Airen Cracken / Legends Airen Cracken was a Human male resistance fighter from Contruum who became a general in the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the New Republic . Biography . Contruum ' s hero . Born and raised on his parents ' farm on Contruum , Cracken developed an early proficiency with machinery and modifications . He put these skills to use performing repairs on nearby farmers ' equipment , and eventually Cracken opened a mechanic ' s shop . He married a Corellian woman called Josta , and had two children : Pash and Dena . When the Galactic Empire took control of Contruum , Cracken organized his mechanics into a group of guerrilla resistance fighters waging war on the infrastructure of the Imperial occupation . Supply depots , mining operations , star docks , and landing bays were all targets of Cracken ' s Crew . According to the account in his official Alliance biography , their sabotage distracted and frustrated the Imperial commander while a planetary militia was raised , and they subsequently fought alongside the militia in a years - long war which caused so much damage to the Imperial garrison that it forced the sector ' s Moff to cede control of the planet to its people . Alliance Intelligence . The Alliance source goes on to claim that Cracken grew preoccupied with the thought that other worlds were still laboring under Imperial domination , and left Contruum with the aim of joining the Rebellion . However , it seems that Cracken and his crew initially operated independently of the Alliance , traveling from planet to planet aboard a freighter , targeting Imperial facilities . Eventually , the crew caught the attention of the Rebels , and Cracken found himself as an officer of Alliance Intelligence . He was a general before the Battle of Yavin , and soon succeeded General Vernan as Supreme Allied Commander for Intelligence , overall leader of one of the Allied military ' s six galaxywide commands . Much of Cracken ' s work involved overseeing the galaxywide network of agents through which Intell worked to undermine the New Order — spies , scouts , infiltrators , and sympathetic Imperial officers . Cracken was directly involved at every stage , from recruitment onwards . A number of his most valuable assets were documented in " Cracken ' s Rebel Operatives " , among them Rivoche Tarkin , Tru ' eb Cholakk , and Jan Ors ( under her alias Jan Strange ) . His imagination also spawned several innovative operations , such as the infiltration of BlasTech ' s weapons research department by Inat Rangoon . He even used his teenage son , Pash , as an agent , sending him to join the Imperial Academy , where he suborned his classmates , and subsequently led his entire TIE fighter wing to mutiny . While it was Pash who would become best - known as a fighter pilot , the elder Cracken was also formidable behind the controls of a combat plane : it was Airen Cracken who taught Pash how to fly a fighter , and he personally flew close - support in - atmosphere operations for SpecForce commandos in a Z - 95t Headhunter designated Tala 1 . Nor was his front - line service limited to the cockpit . His bravery in the field twice earned him the Nebula Award , one of which was awarded for bravely surviving capture and Bavo Six - aided interrogation at the hands of the Imperial Security Bureau on Quanton . His knowledge of useful field modifications and equipment were codified in " Cracken ' s Rebel Field Guide " , and his writings proved essential in the training of the Alliance Special Forces : for example , he devised a technique , which became well known to Alliance operative s , of creating an effective grenade out of two blaster power packs . Airen Cracken helped Colonel Beryl Chiffonage tutor anxious tactics genius Risiev Credal . During their free time , Cracken and Chiffonage entertained Credal with tales of the tactics they used in old times . Credal enjoyed and learned a lot during this time . Credal ' s mysterious disappearance and rumors of desertion led to Cracken reconsidering Credal ' s loyalty and his own good judgment by telling him so much . In 2 ABY , Airen Cracken worked with the Task Force on Alliance Security , writing important reports on threats to the Rebel Alliance , and coordinating reports from other Rebel agents . He wrote , for instance , a report on slaver Talas Piran , leader of the Mytaranor Slaving Council , explaining why he was a despicable person ; and another report on professor - turned - pirate Callow Batta , where he said that he would like to recruit him for the Alliance before he could begin scrambling Rebel operations and trade . Cracken also provided insight for other reports , talking about the quality of Hydrospeare Corporation , the treason of Mosara Thiirn , or his own relationship with Risiev Credal . During the Battle of Endor , General Cracken served aboard the " Millennium Falcon " with at least one other Tala Squadron pilot , Lieutenant Blount . The two were initially in the ship ' s cockpit with its pilot , General Lando Calrissian , co - pilot Nien Nunb , and a navigator . Eventually , Cracken served as the ship ' s gunner , manning the top turret during the battle . New Republic . When the Alliance became the New Republic , Cracken took command of New Republic Intelligence , keeping a watchful eye on former Imperial warlords like Zsinj and Ysanne Isard . During the New Republic ' s liberation campaign from 4 to 6 ABY , Cracken oversaw a collection of operatives known as " Shadow Operations " , which performed sabotage , spread disinformation , and where necessary conducted assassinations to exacerbate tensions between the feuding Moffs , Admirals , warlords and advisors that had erupted after Emperor Palpatine ' s death . Shadow Operations would later form the heart of Hiram Drayson ' s Alpha Blue division . After NRI relocated to Coruscant , Cracken oversaw the investigation and prosecution of Tycho Celchu , and took up the challenge of forming the New Republic Security Force . Subsequently , he was instrumental in stopping a Zsinj - led program to isolate nonhumans from the New Republic , including Sullustan