The conflict known as the Defense of Kuat, also referred to as the Kuat Offensive, the Battle of Kuat, the Battle of the Kuat Shipyards, and the battle for Kuat Drive Yards, involved several weeks of intense fighting. It pitted the rising New Republic against the fragmented forces of the Galactic Empire in the months following the pivotal Battle of Endor. The struggle centered on the control of the Kuat Drive Yards shipyards, which were in orbit around the Core World planet of Kuat. The New Republic Defense Fleet managed to inflict substantial losses on the defending Imperial Military forces.
Following the capitulation of Moff Pollus Maksim and the guild head of Kuat Drive Yards, Grand Admiral Rae Sloane, the public face of the Imperial Navy, proposed initiating peace negotiations with the New Republic in an attempt to end the ongoing hostilities. This proposal garnered support from within the Galactic Senate.
During the Age of the Empire, the Kuat Drive Yards served as a primary source for constructing starships utilized by the Imperial Navy. In the aftermath of the Battle of Endor, the [Galactic Empire](/article/galactic_empire] fractured due to the loss of its leadership. Subsequently, the Rebel Alliance evolved into the New Republic and expanded its influence to encompass significant portions of the galaxy.
In 5 ABY, the newly assembled Galactic Senate located on Chandrila authorized an offensive targeting the planet Kuat along with its adjacent shipyards. Given their crucial strategic value, these shipyards were heavily defended by considerable Imperial forces.
Under the command of Admiral Gial Ackbar and Commodore Kyrsta Agate, elements of the New Republic Defense Fleet commenced an attack on the Kuat Drive Yards shipyards situated above the Core Worlds planet Kuat. This involved launching a bombing campaign targeting the shipyards and the surrounding supply infrastructure. The battle stretched over several weeks, with the Empire incurring greater ship losses than the New Republic. Among the New Republic's forces were Captain Tane and Lieutenant Gina Moonsong's B-wing Blade Squadron, which participated in bombing operations against Kuat Drive Yards.
After days of intense combat, neither faction managed to establish a clear advantage. Both sides suffered substantial casualties. Commodore Agate ordered New Republic starfighters to return to their respective vessels. Following Captain Tane's reassignment to Combat Operations Planning, Lieutenant Gina assumed the role of acting commander of Blade Squadron. Recognizing the New Republic fleet's inability to overpower the Imperial fleet with a single concentrated attack, Commander Braylen Stramm initiated a series of precise strikes targeting critical components of the shipyard's infrastructure, including fuel depots, supply monorails, and sensor arrays.
While elements of the New Republic fleet engaged the Imperial Star Destroyers, B-wing bombers, accompanied by their X-wing starfighter escorts, targeted the shipyard. Blade Squadron received the assignment of destroying a monorail responsible for transporting supplies and ammunition throughout Kuat Drive Yards. However, the monorail was protected by numerous Imperial walkers, including AT-ATs, AT-ACTs, and older AT-TE walkers. Despite Lieutenant Moonsong's instructions for her squadron's X-wing escorts to refrain from engaging the walkers, Lieutenant Sandara Li disregarded the order and attacked the walkers, but their armor proved too resilient.
Blade Squadron was compelled to assist their X-wing escorts by bombing the gun emplacements and walkers utilizing proton torpedoes. Tragically, one of Blade Squadron's pilots was killed by an attacking TIE fighter, resulting in his craft crashing into one of the walkers. After successfully disabling the monorail, Blade Squadron returned to the MC80 Star Cruiser Amalthea. Upon their return, Moonsong reprimanded Lieutenant Li for her disobedience. Following a brief dispute during which Li suggested that Commander Stramm favored Moonsong, the two reconciled and resolved to collaborate in targeting TIE fighters.
After a period of rest, the New Republic fleet launched a renewed offensive. While portions of the fleet engaged the Imperial fleet above Kuat's north pole, Blade Squadron, along with two additional B-wing squadrons, initiated a raid on the Imperial command hub. However, the Imperials managed to redirect several TIE fighters to defend the hub. Although Lieutenant Li advocated for Lieutenant Moonsong's B-wings to maintain their positions to engage the TIEs, Moonsong instead persuaded her B-wing pilots to configure their laser cannons to rapid-fire mode and target the ion cannons beyond the primary target.
While Lieutenant Li's X-wings engaged the TIE fighters, Moonsong and her B-wings successfully destroyed the command hub using laser-guided bombs and torpedoes. Upon returning to the Amalthea, Moonsong learned that her former romantic partner, Commander Stramm, would be piloting an X-wing for the upcoming mission due to the injury sustained by the X-wing pilot Johan Volk. Despite the lingering resentment from their breakup, Moonsong accepted Stramm's request to escort her B-wing.
During the subsequent engagement, the New Republic and Imperial fleets clashed in a structured battle formation. In a desperate attempt to breach the New Republic cruiser flotilla, the Empire deployed a large number of TIE fighters, TIE bombers, TIE interceptors, and heavily armed shuttles. In response, the New Republic fleet committed all of its remaining starfighters to counter the Imperial offensive. Protected by Stramm's and Li's X-wings, Blade Squadron successfully bombed the hangar of an Imperial light carrier.
Faced with mounting losses, Moff Pollus Maksim, the sector's governor and the guild head of Kuat Drive Yards, surrendered to the Republic. Moonsong and her fellow pilots were preparing to assist in the defense of the cruiser Amalthea when they received news of the Imperial surrender. The battle had raged for several weeks before its conclusion.
Following the conclusion of the battle, Princess Leia Organa used a hologram to contact Admiral Ackbar and Commodore Agate, congratulating them on their victory. This New Republic triumph eliminated a significant source of weaponry for the Galactic Empire. Princess Leia, a New Republic senator, was instrumental in securing the necessary votes to authorize the attack on Kuat. Soon after, Chancellor Mon Mothma contacted Ackbar, Agate, and Leia to inform them that the enigmatic Imperial informant known as the Operator was seeking communication with the New Republic leadership.
Subsequently, Grand Admiral Rae Sloane joined the hologram conversation, identifying herself as the Operator. Sloane was the leader of the largest Imperial remnant, which was based in the Vulpinus Nebula. Given the Empire's impending defeat, Sloane proposed peace negotiations with the New Republic to bring an end to the conflict. Believing that the war's end was near, Chancellor Mothma agreed to convene an emergency session of the Senate to discuss Sloane's proposal. However, these peace talks were a deception orchestrated by the Imperial Fleet Admiral Gallius Rax to assassinate the New Republic leadership on Chandrila.
The battle for Kuat Drive Yards was first depicted in Aftermath: Life Debt, a canon novel for adults penned by Chuck Wendig. The battle was also featured in David J. Williams and Mark S. Williams' short story titled Blade Squadron: Kuat, which appeared in the 168th edition of the Star Wars Insider magazine.