Hawk/Legends

"Welcome to paradise, rockjumpers."

- Hawk, upon touching down on Teth

"Hawk" was the call sign of a clone trooper lieutenant and pilot who served in the Grand Army of the Republic during the Clone Wars. An expert pilot, Hawk was named for his highly precise hawk-like eyes. He saw action, particularly with the 501st Legion, on many worlds during the war, including Christophsis. During a battle there in 22 BBY, he rescued a clone trooper strike team led by Jedi Generals Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker after a thwarted Republic attempt to ambush Confederate battle droids. Later, during a following operation to rescue Rotta the Huttlet, the son of crime lord Jabba Desilijic Tiure, Hawk ferried Skywalker and his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, along with Clone Captain CT-7567 and a squad from the 501st Legion's Torrent Company, to the surface of Teth. After being deployed in the jungles of Teth, Skywalker's forces began an assault to reach the B'omarr Monastery where Rotta was being held. Both campaigns resulted in victories for the Republic.

When the Republic launched an invasion around 21 BBY to retake Umbara from the Confederacy, Hawk was among the troops dispatched as part of the Grand Army's landing force. At the outset of the battle, Hawk served with the 501st Legion, transporting Skywalker, CT-7567, and their men to the planet's surface despite thick ground fire from the Umbaran militia. The Republic eventually emerged victorious at Umbara.

Christophsis and Teth
"Gunship, come in. Hawk, we need an evac in the South tower.''" "''Roger that, sir. We're coming."

- Anakin Skywalker calls Hawk for an evacuation

The Human male clone with the call sign "Hawk" was decanted from the Mandalorian bounty hunter Jango Fett and developed as a clone trooper on the planet Kamino for service in the Grand Army of the Republic. Named for his hawk-like eyes, Hawk was trained in combat, military tactics, and piloting, and he became well-noted for his skill with the latter. He additionally served as a lieutenant in the Grand Army of the Republic, and he participated in many campaigns during the Clone Wars on an array of worlds, often serving with Jedi General Anakin Skywalker and Clone Captain CT-7567, nicknamed "Rex," of the 501st Legion. In 22 BBY, seven weeks into the war, Hawk was dispatched with a contingent of clone troopers to liberate the planet Christophsis from the Confederacy of Independent Systems. The Republic troops, led by Skywalker and High Jedi General Obi-Wan Kenobi, planned to attack the Confederate battle droids from a business complex with towers situated to the north and south of the droids' route. However, the Separatist army ambushed Kenobi's forces in the South tower, and Skywalker responded from his position in the North tower by requesting Hawk and his LAAT/i gunship for an evacuation from the South tower.

While Hawk headed for the South tower, Skywalker, Captain Rex, and their men proceeded there to reinforce Kenobi. After regrouping, Skywalker and Kenobi made their way to the tower's roof, and Hawk's gunship touched down near the edge of the roof just as B1 battle droids caught up with the beleaguered Jedi and clones. The Republic troops piled onto Hawk's gunship, taking the pilfered cranial unit of the Confederate T-series tactical droid TJ-55 with them so as to uncover more information about the foiled ambush. Hawk returned the weary troops to the Republic base, where debriefing began on the failed assault. Following several days of fighting, Skywalker and Kenobi defeated the Separatist forces on Christophsis and freed the world from droid occupation. Immediately after their victory, Skywalker was dispatched with his recently assigned Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, to the planet Teth, where they were to retrieve Rotta the Huttlet, the son of crime lord Jabba Desilijic Tiure, to win Jabba's favor so that the Grand Army could be granted safe passage through Hutt-controlled space.

Skywalker was given only one planetary rotation to return Rotta to his father on the planet Tatooine. Furthermore, Rotta was being held at an abandoned monastery on Teth, a clifftop stronghold guarded by two battalions of battle droids. Because the Republic battle group was unable to directly land there, Skywalker instead elected to deploy his troops in the jungle below the cliff and commence a vertical assault up the ridge. Hawk was among the pilots chosen for the gunship deployment, and he recognized the dangerous lack of cover at the drop-off and extraction sites. Launching from Skywalker's Acclamator I-class assault ship alongside the other pilots, Hawk, piloting the battle group's lead gunship, ferried Skywalker, Tano, Rex, and a squad of the 501st Legion's Torrent Company to the jungle of Teth. En route to the landing site, Hawk received orders from Skywalker to pull out of the drop zone once they had been deployed, as Skywalker wanted him to be standing by for an extraction from the monastery. Once DSD1 dwarf spider droids opened fire on the gunship from their position at the monastery, Hawk closed the craft's blast shields and maintained his course to the jungle landing site. After the Lieutenant managed to land them in the dense jungle, Skywalker, Rex, and Tano led Torrent Company in the half-mile climb to the monastery. Despite heavy casualties, Skywalker and Tano were able to rescue Rotta and return him to his father.

Umbara
"General Skywalker, I've turned the lights out. Our night vision sensors are having a tough time in this drop. I hope we don't overshoot the landing site!''" "''Just get us as close as you can."

- Hawk and Anakin Skywalker, during the landing on Umbara

Around 21 BBY, the war's second year, Hawk was dispatched as part of a Republic task force sent to invade and retake the planet Umbara, which had recently seceded from the Republic to join the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Hawk initially served aboard an Acclamator-class assault ship commanded by Skywalker and Kenobi, which was the first cruiser of the Republic fleet to break through the Separatists' blockade of Umbara thanks to starfighter support from Jedi Commanders Tano and Barriss Offee. Once the assault ship had moved into position over Umbara to deploy Skywalker's and Kenobi's forces&mdash;alongside clone battalions led by Jedi Generals Saesee Tiin and Pong Krell&mdash;Hawk and a number of other clone pilots were tasked with transporting the Republic forces to the shadowy world's surface aboard space gunships. Hawk's passengers included Skywalker, Captain Rex, Advanced Recon Commando CT-27-5555, and troops from the 501st Legion, including Hardcase, Jesse, Tup, and Dogma.

