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This article outlines the main responsibilities generally associated with each of the major ship positions. Please note that this is a general guide only and that each Commanding Officer has the right to distribute duties as they see fit.

Written by: Commodore Shaun Marlin

Captain

The Captain is ultimately responsible for the ship and the safety of all onboard. The captain is also accountable for the actions of the ship, including the actions of all crew under the captain's command, and is responsible for the any and all results that occur because of these actions.

The Captain must ensure that the ship and its crew adhere to Starfleet regulations at all time. The Captain has ultimate command of the ship and all crew onboard are answerable to him/her

Notes: The Captain can override any orders entered into the computer by any officer on the bridge, using the command computer terminal on the command chair. When any other officer is in command of the bridge this function is unavailable.

First/Executive Officer

It is the responsibility of the First, or Executive, Officer to ensure that the ship is functioning correctly and that all departments are running smoothly. It is also his/her job to collect reports from the department heads upon the Captain's request; furthermore, he/she must orientate new members to departments which lack Department Heads. The First Officer is 'the conduit between the crew and the captain'.

The XO has the authority to give orders to anyone on the ship, except for the captain. He/she is responsible for delegating work schedules and seeing that all maintenance schedules are kept. The XO develops and organises the duty roster and ensures that it is adhered to.

The XO is also responsible for crew evaluations/appraisals and general crew disciplining. Serious circumstances are referred to the Captain. The First officer must keep the Captain appraised on all crew-related events. He/she may also make promotion recommendations to the Captain

Excepting extenuating circumstances, the First officer also leads away teams. The First Officer is also responsible for the safety of the captain at all times.

Duty Officer

Main Responsibility: To man any major bridge station that has been vacated (eg for an away mission)

Other Responsibilities: To assist short-staffed departments.

Notes: The Duty Officer is trained in basic helm and COM/OPS work, and can also do some basic engineering. He/she also has focused training in Tactical/Security. Usually the Duty Officer is also specialised in one field.

Second Officer: The Second Officer is third in command of the vessel. He/she may also be required to authorise some commands eg Self-destruct requires the consent of the Captain, First Officer and Second Officer.

Tactical Officer

Main Responsibility: Defensive and Offensive systems, internal and external.

Other Responsibilities: Armoury inventories, detailed directives, defensive shields, phaser banks, and photon torpedoes

The Tactical Officer manipulates the external sensors (on all ranges) to evaluate any potential external threats to the ship and must keep the Commanding Officer (CO) appraised of any or all dangers found. He/she is responsible for making sure that all tactical systems are ready for use at any time, should they be required. The Tactical Officer is also responsible for operating any or all defensive or offensive systems (shields, phasers, torpedoes etc) as ordered by the CO.

The Tactical Officer provides the CO with data on the surrounding area including vessels, anomalies etc. This data is gathered from the sensor arrays.

Notes: This position usually lacks a seat, making it a stand-up position, forcing the crewmember to be alert at all times.

Security Officer

Main Responsibility: Monitoring the internal safety of ship, working to keep out intruders or turnabout crewmembers.

Other Responsibilities: The transporters, shuttle bays, cargo bays, security away teams, and armoury inventories.

The Security Officer is responsible for the security of the ship and all persons aboard. At least one Security Officer should accompany all away teams.

The Security Officer monitors the internal status of the ship using internal sensors, and is ready to deal with any emergencies as they arise. The Security Officer must also keep the CO apprised of any such events.

Chief of Security: The Chief of Security must carry out all of the above duties, but has further duties to perform. He/she must also co-ordinate the security teams on the vessel to deal with crises with maximum efficiency and to give the vessel maximum security coverage.

The Chief of Security is also responsible for providing the First Officer with regular departmental reports and updates, as well as ensuring that duty rosters are conformed to.

Notes: The Security station has two separate modes of security. The first, is the lower tier of the panel, watching over the basic, low-level security of the crew, the next, is the upper tier of the panel, which is activated during diplomatic and cultural missions. This tier is automatically activated to provide security for ambassadorial personnel or other important visitors but can be altered by the CSO to provide more or different security measures. An even higher level security can be activated when sabotage or terrorist actions are predicted.

