OKAY, this is how it should work, and benefit from this. this should be enough to tell you the history and how it affects our STO. starting today, i'll be providing you the details of Ranks, etc and why they should work. that kind of thing. i hope it was well detailed and thought out. i took the Liberty to bring Some Facts From Memory Alpha to show why.
FLAG OFFICER
A flag officer is both a historic naval and military rank and a modern Starfleet title. It generally refers to all officers of Commodore/Rear admiral rank or higher. The term flag officer stems from the historical naval practice that when a person of admiral rank was posted to a ship, a flag denoting his rank and presence was flown. In an age of visual signals, the ships under the admiral's command would look to the flagship for orders and instructions. The term traditionally denotes any officer that commands a squadron of starships, possibly in addition to one under their direct command.
Not all flag officers are required to have commanded a starship in their career, as shown by the case of Commodore Stocker. (TOS: "The Deadly Years")
Starfleet regulations as of the mid-23rd century stated that "when a captain is unfit, physically or mentally, a competency hearing is mandatory," convened by the first officer and headed by a Starfleet flag officer. Additionally, when all senior officers are incapable of commanding a starship, an individual of "flag rank is forced by regulations to assume command." (TOS: "The Deadly Years")
Starfleet General Order 15 states that "No flag officer shall beam into a hazardous area without armed escort." (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)
According to Captain Kathryn Janeway, with regards to the Omega particle and Omega Directive, "Only starship captains and Federation flag officers have been briefed on the nature of this threat." (VOY: "The Omega Directive")
We shall start on Fleet Admiral. here is Infomation below about this Position.
FLEET ADMIRAL
Fleet admiral is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional grade, fleet admiral is the most senior flag officer rank of a naval organization, above all the flag admiral grades save for commander-in-chief. In comparison to army ranking systems, this rank is equivalent to the most senior general rank, such as Field Marshal or General of the Army.
In Starfleet, fleet admiral exists as a separate rank, but has also been used as a title awarded and referring to officers wearing insignia of vice admiral or admiral, such as Fleet Admiral Shanthi.
In these situations when an officer refers to an admiral as "fleet admiral" they could simply be calling them fleet admiral because they are acting as the head of a fleet. Field promotion is another possibility.
Background:
The first time that the rank of fleet admiral was mentioned in Star Trek was during TOS: "Space Seed" when Leonard McCoy, observing a dinner set for Khan Noonien Singh, commented that the ship must be expecting a fleet admiral for dinner. An actual fleet admiral was not seen on camera until the appearance of Fleet Admiral Morrow in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.
Currently, in the United States Navy, the rank of fleet admiral (FADM) is inactive and has not been awarded since World War II. It is the equivalent of the United States Army's rank of general of the army (GA) with both ranks' insignia appearing as five stars arranged in a pentagonal shape.
Ranks senior to fleet admiral:
There has never been a rank shown in a live action production senior to the Starfleet position of fleet admiral; however, there have been at least two senior ranks mentioned in non-canonical comic books and reference materials.
The "flag admiral" insignia (a six pointed starburst) from the Klingon Covert Operations Manual was actually seen on camera when it appears in Data's medals case during "The Most Toys".
A senior rank of grand admiral has also appeared in Star Trek comic books, making its first mention in "The Wormhole Connection". The rank of grand admiral is said to have existed in 2285 and has a special uniform with shoulder boards worn on the red maroon jacket uniform. Grand admiral is far better known in the Star Wars franchise, where it is held by the character of Grand Admiral Thrawn.
The title of Commander Starfleet, seemingly also senior to the rank of fleet admiral, appears to be more of a position than actual rank. This title has only ever been used canonically in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock.
now to Admiral.
ADMIRAL:
Admiral is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional grade, admiral is the most senior flag officer rank of a naval organization, senior to a captain. Admirals command fleets of ships, as opposed to captains commanding single ships or units. In comparison to other ranking systems, this rank is equivalent to the ground-based rank of general, or the Cardassian Union's quasi-military rank of legate.
This grade is used in some form by many other cultures, including the Romulan Star Empire, the Klingon Empire and the inhabitants of Earth.
Starfleet admiral:
Many rank systems, including that used by various incarnations of Starfleet, have been known to use several grades of the admiral rank, which include, in order from most senior: fleet admiral, admiral, vice admiral, rear admiral and rear admiral lower half (also known simply as commodore). All grades of Admiral are generally addressed as "Admiral".
then vice admiral..
VICE ADMIRAL:
Vice admiral is a military rank, the equivalent of which was used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional grade, vice admiral was a flag officer falling superior to a rear admiral and below a full admiral of a naval organization. This rank was used by the Federation Starfleet (as well as its predecessor the Earth Starfleet). Vice admirals commanded entire fleets of vessels, divisions at Starfleet Headquarters, starbases, and other senior positions in the fleet. In comparison to other ranking systems, this rank was equivalent to the army lieutenant general rank or (approximately) the Cardassian Union's quasi-military rank of legate.
In the Earth organization, vice admirals (such as Maxwell Forrest) were denoted by three rank insignia enclosed in a rectangular frame, worn on both sides of a uniform jacket. These officers also had a series of rank stripes on their sleeve, a group of five stripes (four in a group, and one separate towards the cuff). (ENT: "Broken Bow")
By 2161, the sleeve stripes had changed to be more in line with the style used in the 2260s. An unnamed vice admiral (played by Manny Coto) at the signing of the Federation Charter wore a solid white/grey stripe with silver braiding (about three standard stripes wide), flanked by two single stripes of a similar material (one above and one below). (ENT: "These Are the Voyages...")
In the subsequent Federation fleets, vice admirals (like Fitzpatrick) were again denoted by sleeve stripes, this time signified by a similar insignia, one solid gold band (about three stripes wide, worn by the rank of Commodore) of braid, and two additional stripes separate, above and below. (TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles")
By the Starfleet uniform design of the 2280s, all officers wore their insignia as a pin device attached to the shoulder on the jacket clasp. The vice admiral pin was a small round field with four gold arrowheads arranged pointing towards a gold pip in the center, and was accompanied by an embroidered sleeve stripe. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
The rank insignia of the Star Trek films were created with detailed notes by Robert Fletcher.
24th century Starfleet ranks had vice admirals (such as Vice Admiral Aaron) wear one triangular admiral braid on their shoulders, with two rank pips beneath it. (TNG: "Conspiracy")
Another redesign in the 2360s denoted vice admirals (like Vice Admiral Nakamura) by three gold rank pips surrounded by a rectangular frame. (TNG: "The Measure Of A Man")
rear admiral....
REAR ADMIRAL:
Rear admiral was a flag officer rank used by naval organizations, traditionally between the grades of commodore and vice admiral. This rank was used by the Federation Starfleet (as well as its predecessor the Earth Starfleet). Some systems instead used two tiers of rear admiral rank, "rear admiral upper half" and "rear admiral lower half." Officers of the lower half were equal in grade to commodores.
In the Earth organization, rear admirals (such as Daniel Leonard) were denoted by two rank insignia enclosed in a rectangular frame, worn on both sides of a uniform jacket. These officers also had a series of rank stripes on their sleeve, a group of four stripes (three in a group, and one separate towards the cuff). (ENT: "Broken Bow")
In the subsequent Federation fleets, rear admirals (such as James T. Kirk) were again denoted by sleeve stripes, this time signified by a similar insignia, one solid band of braid, and an additional stripe separate. Rear admiral's shoulder insignia, for epaulet uniforms, was a single eight pointed star. (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)
By the Starfleet uniform design of the 2280s, Kirk (and all other officers) wore their insignia as a pin device attached to the shoulder on the jacket clasp. The rear admiral pin was a small round field with four gold arrowheads arranged pointing towards the center, and was accompanied by an embroidered sleeve stripe. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)
24th century Starfleet ranks changed the system slightly, deprecating the commodore grade, instead calling officers of that standing "rear admiral lower half." The lower half rear admirals (such as Gregory Quinn and Mark Jameson) wore one triangular admiral braid on their shoulders, while upper half rear admirals wore one triangular braid and one rank pip beneath it (as Savar did). (TNG: "Too Short a Season", "Conspiracy")
Another redesign, in the 2360s, made rear admirals (like Starfleet Academy superintendent Brand) denoted by two gold rank pips surrounded by a square frame. (TNG: "The First Duty")
Presumably, the lower half rear admirals would wear one pip in a flag officer frame. A rear admiral pip from the early seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation was featured as one of many ornaments on the costume of Fennim in VOY: "Think Tank".
COMMODORE:
Commodore (later replaced by rear admiral-lower half) is a naval rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional grade, commodore is the most junior flag officer rank of a naval organization, under an admiral rank (usually under rear admiral) but senior to a captain. Commodores command groups of ships, as opposed to captains commanding single ships or units. In comparison to other ranking systems, this rank is equivalent to the military brigadier or brigadier general.
The rank of commodore was used by Starfleet until at least the 2270s. In 2366, Geordi La Forge insulted Centurion Bochra by calling him commodore, to which Bochra promptly corrected La Forge as to his proper title. (TNG: "The Enemy")
La Forge calling Bochra "commodore" was the only time that the rank was ever spoken of in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
SENIOR OFFICER:
A senior officer denotes a member of the senior staff of a starship or starbase involved in the top level, command decisions of the day-to-day operations of their post.
In the Earth Starfleet, where there were limited personnel choices with special talents, junior officers by rank were sometimes senior officers by practicality. Some such personnel included:
■Ensign Travis Mayweather, pilot of the Enterprise NX-01, experience with other worlds, as part of the Earth Cargo Service
■Ensign Hoshi Sato, communications officer of Enterprise, exceptional linguistic abilities
■Lieutenant Malcolm Reed, armory officer on Enterprise', chief of security
In the Federation Starfleet, senior officers usually included officers with the rank lieutenant commander or above and could include, but was not limited to (regardless of rank):
■Commanding officer
■Executive officer
■Operations manager
■Chief engineer
■Chief of security
■Chief medical officer
■Science officer
The commanding officer could also add certain officers at his or her discretion. These officers had the privilege of sitting in with the senior staff during briefings, or at times had the ear of the commanding officer.
