69th Fighter Squadron

-Deep strike

-Jonathan Page

-Invasion of Zygerria

-Invasion of Onderon

-Battle of Scipio

-Battle for Anaxes

-Battle of Coruscant

-Battle of Yavin

-Battle of Endor

The 69th Fighter Squadron, also known as the Hammer Squadron, was widely recognized as one of the most skilled starfighter squadrons in the entire Terran Starfleet. The squadron originally formed as a group of pilots from the Israeli 69 Squadron assigned to a special mission, which somersaulted into the official formation of the 69th just a few months later.

The squadron first fought in the Mission to Lola Sayu, and subsequently fought in most of the major battles of the Clone Wars, including the Battle of Coruscant. Following the Clone Wars, the 69th continued to serve in the Terran Starfleet. By the end of the Intergalactic Cold War, the 69th was regarded as one of the top starfighter squadrons in the entire Starfleet, and was sometimes referred to as "special forces of starfighter squadrons". They were particularly skilled in conducting strike missions deep into enemy territory without support. They were also very mobile, and were not assigned to any particular ship, but shifted their home ship routinely depending on the needs of the Starfleet.

The 69th fought in the Galactic Civil War from the very beginning, with the 69th's pilots taking part in the Battle of Yavin. They supported several planetary invasions, and regularly conducted airstrikes on Imperial targets well into Imperial territory. Their attack on Coruscant, Operation Thor's Hammer, was the final catalyst for the Imperial attack on Earth during the war. The squadron defended Earth during the battle, causing heavy damage to Imperial forces.

The 69th was one of the Terran units that took part in the Battle of Endor from the beginning of the battle. They caused heavy damage among the Imperial forces, and one of its pilots, Jonathan Page, helped to destroy the second Death Star's reactor.

The 69th continued service through the rest of the Galactic Civil War, and led the invasion of Coruscant at the end of the war. After the war, the 69th continued its service in the Androemda Galaxy, hunting down Imperial remnants. Over the following years, they became very pro-active in hunting their targets, and often spent more time outside the cockpit in order to hunt down their targets.

## History

### Formation and First Mission

The 69th Fighter Squadron informally began in early 1993. When the Terran Starfleet began preparing to assist in the Mission to Lola Sayu to rescue Jedi Master Evan Piell, 12 pilots of the Israeli 69 Squadron were chosen by the Starfleet to fly the new SF-15 Space Eagles in support of the mission. The 12 Israelis, led by Lt. Col. Daniel Peled, were tasked with going to Lola Sayu ahead of the rescue fleet to damage Separatist ships and weaken their ability to fight back against the joint Terran/Republic task force.

When the rescue mission began to go badly, the 12 pilots were scrambled from the *TAS Volgograd* and jumped to hyperspace, heading for Lola Sayu ahead of the task force. When they came out of hyperspace, the 12 SF-15s separated to attack the Separatist ships. Using a mix of SGM-65 Maverick missiles and proton torpedoes, they targeted the bridges, hangar bays, and point defense batteries. The 12 pilots caused heavy damage to the ships, which left them less capable of handling an attack from the joint Terran/Republic task force. The 12 pilots then escorted gunships down to Lola Sayu's atmosphere to rescue the team on the ground and then escorted them back to the task force before retreating with the task force back into hyperspace.

Soon after, in March, the Terran Starfleet declared the official formation of the 69th Fighter Squadron, which included the original 12 pilots who the mission to Lola Sayu, as well as six other pilots from Israel, the United States, and Britain. Colonel Ilan Ramon, an Israeli Air Force pilot, was named as the squadron's first commander.

### Action Throughout the Clone Wars

Following their official formation as a squadron, the 69th continued training on Earth for a short time before being deployed back to the Andromeda Galaxy.

Their first action following their official formation took place at the Battle of Umbara, where the squadron were deployed to support the invasion of Umbara. The Hammers provided air support throughout the battle, striking strategic targets and providing close air support to beleauguered forces. Two of the squadron's pilots destroyed several Umbaran tanks that threatened clones of the 501st Legion.

Several months later, in August, the Hammers were deployed again, this time in support of the Terran invasion of Zygerria. The Hammers flew in ahead of all other Terran forces and destroyed the aerial defenses on Zygerria, paving the way for further aerial forces to begin airstrikes. The Hammers then struck several key command and control centers in an effort to break down Zygerrian communication lines.

