SKIPPER RED...

[MikeKozlowski]

SKIPPER RED
By Mike Kozlowski

The warble of the communicator wasn’t loud at all; but in the darkened room it sounded like an explosion, and explosions tend to awaken one quickly. Almost thirty years of reflexes had Admiral Harold Hutchinson awakened very, very quickly as he rolled to his right and snatched up the comm.

Nothing good ever happens in the middle of the night, he thought almost subconsciously.

“Hutchinson.”

“Sir, this is Commander Diedrich at the night desk. I’m sorry to wake you, but we have a SKIPPER RED.”

Aw, hell. “Give me a second.” Hutchinson sat up, swinging his legs out of bed onto the floor. He shook his head briefly to clear it, then instinctively looked over his shoulder to make sure his wife was still asleep. “Okay, go. What ship?”

“Patton.”

Cripes. Hutchinson honestly thought for a moment that Patton, the last of the legendary old CLs, had been retired years ago. Well, obviously not; her skipper was dead.

“Any idea what happened?” Dumb question, Hutch. Probably wouldn’t be much for a few hours, maybe more. But there’s things you ask, things you have to try and know as soon as possible so you can do what you have to do to straighten things out. Might not do you much good, occasionally does some harm, but there’s a routine, and by God and Zefrem Cochrane you’re going to follow it.

Diedrich replied, “No, sir. Ops sent it down just a minute ago, I would assume they’re getting the details.”

Hutchinson looked at the chrono. 0258, Pacific Standard Time. Not quite zero dark thirty, but close enough. “Okay,Commander, thanks for the heads up. Have the night watch open up my office; I’m on my way.”

“Aye aye, sir.” Beep.


The hover ride in was smooth, as befitted a proper (O-8 and up) staff car as it wound its way through the leafy, neatly trimmed streets of New Starfleet and then cruised effortlessly up a hill to reveal the Golden Gate and San Francisco Bay, aglow in orange paint and sodium photonic lights with just a hint of fog creating haloes around every single point of light. The view, at least, never got old. As the hover cruised gently onwards, Hutchinson had a moment to lean back, rubbing his eyes and the bridge of his nose. Wasn’t getting any easier, he thought. Fortunately, there would be good StarFleet coffee waiting for him when he got in, and that could cure a multitude of sins.

The hover rolled up onto the 101, headed for the warmly lit tubes of the Golden Gate Bridge. HQ StarFleet, glowing a silver/blue, was visible now, more than a few lights on inside. No surprise there, a ship of the line had lost her commanding officer. Accident? Incompetence? First warning of a war? Or that great catch-all, “the dangers of deep space”? A great many people were now awake trying to get the answers, because when FADM Smillie came in at 0730 sharp - one did not wake up the CINC for anything less than a shooting war, something a few watch officers had learned to their dismay - he was going to want them and woe betide the poor dumb SOB who couldn’t provide them.

One could make some reasonable assumptions, however. War was unlikely in this case - Patton was assigned to the Orion Frontier, and even as old as she was…my God, a century and change…there was nothing even the most homicidal of the pirate clans could throw at her that she couldn’t at least hold off. Not to say somebody couldn’t try, but that would be crossing a very bright red line for the Orions. Criminal pirates, smugglers and slavers, yes - idiots, no. Some weird…thing, coming out of nowhere that decided Patton was an enemy or an unusually large snack? Always possible, but StarFleet had been out there for a hundred years, and the old UE fleets for decades before that, so unlikely. Besides, although it was never discussed except in SCIFs, the Orions and StarFleet had a perfectly good process for notifying one another of various anomalies and incidents there. Nobody wanted some awful green thing from outer space or cosmic storm to run around out there and cause an incident that could spark a wider conflict.

That left accident or incompetence. Patton wasn’t just a museum piece, she should have been a museum. Things broke and killed people on brand new ships all the time, something going sideways on a century old ship that had Romulan Warbird kills from before she got her warp engines wouldn’t have surprised anyone.

Incompetence.

