Executor The " Executor " - class Star Dreadnought Executor was the personal flagship of the Dark Lord of the Sith Darth Vader and one of the largest and most powerful Imperial vessels ever constructed . Under Vader ' s command , the " Executor " led the Death Squadron following the Battle of Yavin and oversaw the Imperial assault on the Rebel Alliance ' s Echo Base during the Battle of Hoth . While serving as the Imperial command ship during the Battle of Endor under Admiral Firmus Piett , the " Executor " was destroyed after a wayward Rebel A - wing starfighter piloted by Arvel Crynyd crashed into its bridge , causing the Super Star Destroyer to lose control and smash into the Death Star II . Description . One of the largest and most powerful Imperial vessels ever created , the " Executor " was 19 , 000 meter s long , eclipsing its escorting " Imperial " - class Star Destroyers , and boasted more than 5 , 000 turbolaser s and ion cannon s . The center of her arrowhead - shaped hull was covered by a city - like superstructure , while the underside hosted most of the engineering systems . The aft end of the " Executor " was marked by a trapezoid command tower crowned by two geodesic communication and deflection domes ; at the bottom end of the hull were thirteen thrusters responsible for moving the vessel . Bridge . As in the " Imperial I " - and " Imperial II " - classes , the bridge of the " Executor " featured two elongated pits set below floor level , and a walkway where the superior officers stood . One notable difference was that , around 3 ABY , the pit consoles were aligned parallel to the walkway , instead of perpendicular . However , by 4 ABY , the arrangement of the consoles had been altered to match that of smaller Destroyers . Service history . Built by Kuat Drive Yards , the " Executor " was intended to take the place of the " Annihilator " as Grand General Cassio Tagge ' s flagship and the greatest starship in the entire Imperial fleet . By the aftermath of the War on Shu - Torun , the Super Star Destroyer was entering the final stages of its construction at the orbit al shipyards of Kuat . Some time later , the " Executor " became the command ship of the Death Squadron , a fleet of capital ship s assigned to the Sith Lord Darth Vader and commanded by Admiral Kendal Ozzel , replacing " Devastator " as Vader ' s flagship . Many of the stormtrooper s who served aboard the ship were selected due to their excellent performance in the Imperial Academy . After the pivotal Battle of Yavin that saw the Alliance to Restore the Republic destroy the Galactic Empire ' s Death Star superweapon , Vader and the flotilla were tasked with finding the Rebels ' base . In 3 ABY , an Imperial probe droid located the Rebel hideout , Echo Base , on the frozen planet of Hoth . Although Ozzel disagreed with Vader , who sensed they found the Rebels , the Dark Lord ordered him to move the fleet to the Hoth system . However , Ozzel brought his ships out of hyperspace too close to the system , which allowed the Rebels to raise their defensive base shields , forcing the Empire to initiate a ground assault . Ozzel was subsequently killed by Vader for his failure , and promoted Captain Firmus Piett to serve as his successor . As the Empire evicted the Rebels from Hoth ' s surface , the " Executor " , accompanied by several Star Destroyer s , pursued the fleeing " Millennium Falcon " , the YT - 1300 light freighter of Rebel - affiliated smuggler Han Solo , into the Hoth asteroid belt adjacent to the Anoat system . Vader eventually ordered the " Executor " to abandon the pursuit and get clear of the asteroid field , in order for him to communicate with Emperor Palpatine without disruptions . He later moved the ship to the gas giant Bespin , where he intended to trap the fugitives headed there aboard the " Falcon " in order to lure out his son , Luke Skywalker . Battle of Endor . In 4 ABY , the " Executor " , still commanded by Piett , served as the flagship for an Imperial fleet of Star Destroyers that assembled at the remote forest moon of Endor , where the Empire ' s new superweapon , the second Death Star was under construction . When a Rebel fleet arrived into the system in an attempt to destroy the incomplete battle station , initiating the Battle of Endor , the " Executor " and the fleet moved into position to prevent the Rebels from retreating . Piett , however , did not attack the Rebels , as Emperor Palpatine wanted to demonstrate the destructive power of the Death Star ' s superlaser against the cornered Rebel capital ships . Fleeing the Death Star ' s firepower , the Rebels engaged Piett ' s Star Destroyers at close range while their ground assault team destroyed the shield generator protecting the superweapon , allowing the Rebel fighters to fly into its superstructure . The Alliance Fleet commander , Admiral Gial Ackbar , wishing to buy more time for the fighters to accomplish their mission , ordered a concentrated barrage against the " Executor " . As the Alliance warship s focused their fire on the Super Star Destroyer , two RZ - 1 A - wing interceptor s strafed the " Executor " ’ s bridge deflector shield s , bringing them down . In response , Piett ordered the forward batteries to intensify their firepower to prevent anything from penetrating the window of opportunity . Aware that the " Executor " would become the fulcrum of not only the battle but also the balance of power in the entire Outer Rim , Admiral Rae Sloane moved her ship , the " Vigilance " to flank position on the " Executor " to try and defend it . However , Rebel Green Leader Arvel Crynyd , with his A - wing starfighter badly damaged by fire from the " Executor " , managed to retain just enough control of his stricken ship to send it towards the Imperial vessel ' s unshielded bridge . Seeing the threat , Piett once again shouted to intensify the forward batteries , but it was too late ; the Rebel fighter crashed into the " Executor " command tower . As explosions engulfed the bridge , the massive ship listed to port and plunged towards the Death Star ' s surface , exploding upon impact . Legacy . Following the " Executor " s destruction , the Rebels went on to win the Battle of Endor by destroying the second Death Star , while Darth Vader , the former owner of the " Executor " was redeemed as Anakin Skywalker by killing Emperor Palpatine , his Sith Master . Behind the scenes . In " " , Tom Angleberger ' s retelling of , the Super Star Destroyer present at the battle of Endor was mistakenly referred to as " the " Eclipse " , the Emperor ' s own Super Star Destroyer . " In Angleberger ' s manuscript , that mistake had been caught and fixed by Pablo Hidalgo of the Lucasfilm Story Group , who even specifically added that " There ' s only one Super Star Destroyer [ at Endor ] , and it ' s the " Executor " . " Despite Hidalgo ' s correction , the mistake still appeared in the released version of the story .