Attack on Side 7

The Attack on Side 7 (サイド7襲撃 Saido Sebun Shūgeki) was a Principality of Zeon reconnaissance mission on 18 September UC 0079 that inadvertently became a pivotal moment in the One Year War. The attack marked Amuro Ray’s first combat in the RX-78-2 Gundam and the beginning of the White Base’s legendary journey.

Led by Char Aznable, the Zeon force was investigating rumours of Federation mobile suit development at Side 7. The reconnaissance accidentally triggered a battle that destroyed much of the colony and forced the Federation to evacuate its prototype mobile suits aboard the White Base with a hastily assembled civilian crew.

The engagement would prove to be the first recorded mobile suit vs mobile suit combat in history, with the untested Gundam demonstrating overwhelming superiority against Zeon’s Zaku II units.

Prelude

By September UC 0079, Zeon intelligence had detected unusual activity at Side 7, a relatively new colony cluster that had remained neutral during the war’s early months. Reconnaissance suggested the Earth Federation was conducting secret military development, possibly related to mobile suits.

Char Aznable, commanding a small reconnaissance force, was ordered to investigate. His mission was intelligence gathering, not assault—Side 7’s neutral status under the Antarctic Treaty made an unprovoked attack politically problematic. Char was to observe Federation activities and, if possible, capture photographic evidence of any military development.

The Federation’s Project V had indeed established a secret development facility at Side 7, using the colony’s remoteness and neutral status as cover. Three prototype mobile suits—the RX-78-2 Gundam, RX-77-2 Guncannon, and RX-75-4 Guntank—were in final testing stages. The assault carrier White Base had arrived to transport the prototypes to Federation headquarters at Jaburo.

Attack

Zeon reconnaissance

On 18 September UC 0079, Char’s reconnaissance team infiltrated Side 7 using MS-06C Zaku II Early Production Type mobile suits. The team split up to survey different sections of the colony, searching for evidence of Federation military activity.

One Zeon mobile suit, piloted by Denim, discovered the Federation development facility and observed the prototype mobile suits. However, a civilian—Amuro Ray, son of Project V engineer Tem Ray—witnessed the Zaku and fled to warn authorities.

Denim attempted to eliminate the witness, but his Zaku’s movements inside the colony caused structural damage. A firefight erupted between the Zaku and colony security forces, quickly escalating beyond the reconnaissance mission’s parameters.

Battle erupts

The engagement inside the colony caused catastrophic damage. Zaku machine gun fire and explosions breached the colony’s hull in multiple locations, causing rapid decompression and civilian casualties. Char Aznable, realising his mission had been compromised, ordered his team to capture or destroy the Federation prototypes.

Federation forces scrambled to respond, but most military personnel were killed in the initial fighting. Captain Paolo Cassius of the White Base was mortally wounded whilst attempting to launch the ship. With the command structure collapsing, junior officer Bright Noa found himself thrust into command despite having only six months of military experience.

Amuro’s first sortie

As Zeon mobile suits approached the prototype storage area, Amuro Ray discovered the operations manual for the RX-78-2 Gundam. A mechanical enthusiast with natural aptitude, Amuro quickly absorbed the manual’s contents and activated the Gundam to defend his father’s work and protect nearby civilians, including his childhood friend Fraw Bow.

Amuro’s first combat engagement was remarkably effective despite his complete lack of military training. The Gundam’s superior performance—particularly its beam rifle, which could destroy a Zaku with a single shot—gave Amuro overwhelming advantages. In his first attack, he destroyed Denim’s Zaku with a beam rifle shot through the cockpit, killing the pilot instantly.

This engagement marked the first recorded mobile suit combat death in history and demonstrated the Gundam’s revolutionary capabilities. The beam rifle’s destructive power shocked both sides—Federation engineers had theorised about such weapons, but this was their first combat deployment.

Char’s engagement

Char Aznable, piloting his distinctive red MS-06S Zaku II Commander Type, engaged the Gundam directly. This marked the first of many duels between Char and Amuro, though at this point neither knew the other’s identity.

Char immediately recognised the Gundam’s superior performance and adapted his tactics accordingly. Rather than engaging directly, he attempted to outmanoeuvre and disable the unit. However, Amuro’s natural piloting ability and the Gundam’s responsiveness allowed him to hold his own against the experienced ace.

Another Zeon mobile suit, piloted by Gene, attempted to assist Char but was disabled by Amuro. Recognising that continuing the engagement would cost more mobile suits without achieving objectives, Char ordered a withdrawal.

Evacuation

With Side 7 suffering critical damage and decompression spreading throughout the colony, the White Base launched an emergency evacuation. The ship’s regular crew had been largely killed or incapacitated, forcing Bright Noa to conscript civilian refugees, including Amuro, to operate the vessel.

The White Base departed Side 7 with the three prototype mobile suits aboard and a crew composed primarily of civilians and teenagers. This improvised crew would form the core of what would become one of the war’s most effective combat units.

Aftermath

The Attack on Side 7 achieved Zeon’s intelligence objectives—confirming Federation mobile suit development—but at significant cost. The loss of two mobile suits and the revelation that the Federation possessed beam weapons capable of one-shot kills against Zakus forced Zeon to reassess its military strategy.

For the Earth Federation, Side 7’s destruction was a setback to Project V, but the successful evacuation of the prototypes meant the programme could continue. The White Base’s improvised crew, whilst initially ineffective, would develop into skilled combatants through necessity.

Amuro Ray, a civilian teenager with no military training, had destroyed a Zaku on his first combat sortie. This achievement marked the beginning of his journey from mechanic to the Federation’s greatest ace pilot. His natural ability to pilot the Gundam suggested he might be a Newtype, though this concept was not yet understood.

The engagement began the legendary rivalry between Char and Amuro. Char recognised the Gundam pilot’s exceptional ability, whilst Amuro’s survival against the “Red Comet” marked him as a pilot of unusual talent.

Legacy

The Attack on Side 7 marked several firsts in the One Year War:

First mobile suit vs mobile suit combat
First combat deployment of beam weapons
First Newtype vs Newtype engagement (though neither recognised it)
Beginning of the Char-Amuro rivalry

The battle demonstrated that the Federation’s mobile suit programme had achieved parity with, and in some ways exceeded, Zeon’s technology. The beam rifle’s effectiveness shocked both militaries and accelerated the arms race in mobile suit development.

For the White Base crew, Side 7 marked the beginning of their journey from civilians and inexperienced officers to hardened veterans. The crew’s survival through improvisation and determination would become legendary within the Federation military.

The destruction of Side 7 also highlighted the war’s human cost. The colony, which had been neutral, lost thousands of civilians when military forces fought inside its fragile structure. This tragedy would be repeated throughout the war as colonies became battlegrounds.

Behind the scenes

The Attack on Side 7 served as the opening episode of the original Mobile Suit Gundam television series. Director Yoshiyuki Tomino used the attack to immediately establish the series’ themes—civilian characters thrust into war, the destructive nature of combat, and the tragedy of conflict.

The decision to make protagonist Amuro Ray a civilian rather than a trained soldier was revolutionary for mecha anime. Previous series featured professional pilots; Amuro’s status as an untrained teenager forced into combat emphasised the war’s impact on ordinary people.

Char Aznable’s introduction as the antagonist established him as competent and dangerous but not purely evil—his mission was reconnaissance, not massacre, and he withdrew when objectives couldn’t be achieved. This moral complexity became a hallmark of Gundam characterisation.

The battle’s animation showcased the Gundam’s revolutionary design by mechanical designer Kunio Okawara. The contrast between the bulky, utilitarian Zakus and the sleek, powerful Gundam visually reinforced the technological gap between the machines.

Appearances

Anime

Mobile Suit Gundam (episode 1, “Gundam Rising”)

Films

Mobile Suit Gundam I

OVAs

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin (depicts events leading to the attack)

Manga

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Origin

Games

Mobile Suit Gundam: Journey to Jaburo
Mobile Suit Gundam: Federation vs. Zeon
Mobile Suit Gundam: Encounters in Space
Dynasty Warriors: Gundam
Gundam Battle Operation 2

External links

Attack on Side 7 on the Gundam Wiki