Some of the more permanent additions have included:
■Commander Deanna Troi, ship's counselor, USS Enterprise-D / USS Enterprise-E
■Lieutenant Tom Paris, flight controller, USS Voyager
■Seven of Nine, astrometrics laboratory supervisor, USS Voyager
■Ensign Harry Kim, operations officer, USS Voyager
Occasionally, one is referred to as a senior officer in a manner that is equivalent to a ranking officer. Both B'Elanna Torres and Tuvok tried to take responsibility as the senior officer in the installation of a spatial trajector without Captain Kathryn Janeway's consent. (VOY: "Prime Factors")
CAPTAIN:
Captain is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. The title of captain is often used by vessel commanders and, as a naval rank, in many earth navies and Starfleet, is above commander. As an infantry rank, captains rank subordinate to a major and above a first lieutenant.
Earth history:
On Earth, the title of captain was used as far back as the Middle Ages, where a captain was a nobleman commissioned to command a company of soldiers. One of the characters of William Shakespeare's play Henry V was quoted as saying "Under what captain serve you?" when approached on guard duty. (TNG: "The Defector")
By the 20th century, the rank of captain was common in Earth militaries and was used by all branches of service in the United States armed forces. The rank of captain was represented by a double rectangular silver bar uniform insignia for ground units and the equivalent of a colonel's eagle for naval captains. In 2364, the Q-entity took the form of a US Marine Corps captain when confronting Captain Picard. In this disguise, Q was quoted as stating "All it takes is a few good men." (TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint")
The rank of captain was also used by World War II Germany. In the German army, the rank was translated as Hauptmann (headman), but in the SS, company captains were referred to as Hauptsturmf
COMMANDER:
Commander is a rank used by the service organizations of many civilizations.
On Earth, this rank has a history dating back to at least the 20th century to the old seagoing navies, and has equivalents used by numerous species and cultures on several planets.
History:
As a traditional naval grade in Human usage, commander is the second most senior line officer rank, falling between a captain and a lieutenant. On Earth, the United States Navy used this rank as well as the Royal Navy. A rank of lieutenant commander also existed in these organizations, viewed as a lieutenant granted the authority of a commander. The United States Navy used the insignia of three solid sleeve stripes to denote the rank of commander and considered the rank the equivalent of a lieutenant colonel.
The ancient sea of rank commander was usually given to ship executive officers, department heads on larger naval vessels, or to the commanders of shore installations. The watch station of command duty officer was a position which could be held by a commander. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
Modern rank:
In the galaxy, the modern rank of commander is typically held by the first officers of various cultures' starships and is also granted to the commanding officers of the smaller outposts, space stations and starbases.
In Starfleet, a prerequisite to becoming a commander is by taking the Bridge Officer's Test. As commanders prove their leadership ability over time, they are considered for the difficult and highly competitive promotion to captain. (TNG: "Thine Own Self")
Proper naval parlance says that, even if a naval vessel is commanded by an officer whose rank is commander, that officer is still able to be referred to as a captain while on the deck of their own vessel. (DS9: "Behind the Lines")
In the Xindi-Reptilian military of the 22nd century, some commanders controlled a squadron and a regiment. (ENT: "Azati Prime")
The rank of commander in the Romulan Star Empire is considered the equivalent of a Starfleet captain. (TNG: "Future Imperfect") Also, a subcommander grade exists in the Romulan military, with this rank also used in the 22nd century by the Vulcan High Command. (TOS: "The Enterprise Incident"; ENT: "Broken Bow")
According to The Making of Star Trek (page 256) the Romulan rank of commander is the rank of someone who commands a fleet of ships. This would imply it to be equal to the Federation Starfleet rank of commodore.
The 23rd century Imperial Klingon Fleet used the rank of commander to denote the commanders of smaller space vessels, such as a Bird-of-Prey. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock) A Klingon rank of captain was used for larger vessels with this title carrying over to the 24th century Klingon Defense Force. (TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles"; TNG: "Redemption")
In Star Trek, Ayel refers to Nero as "Prod Nero." In the deleted scene in which the Narada is surround by Klingon warbirds, the subtitles created by the filmmakers for the Romulan dialogue translate Prod as "commander." However, according to the DVD commentary for the film, "Prod" was intended to mean "Praetor."
LIEUTENANT COMMANDER:
Lieutenant commander is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations.
Origins and history:
A traditional naval rank, lieutenant commander was once used in the old navies of Earth, among them the United States Navy and the Royal Navy. In these organizations, a lieutenant commander was a grade between the lieutenant and commander grades with the rank equivalent to a major in the marine or ground forces.
In the mid 2160s, Starfleet was using the rank of lieutenant commander. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II")
In the early 2260s, the rank of lieutenant commander was being used by the Starfleet of the United Federation of Planets. The insignia was at first the same as that of lieutenant, but by 2266 had developed into its own design.
23rd and 24th century usage:
During the 23rd century, certain lieutenant commanders holding high shipboard positions, such as that of first officer, were authorized to wear the full braid insignia of a commander while still retaining their rank of lieutenant commander. (TOS: "Court Martial", "The Menagerie, Part I")
In the 24th century Starfleet, lieutenant commander is an active rank with its close equivalents in alien militaries being the Cardassian rank of glinn and the Romulan rank of centurion. Lieutenant commanders normally serve as senior department heads, executive officers on smaller vessels, and in some cases as starship commanders. Lieutenant commanders Tom Markel, Jadzia Dax, and Piersall all held commanding officer postings.
The rank of lieutenant commander is also known to have existed in parallel universes. The Terran Starfleet of the mirror universe was using this rank in 2155 (an example being T'Pol) and the rank was still being used in 2266. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly"; TOS: "Mirror, Mirror")
Background:
The earliest known Starfleet officer with this rank is Hoshi Sato.
Spock, as well as a few other lieutenant commanders seen in The Original Series (such as Benjamin Finney), are very clearly called Lieutenant Commander while wearing the insignia of a Commander. While sometimes viewed as a costumer error, the late original series costume designer William Ware Theiss stated in interviews that this was very much deliberate and that the practice of Lieutenant Commanders wearing the insignia for a full Commander mirrored the US military concept of "brevet" or "spot" promotions given to officers due to the nature of their billets. In turn, Commander Chakotay wore the provisional rank insignia that was equivalent to a Lieutenant Commander (two "solid" bars and one "hollow" bar) throughout Star Trek: Voyager in an apparent costuming error.
There have been four clear instances in Star Trek where a Lieutenant Commander was verbally addressed as "Lieutenant"; this being the case with Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Shelby, who was called a Lieutenant in a briefing by Rear Admiral J.P. Hanson. Also, in two occasions, Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge was referred to as "Lieutenant," once by Tasha Yar in TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise" and once by Captain Picard in TNG: "The Most Toys". While generally assumed that a script error led to these characters being called by the wrong rank, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that Starfleet protocol allows for the shortening of this rank to simply "lieutenant" in verbal conversation, much the same as Lieutenant Colonel is often shortened to "Colonel". Throughout Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Valeris wore Lieutenant Commander ranks (as well as a mismatched uniform department color), however she was only meant to be the rank of Lieutenant. This was due to a simple costume error and it was deemed too expensive to go back and reshoot the sequences with Valeris wearing the correct rank and uniform color so it was decided to just let it be. Tuvok was also incorrectly identified as Lieutenant after his promotion to Lieutenant Commander during his travels in the Delta Quadrant. While addressed as such in reference, not in person, in 2009's Star Trek, George Kirk wears Lieutenant Commander rank braids, but is referred to by Spock as "Lieutenant George Kirk" during his son's hearing a quarter-century later.
Many members of present day militaries which have this rank, however, shorten Lieutenant Commander to simply "Commander" in all but the most formal situations, since to address a Lieutenant Commander as a Lieutenant would appear disrespectful as this is a lower rank.
An issue of Star Trek: The Magazine established that the costuming department on Star Trek: Enterprise had no insignia for lieutenant commander. However, this does not mean the rank did not exist, merely that no on screen character had it and that no episode called for it. The rank was originally considered for use on the show with Malcolm Reed intended to be a lieutenant commander.
In Enterprise Season Four episode "Bound", Commander Tucker refers to his replacement "Kelby" as lieutenant despite him wearing three pips. This could possibly indicate that the rank existed with the same insignia as a full commander.
JUNIOR OFFICER:
A junior officer is a commissioned officer with the rank of at least lieutenant or lower. The term was often used to refer to the early part of an officer's career when he or she has little or no command experience or department head responsibility. However, an officer with the rank of lieutenant or lower is not considered a junior officer, but rather a staff officer, if he or she serves as a department head or other supervisory position in a particular command's senior staff. A junior officer may be part of a vessel's junior staff.
In 2369, Ambassador Taxco was embarrassed by the fact that Deep Space 9's liaison for the visiting delegation was a "first year officer", Julian Bashir. (DS9: "The Forsaken")
An example of the gap in experience between senior and junior officers was when, on behalf of USS Voyager's junior staff, Ensign Jenkins thanked Harry for diffusing the situation with the Series 5 long-range tactical armor unit that threatened the crew. (VOY: "Warhead")
The term may also be used colloquially to indicate the relative ranks of two officers, as Kim was considered the junior officer on Voyager's senior staff.
Typical Starfleet junior officers included Ensigns Sito Jaxa and Taurik. (TNG: "Lower Decks")
On a starship, it is common for junior officers to be assigned to shared quarters. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, TNG: "Lower Decks", VOY: "Flashback")
On Star Trek: The Next Generation, the set of the junior officers' quarters was originally built as Captain Kirk's quarters for Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and would seem to suggest that Starfleet had upgraded its crew accommodations over the years. This seems to be confirmed by Scotty's remark in "Relics" that not even an admiral in his day could have quarters as luxurious as guest quarters aboard the USS Enterprise-D.
