Bright Hope / Legends The Bright Hope , also known as Transport C One Seven , was a modified Gallofree Yards GR - 75 medium transport that saw service with the Alliance to Restore the Republic during the height of the Galactic Civil War . Acquired as one of several outdated and dilapidated transports by the Rebellion , the " Bright Hope " nevertheless played an invaluable role in the rapid transit of war matériel . By 3 ABY , the ship was one of thirty GR - 75 transports stationed at the Alliance High Command headquarters of Echo Base on the planet Hoth . As the final transport to evacuate the besieged base late during the Battle of Hoth , the " Bright Hope " carried an overloaded number of wounded and dying passengers in its attempt to run the Imperial blockade of the planet . The ship was disabled and all but destroyed by concentrated fire from Imperial Star Destroyers and the " Mist Hunter " , the craft of the bounty hunters Zuckuss and 4 - LOM . Due to the efforts of Echo Base ' s chief controller , Toryn Farr , the " Bright Hope " 108 surviving passengers were safely recovered . Description . The " Bright Hope " was typical of the Gallofree Yards GR - 75 medium transport line . At only ninety meters in length , the clamshell - shaped transport could nonetheless haul a considerable amount of cargo for its size , at up to 19 , 000 metric tons . Modular cargo pods were located at the front and underside of the outer hull , each equipped with a repulsorlift device for rapid loading and unloading , and secured in place and protected against atmosphere and vacuum by an invisible magnetic shield , while the vessel ' s interior was equipped to hold additional cargo and could comfortably house about ninety passengers . Perched above the top of the outer hull was the stalked , cramped command pod , where a crew of seven — including a command crew of six and one gunner — operated the ship . The transport ' s single rudimentary deflector shield generator was also located within the pod , protecting a vital yet dangerously exposed section of the vessel . The " Bright Hope " could alternatively function with a skeleton crew of three . The gunner controlled the ship ' s minimal armament of four retractable , fire - linked twin laser cannons , though the " Bright Hope " , like all GR - 75 medium transports , was largely unfit for combat . Instead , the " Bright Hope " typically relied on the escort of Rebel Alliance starfighters for protection while moving between star systems , a long - range sensor suite and advanced countermeasure systems for detecting and escaping enemy ships , as well as extensive durasteel armored plating that showed the wear and tear of years of use . The " Bright Hope " was propelled by three standard primary sublight ion drive engines and six secondary drive engines , powered by a main reactor , and was also outfitted with a standard Class 4 . 0 hyperdrive for hyperspace travel . The " Bright Hope " engines , like those of its GR - 75 brothers , were greater in number than its civilian - use predecessor , the GR - 45 medium transport , to provide greater power . The transport had a maximum acceleration of 900 G , and a maximum speed of twenty megalight s in space and up to 650 kilometers per hour in atmosphere . Four retractable landing gear legs extending from the underside of the ship , along with repulsorlift drive units and a retractable boarding ramp , made landing on planetary surfaces a possibility . The transport ' s interior was mostly hollow , consisting of at least three modular decks , interchangeably equipped to hold either passengers or cargo . By the time of the Battle of Hoth , the " Bright Hope " was modified with expanded passenger capacity to facilitate evacuation . It was arranged with two freight decks at the bottom of the ship and a single passenger deck near the top . Ladders connected the decks . The passenger deck module consisted of columns of adjacent seats running four across and facing another set of four separated by a common walkway . Each group of eight inward - facing seats were in turn separated by consoles . The " Bright Hope " featured a centralized computer system accessible from throughout the ship , including a Ship ' s Registry database for data on other starships . The " Bright Hope " bulkhead s were fitted with small storage compartments , some of which by 3 ABY held bantha - wool blankets and white pillows , and the inner passageways were lighted by a standard illumination system and a dim emergency system that offered light from the ceiling above , powered by power cells on each level of the ship . Emergency power supplies were also available . Viewports at intervals offered vistas of the