Phoenix Squadron Phoenix Squadron was an elite starfighter unit and part of a cell of resistance fighters who rebelled against the Galactic Empire in the years prior to the Battle of Yavin . The squadron was led by Commander Jun Sato . Organization . Phoenix Squadron piloted A - wing starfighters and were carried aboard Sato ' s command ship " Phoenix Home " . The squadron could also be carried aboard the fleet ' s blockade runners using docking tubes . Following the destruction of " Phoenix Home " , the squadron lacked a permanent home and docked with the rest of the Phoenix fleet . After the rebels stole an Imperial fighter carrier from Ryloth , the squadron was housed on that starship . History . Early struggles . Several years prior to the Battle of Yavin , Phoenix Squadron flew on missions with the crew of the " Ghost " . Several members of the squadron were lost in battle with Darth Vader . The survivors then scattered with the rest of the fleet . Phoenix Squadron also took part in the rebel relief of Ibaar where the - then Phoenix Leader was killed during the first attempt to break the Imperial blockade . Later , Hera Syndulla was promoted as the new Phoenix Leader after she succeeded in using a prototype B - wing starfighter to break the blockade . Members . To celebrate the tenacity of Phoenix Squadron , and Syndulla ' s promotion to Phoenix Leader , Sabine Wren created a painting as a gift for her friend . However , the artwork caught the eye of Mon Mothma , founder of the Alliance , who thought it a perfect representation of the effectiveness of rebel fighter forces . Mothma then asked Wren to complete the painting and add the phrase " Fly For Freedom ! " as a call to action . The final artwork became a power recruitment tool for the Alliance . Later , Phoenix Squadron and the rest of the Phoenix rebel cell escaped an Imperial attack on rebel installations on Garel . The squadron was later seen with the rest of the fleet above the Lothal system after a raid on an Imperial depot on Lothal to acquire three " Sphyrna " - class corvettes , which had been supplied by the Alderaan ian Senator Bail Organa ' s adopted daughter Prince ss Leia Organa . After regrouping , Phoenix Squadron , under the command of Syndulla , was sent on a mission to the Mandalorian colony of Concord Dawn to request safe passage through the system , however Fenn Rau , the leader of the Journeyman Protector s denied their request . Acting in the name of the Empire , Rau and the Protectors opened fire on Phoenix Squadron , killing two of the pilots and severely injuring Syndulla . In retaliation , the rebels Kanan Jarrus and Wren with the support of Chopper destroyed the Protectors ' Fang fighter s and captured Fenn Rau . Consolidating resources . Phoenix Squadron sustained the loss of another pilot during a mission to steal supplies from the Empire . With the squadron lacking a place to land and house their starfighers , Commander Sato approved a mission by the crew of the " Ghost " to steal an Imperial fighter carrier orbiting Ryloth . The crew of the " Ghost " were aided by the Ryloth resistance leader Cham Syndulla and his associates Numa and Gobi Glie . Phoenix Squadron aided the operation by sending two RZ - 1 A - wing interceptor s to harry the TIE / sa bomber carrying the two rebel groups . After completing their part , the starfighters jumped into hyperspace . The acquisition of the fighter carrier was a boon for the squadron . Following the heist above Ryloth , the former Imperial fighter carrier became Phoenix Squadron ' s new base and headquarter . Members of the squadron fought against Imperial forces which attacked the rebel fleet . After the " Ghost " returned with stolen fuel supplies from Horizon Base , the fleet prepared to depart for the Yost system . However , Chopper and his new friend AP - 5 informed Hera and Commander Sato that the Imperials had set a trap in that system . Instead , AP - 5 and Chopper sent coordinates to Atollon , a planet with no Imperial presence . Phoenix Squadron accompanied the rest of the fleet there . Admiral Kassius Konstantine , who had been trying to deal with Phoenix Cell for some time , soon gained the help of Grand Admiral Thrawn . Thrawn had been requested by Lothal ' s Governor Arihnda Pryce following his decisive victory over the rebels on Batonn . The shadow of Thrawn . While meeting with Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin , Admiral Konstantine , Agent Kallus , and Pryce , Thrawn reported that Phoenix Squadron had destroyed Mining Guild ships using the Sereeda Waypoint . He quickly deduced that the rebels planned to attack the Imperial salvage plant Reklam Station inside the planet Yarma . Later , Phoenix A - wings engaged with Governor Pryce ' s Imperial TIE fighters above Yarma . Thrawn allowed the rebels