LIEUTENANT:
Lieutenant is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional naval rank, lieutenant is the grade between ensign and lieutenant commander. In infantry, lieutenant is the lowest officer grade, falling below captain. An infantry lieutenant commands a platoon, consisting of about thirty troops.
In the Starfleet, the rank of lieutenant was directly between ensign and commander. The Federation Starfleet uses additional grades in this transition, lieutenant junior grade, lieutenant and lieutenant commander. This is identical to the system used by many older Earth agencies. Starfleet lieutenants are expected to be effective small-section leaders and technical experts, developing their leadership skills in preparation for promotion to the commander tier.
In old Earth terms (such as the United States armed forces), infantry lieutenants were divided as first lieutenant and second lieutenant, equivalent to naval ensigns and lieutenants junior grade.
In the Romulan Star Empire, there exists a lieutenant grade and also a lower grade, sublieutenant. In the old Earth English navy, the rank sublieutenant is equivalent to ensign.
The Andorian Imperial Guard in the 22nd century used the rank of lieutenant.
This grade presumably exists in some form in many other cultures' rank arrangements.
The German word for "lieutenant" is "Leutnant". (TNG: "Tapestry")
Interstingly, while "Dr." Q refers to "Leutnant Picard", in the German language dub of the episode he uses the English word.
The New Sydney police bureau also used the rank. Fuchida was a lieutenant in 2375. (DS9: "Prodigal Daughter") Additionally, the New York City Police Department used the rank of lieutenant. Gary Seven had identification stating he was a lieutenant in the NYPD when he was sent to Earth in 1968. (TOS: "Assignment: Earth")
Many rank systems use the term lieutenant in front of other grades to create a lower grade, lieutenant colonel and lieutenant general for example.
Background:
Since TNG: "The Defector" established that the Romulans have a sublieutenant rank, it seems suggests that there would be a regular lieutenant rank it was subordinate to.
LIEUTENANT JUNIOR GRADE:
Lieutenant junior grade (often abbreviated to lieutenant jg or simply jg), or junior lieutenant is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. A naval rank in a small number of Earth's ancient navies (such as the US Navy), it is placed between ensign and full lieutenant. The rank is used primarily by the Federation Starfleet, although its Earth predecessor (from which it primarily takes its rank structure) may also have had this grade.
During certain points in its history, Starfleet discontinued the rank of lieutenant junior grade, promoting ensigns directly to the full grade of lieutenant. This was the case in the early 2270s, when ensigns adopted the sleeve insignia of the former lieutenant jg rank, the jg rank being done away with. Historical records also indicate that the Earth Starfleet did not use the rank during the 2150s.
An issue of Star Trek: The Magazine established that the costuming department on Star Trek: Enterprise had no insignia for lieutenant junior grade, although this does not necessarily mean the rank did not exist. Several pre-production publications regarding Star Trek: The Motion Picture established that the lieutenant jg rank also did not exist during the time frame of the film.
It is unclear if the grade exists in other cultures' rank arrangements, although it may correspond to the Romulan rank of sublieutenant.
Background:
Only one officer in TOS wore a lieutenant jg insignia, Tormolen in "The Naked Time", even though some officers (for example, Charlene Masters and Marla McGivers) were referred to as "lieutenant" but wore no insignia at all, like ensigns. This particular rank is portrayed in every Starfleet rank scheme, but rarely mentioned in dialog.
ENSIGN:
Ensign is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional naval grade, ensign is the most junior line officer rank below the lieutenant grades, usually immediately under lieutenant or lieutenant junior grade.
Duties and responsibilities:
The rank of ensign is usually the first commissioned rank assigned to new officers (such as recent graduates of Starfleet Academy). This naval rank is equivalent to the rank of second lieutenant which is found in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
An ensign's primary duty is professional growth, both as a leader and as an occupational specialist. Ensigns are mentored by more senior officers as well as their (nominally) subordinate chief petty officers as part of their development as Starfleet leaders. As ensigns prove themselves more capable, they are considered for promotion into the lieutenant tier. (TNG: "Datalore").
On some of the larger starship classes, such as the Galaxy-class starships, it is not uncommon for veteran and seasoned enlisted personnel to have ensigns working for them as technicians, thus having the ensign "learning the ropes" of the more technical aspects of starship design, such as transporter components. (TNG: "Clues")
Chief O'Brien's reference in "Clues" to an ensign working for him as "one of his technicians" seems to contradict everything military edict says about ensigns, who are commissioned officers and would not normally be subordinated to enlisted personnel. There are several explanations for this however, the most logical being that O'Brien had a type of "positional authority", thus making him senior in his duties to junior officers even though he was junior in rank to them. Also, as O'Brien has been shown throughout Star Trek: Deep Space Nine to command officers in his role as Chief of Operations, perhaps Starfleet factors in seniority as well as commissioned status in regards to personnel assignments.
Background:
Star Trek has often portrayed ensigns as background characters who stand watches at bridge stations, serve as nameless security guards, or who get killed or eaten by the alien creature of the week. The characters of Wesley Crusher and Pavel Chekov were the first ensigns to be seriously explored with their duties and responsibilities mainly confined to learning and professional growth as officers. The episode TNG: "Lower Decks" also dealt with ensigns and what their daily duties consisted of.
Starfleet ensigns are rarely seen in command of others, one exception being when Ensign Chekov leads a security detail in TOS: "And the Children Shall Lead" or when Wesley Crusher was assigned to lead a science team in TNG: "Pen Pals". In the real United States Navy, however, ensigns have much more responsibility and typically are in charge of divisions consisting of seven to fifteen sailors. In the case of prior enlisted ensigns, or "mustang ensigns" as they are called, it is not unheard of for an ensign to serve as a department head.
Occasionally, older characters have been seen as ensigns, an example of which is Jana Haines, who appears as an ensign but seems to be in her late 30s or early 40s, as well as ensigns Davies and Alans who hold the rank of ensign while serving as science officers with obvious graduate level education. Several other medical and science ensigns from Star Trek: The Next Generation (and later series) have also appeared whose age and experience indicates that they are obviously not recent Starfleet Academy graduates. This gives rise to the possibility that Starfleet, much like the United States Navy, has commissioning programs for prior enlisted personnel or for civilian doctors and scientists who wish to join Starfleet.
Leonard McCoy (alternate reality), came out of Starfleet Academy as a lieutenant commander. This is also a common practice by the current armed forces, i.e. to give this elevated rank to highly specialized professions (doctors, lawyers, etc.).
After his character's promotion on the show, Gene Roddenberry gave Wil Wheaton the second lieutenant bars he earned in the Army Air Corps (second lieutenant being equivalent to an ensign in the US Navy). Present at the ceremony was General Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who later became Secretary of State. (Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion)
In the background/special features section of the Star Trek: The Next Generation DVD set, actor Wil Wheaton stated that he had received Roddenberry's "gold ensign bars" from World War II; however, since Roddenberry's service was in the Army Air Corps, and not the Navy, Roddenberry's insignia were actually second lieutenant bars.
ENLISTED OFFICER:
In Starfleet, an enlisted crewperson is one who has not completed the four-year Starfleet Academy course. In most cases, enlisted crewmen sign up directly to a ship or posting, and receive basic training, as well as any specific courses required for their position. (TNG: "The Drumhead"; DS9: "Shadowplay", "Starship Down")
Other force structures, such as the Klingon Defense Force and the Bajoran Militia, have enlisted men in their ranks, but it is unclear as to how they differ from their standard officer ranks.
As with commissioned officers, there is a rank structure amongst enlisted crew. In naval systems, these are referred to as "rates", in military systems these are called "grades". The term "non-commissioned officer" refers specifically to any enlisted personnel given authority over other personnel. In Starfleet, this could refer to any petty officer (up to master chief).
All commissioned officer ranks, from ensign upward, outrank all enlisted in the chain of command. However, in certain cases, non-commissioned officers can exercise authority over commissioned officers. (Miles O'Brien was one such case in his position as chief of operations aboard Deep Space 9.) Additionally, chief petty officers such as O'Brien wield influence far beyond their place in the rank structure due to their extensive experience and skill, and are expected to mentor junior officers as well as other non-commissioned officers.
Enlisted personnel may be promoted to receive a commission, but must pass necessary examinations and/or attend the Academy.
The Star Trek Encyclopedia had the TNG-era enlisted insignia labeled as "warrant officers", but this seems to contradict several canon mentions.
Gene Roddenberry initially envisioned a Starfleet entirely composed of officers during the creation of TNG. As a result, there were negligible numbers of enlisted personnel seen in TNG. During DS9, the writers made a conscious decision to increase the number of enlisted personnel in Starfleet, to a level either equal to or exceeding that of the officers.
NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICER:
A non-commissioned officer (also known as NCO or non-com) is an enlisted member of Starfleet or another military or service organization who has not attended officer training, but functions as a lower-ranking crewman with authority over other enlisted crewmen.
In Starfleet, anyone who is a petty officer (including specialists, yeomen, and technicians) is a non-com, as they are senior to the lower crewman rank. This includes the more senior non-coms, such as chiefs.
MASTER CHIEF PETTY OFFICER:
Master chief petty officer (MCPO) was an enlisted naval rate, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. As a traditional naval grade, MCPO was the most senior grade of chief petty officer, and was almost the highest non-commissioned officer grade in organizations like Starfleet and the US Navy. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rate was approximately equivalent to the most senior sergeant grade, such as sergeant-major. Personnel of this grade could be addressed simply as chief (or more properly, "master chief"), and sometimes by their job title, such as "master chief specialist."
While nominally subordinate to all commissioned officers, master chiefs wielded far more influence and authority than most junior officers and acted as mentors and advisors to senior officers. Master chiefs had decades of practical experience and were an indispensable source of technical skill and leadership on Starfleet vessels.
When there were individual grades of chief petty officers, senior chief petty officer (SCPO) was subordinate to MCPO.
In 2286, when a probe projecting humpback whale signals threatened to destroy Earth, Master CPO Janice Rand was one of the officers in Admiral Cartwright's command area. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
Background:
The rank of "master chief petty officer" was never referenced in dialog, but is rather derived from rank insignia.
