Tried these squads out last night in a friendly battle with my neighbor. What would you change to make them better/more fun/more interesting?

Collection: Core, A-wing, B-wing, E-wing, X-wing, Falcon, TIE Fighter, Bomber, Defender, Interceptor

Imperials - "Alphabet" TIEs (100 pts)
Delta Squadron (Defender) + Ion Cannon
Academy Pilot (Fighter)
Captain Jonus (Bomber) + Proton Bomb + Determination
Turr Phennir (Interceptor) + Swarm Tactics

Rebels - Honest ABE (100 pts)

Ibtisam (B-wing) + Ion Cannon + Elusiveness + Advanced Sensors

Arvel Crynyd (A-wing) + Shield Upgrade
Etahn Ab'aht (E-wing) + R7 Astromech + Fire Control System + Veteran Instincts

Battle:

Phennir and the Academy Pilot went down fairly early on (the Academy Pilot pulled a Direct Hit! critical after flying through an asteroid) but managed to nick off most of Ibtisam's shields. Lots of maneuvering, trying to get good shots, while Etahn dealt critical hits that were mostly evaded. Etahn had a couple turns go bad with asteroid and ship collisions but no damage- just bad positioning. Ibtisam finally went down while the bomber was left with 2 hull and some shield damage to both remaining Rebel fighters. A near-miss with the Proton Bomb led to a quick furball which dropped both Etahn and Jonus. Arvel pulled a collision shot with the Defender but was faced the wrong way to keep up the shenanigans. The two very maneuverable ships raced around the large asteroid in opposite directions, with the A-wing failing to flank the Defender, leading to a joust which ended in the Defender's favor. The match took about 3 hours(!).

Analysis:

The Rebel strategy (use the Ion Cannon and Arvel to exert some board control while Etahn turns hits to crits) was partially successful (Etahn did a good job flipping out crits). The Imperial strategy (use Jonus to boost the Ion Cannon while the more maneuverable fighters pounded the hapless victims) went out the window pretty quickly (a hazard of playing with a squad you didn't design). The early loss of half his squad was discouraging, but my neighbor toughed it out and we discovered the squads were fairly well balanced. What might make these squads more fun, better balanced, or more successful?

Flying only 2 ships that benefit Etahn's ability doesn't seem worth it. Adding an ion canon also negates his ability, since if a hit goes through you cancel the hit results and give the defender 1 hit and 1 ion Tolkien. ibitsam with Etahn almost screams Autoblaster, since regular hits cannot be canceled and Her ability makes 1 crit uncancelable. You need more guns for his point cost to pay off, or get the refit on the A-wing and try to squeeze in Horn for the double tap.

Flying only 2 ships that benefit Etahn's ability doesn't seem worth it. Adding an ion canon also negates his ability, since if a hit goes through you cancel the hit results and give the defender 1 hit and 1 ion Tolkien. ibitsam with Etahn almost screams Autoblaster, since regular hits cannot be canceled and Her ability makes 1 crit uncancelable. You need more guns for his point cost to pay off, or get the refit on the A-wing and try to squeeze in Horn for the double tap.

I think you are mixing up Ibitsam with Ten Numb.