to escape since he wanted to destroy the entire rebellion . After Commander Sato received intelligence that the Empire was planning to impose martial law on Mykapo , Phoenix Squadron and the Spectres traveled there to evacuate rebel sympathizers . The Phoenix Squadron pilots Phoenix Two and Phoenix Three escorted a " Sphyrna " - class corvette and the " Phantom II " which evacuated the civilians . Later , Phoenix Squadron rendezvoused with the rest of the rebel fleet in deep space . Elements of Phoenix Squadron later took part in Commander Sato ' s attempt to rescue his nephew Mart Mattin from Admiral Kassius Konstantine during a brief skirmish over Mykapo . Using the information discovered by Ezra ' s team , Hera began planning a strike on the Lothal Imperial armory complex . Ezra was assigned to lead the mission but was relieved after he was tormented by dark side visions created by the former Sith Maul . While Hera and the rest of Phoenix Squadron departed for Lothal , Ezra stayed behind with Kanan and Sabine to deal with the threat posed by Maul . They subsequently became involved in a mission to Dathomir which led them to discover that the Jedi Master Obi - Wan Kenobi was still alive and held the key to destroying the Sith . Knowing Kenobi was out there , Ezra commandeered Phoenix Squadrons RZ - 1T trainer to find the Jedi . Ezra went to Tatooine where he was attacked Tusken Raider s and the trainer was destroyed . Ezra pleaded for Kenobi ' s help but Kenobi had his own responsibility on Tatooine . Ezra was forced to return empty handed . Battle of Atollon . Phoenix Cell was preparing for their attack on Lothal . They had a large portion of the Massassi Group , led by General Jan Dodonna , rendezvous to Atollon and were in contact with the Lothal resistance . However Thrawn not only knew of their intentions but had discovered their location thanks to Fulcrum . Thrawn ' s fleet arrived at Atollon and formed a blockade , trapping the rebels in orbit of the planet . Phoenix Squadron was led into battle by the ghost and fended off the TIEs attacking their capital ships . However , the battle was not in the rebellion ' s favour and many ships including the " Sphyrna " - class corvette " P2 " and the " Braha ' tok " - class gunship " Orion " were destroyed . Commander Jun Sato made one final attempt on the blockade by crashing the " Phoenix Nest " into one of the Admiral Kassius Konstantine ' s Interdictor vessel . Without their flagship , the remaining vessels of the rebel fleet were then forced to retreat to Chopper Base . Thrawn ' s forces stormed Chopper Base and the remaining A - wings of Phoenix Squadron had to fend off the All Terrain Armored Transport s and TIEs in the area . The base soon became overrun and the last of the rebel vessels took off and made for the blockade . The Force - sensitive creature called the Bendu began attacking both sides and Thrawn ' s forces were in disarray . Some of the A - wings were struck down by the Bendu ' s lightning as the ships flew away from the base and another " Braha ' tok " - class gunship was lost as they started towards orbit . Reinforcemets had arrived and destroyed the second Interdictor - vessel allowing the last of the rebels to escape . However the damage had been done to their forces and only four of the seventeen starships had escaped . At Yavin . After the Battle of Atollon , Phoenix Cell went to Yavin 4 , where the main base of the Massassi Group and Alliance High Command was stationed . Non of Dodonna ' s fleet had made it out of Atollon , except for two Y - wings , so the Massassi Group had taken a major loss . The remaining ships of Phoenix Cell were therefore dissolved into the larger rebel cell . The Phoenix Squadron callsign was still used however and Syndulla continued to lead Phoenix Squadron . During a supply mission , they were attacked by alerted Imperial forces and their Y - wings were damaged in the fight . The rebels had deduced the source of this quick response to be a communications relay on Jalindi . Ezra and Sabine were able to destroy it with the help of Saw Gerrera . Sometime later , Syndulla led Phoenix Squadron on an attack on Lothal . Their attack brought the death of Imperial ace pilot Vult Skerris but also their destruction under a second wave of TIEs . Thrawn ' s Noghri assassin Rukh was sent after the surviving pilots and he quickly captured Secon Daree who was taken away for interrogation . Rukh then caught Syndulla but Mart Mattin got away . Legacy . The New Republic utilized a squadron of A - wings called Phoenix Squadron during the Battle of Jakku , the battle which saw the last stand for the majority of the Empire . After the battle , the Empire surrendered and many squadrons were disbanded during a massive demilitarisation of the New Republic ' s Military and Fleet .