Shawn Valdez Shawn Valdez was a Human male captain of the Alliance to Restore the Republic and an evacuation officer of the Alliance Special Forces during the height of the Galactic Civil War . Expertly trained to evacuate Rebel bases with maximum efficiency , Valdez oversaw the evacuation of the Alliance High Command ' s Echo Base during the Battle of Hoth in 3 ABY , ensuring the safe evacuation of more than 86 percent of the base personnel and surviving SpecForce soldiers . Biography . Shawn Valdez was a captain serving with the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the Galactic Civil War . Because evacuation was routine for Rebel bases , Alliance High Command began providing specialized training in evacuation procedures to chosen Alliance Special Forces officers following the Battle of Yavin . The Alliance then assigned these specially trained officers to high - priority bases . One of these SpecForce evacuation officer s was Valdez , who earned a position at the Alliance ' s headquarters of Echo Base on the ice planet Hoth . During his time on Hoth , Valdez owned the astromech droid R5 - M2 , who was specially programmed to plan sublight tactical courses through space . When the Galactic Empire discovered Echo Base ' s existence in 3 ABY , the responsibility fell to Valdez to oversee the ice facility ' s rushed evacuation in the face of the imminent Imperial attack on Hoth . Present in Echo Base ' s central hangar , Valdez issued orders to his subordinates , explaining the base ' s evacuation plan : two snowspeeder groups , including Rogue Group , would stay behind to meet the Imperial invasion force while the base ' s fleet of thirty GR - 75 medium transports would depart from the planet as soon as they were loaded , carrying vital personnel and supplies . Valdez played a major role in helping Echo Base evacuate during the ensuing Battle of Hoth , with assistance from R5 - M2 , who provided tactical support to Valdez and planned evacuation routes from the base . As a testament to his efficiency and training , Valdez was able to ensure the safe evacuation of more than 86 percent of Echo Base personnel and surviving SpecForce soldiers . Personality and traits . Valdez was a popular and charismatic leader of Echo Base ' s troopers . Well - trained to evacuate Rebel installations with maximum efficiency , Valdez ' s expertise and experience as an evacuation officer greatly served the Rebel Alliance during the Battle of Hoth . Valdez was also a poet and a musician . A Human male , he had light skin . Equipment . During his tenure on Hoth , Valdez wore the Rebellion ' s standard Echo Base cold - weather armor . His suit included headgear , anti - glare goggles , a scarf , padded vest , padded tunic , gloves , and leggings . Behind the scenes . Shawn Valdez first appeared in the 1980 film , portrayed by uncredited " Star Wars " visual effects art director Joe Johnston . Each of the Echo Base extras in the brief scene in which Valdez appears are , in fact , " Star Wars " matte artists , including conceptual artist Ralph McQuarrie , Harrison Ellenshaw , and Michael Pangrazio . Johnston , who also has a cameo as a Death Star trooper in , has gone on to direct such feature films as , , and . The character was first provided a name on the " Shawn Valdez " card as part of the November 1996 " Hoth Limited " expansion set of Decipher ' s " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game . The card is named for Shawn Valdez , a Jacksonville , Florida , boy who died from leukemia at the age of thirteen after a near eight - year struggle . Valdez was an avid fan of the " Star Wars " franchise and the trading card game . Dreaming of having his own " SWCCG " tournament rating on the Decipher website , Valdez died a day after attending a " SWCCG " tournament from which he had to leave early due to weariness brought on by his condition . Due to the efforts of Gregg Keefer , who ran the tournament , and with Lucasfilm ' s permission , Decipher agreed to name a " Star Wars " character in Valdez ' s memory . The card ' s text , which describes the Shawn Valdez character as a " leader " and a " poetic musician , " is a direct tribute to Valdez for his courage and for poetry he contributed to a book titled " I Will Sing Life " , compiled by children with life - threatening illnesses . A discrepancy exists over the character ' s rank with the Rebel Alliance . The article " Who ' s Who in Echo Base " from " Star Wars Insider " 74 identifies Valdez as a major in the character ' s biographical section heading , but the biographical entry itself describes the character as a captain . Given that all other sources , including the original " The Empire Strikes Back " film script , identify Valdez as a captain , this article treats the captaincy rank as canon ical .