Acceptable Losses.

[T'Girl]

In the episode Cause & Effect, in order to avoid a collision with another ship, Riker came up with the ideal of opening the doors to the main shuttle bay, without a containment force field, and let the escaping atmosphere propel the Enterprise out of the path of the approaching ship.

There didn't seem to be any thought or consideration for crewmembers who might be in the bay at the time. And who likely would have been killed.

The collision would have destroyed the ship, although the bridge crew at the time wouldn't necessarily have known this, given the philosophy of the Star Trek universe, would the deaths of the shuttle bay crew have been "acceptable losses?"

 

[shivkala]

I think there would have been time for crewmembers to evacuate the area. The shuttlebay doors opening usually occurred with a warning klaxon and I'm sure part of the protocol of opening the doors would be to evacuate those in there. I think the protocol in this case is for the doors to open and the atmosphere to be protected by a force field, which would be dropped after the doors are opened.

Besides, if it is a short amount of time needed, then, theoretically, given the events of "Disaster," crew could survive 25 seconds in the vacuum before permanent damage/death is a concern. LaForge and Crusher were able to survive.

 

[Knight Templar]

If you'll watch closely, the atmosphere goes roaring out as soon as the roll top main doors first begin opening so it is doubtful that anyone in the main bay was blown out into space. Pushed against the rising doors perhaps but not blown out.

In all likelihood, as soon as the Enterprise started to move out of the way, Data reactivated the force field and the atmospheric pumps reducing anyones being exposed to zero pressure for much time.

I suspect there were injuries.

Also note, just before the Bozeman appears, the Enterprise suffers a severe power interruption which keeps them from moving out of the way. I would suggest that in cases of severe power interruption, shuttlebay personnel are supposed to vacate the vulnerable, wide open spaces of the bay in case there is a force field failure.

 

[Hartzilla2007]

I never really understood why they didn'y use the shuttle bay blowout the first loop rather than the technobable solution that never worked.

 

[T'Girl]

Could just be because of the possibility I proposed, that crewmembers might died. If Data knew that there were likely people in the bay, on their regular duty assignments, he might have been initially reluctent to depressurize. Only when it was obvious to him that a collision was otherwise unavoidable, did he place the safety of the ship (and all it personel) above the lives of a small number.

 

[Knight Templar]

I never really understood why they didn'y use the shuttle bay blowout the first loop rather than the technobable solution that never worked.

Hardly technobabble. The tractor beam has been around in Star Trek since the beginning and has been used many times. In fact, it was what occurred to me while watching the episode even before Data mentions it.

 

[Kelthaz]

I've never understood why they didn't do both options. If you have the tractor beam pushing the ship away and the shuttle bay blowout to push the ship in the other direction you're increasing your odds of survival.

 

[The Wormhole]

A worse example is Nemesis. There are two guys in the ship's lounge (which is front of the saucer) when Picard rams the Enterprise into the Scimitar. I'm guessing they didn't survive.

Of course, Picard's plan was to set the self-destruct anyway, but things didn't work out that way. Their families had to have been pissed.