Porro Dolphe

Porro Dolphe was a pilot in the Naboo Royal Space Fighter Corps. He flew in Bravo Squadron during the Invasion of Naboo as Bravo 2. A decade later, Captain Gregar Typho made Dolphe the lead pilot of the starfighter escort for the Royal Naboo cruiser.

Biography

Bravo 2

Porro Dolphe was a human pilot who flew as Bravo 2^[1] in the elite,^[3] all-volunteer^[4] Bravo Squadron, a part of the Space Fighter Corps of the Security Forces that served the Royal House of the planet Naboo.^[5] In 32 BBY,^[6] the Trade Federation invaded Naboo and occupied the planet.^[2] Only a few corps pilots avoided capture by Federation forces, although the squadron's commander,^[5] Ric Olié, and several other pilots were rescued by the Jedi Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi and escaped offworld alongside the world's queen, Padmé Amidala.^[2]

Amidala, Olié, and the Jedi eventually returned to Naboo and rescued more of the pilots, creating a plan to end the Federation's control of the planet. Bravo Squadron's role would be to destroy the Vuutun Palaa, a Lucrehulk-class Battleship in orbit over Naboo that controlled all of the Federation droid forces on the planet's surface.^[5] In order to achieve this, the squadron's pilots accompanied a force led by Amidala that infiltrated Naboo's capital city, Theed, and then fought their way into the hangar where the squadron's N-1 starfighters were being guarded. As other security forces personnel engaged the battle droids in the hangar, the pilots raced to the docked starfighters and launched from the building.^[2]

Battle of Naboo

Dolphe was among the pilots that made it to the Vuutun Palaa,^[2] where the Naboo pilots flew in attack formation behind Olié^[3] as they were greeted with squadrons of vulture droids launched from the battleship.^[2] Bravo Flight A concentrated on the fighter screen while Bravo Flight B attacked the Vuutun Palaa itself;^[5] however, the latter found the ship's deflector shields too strong for them to do any damage. Persisting in their attack, Bravo Squadron were eventually shocked to see explosions erupting from inside the Vuutun Palaa despite none of them having pierced the shields.^[2]

The cause of the explosions became apparent when an N-1 starfighter piloted by the formerly enslaved child Anakin Skywalker, an ally of Amidala and the Jedi, emerged from the battleship's interior. Dolphe and the other surviving pilots of Bravo Squadron followed Skywalker as he flew away from the Vuutun Palaa, with Bravo 2 and^[2] Lieutenant Arven Wendik^[5] cheering alongside the child as the Federation vessel was completely destroyed by one final detonation.^[2]

With the battleship gone, the Federation's forces on the surface of Naboo were deactivated and their occupation was soon ended.^[2]

Ten years later^[1] in 22 BBY, Captain Gregar Typho of the Royal Security Forces made Dolphe the lead pilot of the escort for the Naboo Royal Cruiser, which was used by Amidala in her new role as senator for Naboo. In that year, the cruiser was destroyed during an attempt to assassinate Amidala shortly after she and her escort arrived on the planet Coruscant to vote on the Military Creation Act in the Galactic Senate.^[7]

Personality and traits

Dolphe had light skin.^[2]

Equipment

During the Battle of Naboo, Dolphe wore a brown Fighter Corps Flying Helmet with the flying goggles down and the orange flying jacket of the corps's uniform.^[2]

Behind the scenes

Porro Dolphe was portrayed by Benedict Taylor in the prequel trilogy film Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace,^[2] which was released on May 19, 1999.^[9] The character was credited as "Fighter Pilot Bravo 2,"^[2] a name also used in the script for the film where Dolphe has an additional scene that did not make it into the final cut. In the scene, the pilots of Bravo Squadron have returned to Theed Hangar after the Battle of Naboo, exited their vehicles, and gathered together. Dolphe and Wendik discuss the way that Skywalker destroyed the Vuutun Palaa, then Dolphe and other pilots rush over to Skywalker's N-1 starfighter as it lands. Realizing that all his pilots are already accounted for, Olié wonders who could be inside before Skywalker sheepishly reveals himself.^[8]

In the current Star Wars canon, Porro Dolphe's name was used on a card in the mobile card game Star Wars: Force Collection,^[1] which launched in 2013. Although the launch of Force Collection predates^[10] the Star Wars canon reset of 2014,^[11] Lucasfilm Story Group member Leland Chee confirmed that the game was kept updated to fit with canon.^[12] In the Star Wars Legends continuity, Porro Dolphe appeared prior to the release of The Phantom Menace in the film's illustrated screenplay, written by George Lucas^[13] and released on April 21, 1999.^[14] The character's name was first used in Legends on cards released as part of the 2001 "Theed Palace Limited" expansion for the Decipher Star Wars Customizable Card Game.^[15][16]

Appearances

• Star Wars: Episode I The Phantom Menace (First appearance)

Non-canon appearances

• William Shakespeare's The Phantom of Menace: Star Wars Part the First

Sources

• Star Wars Helmet Collection: Naboo Pilot Helmets: Naboo Fighter Pilot (Picture only)
• Star Wars: Force Collection (Card: Porro Dolphe (★★)) (First identified as Porro Dolphe)
• "Republic, Rebel, and Resistance Starfighters" — Star Wars Encyclopedia (Picture only)
• "The Crisis on Naboo" — Star Wars Encyclopedia

Notes and references