The History Of Echo Station

Scattered throughout the perimeter of Echo Base on Hoth were a number of manned patrol stations, called Echo Stations. These outposts were distributed in a grid-like pattern, with numerical identifiers indicating their placement on the grid. The stations were typically  manned by Rebel  soldiers, armed with artillery to hold off Imperial attack in case of discovery. 

Laying outside Echo Base’s shield perimeter is Outpost Beta. It monitored activity in Echo Base’s Zone 12, and passed on data to other Echo stations. It was this station that first spotted the Imperial landing that began the Battle of Hoth, and was destroyed early on in the fighting. It forwarded its information to Echo Station 3-T-8.

Another important outpost is Echo Station 5-7. This one, located at the junction of the network of trenches dug in the snow, was the first to receive contact from the incoming snowspeeder flights sent to defend Echo Base.

Echo station 3-8 was the first to spot the Imperial probe droid moving east in Zone 12. It was destroyed by the probot, prompting General Rieekan to send Rogues Ten and Eleven to the station, with Han Solo and Chewbacca. The smuggling duo destroyed the probot.

Echo Station 3-4 was a post on the Rebel base on Hoth that was overrun by Imperial walkers at the Battle of Hoth. Many of Echo Station 3-4’s inhabitants tried to withdraw to station 2-4

Big thanks to Pablo Hidalgo of the STAR WARS INDEX for providing that look at the history of Echo Stations in general...and in case you don't believe a word of the above, he's provided detailed source information at the bottom of this page.

A HOME AWAY FROM HOME

But what about ECHO STATION's history?  Glad you asked!

We're very proud of what we've created with ECHO STATION and of how far we've come since our humble beginnings. It has always been our intent to be the best Emag for Star Wars Fans, and with an overflowing cargo hold of multimedia sound and pictures, exclusive interviews with Star Wars professionals, the latest news and information, thoughtful reviews, previews and humorous diversions from the world of the Star Wars movies, books, gaming and other licensed products, we think ECHO STATION is on the right track. Plus, we feature original, exclusive artwork by Star Wars professionals and amateurs created specifically just for us... and you, our readers!

BUILDING THE STATION

We've broken a lot of new ground, and had a lot of firsts since we began back in... oh, this will be depressing... waaay back in 1993 in the Sci-Fi/Fantasy Forum on Compuserve. We'd seen the press that the HoloCron newsletter was getting over on AOL, and just knew we could put together something that was really special. Not simply a newsletter, but a real electronic magazine.

Format-wise, we started out modestly - our first Emag wasn't even named (that became part of a contest) and we published using the Windows Write/Tower of Icons format that everyone else still uses. But by our third issue, we had created our own HTML-like self-contained viewer engine (designed by Matt Hart and called "The Emag Jag"...the man's a wizard in his own right), which included animations and sounds. Several issues later, we graduated to full HTML format, so that both Mac and PC users alike could enjoy ECHO STATION, becoming the first Star Wars Emag to be formatted specifically for the Internet. (There was an "On-Line Fanzine" called Echo Base that came out after we'd hit the Internet, but it has long since shut down.)

As our format changes ensued, we expanded our distribution beyond Compuserve, which was offering only a limited audience. To date, we are the only Star Wars Emag to have been published on all the Big 3 Online Services: AOL, Compuserve, and MSN. We would have lobbied for Prodigy as well... but, honestly, none of our staff members were on the service! We now distribute exclusively through the Internet via our website, and are working to maintain the largest reader base of any other electronic publication for Star Wars fans.

EQUIPPING THE STATION

Content-wise, we were the first Star Wars-based electronic magazine to offer interviews with Star Wars professionals (with our early Q&A sessions with Tom Veitch and Kevin Anderson), and although the competition has grown fierce, we still manage to land exclusives, like our chat with artist Drew Struzan (see Issue #2, Volume 2). And while some of the newsletters out there offer some stellar original artwork, ECHO STATION was the first to feature original graphics from Star Wars professionals, including Jordi (Boba Fett:Twin Engines of Destruction, "Rogue Squadron:) Ensign, Mike (West End Games) Vilardi, and Chris (The Sith War as David Jacob Beckett) Allen among others - as well as including feature graphics from artists appearing in AOL's HoloCron.

We're turning the corner toward an even more comprehensive Electronic Magazine.  This all means you'll be seeing more of a merger between ECHO STATION and many new affiliates, resulting in added services like email and homepages.  Our message boards continue to be one of our most popular features, gaining members by the score and messages by the hundreds each week.  The layout of the site makes it easy to find whatever it is your looking for, with the different main sections broken out into their own "domains".  We offer webhosting services as well, providing yet another needed resource for the STAR WARS community at large.  We continue to grow and improve based on your suggestions, so keep them coming!

Regards,

THE ECHO STATION STAFF

Source Star Wars V The Empire Strikes Back (1980); The Empire Strikes Back novelization (1980); The Empire Strikes Back National Public Radio Dramatization (1984); Assault on Hoth (1989); Galaxy Guide 3 The Empire Strikes Back, Second Edition (1996).

Echo stations have appeared in numerous products tied into Star Wars V The Empire Strikes Back (1980), but the film only mentions 5-7, 3-8 and 3-T-8. Note that in most support material, these two stations are identified with their numerics spelled out, that is Echo Station five-seven and three-eight.

The novelization of The Empire Strikes Back (also 1980) and the original script depicted the destruction of Echo Station three-eight by the probot, but it does not appear in the film. It is implied by Han’s line "it isn’t friendly, whatever it is." The comic book adaptation actually shows the station’s demise. The comic refers to the station as Advance Station three-eight. ("The Empire Strikes Back" Star Wars #39, 1980). It was the radio dramatization that introduced Outpost Beta.

Assault on Hoth (1989) provided several more stations, namely 3-4 and 2-4. It noted that movement from 3-4 to 2-4 represented "falling back." In 1996, Galaxy Guide 3 The Empire Strikes Back, Second Edition provided a more detailed look at the Echo station layout. The stations were arranged in a rough grid, with the two numbers of the identifier being grid coordinates. The higher the first number, the more north the station was. The higher the second number, the more east. This layout used the map from Assault on Hoth as a basis, turning the "base box" game hexes into stations. Echo station 5-7 was listed as a major junction between trench routes, indicating its importance (and why Luke contacted it specifically). 

Although not published, the author of Galaxy Guide 3 The Empire Strikes Back, Second Edition has noted that Echo station 3-8 and 3-T-8 are the same. The "t" designation noted it as temporary, as the station was rebuilt after being destroyed by the probot.