Editing Operation: WHITE GLOVE

{{Status|Canon}}

|conflict = *[[Human-Covenant War]]

|commanders2 =  

SWORD Base was the site of previous incursions, including the [[Battle of Sword Base]]{{Ref/Level|[[Halo: Reach]]|[[ONI: Sword Base (level)|ONI: Sword Base]]}} and a later attack on [[2552#August|August 14, 2552]].{{Ref/Level|Halo: Reach|[[Long Night of Solace (level)|Long Night of Solace]]}} This left the base in ruins, and the Covenant began glassing the area. The base was deemed critical and was ordered to be destroyed.{{Ref/Level|Id=package|Halo: Reach|[[The Package]]}}

[[File:HaloReach - JunEmileCarter.jpg|thumb|250px|Emile, Jun, and Carter fighting an Elite.]]

On August 29, 2552, [[SPARTAN-B312]] and several ODSTs showed up to the ruins of [[Farragut Station]]. They cleared out local resistance around the station, and proceeded to [[Airview Base]]. There, [[Cheru-pattern Tyrant|Tyrants]] were blocking the remaining members of Noble Team from backing up existing forces. Along the path, they encountered more Covenant forces.{{Ref/Reuse|package}}

===NOBLE working for ONI===

Dr. Catherine Halsey had actually been the cause of this. Using a tram system, she took NOBLE Team to an underground complex as part of her plan. Halsey had been decrypting data and needed protection from fast approaching Covenant.{{Ref/Reuse|package}}

Noble Team, using pre-established [[M8 Wolf Spider]] turrets, mounted a successful defense against those Covenant. Upon entering Halsey's lab, Noble Team discovered their final objective; deliver [[Cortana|an AI]] to the {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}} in [[Asźod]]. Noble Six received the package, having been chosen to be the AIs caretaker. Noble, along with Halsey proceeded to escape the facility Jun however, was tasked with delivering Dr. Halsey to [[CASTLE Base]].{{Ref/Reuse|package}}

By August 30, Halsey had arrived at CASTLE Base.{{Ref/Novel|[[Halo: First Strike]]|Chapter=12}} By this time, Jun had left her for reasons unknown. Although Jun-A266 and the rest of the facility's personnel had evacuated, she began to enact Operation: WHITE GLOVE.{{Ref/Novel|Id=firststrike14|Halo: First Strike|Chapter 14}} She was accompanied by the AI [[Kalmiya]], a predecessor of [[Cortana]], and was harried by [[Araqiel]], the personal AI of her nemesis, [[Colonel]] [[James Ackerson]]. The operation called for the destruction of every [[artificial intelligence]] in the facility using the fail-safe in its [[Riemann matrix]] before the base was destroyed, thus ensuring that the Covenant did not capture such technology.{{Ref/Novel|Halo: First Strike|Page=127-128}} After erasing Araqiel with a fail-safe command, Halsey did the same to Kalmiya. When the surviving [[SPARTAN-II Program|SPARTAN-IIs]] of [[Red Team]] arrived at the base, Halsey destroyed the facility via the self-destruct charges installed throughout the complex.{{Ref/Novel|Halo: First Strike|Page=135}} She, [[Frederic-104]], [[William-043]], [[Vinh-030]], [[Isaac-039]], and [[Kelly-087]] were able to hide in the caves beneath the base. They were able to stop the Covenant from accessing the slipspace-distorting [[Forerunner crystal|crystal]] in the [[Menachite portal complex|Forerunner complex]] beneath the base, though they became trapped for several days.{{Ref/Novel|Halo: First Strike|Page=132-139}}.