The Star Trek movie-era rank insignia, designed by Robert Fletcher, were the first and only Trek insignia systems to feature separate pins for several realistic grades of CPOs. It is odd that Rand was in a chief uniform while she was an enlisted chief in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, when she appeared again in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock she was wearing officer insignia before being seen with MCPO insignia in Star Trek IV. Since the character in Star Trek III was simply credited as "woman", it may not necessarily have been Rand, but a different character.
Similar confusion in Rand holding various officer ranks dates back to the Marvel TOS "Eclipse of Reason" and DC TOS volume 2 "The Dream Walkers" comics, and continues in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and VOY: "Flashback".
SENIOR CHIEF PETTY OFFICER:
Senior chief petty officer (SCPO) was an enlisted naval rate, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. As a traditional naval grade, SCPO was senior to a chief petty officer.
Personnel of this grade could be addressed simply as chief (or more properly, "senior chief"), and sometimes by their job title, such as "senior chief specialist." (DS9: "Shadowplay")
Background:
The rank of "senior chief petty officer" was never referenced in dialog, but is rather derived from rank insignia.
O'Brien was referred to usually as "chief" or "chief petty officer." He was referred to as chief petty officer in TNG Season 4 and again in DS9 Season 3 and beyond. Presumably the DS9 Season 2 reference in "Shadowplay" to "senior chief specialist", means the term "petty officer" can be used interchangeably with "specialist". In the US Navy "chief petty officer" can also be used interchangeably with "chief specialist". In Starfleet "SCPO" might be the person's rank, while "specialist" is their title.
CHIEF PETTY OFFICER:
Chief petty officer (CPO) is an enlisted naval rank, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. As a traditional naval grade, CPO is senior to a petty officer, and is the highest enlisted grade in organizations like Starfleet and the US Navy. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rank is approximately equivalent to the more senior sergeant grades. Personnel of this grade can be addressed simply as chief, and sometimes by their job title, such as "chief specialist."
While chiefs are subordinate to all commissioned officers, they have far more experience and practical knowledge than ensigns and lieutenants, and are expected to act as mentors to them and to the junior enlisted assigned. As such, chiefs are often among the actual leaders in a Starfleet organization. Chiefs serve with distinction in most Starfleet branches and specialties, but are particularly visible in engineering and other technical trades.
There are usually individual grades of chief petty officers, differentiated by first, second class, etc; more senior CPOs are referred to as senior chief petty officer (SCPO) or master chief petty officer (MCPO), referred to as "senior chief" or "master chief" (respectively) in conversation.
The origins of the rank Chief Petty Officer can be traced to Earth, where the title was used in the United States Navy. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
When Sergey Rozhenko spied Miles O'Brien as the transporter chief aboard the USS Enterprise-D in 2367, Rozhenko was excited to meet another chief petty officer. When O'Brien introduced himself, he acknowledged Rozhenko as 'sir', to which Rozhenko told him not to call him 'sir', because he used to work for a living. Sergey's wife, Helena, then told O'Brien that he was just joking and that Sergey's proudest moment was when their son, Worf, had earned his commission. Sergey then added, "Imagine. An old enlisted man like me raising a boy to be an officer!" (TNG: "Family")
Several years later, O'Brien was identified by a Jem'Hadar as the rank of "Chief Petty Officer," or "what Starfleet refers to as a 'noncom'," adding "you must have a great deal of experience...that makes you a priority target." (DS9: "Hippocratic Oath")
In 2374, Cadet Dorian Collins of the USS Valiant, introduced herself to Nog and Jake Sisko as "Acting Chief Petty Officer." (DS9: "Valiant")
Background:
Captain Kirk makes a reference to a "Chief," operating the transporter console in TOS: "Charlie X", implying the existence of the rank of Chief Petty Officer at that time.
Commodore Mendez talks to a "Chief Humbolt" at the 'Computer Center' of Starbase 11 in the episode "The Menagerie, Part I".
In TOS: "Mirror, Mirror", Captain Kirk, saved by an enlisted man from Chekov, who intends to assassinate him, is told that "Mr. Chekov was going to make me a chief, sir."
In Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, a Chief Petty Officer contacts the CDO Commander Rogerson, regarding a power drain in the energy systems of the aircraft carrier Enterprise. The CPO's voice is not heard on screen, but the Commander responds to the question "Yes, Chief. We're tracking that too."
PETTY OFFICER:
Petty officer was an enlisted naval rank, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. This title was senior to a crewman, and subordinate to a chief petty officer. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rank was approximately equivalent to the grade of corporal. However, the petty officer 2nd class rank was equivalent to that of sergeant and the 1st class rank was equivalent to that of staff sergeant.
This was the lowest rank considered to have the responsibility of a "noncommissioned officer." Personnel of this grade were usually referred to by their job title. In Starfleet, a petty officer could be referred to as yeoman, or as specialist.
There were usually individual grades of petty officers, differentiated as first, second and third class. This appellation could be added to either their rank or title (for example, "petty officer first class," "specialist second class," or "yeoman third class").
Zim Brott was a Bolian petty officer serving aboard Deep Space 9 in 2375. (DS9: "Field of Fire")
CREWMAN:
Crewman (also known as ables'man or able crewman) is an enlisted naval rate, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. This title is the lowest enlisted rank, subordinate to a petty officer. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rank is approximately equivalent to the grade of private. In Klingonese, this rank is referred to as bekk.
In Starfleet, a "crewman" can refer to either a person who holds the actual rank or simply any person who is assigned to an organization or starship. The grade of crewman may further be divided into several "classes", such as "crewman first class", "crewman second class", etc. (TOS: "The Man Trap")
Civilian merchant ships also used the rank of "able crewman." After his less-than-impressive dealings with the Nausicaans in 2151, First officer Matthew Ryan of the freighter ECS Fortunate was demoted to able crewman in order to have to earn back Captain Keene's trust. (ENT: "Fortunate Son"}
Crewman first class
■In 2367, Simon Tarses identified himself as a crewman, first class. (TNG: "The Drumhead")
Crewman second class
■In 2151, Commander Trip Tucker threatened to demote Lieutenant Malcolm Reed to the rank of crewman, second class. (ENT: "Shuttlepod One")
Crewman third class
■Although this rank has never been mentioned, three grades of crewman insignia were in use in the Earth Starfleet. This lowest grade was never mentioned by name, but the insignia was worn by Daniels, Cunningham, and others.
Background:
Although Star Trek has often been ambivalent about enlisted ranks and insignia, there have been mentions of the term "crewman" since TOS: "The Man Trap", although it is continuously impossible to tell who this rank was bestowed upon, since both crewman and ensigns (as well as chief petty officers) had no visible rank insignia.
In the Star Trek movies, costume designers created insignia for chiefs and petty officers and even crewmen. In particular, Robert Fletcher's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan uniforms had an entire series of enlisted rank insignia. Some of these were reproduced (albeit incorrectly) in the Star Trek Encyclopedia. This is the origin of the "ables'man" term which has not been used elsewhere in Star Trek.
Fletcher's original costume notes actually referred to the rank of crewman as "able seaman", a term which has been used nowhere else in Star Trek with most sources referring to the pin designed by Fletcher simply as "crewman".
By TNG: "The Drumhead", it was established in dialog that Simon Tarses was an enlisted crewman who had not gone to the Academy; he had a blank collar. This lack of rank insignia for crewmen and noncoms was used throughout Deep Space Nine and Voyager, although chief petty officers were assigned different insignia.
Several rank insignia were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including a crewman second class patch.
You've obviously put a lot of time and effort into this, and it shows. But, the thing is, while realistic and would work well in novels, screenplays, and PnP roleplaying, it wouldn't necessarily work in a game setting such as this.
Would I have done the rank structure different were I made "develolper for a day"? Yeah. I'd have made the tutorial rank "Cadet". With the Ensign rank, the player would have his first BO, just like the tutorial, only the player character would be given a Peregrine-class fighter or the Klink equivalent. Then LTJG and command of a Danube-class runabout and your second BO; then LT. and your Tier One ship--Miranda, Shi'Kar, Centaur, or NX-replica. I would have also added the ranks of "Fleet Captain" and "Commodore" between Captain and Rear Admiral. That would make the trip to Admiral a bit longer and perhaps more "realistic". But the system as is, works ok. As someone said on another post, their character might have the "rank" of Vice Admiral, but in play, the toon has Captain rank insignia and goes by the title "Captain." Works for him--works for me when I get there.
You've obviously put a lot of time and effort into this, and it shows. But, the thing is, while realistic and would work well in novels, screenplays, and PnP roleplaying, it wouldn't necessarily work in a game setting such as this.
Would I have done the rank structure different were I made "develolper for a day"? Yeah. I'd have made the tutorial rank "Cadet". With the Ensign rank, the player would have his first BO, just like the tutorial, only the player character would be given a Peregrine-class fighter or the Klink equivalent. Then LTJG and command of a Danube-class runabout and your second BO; then LT. and your Tier One ship--Miranda, Shi'Kar, Centaur, or NX-replica. I would have also added the ranks of "Fleet Captain" and "Commodore" between Captain and Rear Admiral. That would make the trip to Admiral a bit longer and perhaps more "realistic". But the system as is, works ok. As someone said on another post, their character might have the "rank" of Vice Admiral, but in play, the toon has Captain rank insignia and goes by the title "Captain." Works for him--works for me when I get there.
FLEET ADMIRAL 9 ADMIRAL 8 VICE ADMIRAL 7 COMMODORE 6 REAR ADMIRAL 5 CAPTAIN 4 also Should have Fleet Captain Title too. COMMANDER 4 LIEUTENANT COMMANDER 3 LIEUTENANT 2 ENSIGN 1
ugh no no.. this rank system you see here is listed here. you WORK your way up. for Example,
those number shows what you're working your way up. like we started from Ensign.
The only one I will always disagree with is Commodore.