Hutchinson sighed to himself as the hover took the HQSF exit on the north end of the bridge and glided effortlessly towards the brightly lit main gate. It slowed automatically as a nearly-invisible green scan waved up and then down over the car. The MP at the gate shack, his phaser rifle shouldered, looked up at the scanner screen to see that all was well, and then snapped to attention, sending a perfect salute to Hutchinson.

Hutchinson almost absent-mindedly returned it, still focusing on whatever had caused this mess. Within living memory, SKIPPER REDs were a pretty regular event, and back in the day it often meant that not only was a Captain gone or incapacitated beyond hope, but a fair number of his crew were accompanying them to Valhalla.

Whether they wanted to or not. Someone who didn’t know how things worked would often drop their jaws to the floor when they found out how many COs lost their lives, crews, and sometimes their ships, to what could only be explained as remarkably bad decisions. As a percentage, it wasn’t actually that bad - but when you remembered StarFleet’s insistence that only the best of the best of the best got a crack at the Big Chair, it could be pretty thought provoking.

Eventually, procedure evolved so that a SKIPPER RED was considered equal to the loss of a ship ensuring that the matter would be examined and fixed, and PDQ at that, and clearly that was going on now, with hovers gliding into the ramp for the parking area beneath SFHQ. Fortunately though, Hutchinson wasn’t headed for that madhouse. StarFleet Bureau of Personnel was a few hundred meters further down the road and it looked remarkably quiet - just a few hovers in the lot, the lobby lights on, and a single corner office five stories up and pointing towards the Golden Gate marked his destination.

To Be Continued…..

[jemhouston]

The best of the best live right next to the coffin corner.

[Johnnie Lyle]

It’s baaaaaaack!

[jemhouston]

Did something dangerous, I thought.

Source https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questio ... n-all-of-s

During TOS

The following ships were destroyed or badly damaged.

USS Constellation (TOS: The Doomsday Machine) destroyed

USS Defiant (Destroyed in TOS: The Tholian Web) missing / destroyed

USS Exeter (Appears in TOS: The Omega Glory) crew killed, not sure if StarFleet could decontaminate it. Captain went nuts

USS Farragut (Destroyed in TOS: Obsession) I remember it not being destroyed, just badly damage / captain killed. Also, not sure it was a Constitution class

USS Intrepid (Appears in TOS: Court Martial + The Immunity Syndrome) destroyed

USS Lexington (Appears in TOS: The Ultimate Computer) crew killed / badly damage. Not sure if StarFleet could rebuild her.

[Johnnie Lyle]

Did something dangerous, I thought.

Source https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questio ... n-all-of-s

During TOS

The following ships were destroyed or badly damaged.

USS Constellation (TOS: The Doomsday Machine) destroyed

USS Defiant (Destroyed in TOS: The Tholian Web) missing / destroyed

USS Exeter (Appears in TOS: The Omega Glory) crew killed, not sure if StarFleet could decontaminate it. Captain went nuts

USS Farragut (Destroyed in TOS: Obsession) I remember it not being destroyed, just badly damage / captain killed. Also, not sure it was a Constitution class

USS Intrepid (Appears in TOS: Court Martial + The Immunity Syndrome) destroyed

USS Lexington (Appears in TOS: The Ultimate Computer) crew killed / badly damage. Not sure if StarFleet could rebuild her.

The EXCALIBER, not LEXINGTON, was severely damaged in the M5 incident. LEXINGTON was hit, but still combat effective, as we saw Commodore Wesley maneuvering the cruiser division to deal with ENTERPRISE.

FARRAGUT is a proto-MIRANDA, since we see her at Starbase 1 in the prime universe in Strange New Worlds.

[jemhouston]

Thanks for the correction. Have not watched any of the Paramount Plus shows, although Lower Decks sounded like fun.

[MikeKozlowski]

Thanks for the correction. Have not watched any of the Paramount Plus shows, although Lower Decks sounded like fun.

Jem,

Lower Decks is delightful insanity, although it could occasionally veer off into Seth McFarland territory. SNW is wonderful Trek, and in many ways pretty close to the MikeyVerse.

Discovery though....probably best described as very uneven. Some wonderful moments, and the supporting cast was superb. But the lead started off as one of the most badass characters Trek ever created and then did a bootlegger reverse into the ultimate Mary Sue. Then the whole show jumped the Great Galactic Shark, and at that point it was unrecoverable.