With clone Z-95 starfighters flying as starfighter support against attacking Umbaran starfighters, Hawk and the other gunship pilots steered their craft toward the predetermined landing site on Umbara's surface. The gunships' deployment was met with much enemy ground fire from the Umbaran militia, and Hawk was forced to maneuver his gunship through the heavy flak. Even with night vision sensors, Hawk had a tough time trying to navigate through the dark atmosphere, and he expressed his concern to Skywalker about the possibility of overshooting the landing zone. While other gunships landed early to launch All Terrain Recon Transports against the advancing Umbaran Soldiers and hover tanks, Hawk continued on to the landing point and reached it intact. There, he deployed Skywalker, Rex, and their men to join the concentrated Republic effort to secure Umbara.

Personality and traits
"Long range shows a heavily defended target, sir. Laser-cannon emplacements, at the very least. We won't be undetected now, you do know that, don't you, sir? I'll drop below the tree canopy as soon as I get a clear run.''" "Good, then bang out as soon as we're down. I need you standing by for extraction." "''Will do, sir."

- Hawk and Anakin Skywalker

As a Human male clone, Hawk stood 1.83 meters tall and was versed in Galactic Basic Standard. He was a skilled and expert clone trooper pilot, and his abilities were recognized by and impressed the likes of Jedi General Anakin Skywalker and Clone Captain Rex. He was thorough in his duties, and, during the Battle of Teth, he kept Skywalker updated with comprehensive reports en route to Teth's surface. His experience in the war caused him to see the danger posed in his troop landings on Teth, as both the drop-off and extraction sites lacked proper cover from the Separatist battle droid forces entrenched there. He had eyes like a hawk bird, which earned him his nickname. He additionally received combat training and had a knowledge of military tactics. Hawk was capable in piloting LAAT/i gunships and flew a variant of the infantry gunship model, the space gunship, at Umbara.

Equipment
During the Battle of Christophsis, Hawk wore Phase I clone trooper armor, and his scarred helmet was customized with blue markings and two red hawk "bird of prey" insignia. However, the clone trooper pilot armor he later wore at the Battle of Teth was standard issue, with yellow markings and the normal Galactic Republic insignia displayed on his helmet. After upgrading to Phase II clone trooper armor prior to the battle on Umbara, Hawk adopted new equipment that was based on the armor suit that he had previously utilized at Christophsis; his new Phase II helmet featured variations of his Phase I blue markings and red hawk insignia. All of his armor suits were equipped with sensors that measured his vital signs. He wielded a DC-15 blaster pistol in combat.

Behind the scenes
"Clone pilot Hawk was originally in the Clone Wars movie, called by Anakin for an extraction from the B'omarr monastery on Teth. That sequence was cut from the movie&mdash;which may have ended up saving Hawk's life, because as it originally played out, that rescue gunship would have been shot down by a vulture droid."

- "The Hidden Enemy" Episode Guide clarifies the non-canon status of Hawk's appearance in the cut scene from The Clone Wars film

The character of Hawk was created for the August 2008 Star Wars: The Clone Wars film, which served as an introduction to the television series of the same name. Hawk first appeared in the film's novelization, written by Karen Traviss, and was later featured in "The Hidden Enemy," an episode in the television series' first season that was released in February 2009 as a prequel to the 2008 film. He received references in various source material following these appearances. In October 2011, more than three years after his original creation, Hawk returned to the television series for a brief appearance in "Darkness on Umbara," which was released as part of the series' fourth season. Although he was not directly referred to by name in the episode, his appearance was confirmed by the episode's corresponding online guide on StarWars.com.

As part of the Battle of Teth sequence in The Clone Wars film, Anakin Skywalker calls in a gunship for an evacuation from the Teth monastery, but the gunship is shot down by a Vulture droid starfighter, killing the pilot and all troops on board. That scene initially appeared in the film's novelization and junior novelization, though neither books identified the pilot of the gunship by name. Hawk was originally intended to be the pilot of the gunship in the film, but the scene was removed from the film's final version, thus maintaining that Hawk did not die at Teth. To date, Hawk's "death" has not been verified as canonical, and the non-canon status of his appearance in the scene was solidified with his being featured in the chronologically later episode "Darkness on Umbara." Nevertheless, the cut scene itself&mdash;without Hawk as the named pilot&mdash;retained its canon status thanks to its canonization in the film's novelizations.

Hawk's card in Star Wars PocketModel TCG: Clone Wars Tactics depicted him in normal, white Phase I clone trooper armor at Teth instead of his standard-issue yellow-marked pilot armor, as seen in the film. A September 2010 video published on the official Star Wars website showed Series Director Dave Filoni describing Hawk as a clone trooper commander, but this rank has yet to be confirmed by an official source. Until such a confirmation, it is assumed to be an error. Additionally, a clone pilot who lacked Hawk's distinctive armor but whose role corresponded to that of Hawk in "The Hidden Enemy" appeared in the non-canonical video game LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, which was released in March 2011. In the game, the pilot does not initially hear Skywalker's request for an evacuation because he is listening to music.

Appearances

 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars novelization
 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars junior novelization
 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars Official Movie Storybook
 * Star Wars: The Clone Wars film
 * LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
 * LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars