Ranks

 
       Starfleet, while claiming to not a be a military organization does require discipline similar if not identical to a military organization. As a result of this ranks are used to determine a person's place within the discipline. Starfleet being a real meritocary one can usually depend on rank also defining the person's competence to have the rank.

       The ranks used in Epiphany Trek after 2310 follow.

Enlisted ranks (E-0 to E-7)

       All Starfleet personnel are highly trained. Enlisted crewman no less than the officers. Enlisted rank simply indicates the crewman does not wish to pursue a career in Starfleet or to endure the competitive nature of the Academy. As every Technician in the fleet is a specialist no specialist grades exist.

Recruit: Introductory rank for enlistees in Starfleet. Below everyone.
Ranking: E-0 No indicators
Addressed as: "Recruit", introduced as "Mister".
Fleet Role: A position in the rank structure for those that know nothing as of yet.

Technician: Trained personnel, Lowest enlisted rank.
Ranking: E-1 No indicators
Addressed as: Mister, introduced as "Mister"
Fleet Role: Ending the period of "formal" training and starting the "on the job" training. Technicians serve as the majority of the forces in Starfleet both on base and on ships.

Rankthing Technician, First Class: Personnel considered to be experienced in service. The second lowest enlisted rank.
Ranking: E-2 A silver chevron worn on the collar.
Addressed as: "Mister", introduced as "Mister"
Fleet Role: Promotion and pay grade after the first year of service. Some Recruits that show particular promise are graduated at this rank. Technicians First Class are considered fully competent both in their profession and in matters Starfleet.

RankthingTechnician, Expert:An experienced enlisted personnel. Ranks above other Enlisted ranks but below all NCO ranks. Highest ranking Enlisted rank.
Ranking: E-3 Two silver chevrons worn on the collar.
Addressed as: "Mister" Introduced as: "Mister"
Fleet Role: Senior enlisted personnel. Indicates a Technician of experience and/or above normal competence in their field.

RankthingPetty Officer, Third Class: Enlisted personnel with a minimum of one tour. This the lowest non commissioned officer rank. They rank above all Technicians, and below everyone else.
Ranking: E-4 Three silver chevrons worn on the collar.
Addressed as: "Mister" Introduced as: "Petty Officer".
Fleet Role: Senior enlisted personnel.

RankthingPetty Officer, Second Class: Enlisted personnel with a minimum of one tour and a year in grade as a Petty Officer Third Class.
Ranking: E-5 Three silver chevrons and a straight bar worn on the collar.
Addressed as: "Mister" Introduced as: "Petty Officer".
Fleet Role: Experienced Non commissioned officers. Second class Petty officers fill many staff positions.

RankthingPetty Officer, First Class: Enlisted personnel with a minimum of two tours of duty.
Ranking: E-6 Three silver chevrons and two straight bars worn on the collar.
Addressed as: "Mister" Introduced as: "Petty Officer".
Fleet Role: Experienced experts in their field. Small ships (under 5000 tons) may have their entire officer complement except for the CO consist of Petty Officer's, First Class.

RankthingChief Petty Officer: Enlisted personnel with a minimum of three tours of duty. Top enlisted rank.
Ranking: E-7 Three silver chevrons and three straight bars worn on the collar.
Addressed as: "Chief" Introduced as: "Chief Petty Officer"
Fleet Role: Leaders of non commissioned officers. Examples to look up to. A Chief must have at least 15 years in the fleet, and frequently has more. Meeting the minimum standards is not enough to make Chief under most circumstances.

       

Officer Ranks (O-0 to O-13)

       The Officers are the heart and soul of the Fleet. Each is highly trained and motivated to the task to which they have sworn themselves. Officer can be divided into three groups.
       Junior officers, the bulk of the corp.
       Line officers, upon whom the majority of command decisions rest, and
       Flag officers who set and often enforce policy within the Fleet.

Cadet: Officer Trainee. Ranks over all Technicians, but under Petty officers unless serving as active duty officers. Cadets in the chain of command are referred to as "Acting Ensign", and rank above petty officers.
Ranking: O-0 Cadets wear an identifying uniform, and gold chevrons to indicate their relative rank within the Academy structure. Cadet rank is meaningless outside of the Academy structure. If serving on a ship in normal service cadets wear the standard uniform with one hollow gold pip.
Addressed as: "Mister" Introduced as: "Cadet"
Fleet Role: Position for officer trainees.

RankthingEnsign: Lowest ranking full commissioned officer position. Out ranks all enlisted personnel, is outranked by everyone else.
Ranking: O-1 Ensigns wear a single solid gold pip on the collar.
Addressed as: "Ensign" Introduced as: "Ensign"
Fleet Role: A place for an officer's on the job training to begin. The "wet behind the ears, over eager Ensign" is a standing joke that has real incidents to back it.

RankthingLieutenant, Junior Grade: An admission that you have what it takes to cut it.
Ranking: O-2 Lieutenant jg wears a solid gold pip and a hollow gold pip on the collar.
Addressed as: "Lieutenant" Introduced as: "Lieutenant JG"
Fleet Role: Rank and pay grade for officers with a minimum of two years duty. Promotion is more often given at the end of a tour of duty. Cadets going straight into Command School will be graduated at this rank. Lieutenants jg and full Lieutenants form the core of the Starfleet officer corp and account for over 80% of all officers in Starfleet.

RankthingLieutenant: Highest ranked non "line" officer.
Ranking: O-3 Lieutenants wear two solid gold pips on the collar.
Addressed as: "Lieutenant" Introduced as: "Lieutenant"
Fleet Role: Rank and pay grade for Lieutenants with at least two years in grade as a Lieutenant jg. It is most often awarded at the end of a tour of duty. Lieutenants form the bulk of Starfleet officers. Many Starfleet officers will never rise above this rank and are considered no less for it. They prefer to concentrate on the task and not command.
Senior Lieutenants will sometimes command ships of under 10,000 tons.

RankthingLieutenant Commander: First of the "line" ranks. Officers trained in command.
Ranking: O-4 Lieutenant Commanders wear two solid gold pips and a hollow gold pip on the collar.
Addressed as: "Commander" Introduced as: "Lieutenant Commander"
Fleet Role: Lieutenant Commander is considered the minimum rank to command any ship over 10,000 tons to 30,000. This rank is also typically awarded to department heads on ships over 50,000 tons. It is the highest rank anyone can achieve without command training, or medical specialty.

RankthingCommander: Senior officer trained in command.
Ranking: O-5 Commanders wear three solid gold pips on the collar.
Addressed as: "Commander" Introduced as: "Commander"
Fleet Role: This rank is never awarded automatically. "Commander" is the required rank to command ships over 30,000 tons, or support vessels of greater tonnage, and is usually the rank of first officers of ships over 50,000 tons. It is also the primary staff rank for the aide-de-camp of Admirals.

RankthingCaptain: This rank is considered the pinnacle for most officers in conjunction with command of a ship.
Ranking: O-6 Captains wear four solid gold pips on the collar.
Addressed as: "Captain" Introduced as: "Captain"
Fleet Role: Primary ship command for vessels over 50,000 tons. Minor base commanders. A captain in command of a vessel outranks anyone else on the vessel except a Commodore or an Admiral. Even senior Captains cannot over rule him.

RankthingFleet Captain: Merit badge for long or luminous service. A Fleet Captain will outrank any Captain, but not a Commodore.
Ranking: O-7 Fleet Captains wear four solid gold pips and a hollow one on the collar.
Addressed as: "Captain", introduced as "Fleet Captain"
Fleet Role: Reward for long or meritorious service. Fleet Captains are in command of single ships as a rule. Fleet Captains commanding bases would only be doing so due to some disablement that makes then unfit for starship duty, but leaves them fit enough for base command.
Historical Note: "Fleet Captain" was the rank given the Captain of the Flagship in a fleet in the days of wood and sail navies. It was a position of patronage for the Admiral of said fleet as he could pick his own Captain under most circumstances. Most Admirals would want the Captain with the greatest experience possible as commanding officer of their Flagship.

RankthingCommodore: Brevet rank for Captains commanding other Captains. It is seldom used as a permanent rank unless in times of war. A Commodore will outrank any Captain or Fleet Captain, they are outranked by any Admiral.
Ranking: O-8 A Commodore wears five solid pips on the collar.
Addressed as: "Commodore", introduced as "Commodore".
Fleet Role: Making clear the chain of command in a fleet situation. You will never see a Commodore when an Admiral is present unless the fleet is divided into sub-fleets, and the over all command is under a Rear Admiral. "Commodore" is a rank willingly shed by Captains in active duty. Commodore is also the rank of a Captain in command of a base that must give orders to Captains. In Epiphany Trek Sisko would have been addressed as "Commodore" during the war. A permanent rank of Commodore is rare. In times of war when more fleet commanders are needed than are available, and the desire not to swell the flag ranks exists Commodores will spring up. Such officers might retain the rank after the crisis, but are treated as very senior Fleet Captains, and within a reasonable time will get kicked to Rear Admiral. Commodore is also used as term of respect for Captains, dead heading on another's ship. Or for retired Captains traveling on Starfleet ships. In these cases the "rank" confers no command authority.
Historical Note: This is consistent with usage for the rank throughout Earth history. It is rare or absent in times of peace, and used during times of crisis or war.

RankthingRear Admiral: Bottom rung of the "flag ranks".
Ranking: O-9 A Rear Admiral wears one solid gold pip encased in a gold box on the collar.
Addressed as: "Admiral", introduced as "Rear Admiral".
Fleet Role: command of large stations or starbases and small standing fleets. Rear Admirals are often the vice department heads of Starfleet command.

RankthingVice Admiral:
Ranking: O-10 A Vice Admiral wears two solid gold pips encased in a gold box on the collar.
Addressed as: "Admiral", introduced as "Vice Admiral".
Fleet Role: Command of major bases, sub-sector command, senior staff positions at Starfleet command.

RankthingAdmiral:
Ranking: O-11 An Admiral wears three solid gold pips encased in a gold box on the collar.
Addressed as: "Admiral", introduced as "Admiral".
Fleet Role: Command of major sectors, Department heads at Starfleet command.

RankthingFleet Admiral: Highest normal military rank in Starfleet.
Ranking: O-12 A Fleet Admiral wears four solid gold pips encased in a gold box on the collar.
Addressed as: "Admiral", introduced as "Fleet Admiral".
Fleet Role: Head of Starfleet divisions. Galaxy Exploration command, Military Command, Colony Command etc.. Only one Fleet Admiral per division will exist at any given time, and they with the General of the Marines form Starfleet Command Staff. The head of this body is the President of the Federation, and is represented by the Secretary of Starfleet. The most senior member of this group is called the Chief of Staff, and is the most senior Starfleet liaison with the Federation President and Federation Council.

RankthingAdmiral of Starfleet: Only seen during prolonged crisis. The promotion must be approved by the Federation Council.
Ranking: O-13 Admiral of Starfleet would wear five pips in a box, if one existed. The last officer to hold this rank was Admiral Richard Barnard during the Romulan War. His insignia was five stars in line worn on the front of the right shoulder.
Addressed as: "Admiral" Introduced as: "Admiral of Starfleet"
Fleet Role: Immediate decisions as required during prolonged war. An Admiral of Starfleet steps in and takes direct control of all Starfleet resources and allocates without advising civilian authority. The Admiral of Starfleet is appointed by the President of the Federation, and approved by the Federation Council. The Federation President can replace or demote this person without approve of the Council. Replacement does require Council approval.

 
 
 

All written material Copyright Garry Stahl, 2002

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