Things that would surely get you court martialled.

[Oddish]

Probably Janeway in Scientific Method going for that pulsar trajectory on which Tuvok gave her <10% survival odds (IIRC). Even though there were extenuating factors.

I think I had her face a tribunal for that in some fanfiction or other (not only did she risk her own ship, but she caused the destruction of an alien vessel and the death of 30 or so crew). The judgment was that she was acquitted, due to extreme mental incapacity.

She also faced severe questions about Tuvix, but was not charged because there were no precedents for the rights of fused beings, or whether splitting them was actually murder.

 

[Morpheus 02]

We only know he attempted genocide, we have no indication he tried to invoke General Order 24 to do so. Indeed, given how Starfleet seems to work, if he had invoked General Order 24 they'd have probably let him off the hook.

The difference is the US Navy considers running a ship aground to be a no-no, whereas Starfleet regulations have set aside circumstances in which a Captain can sterilize a planet. A Captain would likely face an inquiry after carrying out a GO24, but a court martial would likely only come if that inquiry proved the Captain was wrong to carry out that GO24.

Then again, Starfleet does apparently automatically court martial a Captain for losing a ship even though that should have an inquiry before an actual court martial.

Is General Order 24 a "real" thing or a bluff luke the Corobimite Manuever?

 

[BillJ]

Is General Order 24 a "real" thing or a bluff luke the Corobimite Manuever?

Sure didn't look like a bluff in the episode. But, modern Trek fans don't like the Federation to openly have contingencies like this, so many people call it a bluff.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

^ I happen to be one of those people.

I absolutely cannot see any circumstances under which Starfleet would ever attempt to destroy an entire planetary surface, or even be authorized to do so. They simply don't DO things like that. Even Section 31 wouldn't go that route.

It was totally a bluff, and no one will ever convince me otherwise.

 

[BillJ]

They simply don't DO things like that.

They simply don't do a lot of things, until they do. They run around in flying weapons of mass destruction. They have hand weapons that can, literally, vaporize people, and are weapons of mass destruction, in their own right.

"We killed thousands, and they still came."

 

[fireproof78]

Is General Order 24 a "real" thing or a bluff luke the Corobimite Manuever?

Real thing.

 

[Shawnster]

Is General Order 24 a "real" thing or a bluff luke the Corobimite Manuever?

Corbomite Maneuver was a bluff. Kirk clearly made it up on the spot. Context of the scene makes it clear this is a bluff.

For General Order 24 to be a bluff would require advanced preparation and coordination with other Enterprise personnel. From a story standpoint there is no basis to believe it is a buff. No advance coordination is depicted beforehand and no reference afterward was made to indicate this was a ruse. In contrast, in Whom God's Destroy we see the implementation of a code-phrase that required advanced coordination. While there were no supporting scenes beforehand establishing the code, the subsequent scenes clarify for the audience the particulars behind the code.

From a story structure standpoint the ruse needs to be established either before or after Kirk gives the order. Sulu's and Scotty's expression, tone, and mannerisms indicate they took the order seriously. Kirk's speech to Anan 7 that "we can admit we are killers, but we're not going to kill today" loses the narrative emotional impact if the order was just a bluff.

tl:dr Context of the episode establishes General Order 24 was legitimate and not a bluff.

 

[BK613]

A ruse would not require Kirk to cancel it after Anon-7 and Fox have left to talk to Vendikar. But that's the first thing he does when calls the ship at the end.

Edit to add:
From Operation-Annihilate:

Captain's log, stardate 3289.8. I am faced with the most difficult decision of my life. Unless we find a way to destroy the creatures without killing their human hosts, my command responsibilities will force me to kill over a million people.​

 

[Citiprime]

Even though it’s never explicitly mentioned, I would guess that Sisko’s actions in “For the Uniform” were covered by General Order 24, since when he explains why he’s poisoning the Maquis planets to Eddington, he uses the justification that enables the use of planetary destruction within General Order 24 (i.e., a threat to the security of the Federation).

SISKO: When you attacked the Malinche you proved one thing, that the Maquis have become an intolerable threat to the security of the Federation, and I intend to eliminate that threat.​

It is a scary amount of power to leave at a captain’s discretion. If a US Navy captain decided on his own volition to respond to a terrorist group by nerve gassing them out of their bases, I’m guessing there would be some debate over whether it was the right course of action and whether the US military should have that authority.

EDITED TO ADD: I’ve seen some Warhammer 40K fans giggle at the fact that Trek canon has Starfleet with the equivalent of an “Exterminatus Order.”

 

[fireproof78]

General Ordee 24 definitely is reminiscent of one of the four heroes of the Solar Patrol in Space Cadet.