Mike

[jemhouston]

To be honest, Enterprise killed my love of Star Trek. The Kelvin Timeline movies, the first couldn't quite suspend my disbelief enough, the second using Khan was lazy, enjoyed parts of three.

If they had shown Kirk growing into be the Captain in three movies under Pike, I think would have been a better series.

[Poohbah]

Oh, this looks good...

[MikeKozlowski]

....Quick update:

Diedrich stood as Hutchinson entered the lobby, speaking a firm, “Good Morning, Sir. Your office is opened up and coffee’s on. I’ve taken the liberty of calling in the support staff; they’ll be here shortly. Would you like some breakfast? I can send a runner down to the chow hall if you’d like.”

Hutchinson smiled tightly and shook his head. “If I eat now, I’m going to have heartburn for the rest of the day. Any updates?”

Diedrich leaned over and tapped his screen. “Nothing substantial, Sir. Patton has been diverted to Base Station 115, she’ll be there in a few hours, no word on damage or other casualties. Other than that, no information on the circumstances.”

“Got it. Thanks for the good work this morning, it’s appreciated.”

“Thank you, Sir. Call if you need anything.”

Hutchinson strode to the turbolift bank, one of the pods obediently whooshing open. Stepping in, he turned to the doors and said, “Fifth deck.”

Hutchinson’s knees had barely rebounded from the lift before the deceleration pushed him back down and the doors opened. It was just a short walk from there to the heavy old-fashioned door at the end of the hall, with the plaque:

STARFLEET COMMAND
BUREAU OF PERSONNEL

CA/CB/CE/CL
VADM HAROLD HUTCHINSON

Had to admit, he thought, that always reminds you why you’re here. The reception office was dimly lit, but a quick push on his door opened into a spacious, well lit office looking out over Old StarFleet and the Golden Gate. That was always the first thing you really noticed, especially that first hour or two on Crissy Field as the deranged upperclassmen and the frankly terrifying SFMC drills introduced you to the Academy. Focus on something, don’t look around, and stay calm. That’s probably why so many people from all over the galaxy saw that bridge and thought of home.

Hutchinson sat down and activated his computer just in time to see a message pop up:

FROM COMMANDER BUPERS
TO VADM HUTCHINSON

THE MAN’S BEEN NOTIFIED HE WANTS EVERYBODY UP AND RUNNING AT 0500 YOU READY

Hutchinson nodded and looked at the desk chrono. 0345,

AYE AYE SIR WONT EVEN BE CLOSE

Pause.

PRESS ON

“Computer, bring me the master CL candidate list.”

“Stand by.” The file popped up, and Hutchinson picked up his heavy, handless coffee mug, a souvenir of his first shipboard assignment a lifetime ago. It was hot, the coffee was strong and through it he could handle anything.

To Be Continued….

Mike

[jemhouston]

Depending on how many will need to be replaced is the kicker. Not to mention, who is picked as the successor (don't want to think of it as replacement) will have ideas on who is needed.

Had another thought, are some assignments more likely to need a new captain? If so, I wonder if there a short list for each ship.

[Johnnie Lyle]

Hutchinson strode to the turbolift bank, one of the pods obediently whooshing open. Stepping in, he turned to the doors and said, “Fifth deck.”

Shouldn’t that be “Deck 5” or “E Deck,” depending upon whether Starfleet renumbered shore installations in the 2280s? 1701 had lettered decks during the Genesis Incident, whereas 1701-A had shifted to the numbered decks and rearranged nomenclature that we saw in the 2360s and 2370s.

Depending on how many will need to be replaced is the kicker. Not to mention, who is picked as the successor (don't want to think of it as replacement) will have ideas on who is needed.

Had another thought, are some assignments more likely to need a new captain? If so, I wonder if there a short list for each ship.

A lot depends upon how this SKIPPER RED happened, whether other division and/or department heads are dead, and whether it was not in the line of duty, on a landing party or ship to ship combat.

[jemhouston]

Hutchinson strode to the turbolift bank, one of the pods obediently whooshing open. Stepping in, he turned to the doors and said, “Fifth deck.”