I just feel that even in the ranking structure designed it does not have a place for it, hell even in modern military branches (U.S Navy) Commodore is not there. Even if we want to get even more in depth with trying to bring ranks into it, how about mentioning Warrant Officers?
I just feel that even in the ranking structure designed it does not have a place for it, hell even in modern military branches (U.S Navy) Commodore is not there.
There are quite a lot of modern military forces using this rank. I for one think it's way more elegant than splitting the Rear Admiral into an "upper half" and a "lower half". What's next, removing the Vice Admiral and make an upper/lower half of the Full Admiral?
Why do you feel it is out of place - just because of the ranking system as employed in the years 1982-2010 in the United States Navy does not include it? That's something that I keep failing to understand.
I would love to see the introduction/inclusion of non comm bridge officers. Instead of having both space and ground abilities, non comms would have one or the other. I already do a partial divide like this on my own crew. I'm sure others do as well.
I'm never going to read all that. So I'm going to assume you are just one of "those" people that are not going to be happy until you are flying around in a real ship. Don't get me wrong that would be F'n sweet, but come on it's a game. Instead of writing two pages of garbage, just play the game! STO is awesome stop writing essays and enjoy!
hey pal, i'm not one of those people you're talking about. and those are not essays of garbage, they're facts taken from Memory Alpha to show the Ranking System has to be Correct for us to Lvl up which would take long time instead of leveling up so DAMN fast in Weeks or Months. pfft. if they did reset the Ranking to include them, then all Admirals and VAs would be pulled from their lvl down to RIGHT Lvl instead of having too MUCH Admirals and VAs did you have thought of that?
I would love to see the introduction/inclusion of non comm bridge officers.
This brings up an interesting question, actually. Picard specifically stated in TNG that, as Wesley showed up, only commissioned officers are allowed on the bridge.
Of course, back then O'Brien was still an Ensign (or Lieutenant?) - NCO's didn't show up in Trek until in DS9. Sad thing, actually. I kinda liked the idea of Starfleet having done away with NCO's. I mean, when you analyze it, NCO's are just a redundant sub-caste between crewmen and officers. They have the same kind of responsibility as full officers but privileges and salary that are only slightly better than those of enlisted crewmen. In the spirit of Federation fairness and equality, all NCO's should be officers.
that seemed a lot of work to essentially ask for the commodore rank to be put back in.
Feh, one or two minutes of surfing Memory Alpha ...
Not that I don't approve of the Commodore. Way better than the RALH/RAUH weirdness which is nothing more than a result of fan speculation based on something that only existed for 30 years in a single real life military of a single real world nation.
I'm just going to copy/paste the same thing I recently said in another of 'these' threads...
====================================================================================
Stop worrying about what everyone else is. Realize that everyone else is the ONLY person that has saved the Azura crew, defeted the new doomsday machine, saved LT Paris, and so on and so on...
Everyone goes thru the exact same story and is the hero of that story so they and you get to rise thru the ranks and get rewards and praise.
This isn't a simulated Starfleet where everyone is Lt. Schmoe on picket patrol in some dull safe place, where all the big cool stuff to do was done by KirkPicardJanewaySiskoArcher. Everyone is KirkPicardJanewaySiskoArcher here, just play and enjoy yourself.
I'm just going to copy/paste the same thing I recently said in another of 'these' threads...
====================================================================================
Stop worrying about what everyone else is. Realize that everyone else is the ONLY person that has saved the Azura crew, defeted the new doomsday machine, saved LT Paris, and so on and so on...
Everyone goes thru the exact same story and is the hero of that story so they and you get to rise thru the ranks and get rewards and praise.
This isn't a simulated Starfleet where everyone is Lt. Schmoe on picket patrol in some dull safe place, where all the big cool stuff to do was done by KirkPicardJanewaySiskoArcher. Everyone is KirkPicardJanewaySiskoArcher here, just play and enjoy yourself.
dude, you don't GET it.. this is about Ranks, not me! and i'm guy that never worry about anything. do i SEEM worried to you? hell no i'm not.
This brings up an interesting question, actually. Picard specifically stated in TNG that, as Wesley showed up, only commissioned officers are allowed on the bridge.
Of course, back then O'Brien was still an Ensign (or Lieutenant?) - NCO's didn't show up in Trek until in DS9. Sad thing, actually. I kinda liked the idea of Starfleet having done away with NCO's. I mean, when you analyze it, NCO's are just a redundant sub-caste between crewmen and officers. They have the same kind of responsibility as full officers but privileges and salary that are only slightly better than those of enlisted crewmen. In the spirit of Federation fairness and equality, all NCO's should be officers.
Feh, one or two minutes of surfing Memory Alpha ...
Not that I don't approve of the Commodore. Way better than the RALH/RAUH weirdness which is nothing more than a result of fan speculation based on something that only existed for 30 years in a single real life military of a single real world nation.
You realize you've just pretty much insulted every NCO that plays STO, right? But in the spirit of Xmas, I'm not gonna beef about it tonight. Especially in this silly TRIBBLE thread.
You realize you've just pretty much insulted every NCO that plays STO, right?
No. I don't see how they could be insulted, if you would just analyze my wording. If anything, they should be insulted by not getting paid officer salary or by being ordered around from some Ensign two decades younger than them. It's them who do most of the work, after all.
The segmentation between officers and NCO's is silly. NCO's are officers, too, just without a formal commission - a piece of paper confirming them to do what they do anyways. Heck, some nations go so far as to call them sub-officers.
NCO's are separated from CO's because of one thing and one thing only: tradition. And it's a bad one. Starfleet would be better off without it.
Just another relic from the time when all officers were nobles. Well, we no longer live in the shackles of feudalism, so why defend a class system where people should be equal?
Comments
COMMODORE:
Commodore (later replaced by rear admiral-lower half) is a naval rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional grade, commodore is the most junior flag officer rank of a naval organization, under an admiral rank (usually under rear admiral) but senior to a captain. Commodores command groups of ships, as opposed to captains commanding single ships or units. In comparison to other ranking systems, this rank is equivalent to the military brigadier or brigadier general.
The rank of commodore was used by Starfleet until at least the 2270s. In 2366, Geordi La Forge insulted Centurion Bochra by calling him commodore, to which Bochra promptly corrected La Forge as to his proper title. (TNG: "The Enemy")
La Forge calling Bochra "commodore" was the only time that the rank was ever spoken of in Star Trek: The Next Generation.
A senior officer denotes a member of the senior staff of a starship or starbase involved in the top level, command decisions of the day-to-day operations of their post.
In the Earth Starfleet, where there were limited personnel choices with special talents, junior officers by rank were sometimes senior officers by practicality. Some such personnel included:
■Ensign Travis Mayweather, pilot of the Enterprise NX-01, experience with other worlds, as part of the Earth Cargo Service
■Ensign Hoshi Sato, communications officer of Enterprise, exceptional linguistic abilities
■Lieutenant Malcolm Reed, armory officer on Enterprise', chief of security
In the Federation Starfleet, senior officers usually included officers with the rank lieutenant commander or above and could include, but was not limited to (regardless of rank):
■Commanding officer
■Executive officer
■Operations manager
■Chief engineer
■Chief of security
■Chief medical officer
■Science officer
The commanding officer could also add certain officers at his or her discretion. These officers had the privilege of sitting in with the senior staff during briefings, or at times had the ear of the commanding officer.
Some of the more permanent additions have included:
■Commander Deanna Troi, ship's counselor, USS Enterprise-D / USS Enterprise-E
■Lieutenant Tom Paris, flight controller, USS Voyager
■Seven of Nine, astrometrics laboratory supervisor, USS Voyager
■Ensign Harry Kim, operations officer, USS Voyager
Occasionally, one is referred to as a senior officer in a manner that is equivalent to a ranking officer. Both B'Elanna Torres and Tuvok tried to take responsibility as the senior officer in the installation of a spatial trajector without Captain Kathryn Janeway's consent. (VOY: "Prime Factors")
CAPTAIN:
Captain is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. The title of captain is often used by vessel commanders and, as a naval rank, in many earth navies and Starfleet, is above commander. As an infantry rank, captains rank subordinate to a major and above a first lieutenant.
Earth history:
On Earth, the title of captain was used as far back as the Middle Ages, where a captain was a nobleman commissioned to command a company of soldiers. One of the characters of William Shakespeare's play Henry V was quoted as saying "Under what captain serve you?" when approached on guard duty. (TNG: "The Defector")
By the 20th century, the rank of captain was common in Earth militaries and was used by all branches of service in the United States armed forces. The rank of captain was represented by a double rectangular silver bar uniform insignia for ground units and the equivalent of a colonel's eagle for naval captains. In 2364, the Q-entity took the form of a US Marine Corps captain when confronting Captain Picard. In this disguise, Q was quoted as stating "All it takes is a few good men." (TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint")
The rank of captain was also used by World War II Germany. In the German army, the rank was translated as Hauptmann (headman), but in the SS, company captains were referred to as Hauptsturmf
Commander is a rank used by the service organizations of many civilizations.
On Earth, this rank has a history dating back to at least the 20th century to the old seagoing navies, and has equivalents used by numerous species and cultures on several planets.
History:
As a traditional naval grade in Human usage, commander is the second most senior line officer rank, falling between a captain and a lieutenant. On Earth, the United States Navy used this rank as well as the Royal Navy. A rank of lieutenant commander also existed in these organizations, viewed as a lieutenant granted the authority of a commander. The United States Navy used the insignia of three solid sleeve stripes to denote the rank of commander and considered the rank the equivalent of a lieutenant colonel.
The ancient sea of rank commander was usually given to ship executive officers, department heads on larger naval vessels, or to the commanders of shore installations. The watch station of command duty officer was a position which could be held by a commander. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
Modern rank:
In the galaxy, the modern rank of commander is typically held by the first officers of various cultures' starships and is also granted to the commanding officers of the smaller outposts, space stations and starbases.
