Halley Kadorto

"That day, I was sharp. I flew circles around those TIE bastards and shot them all to hell. By the time reinforcements arrived, well &hellip; there wasn't much left."

- Halley Kadorto, to Keyan Farlander

Halley Kadorto was a veteran of the Clone Wars who became a famed pilot of the Alliance to Restore the Republic prior to the Battle of Yavin. Kadorto was famous due to his part in rescuing Mon Calamari slaves from the Empire over the planet Mon Calamari. During the mission, Kadorto intercepted waves of TIE/sa bombers that were attempting to kill the slaves to prevent them falling into enemy hands and was awarded a Kalidor Crescent for his actions. He retired shortly after, though he continued to be involved with the Alliance.

Early career
Born during the final decades of the Galactic Republic, Kadorto eventually joined the military and became a veteran of the Clone Wars that would determine the fate of the galaxy. After the defeat of the Confederacy of Independent Systems and the Declaration of a New Order, which saw the Republic transformed into the Galactic Empire, Kadorto continued his military life, eventually becoming involved in the fledgling Alliance to Restore the Republic.

As a pilot in the Alliance Starfighter Corps, Kadorto flew many missions and became an early hero of the Alliance. During the beginning of the Rebellion, starfighters were prone to mechanical failure in missions, something which the Alliance was eventually able to overcome, but these problems caused many fighters to be lost. Kadorto suffered from such malfunctions and was shot up several times. He would later state that he was technically dead on "three or four occasions" before being revived by a medical droid.

Rescue at Mon Calamari
"I saw the TIEs zeroing in on the distant containers and took off to see what they were up to. I wasn't following orders. Instinct, maybe. Luck. Doesn't matter much, does it?"

- Halley Kadorto, to Keyan Farlander

Kadorto's most famous mission occurred above Mon Calamari. Alliance Intelligence had discovered that the Imperial-class Star Destroyer Warrior was to secretly rendezvous with a convoy of BFF-1 bulk freighters and Class-A Cargo Containers to receive a shipment of Mon Calamari slaves and war matériel. Seeing an opportunity to secure Mon Calamari support for the fledgling Rebellion, the Rebel Alliance quickly dispatched a combined force of X-wings, Y-wings and freighters to rescue the slaves. Kadorto, flying as part of Red Squadron, was to engage the TIE/ln starfighters escorting the convoy while Gold Squadron's Y-wings followed shortly to disable the Imperial ships. Once the ships carrying the Mon Calamari were identified, the Alliance freighters Citadel 1 and Citadel 2 would arrive to conduct the boarding operation. The entire operation was devised to be concluded before the Warrior arrived.

The mission started smoothly as Red Squadron caught the defending TIE fighters out of position and initially had no trouble keeping them away from the Y-wings as they disabled the freighters. Kadorto quickly identified which ships were carrying the slaves, and the Alliance freighters arrived to board the now disabled vessels. However, before they could dock, the Warrior arrived ahead of schedule and launched a counterattack consisting of TIE/sa bombers and further TIE fighters. The X-wings were still fighting the escorts and, as they now found themselves outnumbered almost three to one, it appeared that the TIEs would prove too numerous to contain.

Kadorto, however, saw the incoming fighters and decided to break away to investigate what they were up to. It soon became apparent that the bombers were targeting their own convoy, choosing to kill the slaves rather than risk them being freed to join the Alliance. Seeing the danger posed by the bombers, Kadorto approached the Warrior to engage the incoming TIEs. Though he called for assistance, his wingmates were all engaged and struggling to contain the TIE fighter escorts, forcing him to work alone. Kadorto singlehandedly eliminated waves of TIE bombers and fighters until the freighters completed the boarding operation and jumped to lightspeed. The Rebel fighters destroyed the ships containing war matériel before they too escaped to hyperspace.

For his role in saving the lives of the Mon Calamari slaves, Kadorto was awarded a Kalidor Crescent and came to be regarded as one of the Alliance's most daring X-wing pilots. The Mon Calamari were grateful for the rescue of their people and went on to become vital members of the Rebel Alliance. The mission itself was later recreated as a combat simulation for training Rebel pilots, with cadets taking on the role of Kadorto.

Retirement
Although Kadorto continued to serve the Alliance as a pilot for a time after the mission, he eventually retired sometime before the start of Operation Strike Fear in 0 BBY. Although now a civilian, Kadorto was still involved with the Alliance and could often be found aboard the Mon Calamari Star Cruiser Independence. It was there that he met Keyan Farlander on the day that the young pilot recreated Kadorto's mission during his training, and told the rookie about his experiences. Towards the end of Operation Strike Fear, Kadorto attended a planning meeting, led by Commanders S'man and Lagrane, during which a plan was formulated to steal an Imperial warhead and use it to destroy the Star Destroyer Invincible.

Personality and traits
"Don't let up for an instant, or you'll be staring into the ugly face of one of those medical droids&mdash;if you're lucky!"

- Halley Kadorto, to Keyan Farlander

Kadorto was a skilled pilot whose superior shooting allowed him to survive against great odds at Mon Calamari. Though he considered it a proud day in his life, Kadorto regarded it as no more important than any of the missions he flew before or after. A friendly individual, Kadorto was happy to share his experiences with younger Rebels.

Behind the scenes
Halley Kadorto was created for the game Star Wars: X-wing, in which players can recreate his mission to Mon Calamari as a training exercise. Rusel DeMaria later expanded on the character's story in X-wing: The Official Strategy Guide. The depiction of the Mon Calamari mission that appeared in DeMaria's The Farlander Papers differs from the events as described in Star Wars: X-wing, making no mention of the Warrior's arrival and stating that Kadorto pursued a group of TIE fighters that broke off from the main escort pack to attack the freighters.

X-wing: The Official Strategy Guide established that Kadorto was a veteran of the Clone Wars but did not specify on which side of the conflict he fought. The book also established that Kadorto had now retired from duty. Since the X-wing starfighter he flew in his most famous mission had only been in service for a matter of months at that point, Kadorto appears to have retired shortly after receiving his Kalidor Crescent.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: X-Wing
 * The Farlander Papers