Shouldn’t that be “Deck 5” or “E Deck,” depending upon whether Starfleet renumbered shore installations in the 2280s? 1701 had lettered decks during the Genesis Incident, whereas 1701-A had shifted to the numbered decks and rearranged nomenclature that we saw in the 2360s and 2370s.

Depending on how many will need to be replaced is the kicker. Not to mention, who is picked as the successor (don't want to think of it as replacement) will have ideas on who is needed.

Had another thought, are some assignments more likely to need a new captain? If so, I wonder if there a short list for each ship.

A lot depends upon how this SKIPPER RED happened, whether other division and/or department heads are dead, and whether it was not in the line of duty, on a landing party or ship to ship combat.

Best case, the captain keeled over dead of natural causes, worse case, many people dead.

[Poohbah]

"Killed by jealous partner of Green-Skinned Space Babe he was canoodling with."

[Johnnie Lyle]

"Killed by jealous partner of Green-Skinned Space Babe he was canoodling with."

Almost a SKIPPER PINK there.

I was thinking stabbed through the chest by a bunch of Nausicaans while looking for a quiet drink in a non-aligned bar come Frontier Day.

[Poohbah]

At least there isn't a SPINNAKER GOLD message (starship damaged and requiring unscheduled yard availability to repair to minimal spaceworthiness). SPINNAKER BLACK is "starship destroyed, likely with all hands lost," and that's not in play, either.

[Johnnie Lyle]

At least there isn't a SPINNAKER GOLD message (starship damaged and requiring unscheduled yard availability to repair to minimal spaceworthiness). SPINNAKER BLACK is "starship destroyed, likely with all hands lost," and that's not in play, either.

I thought BLACK codes involved JAG?

[Poohbah]

At least there isn't a SPINNAKER GOLD message (starship damaged and requiring unscheduled yard availability to repair to minimal spaceworthiness). SPINNAKER BLACK is "starship destroyed, likely with all hands lost," and that's not in play, either.

I thought BLACK codes involved JAG?

JAG will most certainly be involved, that's for sure.

[Johnnie Lyle]

At least there isn't a SPINNAKER GOLD message (starship damaged and requiring unscheduled yard availability to repair to minimal spaceworthiness). SPINNAKER BLACK is "starship destroyed, likely with all hands lost," and that's not in play, either.

I thought BLACK codes involved JAG?

JAG will most certainly be involved, that's for sure.

Yes. The captain of a lost starship is court martialed, assuming they survived the loss. It’s similar to Royal Navy practice. Though depending upon the circumstances of a SKIPPER RED, there will be initial situation will probably fall under the IG’s jurisdiction first. Or maybe Medical, for a SKIPPER or SPINNAKER GREEN.

However, there will be situations where JAG is involved which doesn’t fall under SPINNAKER RED, where the crew probably survived loss of the ship, SPINNAKER BLACK, where they probably didn’t, and SKIPPER BLUE, where the skipper has been relieved. The most likely one is where they skipper has been incarcerated for other reasons (such as when Kirk was arrested for Gorkon’s assassination), or where a Starfleet ship has been detained or impounded, allegedly salvaged, or finds itself in other legal distress. Said situations require legal counsel be dispatched, but not necessarily to prosecute captain and crew.

[Johnnie Lyle]

Did something dangerous, I thought.

Source https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questio ... n-all-of-s

During TOS

The following ships were destroyed or badly damaged.

USS Constellation (TOS: The Doomsday Machine) destroyed

USS Defiant (Destroyed in TOS: The Tholian Web) missing / destroyed

USS Exeter (Appears in TOS: The Omega Glory) crew killed, not sure if StarFleet could decontaminate it. Captain went nuts

USS Farragut (Destroyed in TOS: Obsession) I remember it not being destroyed, just badly damage / captain killed. Also, not sure it was a Constitution class

USS Intrepid (Appears in TOS: Court Martial + The Immunity Syndrome) destroyed

USS Lexington (Appears in TOS: The Ultimate Computer) crew killed / badly damage. Not sure if StarFleet could rebuild her.

Memory Alpha has a list of Federation starships here, and quite a few more have been lost by the 2290s: https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Fe ... _starships