In Starfleet, a prerequisite to becoming a commander is by taking the Bridge Officer's Test. As commanders prove their leadership ability over time, they are considered for the difficult and highly competitive promotion to captain. (TNG: "Thine Own Self")
Proper naval parlance says that, even if a naval vessel is commanded by an officer whose rank is commander, that officer is still able to be referred to as a captain while on the deck of their own vessel. (DS9: "Behind the Lines")
In the Xindi-Reptilian military of the 22nd century, some commanders controlled a squadron and a regiment. (ENT: "Azati Prime")
The rank of commander in the Romulan Star Empire is considered the equivalent of a Starfleet captain. (TNG: "Future Imperfect") Also, a subcommander grade exists in the Romulan military, with this rank also used in the 22nd century by the Vulcan High Command. (TOS: "The Enterprise Incident"; ENT: "Broken Bow")
According to The Making of Star Trek (page 256) the Romulan rank of commander is the rank of someone who commands a fleet of ships. This would imply it to be equal to the Federation Starfleet rank of commodore.
The 23rd century Imperial Klingon Fleet used the rank of commander to denote the commanders of smaller space vessels, such as a Bird-of-Prey. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock) A Klingon rank of captain was used for larger vessels with this title carrying over to the 24th century Klingon Defense Force. (TOS: "The Trouble with Tribbles"; TNG: "Redemption")
In Star Trek, Ayel refers to Nero as "Prod Nero." In the deleted scene in which the Narada is surround by Klingon warbirds, the subtitles created by the filmmakers for the Romulan dialogue translate Prod as "commander." However, according to the DVD commentary for the film, "Prod" was intended to mean "Praetor."
LIEUTENANT COMMANDER:
Lieutenant commander is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations.
Origins and history:
A traditional naval rank, lieutenant commander was once used in the old navies of Earth, among them the United States Navy and the Royal Navy. In these organizations, a lieutenant commander was a grade between the lieutenant and commander grades with the rank equivalent to a major in the marine or ground forces.
In the mid 2160s, Starfleet was using the rank of lieutenant commander. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II")
In the early 2260s, the rank of lieutenant commander was being used by the Starfleet of the United Federation of Planets. The insignia was at first the same as that of lieutenant, but by 2266 had developed into its own design.
23rd and 24th century usage:
During the 23rd century, certain lieutenant commanders holding high shipboard positions, such as that of first officer, were authorized to wear the full braid insignia of a commander while still retaining their rank of lieutenant commander. (TOS: "Court Martial", "The Menagerie, Part I")
In the 24th century Starfleet, lieutenant commander is an active rank with its close equivalents in alien militaries being the Cardassian rank of glinn and the Romulan rank of centurion. Lieutenant commanders normally serve as senior department heads, executive officers on smaller vessels, and in some cases as starship commanders. Lieutenant commanders Tom Markel, Jadzia Dax, and Piersall all held commanding officer postings.
The rank of lieutenant commander is also known to have existed in parallel universes. The Terran Starfleet of the mirror universe was using this rank in 2155 (an example being T'Pol) and the rank was still being used in 2266. (ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly"; TOS: "Mirror, Mirror")
Background:
The earliest known Starfleet officer with this rank is Hoshi Sato.
Spock, as well as a few other lieutenant commanders seen in The Original Series (such as Benjamin Finney), are very clearly called Lieutenant Commander while wearing the insignia of a Commander. While sometimes viewed as a costumer error, the late original series costume designer William Ware Theiss stated in interviews that this was very much deliberate and that the practice of Lieutenant Commanders wearing the insignia for a full Commander mirrored the US military concept of "brevet" or "spot" promotions given to officers due to the nature of their billets. In turn, Commander Chakotay wore the provisional rank insignia that was equivalent to a Lieutenant Commander (two "solid" bars and one "hollow" bar) throughout Star Trek: Voyager in an apparent costuming error.
There have been four clear instances in Star Trek where a Lieutenant Commander was verbally addressed as "Lieutenant"; this being the case with Lieutenant Commander Elizabeth Shelby, who was called a Lieutenant in a briefing by Rear Admiral J.P. Hanson. Also, in two occasions, Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge was referred to as "Lieutenant," once by Tasha Yar in TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise" and once by Captain Picard in TNG: "The Most Toys". While generally assumed that a script error led to these characters being called by the wrong rank, it is not beyond the realm of possibility that Starfleet protocol allows for the shortening of this rank to simply "lieutenant" in verbal conversation, much the same as Lieutenant Colonel is often shortened to "Colonel". Throughout Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, Valeris wore Lieutenant Commander ranks (as well as a mismatched uniform department color), however she was only meant to be the rank of Lieutenant. This was due to a simple costume error and it was deemed too expensive to go back and reshoot the sequences with Valeris wearing the correct rank and uniform color so it was decided to just let it be. Tuvok was also incorrectly identified as Lieutenant after his promotion to Lieutenant Commander during his travels in the Delta Quadrant. While addressed as such in reference, not in person, in 2009's Star Trek, George Kirk wears Lieutenant Commander rank braids, but is referred to by Spock as "Lieutenant George Kirk" during his son's hearing a quarter-century later.
Many members of present day militaries which have this rank, however, shorten Lieutenant Commander to simply "Commander" in all but the most formal situations, since to address a Lieutenant Commander as a Lieutenant would appear disrespectful as this is a lower rank.
An issue of Star Trek: The Magazine established that the costuming department on Star Trek: Enterprise had no insignia for lieutenant commander. However, this does not mean the rank did not exist, merely that no on screen character had it and that no episode called for it. The rank was originally considered for use on the show with Malcolm Reed intended to be a lieutenant commander.
In Enterprise Season Four episode "Bound", Commander Tucker refers to his replacement "Kelby" as lieutenant despite him wearing three pips. This could possibly indicate that the rank existed with the same insignia as a full commander.
JUNIOR OFFICER:
A junior officer is a commissioned officer with the rank of at least lieutenant or lower. The term was often used to refer to the early part of an officer's career when he or she has little or no command experience or department head responsibility. However, an officer with the rank of lieutenant or lower is not considered a junior officer, but rather a staff officer, if he or she serves as a department head or other supervisory position in a particular command's senior staff. A junior officer may be part of a vessel's junior staff.
In 2369, Ambassador Taxco was embarrassed by the fact that Deep Space 9's liaison for the visiting delegation was a "first year officer", Julian Bashir. (DS9: "The Forsaken")
An example of the gap in experience between senior and junior officers was when, on behalf of USS Voyager's junior staff, Ensign Jenkins thanked Harry for diffusing the situation with the Series 5 long-range tactical armor unit that threatened the crew. (VOY: "Warhead")
The term may also be used colloquially to indicate the relative ranks of two officers, as Kim was considered the junior officer on Voyager's senior staff.
Typical Starfleet junior officers included Ensigns Sito Jaxa and Taurik. (TNG: "Lower Decks")
On a starship, it is common for junior officers to be assigned to shared quarters. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, TNG: "Lower Decks", VOY: "Flashback")
On Star Trek: The Next Generation, the set of the junior officers' quarters was originally built as Captain Kirk's quarters for Star Trek: The Motion Picture, and would seem to suggest that Starfleet had upgraded its crew accommodations over the years. This seems to be confirmed by Scotty's remark in "Relics" that not even an admiral in his day could have quarters as luxurious as guest quarters aboard the USS Enterprise-D.
Lieutenant is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional naval rank, lieutenant is the grade between ensign and lieutenant commander. In infantry, lieutenant is the lowest officer grade, falling below captain. An infantry lieutenant commands a platoon, consisting of about thirty troops.
In the Starfleet, the rank of lieutenant was directly between ensign and commander. The Federation Starfleet uses additional grades in this transition, lieutenant junior grade, lieutenant and lieutenant commander. This is identical to the system used by many older Earth agencies. Starfleet lieutenants are expected to be effective small-section leaders and technical experts, developing their leadership skills in preparation for promotion to the commander tier.
In old Earth terms (such as the United States armed forces), infantry lieutenants were divided as first lieutenant and second lieutenant, equivalent to naval ensigns and lieutenants junior grade.
In the Romulan Star Empire, there exists a lieutenant grade and also a lower grade, sublieutenant. In the old Earth English navy, the rank sublieutenant is equivalent to ensign.
The Andorian Imperial Guard in the 22nd century used the rank of lieutenant.
This grade presumably exists in some form in many other cultures' rank arrangements.
The German word for "lieutenant" is "Leutnant". (TNG: "Tapestry")
Interstingly, while "Dr." Q refers to "Leutnant Picard", in the German language dub of the episode he uses the English word.
The New Sydney police bureau also used the rank. Fuchida was a lieutenant in 2375. (DS9: "Prodigal Daughter") Additionally, the New York City Police Department used the rank of lieutenant. Gary Seven had identification stating he was a lieutenant in the NYPD when he was sent to Earth in 1968. (TOS: "Assignment: Earth")
Many rank systems use the term lieutenant in front of other grades to create a lower grade, lieutenant colonel and lieutenant general for example.
Background:
Since TNG: "The Defector" established that the Romulans have a sublieutenant rank, it seems suggests that there would be a regular lieutenant rank it was subordinate to.
LIEUTENANT JUNIOR GRADE:
Lieutenant junior grade (often abbreviated to lieutenant jg or simply jg), or junior lieutenant is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. A naval rank in a small number of Earth's ancient navies (such as the US Navy), it is placed between ensign and full lieutenant. The rank is used primarily by the Federation Starfleet, although its Earth predecessor (from which it primarily takes its rank structure) may also have had this grade.
During certain points in its history, Starfleet discontinued the rank of lieutenant junior grade, promoting ensigns directly to the full grade of lieutenant. This was the case in the early 2270s, when ensigns adopted the sleeve insignia of the former lieutenant jg rank, the jg rank being done away with. Historical records also indicate that the Earth Starfleet did not use the rank during the 2150s.
An issue of Star Trek: The Magazine established that the costuming department on Star Trek: Enterprise had no insignia for lieutenant junior grade, although this does not necessarily mean the rank did not exist. Several pre-production publications regarding Star Trek: The Motion Picture established that the lieutenant jg rank also did not exist during the time frame of the film.