Helm, Communications and Operations Officer

Main Responsibilities: Piloting and navigation of the vessel, scheduling of all major resources between departments eg Deflector dish, reserving of holodecks etc, co-ordination of away missions, monitoring of the ships communications

Other Responsibilities: Navigation references/course plotting, supervision of automatic flight operations, manual flight operations, position verification, and bridge liaison to engineering department. Sending and receiving distress signals, locating important people on or off the ship, sending and receiving: Ship to ground, ship to ship, and ship to StarBase communications.

The HCO Officer is responsible for all flight control operations of the ship. He/she is also responsible for co-ordinating ship activities in such a manner so as not to overload or oversubscribe any particular system/resource. The HCO Officer also monitors the away team(s) status when not onboard the ship. The HCO Officer also handles all communications both to and from the ship.

Notes: Even though most of the functions in flight are automated, a human officer is needed to oversee these operations and sometimes, make changes. During impulse powered flight, the HCO Officer is responsible for monitoring inertial dampening systems and relativistic effects. In the event of overload in a specific flight operation, the computer will request a change in the manoeuvre. The HCO Officer must then bring the plans into the inertial dampening perimeters for safety. During alert situations the HCO Officer is permitted to specify manoeuvres that are possibly dangerous to the crew of spacecraft.

Science Officer

Main Responsibility: Providing and recording mission related data on anomalies, alien races etc, stellar mapping.

Other Responsibilities: Observation projects, planetary surveys, interstellar medium studies, cultural and life form studies

The Science Officer gives the crew background knowledge on any missions that they are about to begin. This knowledge is essential especially when dealing with races, which normally have little contact with the Federation. One tragic example was first contact with the Klingon Empire, where some background knowledge could have prevented decades of war and the loss of millions of lives. This example proves that this background knowledge must be accurate and contain all relevant information.

The Science Officer is responsible for searching Starfleet archives for information pertinent to current events. He/she provides the crew with relevant information on any encountered anomalies, unknown vessels or races etc.

Away teams always contain at least one Science Officer as standard.

Engineering Officer

Main Responsibility: The overseeing and monitoring of the physical aspects of the ship, repairing any damaged or defective systems, adapting systems for specific missions/circumstances.

Other Responsibilities: Ensuring peak performance from all systems, maintenance work, system upgrades

Engineering Officers are basically responsible for the physical welfare of the ship. They ensure that all systems are working within carefully defined parameters and that any systems that are not operating within tolerances are repaired. They also carry out standard maintenance and upgrade work.

The Engineering Officer must be particularly versatile in times of crisis when emergency repairs/upgrades/alterations could be the difference between life and death for the entire crew.

Chief Engineering Officer: The CEO co-ordinates the efficient running of the Engineering department and is responsible for the activities of the personnel therein. It is the CEO's job to ensure that the engineering personnel are organised to ensure maximum productivity.

Medical Officer

Main Responsibility: The physical well being and health of the crew and civilians on board

Other Responsibilities: Primarily low-level sickness care. In crisis situations, this quickly changes and expands anywhere from low-level injury care to high-level surgery.

Chief Medical Officer: The CMO co-ordinates the efficient running of the Medical department and is responsible for the activities of the personnel therein. It is the CMO's job to ensure that the medical personnel are organised to ensure maximum productivity and also provide maximum medical and emergency response cover for the ship.

Counsellor

Main Responsibility: Maintaining the mental well being of the crew and civilians on board

Other Responsibilities: Advising the captain or commanding officer on any matters which may effect the mental stability or well being of the crew or civilians on board

The Counsellor is responsible for the mental health of the crew. He/she will provide counselling to all persons aboard the ship, and will also give special guidance and insight to the Captain, by providing the Captain with psychological profiles and opinions.

Notes: This position is very often filled by a telepath.