The skirmish that unfolded close to Airam Platform involved a spatial confrontation between the forces of the Alliance to Restore the Republic and the forces of the Galactic Empire. This clash occurred far from any planets, most likely in or around the Airam sector situated within the Outer Rim Territories. The conflict began when Imperial Assault Gunboats tried to cripple the Rebel CR90 corvette known as the Intrepid in the vicinity of Airam Platform, where representatives from both the rebellion and Airam were in the middle of a meeting.
Believing that the Rebel Alliance's ambassador to Airam was a high-value target worthy of capture and subsequent interrogation, the Empire assembled a strike force composed of Alpha-class Xg-1 Star Wings, more commonly referred to as Assault Gunboats. Their objective was to attack and disable the Intrepid as it departed from Airam Platform. The Airam, observing the situation with detachment, merely issued a warning to the Empire, stating that they would be fired upon if they ventured within range of the XQ1 Platform. They then deployed Shiv Squadron, a contingent of R-41 Starchasers, to patrol the area surrounding the Airam station.
As the Airam watched, the Rebel VIP's escort, consisting of T-65 X-wing starfighters from Green Squadron, swiftly engaged the enemy. Their goal was to eliminate the Assault Gunboats before they could incapacitate the Intrepid. The rebel ambassador was aware that the Airam had a Muurian transport equipped with a repair crew stationed at Airam Platform, ready to assist in case the ship sustained significant damage. However, it was believed that Airam would lose respect for the Alliance and refuse to join if they were forced to intervene. Simultaneously, a small Imperial force of Gamma-class ATR-6 assault transports from flight group Omega entered the area shortly after the Assault Gunboats, which had emerged from hyperspace at a considerable distance from Airam Platform, began their attack runs. Upon entering the system, these transports became the primary focus of the rebels' attacks.
Apparently, several A-wing interceptors belonging to Gold Squadron were on standby near the combat zone, as the rebels had the option to summon them as reinforcements. Similarly, the Empire had additional Assault Gunboats in the vicinity, ready to hyperjump into the area if necessary.
Because players have the option to participate in the "Ambush of Rebel Leader at Airam Platform" mission in the video game Star Wars: X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter from either the Rebel or Imperial perspective, and given that both sides have conflicting objectives and that victory is not required to progress to the next set of missions, the battle is considered canon, but the definitive outcome remains unknown.
The starships mentioned in this article are those present in the Operation: Clean Sweep battle, using the default vessels assigned to the player.
This particular combat event seemingly occurred before both the battle of Balance of Power in the Airam Sector, which is a part of the expansion pack for X-wing vs. TIE Fighter, and the campaigns known as Spreading the Rebellion and Imperial Task Force Vengeance, all of which are largely set within the Airam sector.