surrounding outside environment . At least three escape pods , each capable of carrying six passengers , were located on the passenger deck . The " Bright Hope " carried six months of consumables . History . Acquisition and assignment to Echo Base . The " Bright Hope " was constructed by Gallofree Yards sometime before the corporation ' s dissolution in 0 ABY . It was one of many GR - 75 medium transports obtained by the Rebel Alliance at a bargain price for cargo transportation duties . Although outdated and dilapidated by the time of the Galactic Civil War , the Gallofree transports were instrumental in helping the Rebellion to efficiently move valuable matériel ranging from medicine to weapons . GR - 75 medium transports like the " Bright Hope " were invaluable in helping Rebel bases quickly evacuate in the face of an impending Imperial assault as early as the Battle of Yavin . By 3 ABY , the " Bright Hope " was stationed at the Alliance High Command headquarters ' secret Echo Base on the remote ice world of Hoth . It was among a fleet of thirty GR - 75 medium transports transferred to Hoth to supplement the needs of the facility . The " Bright Hope " occupied a position at the north - west corner of Echo Base ' s interior , within the central transport hangar at the end of a column of similarly immobile GR - 75 transports lining the western - most ice wall . When not in use , the transport was routinely kept connected to one of the base ' s many power generators . Battle of Hoth . Following the discovery of an Imperial Arakyd Viper probe droid and the arrival of Darth Vader ' s fleet of " Imperial " - class Star Destroyers , the Death Squadron , in the Hoth system , the Rebel forces of Echo Base began a hasty retreat of their compromised outpost . The base became a hodgepodge of frantic scurrying , with people rushing to load whatever vital equipment onto the base ' s transports they could muster before they were forced to evacuate . The pilots of Rogue Group were tasked with engaging and delaying the advance of the Imperial walker invasion force in order to buy time for the base ' s transports to escape . The transports , unable to defend themselves against the might of Vader ' s blockading Death Squadron , would be escorted by two starfighters through the Imperial line . Additionally , the evacuation plan called for the base ' s v - 150 anti - orbital ion cannon to provide suppressing covering fire to clear a flight path for the transports to slip by , enter hyperspace , and escape to the Rebels ' predetermined rendezvous point beyond the rim of the galaxy . Given its docking position in the hangar farthest from the staging area , the " Bright Hope " would by default be the final transport to attempt evacuation . Since no one would be left behind to man the ion cannon to provide cover for the " Bright Hope " , the last remaining Echo Base personnel planned to set the cannon on autofire and simply make a run for it . As the Battle of Hoth raged , the transports lifted off , one by one , from the evacuation staging area just behind the South Ridge , beyond the south entrance of Echo Base . The " Bright Hope " was intended to be the evacuation transport assigned to Princess Leia Organa , as she steadfastly remained in the base ' s command center to direct the final actions of the battle and to ensure that the last remnants remaining in the base reached their own escape ships . As an indicator of their subtle yet increasingly blossoming attachment to each other , Han Solo risked his own safety to escort Organa and the protocol droid C - 3PO to the " Bright Hope " docking hangar . When they were cut off en route by an ice avalanche in one of the base ' s corridors from the explosions of the battle outside , Solo instead was forced to oversee her escape aboard his own ship , the " Millennium Falcon " , instructing the " Bright Hope " to lift off in light of their inability to reach the transport . Running the gauntlet . As the last transport remaining , the " Bright Hope " was , appropriately enough , the last beacon of hope for the hundreds of Rebel personnel still on the planet . Toryn Farr , Echo Base ' s chief controller and the final person to evacuate the command center , was one of the many who were reliant on the ship as a means to escape . By the time she reached the hangar and saw the transport ' s flight deck , the scene before her was a motley assortment of many wounded and dying people being assisted by medical droids . With the Imperial advance having already breached the walls of the base , Farr realized the grim predicament facing all those present . She saw no conceivable way of getting all the wounded onto the ship while still allowing the " Bright Hope " enough time to safely take off . When a group of snowtroopers began firing on the hangar from the corridor behind her , Farr inadvertently took up a defensive position behind a crate of thermal detonators . Noticing its contents , she tore open the crate and used the explosives to halt the Imperial advance , creating a cave - in that choked off the corridor . Farr thus was able to buy the valuable time needed to get the remaining wounded soldiers aboard the transport , including her own sister , Samoc Farr . Among those who boarded the final evacuation ship was Colonel Ledick Firest , who stayed behind to oversee the final disengagement of Rebel troops from the battlefield . The " Bright Hope " lifted off from the hangar , leaving behind tons of vital equipment in lieu of the unanticipated number of overloaded passengers , with moments to spare as more snowtroopers descended on the hangar from the snow fields outside . As a transport designed to safely carry ninety individuals , the " Bright Hope " blasted away from Hoth carrying hundreds . The " Bright Hope " held the distinction of being escorted by six T - 65 X - wing starfighter s as it made its desperate run through the blockading line of Star Destroyers , including fighters piloted by Wedge Antilles , Derek Klivian , Wes Janson , and Lieutenant Tarn Mison , though the base ' s ion cannon had long been neutralized at this point . Even the ship ' s uniquely heavy escort could not save it from the armada of Imperial warships waiting for the final transport . The " Bright Hope " was damaged and nearly destroyed by the Super Star Destroyer " Executor " and the " Imperial II " - class Star Destroyer " Stalker " . Additionally , the " Bright Hope " was intercepted by the G - 1A transport " Mist Hunter " , the bounty hunting craft of the Gand Zuckuss and the LOM - series protocol droid 4 - LOM , who had come to the Hoth system on an Imperial assignment . Having exited hyperspace in time to encounter the tail - end of the space battle , the bounty - hunting duo hoped to destroy the " Bright Hope " as a token of good will to their Imperial employers . The " Mist Hunter " wiped out the perched command pod , while the two Star Destroyers ripped into the transport ' s hull , exposing three decks to the vacuum of space . Drifting helpless and without power , the " Bright Hope " went down as the seventeenth GR - 75 medium transport caught in the blockade ' s snare . A last hope . Although a badly damaged wreck of a ship — a large portion of the vessel had completely broken away — the " Bright Hope " still held pockets able to sustain life . The two freight decks were still completely intact , and the remaining passenger deck was 17 . 4 % intact with over four hours of breathable oxygen left . The still - intact portions of the ship had been sealed off by emergency containment shields where the destroyed section of the ship had exploded away . While the ship ' s depressurization had been quick , most of the " Bright Hope " passengers had been sucked out into vacuum . Still , survivors remained , among them Toryn Farr . Farr discovered a total of 108 passengers alive — eight pilots , thirty - two newly inducted soldiers , support staff from the command center , hangar crew , personnel with specialized hunting and survival skills , and one cook — though fifty - two were badly wounded . Some of the Echo Base survivors included Rebels Rory , Seito , Bindu , Darklighter , Crimmins , Sala Natu , Meghan Rivers , and Berec Tanaal . As the ranking officer among the survivors , Farr assumed command of her comrades . They were able to salvage three operational escape pods , grimly determining that they would only be able to hold eighteen individuals . To complicate matters , the group identified an " Imperial " - class Star Destroyer having begun mop - up duties of similarly destroyed vessels floating in space nearby . With time running out , Farr selected four of the " Bright Hope " survivors — Seito , Crimmins , Sala Natu , and Berec Tanaal — as those most valuable to the Rebellion ' s cause , who might also be fit enough to survive Hoth ' s harsh climate , to occupy positions in the escape pods . The remaining fourteen individuals to join them in the escape pods were nominated and voted on by the rest of the transport ' s survivors . The eighteen chosen were jettisoned back to Hoth in the hope that they would survive long enough for later retrieval — it was better to risk the cold and attacks from Hoth ' s native wampas than face Imperial interrogation and imprisonment . With incarceration or death at the hands of the Empire looming heavily on the minds of the remaining passengers , Farr , with