Only two weeks later, the Hammers were deployed in the Invasion of Onderon. They again flew in ahead of the other Terran forces. Due to the lack of significant Separatist forces on the planet, the Hammers diverted from their initial task to take out aerial defenses and instead began targeting Separatist armored units.

Following the invasion of Onderon, the Hammers remained on the planet to defend it. They remained on the planet for almost a month before returning to Earth.

By November, the squadron was stationed aboard the battleship *TAS Vladivostok.* When the *Vladivostok* and her escorts were sent to handle the Separatist invasion of Scipio, the Hammers took part, providing fighter escort for the landing ships.

Two months after the action on Scipio, the Separatists attacked the planet Anaxes, and the Hammers were deployed to the planet to support the Terran and Republic forces on the planet. Throughout the lengthy campaign on Anaxes, the squadron provided support by conducting long range air strikes against strategic Separatist targets across the planet. Although two members of the squadron were lost during the campaign, the action on Anaxes was some of the fiercest fighting the Hammers engaged in throughout the entire war.

Following the Battle for Anaxes, the 69th returned to Earth for several months before returning to the Andromeda Galaxy. Soon after their return, the 16 surviving members of the squadron accompanied the Terran Starfleet to Coruscant, where they took part in the Battle of Coruscant. The Hammers alone destroyed several small Separatist warships. Later in the battle, all 16 members of the squadron protected Obi Wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, and Tyler Hall as they attempted to reach General Grievous' ship, the *Invisible Hand*. Once the three reached the ship, the Hammers continued attacking Separatist warships, and even attacked the *Invisible Hand* after a broadside exchange between the Separatist ship and the *TAS Invincible*.

Following the Battle of Coruscant, the squadron was redeployed to support the Siege of Mandalore. They struck strategic targets across Mandalore and provided close air support as possible. When the Jedi Purge began, and Terran forces began retreating from Mandalore, the squadron provided air support to protect the retreat.

### Intergalactic Cold War

Following the retreat to Terra, the 69th replenished its ranks with two new pilots. Colonel Ramon retired in 1995, and a new squadron commander took his place.

Over the years of the so called Intergalactic Cold War, the 69th continued training in its assigned missions, and quickly became the elite fighter squadron in the Terran Starfleet. Many people began to call them "the special forces of starfighter squadrons". They also became a testing squadron, receiving new weapons and technology for their SF-15s before any other squadron.

The 69th served in several Earth conflicts during the Intergalactic Cold War. They were heavily involved in the intervention in Bosnia and the War on Terror, flying many missions on behalf of NATO.

Near the end of the Intergalactic Cold War, one of the daughters of Shaul Peretz, Abigail Peretz, transferred into the squadron after several years of service in another SF-15 squadron.

### Galactic Civil War

When the Galactic Civil War broke out, the 69th was deployed aboard the Star Destroyer *TAS New York City* in the Mytus to support the Rebellion. When the news was received that the Death Star was en route to attack the Rebel base on Yavin 4, the 69th was scrambled, along with pilots from the 352nd Fighter Wing and the 12th Fighter Squadron. They arrived in the Yavin system shortly after the Rebellion commenced their attack on the Death Star, and made attack runs to whittle down the Death Star's defenses to assist the Rebel squadrons in their attack.

Following the Battle of Yavin, the 69th remained on Yavin 4 for several days to help protect the Rebels until they could evacuate, and later covered the evacuation from Yavin 4. Following the evacuation, the 69th returned home.

In October, the 69th was deployed to assist in the evacuation of the Vietnamese insurgency from Kashyyyk. The pilots of the squadron attacked Imperial ships over Kashyyyk, and later helped fend off Imperial reinforcements.

The 69th was next deployed in December, when they took part in the invasion of Naboo. At the start of the battle, the 69th carried out attacks against an Imperial *Bellator* class dreadnought over the planet. After the Imperial fleet was destroyed, the pilots rearmed and made bombing runs against ground targets in Theed before providing close air support for the troops once they landed.

Following the capture of Naboo, the 69th was based at an airbase constructed outside Theed. Three weeks after the capture of Naboo, the squadron was launched on a mission to bomb a new TIE Defender factory on Onderon. The squadron flew alone into the Inner Rim and used brand new hyperspace navigation technology to drop out of hyperspace closer than normal to Onderon. The squadron bombed the factory and the bunkers underneath, and successfully held off dozens of TIE fighters that attempted to defend the factory. The squadron destroyed the factory and shot down over 50 TIE fighters before escaping, all without taking any losses.