It is unclear if the grade exists in other cultures' rank arrangements, although it may correspond to the Romulan rank of sublieutenant.
Background:
Only one officer in TOS wore a lieutenant jg insignia, Tormolen in "The Naked Time", even though some officers (for example, Charlene Masters and Marla McGivers) were referred to as "lieutenant" but wore no insignia at all, like ensigns. This particular rank is portrayed in every Starfleet rank scheme, but rarely mentioned in dialog.
ENSIGN:
Ensign is a military rank, the equivalent of which is used by the service organizations of many civilizations. As a traditional naval grade, ensign is the most junior line officer rank below the lieutenant grades, usually immediately under lieutenant or lieutenant junior grade.
Duties and responsibilities:
The rank of ensign is usually the first commissioned rank assigned to new officers (such as recent graduates of Starfleet Academy). This naval rank is equivalent to the rank of second lieutenant which is found in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
An ensign's primary duty is professional growth, both as a leader and as an occupational specialist. Ensigns are mentored by more senior officers as well as their (nominally) subordinate chief petty officers as part of their development as Starfleet leaders. As ensigns prove themselves more capable, they are considered for promotion into the lieutenant tier. (TNG: "Datalore").
On some of the larger starship classes, such as the Galaxy-class starships, it is not uncommon for veteran and seasoned enlisted personnel to have ensigns working for them as technicians, thus having the ensign "learning the ropes" of the more technical aspects of starship design, such as transporter components. (TNG: "Clues")
Chief O'Brien's reference in "Clues" to an ensign working for him as "one of his technicians" seems to contradict everything military edict says about ensigns, who are commissioned officers and would not normally be subordinated to enlisted personnel. There are several explanations for this however, the most logical being that O'Brien had a type of "positional authority", thus making him senior in his duties to junior officers even though he was junior in rank to them. Also, as O'Brien has been shown throughout Star Trek: Deep Space Nine to command officers in his role as Chief of Operations, perhaps Starfleet factors in seniority as well as commissioned status in regards to personnel assignments.
Background:
Star Trek has often portrayed ensigns as background characters who stand watches at bridge stations, serve as nameless security guards, or who get killed or eaten by the alien creature of the week. The characters of Wesley Crusher and Pavel Chekov were the first ensigns to be seriously explored with their duties and responsibilities mainly confined to learning and professional growth as officers. The episode TNG: "Lower Decks" also dealt with ensigns and what their daily duties consisted of.
Starfleet ensigns are rarely seen in command of others, one exception being when Ensign Chekov leads a security detail in TOS: "And the Children Shall Lead" or when Wesley Crusher was assigned to lead a science team in TNG: "Pen Pals". In the real United States Navy, however, ensigns have much more responsibility and typically are in charge of divisions consisting of seven to fifteen sailors. In the case of prior enlisted ensigns, or "mustang ensigns" as they are called, it is not unheard of for an ensign to serve as a department head.
Occasionally, older characters have been seen as ensigns, an example of which is Jana Haines, who appears as an ensign but seems to be in her late 30s or early 40s, as well as ensigns Davies and Alans who hold the rank of ensign while serving as science officers with obvious graduate level education. Several other medical and science ensigns from Star Trek: The Next Generation (and later series) have also appeared whose age and experience indicates that they are obviously not recent Starfleet Academy graduates. This gives rise to the possibility that Starfleet, much like the United States Navy, has commissioning programs for prior enlisted personnel or for civilian doctors and scientists who wish to join Starfleet.
Leonard McCoy (alternate reality), came out of Starfleet Academy as a lieutenant commander. This is also a common practice by the current armed forces, i.e. to give this elevated rank to highly specialized professions (doctors, lawyers, etc.).
After his character's promotion on the show, Gene Roddenberry gave Wil Wheaton the second lieutenant bars he earned in the Army Air Corps (second lieutenant being equivalent to an ensign in the US Navy). Present at the ceremony was General Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who later became Secretary of State. (Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion)
In the background/special features section of the Star Trek: The Next Generation DVD set, actor Wil Wheaton stated that he had received Roddenberry's "gold ensign bars" from World War II; however, since Roddenberry's service was in the Army Air Corps, and not the Navy, Roddenberry's insignia were actually second lieutenant bars.
In Starfleet, an enlisted crewperson is one who has not completed the four-year Starfleet Academy course. In most cases, enlisted crewmen sign up directly to a ship or posting, and receive basic training, as well as any specific courses required for their position. (TNG: "The Drumhead"; DS9: "Shadowplay", "Starship Down")
Other force structures, such as the Klingon Defense Force and the Bajoran Militia, have enlisted men in their ranks, but it is unclear as to how they differ from their standard officer ranks.
As with commissioned officers, there is a rank structure amongst enlisted crew. In naval systems, these are referred to as "rates", in military systems these are called "grades". The term "non-commissioned officer" refers specifically to any enlisted personnel given authority over other personnel. In Starfleet, this could refer to any petty officer (up to master chief).
All commissioned officer ranks, from ensign upward, outrank all enlisted in the chain of command. However, in certain cases, non-commissioned officers can exercise authority over commissioned officers. (Miles O'Brien was one such case in his position as chief of operations aboard Deep Space 9.) Additionally, chief petty officers such as O'Brien wield influence far beyond their place in the rank structure due to their extensive experience and skill, and are expected to mentor junior officers as well as other non-commissioned officers.
Enlisted personnel may be promoted to receive a commission, but must pass necessary examinations and/or attend the Academy.
The Star Trek Encyclopedia had the TNG-era enlisted insignia labeled as "warrant officers", but this seems to contradict several canon mentions.
Gene Roddenberry initially envisioned a Starfleet entirely composed of officers during the creation of TNG. As a result, there were negligible numbers of enlisted personnel seen in TNG. During DS9, the writers made a conscious decision to increase the number of enlisted personnel in Starfleet, to a level either equal to or exceeding that of the officers.
NON-COMMISSIONED OFFICER:
A non-commissioned officer (also known as NCO or non-com) is an enlisted member of Starfleet or another military or service organization who has not attended officer training, but functions as a lower-ranking crewman with authority over other enlisted crewmen.
In Starfleet, anyone who is a petty officer (including specialists, yeomen, and technicians) is a non-com, as they are senior to the lower crewman rank. This includes the more senior non-coms, such as chiefs.
MASTER CHIEF PETTY OFFICER:
Master chief petty officer (MCPO) was an enlisted naval rate, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. As a traditional naval grade, MCPO was the most senior grade of chief petty officer, and was almost the highest non-commissioned officer grade in organizations like Starfleet and the US Navy. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rate was approximately equivalent to the most senior sergeant grade, such as sergeant-major. Personnel of this grade could be addressed simply as chief (or more properly, "master chief"), and sometimes by their job title, such as "master chief specialist."
While nominally subordinate to all commissioned officers, master chiefs wielded far more influence and authority than most junior officers and acted as mentors and advisors to senior officers. Master chiefs had decades of practical experience and were an indispensable source of technical skill and leadership on Starfleet vessels.
When there were individual grades of chief petty officers, senior chief petty officer (SCPO) was subordinate to MCPO.
In 2286, when a probe projecting humpback whale signals threatened to destroy Earth, Master CPO Janice Rand was one of the officers in Admiral Cartwright's command area. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
Background:
The rank of "master chief petty officer" was never referenced in dialog, but is rather derived from rank insignia.
The Star Trek movie-era rank insignia, designed by Robert Fletcher, were the first and only Trek insignia systems to feature separate pins for several realistic grades of CPOs. It is odd that Rand was in a chief uniform while she was an enlisted chief in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, when she appeared again in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock she was wearing officer insignia before being seen with MCPO insignia in Star Trek IV. Since the character in Star Trek III was simply credited as "woman", it may not necessarily have been Rand, but a different character.
Similar confusion in Rand holding various officer ranks dates back to the Marvel TOS "Eclipse of Reason" and DC TOS volume 2 "The Dream Walkers" comics, and continues in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country and VOY: "Flashback".
SENIOR CHIEF PETTY OFFICER:
Senior chief petty officer (SCPO) was an enlisted naval rate, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. As a traditional naval grade, SCPO was senior to a chief petty officer.
Personnel of this grade could be addressed simply as chief (or more properly, "senior chief"), and sometimes by their job title, such as "senior chief specialist." (DS9: "Shadowplay")
Background:
The rank of "senior chief petty officer" was never referenced in dialog, but is rather derived from rank insignia.
O'Brien was referred to usually as "chief" or "chief petty officer." He was referred to as chief petty officer in TNG Season 4 and again in DS9 Season 3 and beyond. Presumably the DS9 Season 2 reference in "Shadowplay" to "senior chief specialist", means the term "petty officer" can be used interchangeably with "specialist". In the US Navy "chief petty officer" can also be used interchangeably with "chief specialist". In Starfleet "SCPO" might be the person's rank, while "specialist" is their title.
CHIEF PETTY OFFICER:
Chief petty officer (CPO) is an enlisted naval rank, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. As a traditional naval grade, CPO is senior to a petty officer, and is the highest enlisted grade in organizations like Starfleet and the US Navy. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rank is approximately equivalent to the more senior sergeant grades. Personnel of this grade can be addressed simply as chief, and sometimes by their job title, such as "chief specialist."
While chiefs are subordinate to all commissioned officers, they have far more experience and practical knowledge than ensigns and lieutenants, and are expected to act as mentors to them and to the junior enlisted assigned. As such, chiefs are often among the actual leaders in a Starfleet organization. Chiefs serve with distinction in most Starfleet branches and specialties, but are particularly visible in engineering and other technical trades.
There are usually individual grades of chief petty officers, differentiated by first, second class, etc; more senior CPOs are referred to as senior chief petty officer (SCPO) or master chief petty officer (MCPO), referred to as "senior chief" or "master chief" (respectively) in conversation.