Rostat Manr ' s attempt to crash a starliner into the atmosphere of Coruscant . Like his counterpart Hiram Drayson at Alpha Blue , Cracken still continued to lead the Intel apparatus in his own way , prepared to do what he felt was best for the New Republic , even if it meant bending the rules . In 7 ABY , he arranged for Rogue Squadron ' s resignations to mysteriously go unprocessed , so that the Bacta War could be retrospectively claimed as a NRI operation , and the next year , he arranged for the transfer of Wraith Squadron to his direct command as an Intel unit after the Battle of Selaggis . Some time between 10 ABY and 12 ABY , Cracken was replaced as Supreme Commander for Intel by Crix Madine , his counterpart at SpecForces — a move that may have been designed to reinforce Madine ' s position as the Alliance ' s traditional SpecForces commandos were eclipsed by the new regular army under the aegis of what had been Fleet Command . It should also be noted , however , that this move secured the dominance of the military by Chief of State Mon Mothma ' s loyal lieutenants , Madine and Admiral Gial Ackbar . Cracken ' s reaction is not recorded , but after Madine ' s death aboard the " Darksaber " , he once more took command of Intel , where he oversaw the separation of New Republic Intelligence from the military , maintaining his independence ( with the new title of Director of New Republic Intelligence ) while Gial Ackbar subordinated the rest of the armed forces to his command . As Director , Cracken oversaw the operation that sent General Wedge Antilles , Colonel Tycho Celchu , Major Derek Klivian , and Major Wes Janson to Adumar and secured the subsequent admission of that planet into the New Republic , but by 16 ABY , he had left office again , being replaced as Director by Carlist Rieekan , the Alderaanian general and former New Republic Minister of State . After the Black Fleet Crisis , Cracken returned to Intel for the third time , where he achieved a rapid resolution to the New Republic ' s lack of Super Star Destroyers by recruiting Jedi sneak - thief and former Crew member Cryle Cavv to steal the " Guardian " for him . Cracken led NRI through the Corellian Crisis , and assembled reports on a variety of potential threats to the Republic , including the Hapans , Dathomiri , Yevetha , Imperial remnants , and Corellian separatists , which were compiled into " Cracken ' s Threat Dossier " . By 25 ABY , Cracken had left NRI again , with Admiral Dif Scaur replacing him as Director . Nevertheless , during the Yuuzhan Vong War , although by now in his seventies , the veteran general returned once again to active service , and assumed command of his homeworld ' s defense . Contruum was never conquered by the Yuuzhan Vong , and became a vital base in the Mid Rim , paving the way for the Battle of Yuuzhan ' tar by the Galactic Alliance . In the last stages of the war , Cracken also seemed to have acted as " de facto " coordinator of Alliance intelligence , and immediately after the victory , Admiral Scaur was replaced as Director by his protégée Belindi Kalenda . Behind the scenes . Airen Cracken was created by author Christopher Kubasik as the in - universe author of the 1991 sourcebook " Cracken ' s Rebel Field Guide " . He went on to be mentioned routinely in other " Star Wars " products by West End Games , including more sourcebooks written as if they were authored by him : " Wanted by Cracken " , " Cracken ' s Rebel Operatives " , and " Cracken ' s Threat Dossier " , the two former of which became recurring features in West End Games ' s " Star Wars Adventure Journal " . Cracken also appeared in several short stories that were featured in the " Adventure Journal " , and in the " X - Wing " and novels of the mid 1990s . In the year 2000 , the " Death Star II Limited " set of Decipher , Inc . ' s " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game identified an unnamed extra from the 1983 film as " Colonel Cracken . " Played by Michael Stevens , Colonel Cracken appeared in the cockpit of the " Millennium Falcon " during the early stages of the Battle of Endor , and footage that ultimately went unused was shot of him running through the ship ' s corridors and manning one of its quad guns . Although Airen Cracken was already established as a general in the Rebel Alliance , it was later explicitly confirmed that he was indeed the " Colonel Cracken " from " Return of the Jedi " . Although a promotional photo of Cracken and Lieutenant Blount was later included in Issue 30 of " The Official Star Wars Fact File " , in an article discussing Rebel troopers present on Endor ' s surface during the Battle of Endor , Cracken ' s role as a gunner aboard the " Falcon " during the battle has been widely established ; a photo of him manning the guns was even canon ized . Cracken is not present in the " Millennium Falcon " cockpit in Marvel Comics ' of the film , in Dark Horse Comics ' , nor in LucasArts ' non - canon " " . Additionally , neither James Kahn ' s of the film nor Ryder Windham ' s mention anyone as being present in the cockpit save for Lando Calrissian and Nien Nunb . An alternate version of the battle occurs in the comic book miniseries " " , in which the " Millennium Falcon " is crewed only by Calrissian , General Han Solo , and the Wookiee Chewbacca . In the 2003 novel " " , Cracken is said to be seventy - five years old . As the book takes place in 29 ABY , this would place his birth year at 46 BBY . However , " Cracken ' s Rebel Field Guide " states that he is fifty - one , — although the book does not reveal its in - universe publication date , it must be before 4 ABY , when the Rebel Alliance ceases to exist by transitioning into the Alliance of Free Planets . That would place his birth year no later than 47 BBY . Cracken has been made into two action figures . A 2006 figure simply called " Rebel Trooper " was made from his " Return of the Jedi " likeness , and a 2012 " Colonel Cracken " figure was based on his deleted scenes from the movie , which had been released one year prior on the release of " " . He also appeared in a 2014 LEGO set ( B - wing 75050 ) .