The Rebel Alliance's Red Squadron conducted a mission to Dantooine. The squadron skirmished with the Galactic Empire over a defecting officer named Tycho Celchu, who had secretly contacted the Rebel Alliance regarding his planned defection, though this was quickly discovered by his superiors and he was arrested at his extraction site.
After the Galactic Empire obliterated his home planet of Alderaan, in 0 BBY, TIE pilot Tycho Celchu became disillusioned with his career and decided to jump ship. A few months later, he contacted the Rebel Alliance and agreed to meet on Dantooine to defect.
The Rebels sent Red Squadron, led by Commander Luke Skywalker, to Dantooine to meet up with Tycho Celchu and extract him. Six starfighters—three T-65B X-wing starfighters and three BTL Y-wing starfighters, went on the mission. Upon exit from hyperspace at Dantooine, Sarkli alerted the squadron that a large concentration of Imperial forces was in the area. Tycho Celchu then contacted Red Squadron, desperately telling them to abort the mission, as his defection had been discovered by the Imperials. His TIE interceptor was shot down by the time he attempted to warn them. Skywalker told his squadron they needed to get him out of there.
Thus, Red Squadron revised its extraction mission into a rescue mission. The strike team landed on the planet, with Skywalker and Sarkli proceeding on foot and ambushing two scout troopers nearby. Sarkli took them out by causing a rockslide with his blaster, and squadron leader Luke Skywalker congratulated Sarkli before going off on his own on a 74-Z speeder bike. Sarkli wanted to come with him, but Skywalker convinced him to guard the landing zone with the rest of the team while updating Skywalker via comlink. When he reached the destination, stormtroopers and storm commandos—threatening that any secrets that Celchu managed to uncover while spying for the Rebels would die with him—had already loaded Celchu onto an APC destined for one of the landed Imperial transports. Skywalker dismounted and ran towards an E-web emplacement. Skywalker took control of several more E-webs as the APC moved out of their fields of fire. Heavy blaster fire from the cannons disabled the vehicle and allowed Celchu to escape.
Celchu grabbed another speeder bike, and the two pilots raced toward the other side of the canyon, with Celchu guiding the way. TIE/sa bombers bombarded the route, killing several strike team members, and Sarkli reported that they were under attack.
Upon reaching a fork in the path just as the bombardment was starting, Skywalker took the left fork in order to retrieve some advanced lasers/blasters.
Skywalker and Celchu had to avoid more Imperials and the bombers, jumping their bikes over a chasm. During their escape, Sarkli contacted them, telling them that they were under attack and to hurry out of there. When they arrived at the encampment, they discovered the only survivor was Sarkli. The pilots left the planet in the three remaining X-wings and returned to the Rebellion. When Skywalker asked who was trying to arrest Celchu, Celchu explained that they were storm commandos, elite soldiers tasked with acquiring weapons for the Empire, and reported that he had information regarding a plan to capture scientists.
Celchu supplied the Alliance with intelligence that several scientists on the planet Ralltiir wished to defect to the Alliance, but had been discovered. They were trapped in the main city, protected by only a force field. Celchu requested that the squadron help extract them before the Imperials got to them. Luke commented that he knew of a pilot who could rescue the researchers in time after deciding that they should alert the Alliance to send a rescue team to Ralltiir. In that same battle, another defection occurred: Rebel lieutenant Sarkli defected to the Empire.
Darth Vader reported to Emperor Palpatine about Celchu's defection, but Palpatine believed that whatever information he gave to the Rebel Alliance about their plan to capture scientists on Ralltiir was of no consequence, as they already blockaded the planet.
Celchu later became a successful member of the Rebel Alliance, flying for the successor to Red Squadron, Rogue Squadron.
This article is based on a mission in the 2003 video game Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike. The mission illustrates how Tycho Celchu became a member of the Rebel Alliance, albeit in a more dramatic fashion than had previously been alluded to.
Chris Kroffer designed the level. His design kept new players to the series in mind, and he chose to make speeder bikes significant in the mission because they were the fastest ground-based craft, and likewise were popular with players.
- Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike: The Official Nintendo Player's Guide