R5 - M2 / Legends R5 - M2 ( Arfive - Emmtoo ) was an R5 - series astromech droid belonging to Rebel Alliance Captain Shawn Valdez , an evacuation officer assigned to Echo Base on the Outer Rim Territories ice planet Hoth during the Galactic Civil War . Specially programmed to plot sublight tactical courses for starships , R5 - M2 played an invaluable role during the Battle of Hoth in 3 ABY by assisting Valdez in planning evacuation routes from Echo Base . Biography . R5 - M2 , or Arfive - Emmtoo , was a member of the R5 - series astromech droid line , which proved to be commercially unsuccessful but was nonetheless in high demand during the Galactic Civil War for use in combat starships . By 3 ABY , R5 - M2 was owned by and served alongside Rebel Alliance Captain Shawn Valdez , a popular and charismatic evacuation officer stationed at Echo Base , the Alliance High Command headquarters on the Outer Rim Territories ice planet Hoth . R5 - M2 was present inside Echo Base ' s central hangar , chirping melodiously , when Captain Han Solo returned from conducting a routine scouting mission of the base ' s exterior with Commander Luke Skywalker , who ultimately went missing after falling prey to an ambush from a native wampa ice creature . The astromech droid passed in front of Solo ' s path as the latter made his way through the congested hangar . During the Battle of Hoth , R5 - M2 played a small but pivotal role in helping the Rebellion successfully evacuate Echo Base in the face of overwhelming Imperial assault . Specially programmed to plot sublight tactical courses for space travel , R5 - M2 proved extremely valuable by coordinating plans , providing tactical support to Valdez , and planning evacuation routes from the base during the battle . Characteristics . The astromech R5 - M2 became but another droid who played an invaluable role in the Rebel Alliance ' s struggle against the Galactic Empire . The Rebellion put R5 - M2 ' s special sublight course - plotting programming to good use during the Battle of Hoth , as the droid assisted in the Rebel escape from the besieged planet by planning evacuation routes from Echo Base . R5 - M2 ' s exterior plating included a black head and a blue - and - white color scheme with silver trim . The droid also had silver photoreceptors . During R5 - M2 ' s service time at Echo Base , one of the droid ' s forward manipulator arm s was missing from its body , and the plating covering its three legs and bottom chassis was rusted . Behind the scenes . R5 - M2 appeared in the 1980 film . The astromech is one of many droids in the Echo Base hangar during the scene in which Han Solo first enters the base following his Hoth patrol with Luke Skywalker . R5 - M2 was later identified by number and given a brief role with the Rebels of Echo Base on the " R5 - M2 ( Arfive - Emmtoo ) " card from the November 1996 " Hoth Limited " expansion set of the " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game . The 1998 " Star Wars Encyclopedia " , which contains a character entry for R5 - M2 , includes on the same page a picture of R5 - A2 , an astromech droid from the film . The accompanying image caption of the R5 - A2 picture misidentifies that droid as R5 - M2 , while the actual R5 - M2 is pictured in an adjacent image with a caption identifying him simply as an " R5 unit . " The " Star Wars Encyclopedia " does not include a character entry for R5 - A2 .