Thon ' s Orchard / Legends Thon ' s Orchard was a GR - 75 medium transport of the Rebel Alliance Fleet . Originally a product of ill - fated starship manufacturer Gallofree Yards , which went bankrupt several years before the height of the Galactic Civil War , " Thon ' s Orchard " and other outdated Gallofree transports like it were sold to the Rebel Alliance at bargain prices . As one of thirty GR - 75 medium transports stationed at Echo Base , the Alliance High Command headquarters on the Outer Rim Territories ice planet Hoth , " Thon ' s Orchard " later helped facilitate the Rebellion ' s successful evacuation of its compromised outpost during the Battle of Hoth in 3 ABY . The Rebels ' defensive strategy against the Imperial invasion force during the battle relied heavily on the Echo Base transport fleet to evacuate command personnel and supplies from the besieged planet . While the Rebel pilots of Rogue Group fought to buy time for the evacuation , the transports faced a dangerous run through the Imperial Star Destroyer blockade in Hoth ' s orbit , with only minimal starfighter escort and covering fire from Echo Base ' s planetary ion cannon to protect them . " Thon ' s Orchard " , piloted by Rogue Group member Tarrin Datch , departed Echo Base with the final evacuation group late in the battle . Despite the loss of the ion cannon , " Thon ' s Orchard " safely passed through the Imperial blockade with assistance from escort pilots Luke Skywalker , Wedge Antilles , and Derek " Hobbie " Klivian and regrouped with the Alliance at its rendezvous point . Description . " Thon ' s Orchard " was a GR - 75 medium transport manufactured by Gallofree Yards , Inc . that served in the Rebel Alliance Fleet . The transport measured ninety meters in length , was equipped with sublight and hyperdrive engines , and its bridge contained a comlink for ship - to - ship communications . History . Battle of Hoth . Following starship manufacturer Gallofree Yards ' bankruptcy several years before the Battle of Yavin , many of the company ' s remaining transports ended up in the service of the Rebel Alliance in its struggle against the Galactic Empire . The Rebellion purchased these outdated transports at bargain prices , but they nevertheless required plenty of regular upkeep . By the year 3 ABY , the secret Alliance High Command headquarters of Echo Base , located on the remote Outer Rim Territories ice planet Hoth , housed a fleet of thirty GR - 75 medium transports , including " Thon ' s Orchard " . The Empire ' s discovery of Echo Base in 3 ABY forced the Rebellion into a hasty evacuation of its compromised facility . As Imperial forces descended on the base in the Battle of Hoth , " Thon ' s Orchard " and the rest of the transport fleet had the critical responsibility of evacuating command personnel and important supplies from the ice planet — a difficult task that required each transport to pass through the Imperial blockade waiting in low Hoth orbit under minimal starfighter escort and surface - to - space covering fire from the base ' s v - 150 Planet Defender ion cannon . The Echo Base defenses , meanwhile , had to delay the Imperial invasion force as long as possible to give the transports time to escape . Echo Base ' s transport fleet and its starfighter escorts began assembling at the Rebels ' South Ridge evacuation launch site and lifted off one by one while the battle raged . However , as the situation grew dire for the Rebels , base command ordered the transports to begin running the Imperial blockade in pairs , a risky prospect , as the Rebels could not guarantee that the base ' s ion cannon could protect multiple transports at once . " Thon ' s Orchard " assembled at the staging area as part of the final evacuation group , with Rogue Group member Tarrin Datch set to pilot the transport on its blockade run , though Datch and fellow Rogue Wedge Antilles delayed " Thon ' s Orchard " departure to wait for Rogue Leader Luke Skywalker , one of the last surviving pilots to reach the South Ridge . Along with " Thon ' s Orchard " , the final evacuation group included the GR - 75 medium transports " Dutyfree " and " Bright Hope " , escorted collectively by six X - wing starfighters , including pilots Skywalker , Antilles , and Tarn Mison , as well as pilots Derek " Hobbie " Klivian and Wes Janson flying together in a BTL - S3 Y - wing starfighter . Rebel historian Lieutenant Voren Na ' al also rode aboard " Thon ' s Orchard " . Knowing that Imperial snowtroopers had already seized control of the base and were bearing down on their position , the group lifted off with no time to spare . However , complicating the group ' s blockade run , the Empire had also captured the ion cannon , eliminating any hope that the transports would have protective fire as they braved the waiting Imperial warships . Running the gauntlet . " Thon ' s Orchard " , " Dutyfree " , and the " Bright Hope " departed Echo Base as the last three transports to evacuate , but the group soon encountered large squads of incoming TIE fighters , TIE interceptors , and TIE bombers in Hoth ' s atmosphere . The bombers harried each of the three transports , requiring Skywalker to dispatch many of the attacking Imperial fighters before they could destroy the fleeing Rebel cargo ships . Yet " Thon ' s Orchard " path still was not clear — an Imperial Star Destroyer sat directly in its escape lane as the transport entered Hoth ' s orbit . With the Star Destroyer spitting heavy laser fire , Antilles ordered " Thon ' s Orchard " to drop back while he prepared to execute a radical maneuver , called the Tallon split , designed to fool the computer - controlled Imperial guns . By pulling his fighter close together with Derek Klivian ' s Y - wing , Antilles effectively tricked the Star Destroyer into reading their ships as a single target . Once they were close enough , they split their fighters apart , too quickly for the Star Destroyer to track them both at once , allowing Antilles a clear shot that destroyed one of the Star Destroyer ' s sensor globes . Their maneuver , combined with a hidden attack by Skywalker from underneath the transport , cleared the way for Datch and " Thon ' s Orchard " to escape into hyperspace . Skywalker , Antilles , Klivian , Mison , and the " Dutyfree " similarly survived the blockade run , although the " Bright Hope " was destroyed . " Thon ' s Orchard " safely rejoined the Alliance Fleet at the Rebels ' predetermined rendezvous point above the galactic plane , but it was among just thirteen of Echo Base ' s thirty transports to avoid destruction in the Battle of Hoth , which proved to be a devastating Rebel defeat . Afterward , Antilles recorded " Thon ' s Orchard " blockade run in his personal memoirs , which he shared with Voren Na ' al for the latter ' s ongoing documentation work of the Rebel Alliance ' s history . Commanders and crew . During the Battle of Hoth , the Human male Tarrin Datch successfully piloted " Thon ' s Orchard " past the Imperial Star Destroyer blockade and regrouped with the rest of the Alliance Fleet at the rendezvous point . A member of Rogue Group as Rogue Ten , Datch served dual piloting duty during the battle , also flying one of Echo Base ' s snowspeeders against the Imperial invasion force before leading " Thon ' s Orchard " to safety . Datch knew Wedge Antilles well enough not to question his unorthodox order to adjust " Thon ' s Orchard " course in preparation for Antilles ' Tallon split maneuver , which helped the transport to evade the blockading Star Destroyer . Behind the scenes . Continuity development and inconsistencies . " Thon ' s Orchard " traces its origins to author Brian Daley ' s 1983 National Public Radio dramatization of " " , which includes a scene in which Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles escort a Rebel transport , piloted by a character named Tarrin , away from Hoth . For the 1989 West End Games sourcebook , author Michael Stern created a short narrative titled " Running the Gauntlet " , which similarly tells of Antilles and Y - wing pilot Hobbie escorting a transport , piloted by an unnamed captain , past a blockading Star Destroyer using a diversionary tactic called the Tallon split . Stern ' s story draws heavily upon the radio drama ' s original script , first published in 1995 as " " . Contrary to the radio drama ' s final version , in which Tarrin ' s transport escapes Hoth without incident , the script originally had Skywalker , Antilles , and the transport encounter a Star Destroyer during their blockade run . In this version , Skywalker orders Antilles to pull their starfighters close together underneath the transport so that they will appear as a single blip on the Star Destroyer ' s radar . At the right moment , Skywalker orders Antilles to fire a proton torpedo at the Star Destroyer , a surprise attack that causes enough damage to the Imperial ship and allows the transport to escape into hyperspace . " Running the Gauntlet " alternatively shows Antilles devising a diversionary tactic in tandem with Hobbie , while Skywalker is not present . Stern ' s version of events , inconsistent with the radio drama , began a long history of various continuity inconsistencies and revisions regarding " Thon ' s Orchard " . The 1995 reference book " The Essential Guide to Characters " , authored by Andy Mangels , makes an effort to reconcile these inconsistent sources . Mangels explains how Skywalker , Antilles , and Y - wing pilot Janson escort one of the last transports , piloted by Tarrin , from Echo Base : Antilles and Janson employ the Tallon split maneuver , in conjunction with Skywalker ' s surprise attack from below the transport , to allow all parties to escape the Star Destroyer . Mangels ' version favors the radio drama script over the radio drama itself and effectively identifies Tarrin as the unnamed transport pilot from " Running the Gauntlet " . However , " The Essential Guide to Characters " created a new inconsistency by identifying the Y - wing pilot as Janson rather than Hobbie . In revising and expanding Stern ' s original " Galaxy Guide 3 " text for the sourcebook ' s 1996 updated , author Pablo Hidalgo altered " Running the Gauntlet " text to identify the transport captain as Tarrin , which matched Mangels ' " The Essential Guide to Characters " . Hidalgo also first named the transport " Thon ' s Orchard " and identified it as the ship that was to be Princess Leia Organa ' s escape transport from " The Empire Strikes Back " . However , following in Hidalgo ' s wake , author M . Shayne Bell ' s subsequent 1996 short story " " from the anthology book " Tales of the Bounty Hunters " changed Organa ' s transport to the " Bright Hope " . To date , the " Bright Hope " has remained Organa ' s intended transport . Author Michael Stackpole ' s 1999 novel , " " , created a new line of continuity that disregarded " Thon ' s Orchard " and persisted for nearly fifteen years . In story dialogue between Antilles and New Republic Admiral Areta Bell , " Isard ' s Revenge " establishes that Tarrin piloted the transport " Dutyfree " during the Hoth evacuation , with Bell as the transport ' s navigator , while Skywalker and Antilles flew escort . The 2004 reference book " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " , written by James Luceno , makes major strides in reconciling the previous sources . Luceno ' s book definitively identifies " Thon ' s Orchard " , " Dutyfree " , and the " Bright Hope " as separate transports stationed at Echo Base during the Battle of Hoth . " Inside the Worlds " also designates the " Dutyfree " as being escorted by Skywalker and Antilles , and the " Bright Hope " as being escorted by Antilles , Hobbie , and Janson . However , the text does not mention Tarrin or provide any additional details for " Thon ' s Orchard " . " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " of 2008 , compiled primarily by author Stephen J . Sansweet , reinforced the " Isard ' s Revenge " version of events by stating that Tarrin piloted the " Dutyfree " and that Areta Bell commanded the transport as its captain during the Hoth evacuation . The text makes no mention of " Thon ' s Orchard " . However , the 2013 " Rogues Gallery " department from " Star Wars Insider " 146 effectively returned the line of continuity to its original version , stating that Tarrin piloted " Thon ' s Orchard " past the Imperial blockade . To date , " Star Wars Insider " 146 remains the most recent source to address the matter . Continuity resolution . Despite the aforementioned history of inconsistent sources and competing revisions , this article considers " Thon ' s Orchard " continuity resolved on the basis of the " Star Wars Insider " 146 " Rogues Gallery " department . Its information was directly approved by Leland Chee , Keeper of the Holocron for the Lucasfilm Story Group , which determines all " Star Wars " canon . Given Chee ' s authority , this article concludes that Tarrin Datch piloted " Thon ' s Orchard " and that contrary claims from " Isard ' s Revenge " and " The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia " are in error . Moreover , this article considers " The Essential Guide to Characters " and " Galaxy Guide 3 " , Second Edition to be the canon version of events for " Thon ' s Orchard " blockade run , and considers any contradicting elements from " The Empire Strikes Back " radio drama to be overridden . This article also attempts to reconcile the multitude of sources with varying versions of Rebel pilots escorting transports , and considers the following pieces of information to be canon : Skywalker , Antilles , and Janson escort " Thon ' s Orchard " , according to " The Essential Guide to Characters " ; Antilles and Hobbie escort " Thon ' s Orchard " , with Janson riding in Hobbie ' s Y - wing , according to " Galaxy Guide 3 " , Second Edition ; Skywalker and Antilles escort the " Dutyfree " , according to " Isard ' s Revenge " and " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " ; and Antilles , Hobbie , and Janson escort the " Bright Hope " , according to " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " . This article treats these escort roles as overlapping pieces between transports . In addition , this article considers Hobbie and Janson flying in a single Y - wing from " Galaxy Guide 3 " to be the canon version of events , given that " Galaxy Guide 3 " is the most recent source to specify a starfighter type for either character ' s blockade run . Regarding the transports , " The Empire Strikes Back " radio drama establishes that Skywalker , Antilles , and " Thon ' s Orchard " are part of the final evacuation group ; " Galaxy Guide 3 " confirms that " Thon ' s Orchard " is one of the last transports to evacuate ; and " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " confirms both that the " Dutyfree " is one of the last transports to evacuate and that the " Bright Hope " is the final transport to evacuate . In addition , the " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " Echo Base map depicts " Thon ' s Orchard " , " Dutyfree " , and the " Bright Hope " positioned adjacently in the Echo Base hangar prior to evacuation during the Battle of Hoth , clearly suggesting that they are , indeed , the last three transports to evacuate . Therefore , given the aforementioned overlapping escort roles , this article concludes that the final evacuation group must consist of the transports " Thon ' s Orchard " , " Dutyfree " , and " Bright Hope " , escorted collectively by Skywalker , Antilles , Hobbie , Janson , and Tarn Mison , the latter according to the " Star Wars " Customizable Card Game . This conclusion is supported by several pieces of indirect source material , the most significant of which is the 2003 Nintendo video game " " . In this game ' s " Battlefield Hoth " level , the player , as Luke Skywalker , and assisted by other X - wing pilots , must escort the last three transports to leave Echo Base , and these three transports leave at the same time . Although the transports are not named in the game , they correspond explicitly to " Thon ' s Orchard " , " Dutyfree " , and the " Bright Hope " , according to " The Empire Strikes Back " radio drama , " Inside the Worlds of Star Wars Trilogy " , and the aforementioned escort combinations , and this article therefore treats them as such . Secondly , " The Empire Strikes Back " establishes that the Rebel evacuation transports initially lifted off individually but were forced to begin departing in pairs as the battle progressed . Thirdly , the " " Bright Hope " " card from the 2013 " Escape from Hoth " expansion pack of " " depicts the " Bright Hope " departing Echo Base with other transports as a group . Finally , " Tales of the Bounty Hunters " establishes that the " Bright Hope " was escorted by six X - wing fighters , which this article treats as applying to all three transports of the final evacuation group .