The origins of the rank Chief Petty Officer can be traced to Earth, where the title was used in the United States Navy. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)
When Sergey Rozhenko spied Miles O'Brien as the transporter chief aboard the USS Enterprise-D in 2367, Rozhenko was excited to meet another chief petty officer. When O'Brien introduced himself, he acknowledged Rozhenko as 'sir', to which Rozhenko told him not to call him 'sir', because he used to work for a living. Sergey's wife, Helena, then told O'Brien that he was just joking and that Sergey's proudest moment was when their son, Worf, had earned his commission. Sergey then added, "Imagine. An old enlisted man like me raising a boy to be an officer!" (TNG: "Family")
Several years later, O'Brien was identified by a Jem'Hadar as the rank of "Chief Petty Officer," or "what Starfleet refers to as a 'noncom'," adding "you must have a great deal of experience...that makes you a priority target." (DS9: "Hippocratic Oath")
In 2374, Cadet Dorian Collins of the USS Valiant, introduced herself to Nog and Jake Sisko as "Acting Chief Petty Officer." (DS9: "Valiant")
Background:
Captain Kirk makes a reference to a "Chief," operating the transporter console in TOS: "Charlie X", implying the existence of the rank of Chief Petty Officer at that time.
Commodore Mendez talks to a "Chief Humbolt" at the 'Computer Center' of Starbase 11 in the episode "The Menagerie, Part I".
In TOS: "Mirror, Mirror", Captain Kirk, saved by an enlisted man from Chekov, who intends to assassinate him, is told that "Mr. Chekov was going to make me a chief, sir."
In Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, a Chief Petty Officer contacts the CDO Commander Rogerson, regarding a power drain in the energy systems of the aircraft carrier Enterprise. The CPO's voice is not heard on screen, but the Commander responds to the question "Yes, Chief. We're tracking that too."
PETTY OFFICER:
Petty officer was an enlisted naval rank, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. This title was senior to a crewman, and subordinate to a chief petty officer. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rank was approximately equivalent to the grade of corporal. However, the petty officer 2nd class rank was equivalent to that of sergeant and the 1st class rank was equivalent to that of staff sergeant.
This was the lowest rank considered to have the responsibility of a "noncommissioned officer." Personnel of this grade were usually referred to by their job title. In Starfleet, a petty officer could be referred to as yeoman, or as specialist.
There were usually individual grades of petty officers, differentiated as first, second and third class. This appellation could be added to either their rank or title (for example, "petty officer first class," "specialist second class," or "yeoman third class").
Zim Brott was a Bolian petty officer serving aboard Deep Space 9 in 2375. (DS9: "Field of Fire")
Crewman (also known as ables'man or able crewman) is an enlisted naval rate, a type of military rank used by the service organizations of different cultures. This title is the lowest enlisted rank, subordinate to a petty officer. In comparison to infantry ranking systems, this rank is approximately equivalent to the grade of private. In Klingonese, this rank is referred to as bekk.
In Starfleet, a "crewman" can refer to either a person who holds the actual rank or simply any person who is assigned to an organization or starship. The grade of crewman may further be divided into several "classes", such as "crewman first class", "crewman second class", etc. (TOS: "The Man Trap")
Civilian merchant ships also used the rank of "able crewman." After his less-than-impressive dealings with the Nausicaans in 2151, First officer Matthew Ryan of the freighter ECS Fortunate was demoted to able crewman in order to have to earn back Captain Keene's trust. (ENT: "Fortunate Son"}
Crewman first class
■In 2367, Simon Tarses identified himself as a crewman, first class. (TNG: "The Drumhead")
Crewman second class
■In 2151, Commander Trip Tucker threatened to demote Lieutenant Malcolm Reed to the rank of crewman, second class. (ENT: "Shuttlepod One")
Crewman third class
■Although this rank has never been mentioned, three grades of crewman insignia were in use in the Earth Starfleet. This lowest grade was never mentioned by name, but the insignia was worn by Daniels, Cunningham, and others.
Background:
Although Star Trek has often been ambivalent about enlisted ranks and insignia, there have been mentions of the term "crewman" since TOS: "The Man Trap", although it is continuously impossible to tell who this rank was bestowed upon, since both crewman and ensigns (as well as chief petty officers) had no visible rank insignia.
In the Star Trek movies, costume designers created insignia for chiefs and petty officers and even crewmen. In particular, Robert Fletcher's Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan uniforms had an entire series of enlisted rank insignia. Some of these were reproduced (albeit incorrectly) in the Star Trek Encyclopedia. This is the origin of the "ables'man" term which has not been used elsewhere in Star Trek.
Fletcher's original costume notes actually referred to the rank of crewman as "able seaman", a term which has been used nowhere else in Star Trek with most sources referring to the pin designed by Fletcher simply as "crewman".
By TNG: "The Drumhead", it was established in dialog that Simon Tarses was an enlisted crewman who had not gone to the Academy; he had a blank collar. This lack of rank insignia for crewmen and noncoms was used throughout Deep Space Nine and Voyager, although chief petty officers were assigned different insignia.
Several rank insignia were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including a crewman second class patch.
Would I have done the rank structure different were I made "develolper for a day"? Yeah. I'd have made the tutorial rank "Cadet". With the Ensign rank, the player would have his first BO, just like the tutorial, only the player character would be given a Peregrine-class fighter or the Klink equivalent. Then LTJG and command of a Danube-class runabout and your second BO; then LT. and your Tier One ship--Miranda, Shi'Kar, Centaur, or NX-replica. I would have also added the ranks of "Fleet Captain" and "Commodore" between Captain and Rear Admiral. That would make the trip to Admiral a bit longer and perhaps more "realistic". But the system as is, works ok. As someone said on another post, their character might have the "rank" of Vice Admiral, but in play, the toon has Captain rank insignia and goes by the title "Captain." Works for him--works for me when I get there.
FLEET ADMIRAL
ADMIRAL
VICE ADMIRAL
COMMODORE:
REAR ADMIRAL
CAPTAIN also Should have Fleet Captain Title too.
COMMANDER
LIEUTENANT COMMANDER
LIEUTENANT
ENSIGN:
i guess so. that's exactly what i was aiming for.
As to the topic at hand: I would have simply looked at Starfleet Command. Who needs Ensign or Lieutenant ranks?
Lieutenant Commander -> Commander -> Captain -> Admiral
Or better yet, have it stop at "Captain" and make Commodores/Admirals to be Fleet Leader ranks. The specific rank could be defined by the fleet size:
ugh no no.. this rank system you see here is listed here. you WORK your way up. for Example,
those number shows what you're working your way up. like we started from Ensign.
I just feel that even in the ranking structure designed it does not have a place for it, hell even in modern military branches (U.S Navy) Commodore is not there. Even if we want to get even more in depth with trying to bring ranks into it, how about mentioning Warrant Officers?
Cheers
Why do you feel it is out of place - just because of the ranking system as employed in the years 1982-2010 in the United States Navy does not include it? That's something that I keep failing to understand.
JK- I like the explaination and you present a very solid case.....its a little much......but solid.
FLEET ADMIRAL 10
ADMIRAL 9
VICE ADMIRAL 8
REAR ADMIRAL 7
COMMODORE 6
CAPTAIN 5
COMMANDER 4
LIEUTENANT COMMANDER 3
LIEUTENANT 2
ENSIGN 1
and Other Ranks
JUNIOR OFFICER 2
LIEUTENANT JUNIOR GRADE 1
So much time used up, that could of been used to play STO!
hey pal, i'm not one of those people you're talking about. and those are not essays of garbage, they're facts taken from Memory Alpha to show the Ranking System has to be Correct for us to Lvl up which would take long time instead of leveling up so DAMN fast in Weeks or Months. pfft. if they did reset the Ranking to include them, then all Admirals and VAs would be pulled from their lvl down to RIGHT Lvl instead of having too MUCH Admirals and VAs did you have thought of that?
Of course, back then O'Brien was still an Ensign (or Lieutenant?) - NCO's didn't show up in Trek until in DS9. Sad thing, actually. I kinda liked the idea of Starfleet having done away with NCO's. I mean, when you analyze it, NCO's are just a redundant sub-caste between crewmen and officers. They have the same kind of responsibility as full officers but privileges and salary that are only slightly better than those of enlisted crewmen. In the spirit of Federation fairness and equality, all NCO's should be officers.
Feh, one or two minutes of surfing Memory Alpha ...
Not that I don't approve of the Commodore. Way better than the RALH/RAUH weirdness which is nothing more than a result of fan speculation based on something that only existed for 30 years in a single real life military of a single real world nation.
yeah, it's better than whole thing with RALH/RAUH
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Stop worrying about what everyone else is. Realize that everyone else is the ONLY person that has saved the Azura crew, defeted the new doomsday machine, saved LT Paris, and so on and so on...
Everyone goes thru the exact same story and is the hero of that story so they and you get to rise thru the ranks and get rewards and praise.
This isn't a simulated Starfleet where everyone is Lt. Schmoe on picket patrol in some dull safe place, where all the big cool stuff to do was done by KirkPicardJanewaySiskoArcher. Everyone is KirkPicardJanewaySiskoArcher here, just play and enjoy yourself.
dude, you don't GET it.. this is about Ranks, not me! and i'm guy that never worry about anything. do i SEEM worried to you? hell no i'm not.
no i don't and DROP the this talk of play the game, i'm playing still jeez
http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=193759
Not worried?
Ranks work fine for me here, I could care less about a cut and Paste from a wiki.
You realize you've just pretty much insulted every NCO that plays STO, right? But in the spirit of Xmas, I'm not gonna beef about it tonight. Especially in this silly TRIBBLE thread.
Uh.
tl;dr version: Rehashing debate we had in Beta about ranks.
The segmentation between officers and NCO's is silly. NCO's are officers, too, just without a formal commission - a piece of paper confirming them to do what they do anyways. Heck, some nations go so far as to call them sub-officers.
NCO's are separated from CO's because of one thing and one thing only: tradition. And it's a bad one. Starfleet would be better off without it.
Just another relic from the time when all officers were nobles. Well, we no longer live in the shackles of feudalism, so why defend a class system where people should be equal?