing and identity . At some point , during a short and to - the - point ceremony held on a flight deck , an admiral spoke of duty , sacrifice and heroism , before proceeding to award a Medal of Bravery to all B - wing pilots who had survived the battle — after which all the ceremony participants headed back to their duty stations ; all leave was as of then cancelled . The festivities would extend to other parts of the galaxy , as the Alliance sent word of the battle ' s outcome and the Emperor ' s death , and sent out mass communications claiming to be the new power in the galaxy . That same day , Organa sent out a holographic transmission to places such as the Anoat sector , relaying the news of the Empire ' s defeat and urging citizens to take up arms against the remaining Imperial forces . Anti - Imperial protests erupted on several worlds such as Bespin , Tatooine , Naboo and even the Imperial capital of Coruscant . Imperial authorities reacted to the protests , sparking riots such as one in Coruscant ' s Monument Plaza , during which Palpatine ' s statue was toppled by Coruscanti citizens . The next morning , Solo led an assault to take out a group of Imperial holdouts on the far side of the Endor moon . After capturing the base , they found communication records and plans regarding the Imperial post - Endor plans . Concurrently , the Imperial Starfleet regrouped to plan the next assault and name the next emperor in the wake of Palpatine ' s demise . Coruscant remained in turmoil , and Grand Vizier Mas Amedda tried to keep the Empire together even as other forces threatened to tear it apart : namely , the chain of command had been broken . Thanks to their victory on Endor , the Alliance reorganized itself into the New Republic and continued to wage war against the Empire , fighting to reclaim the Core Worlds . The Empire , meanwhile , splintered into various factions , some of which the New Republic believed had retreated to the Outer Rim to prepare a major offensive against their enemies . Despite posthumously issued by the Emperor , and an emergency summit on Akiva , the Empire ' s ultimate defeat came one year and four days after the Battle of Endor , following the Battle of Jakku , after which the shattered Empire signed the Galactic Concordance and put an end to the Galactic Civil War . Behind the scenes . The Battle of Endor acted as the climax for the 1983 film .