the assistance of a dedicated hacker droid attached to the transport ' s central computer , proceeded to dutifully erase the computer records and droids aboard , lest information regarding those who had served at Echo Base and had escaped aboard the " Bright Hope " were to fall into Imperial hands . It was then that the " Mist Hunter " returned and docked with the " Bright Hope " , with the bounty hunters Zuckuss and 4 - LOM hoping to board the transport to capture and collect the bounties on twenty - six of the most valuable surviving Rebels aboard . After a few tense moments of negotiation between Zuckuss and 4 - LOM and the Rebels aboard the " Bright Hope " , Farr , carrying the highest price on her head among the survivors , managed to convince the hunters to instead rescue the remaining ninety passengers , including the medical droids 2 - 1B and FX - 7 , and deliver them to the sanctuary of the Rebel underground on the nearby planet Darlyn Boda . The " Bright Hope " crippled remains were left to float through space , free for the Imperial fleet to search , though little information was left behind for their benefit . The eighteen members who were jettisoned from the " Bright Hope " back to Hoth were eventually recovered by an Alliance Special Forces team led by Toryn Farr herself . Behind the scenes . Notable appearances . The " Bright Hope " was first featured in the short story " " , written by author M . Shayne Bell as part of the December 1996 anthology book " Tales of the Bounty Hunters " . The story provided a name and expanded operational history for the transport Han Solo attempts to bring Princess Leia Organa to during the Battle of Hoth in the 1980 film . The " Bright Hope " name is effectively derived from C - 3PO ' s spoken film line , suggesting to the Princess that the final transport is their " only hope " for escape . The 1998 PC program " " later established the GR - 75 medium transport lifting off from the staging area outside Echo Base in the background scene in which Luke Skywalker boards his X - wing to evacuate Hoth in " The Empire Strikes Back " as the " Bright Hope " , thus retcon ning the film as the ship ' s first canon ical appearance . Inconsistencies . There are several inconsistencies regarding the " Bright Hope " . According to the second edition of the West End Games sourcebook , the transport Leia Organa was assigned to board was the " Thon ' s Orchard " . Additionally , in the radio adaptation of " The Empire Strikes Back " , Luke Skywalker informs Organa that he will be escorting her transport — the last flight to leave . " The Essential Guide to Characters " , however , describes Skywalker as escorting the GR - 75 medium transport piloted by Tarrin Datch , which " Galaxy Guide 3 " identifies as the " Thon ' s Orchard " — one of the final transports to leave , though not the last — a ship that successfully made the run through the Imperial blockade of Hoth . To further compound the confusion , the transport piloted by Datch in " The Empire Strikes Back " radio adaptation is intended to be the final evacuation transport . Another inconsistency arises with the script of " The Empire Strikes Back " radio adaptation , published in " " , which identifies the last evacuation transport as the ship assigned to General Carlist Rieekan . This is contradicted by " Of Possible Futures : The Tale of Zuckuss and 4 - LOM " , which places Rieekan at the rendezvous point ahead of the " Bright Hope " crew . " Star Wars : Behind the Magic " and the reference book " " both identify the " Bright Hope " as the transport seen lifting off from the staging area outside Echo Base in the background shot when Luke Skywalker departs Hoth in " The Empire Strikes Back " . This seems contradictory to " Of Possible Futures : The Tale of Zuckuss and 4 - LOM " , which describes the " Bright Hope " as lifting off directly from the base ' s hangar . In the of " The Empire Strikes Back " , Han Solo refers to the ship as " Transport C One Seven , " which this article treats as a registry number . " The Official Star Wars Fact File 48 " erroneously identifies the " Bright Hope " as the " Bright Star . " In " Of Possible Futures " , there is some uncertainty as to which medical droid accompanies 2 - 1B aboard the " Bright Hope " . Author M . Shayne Bell inexplicably alternates between referring to 2 - 1B ' s partner as " Effour - Seven " and " Effex - Seven " all within the course of several paragraphs . However , " Star Wars : Behind the Magic " and the article " Who ' s Who in Echo Base " from " Star Wars Insider 74 " both identify the droid as FX - 7 , the most traditionally accepted counterpart of 2 - 1B , as seen in " The Empire Strikes Back " .