Away Team Matrix.

[Autistoid]

Alright kind of an odd question, but what are away team members prepared for in general terms.

I mean what events do you think officers get trained for while on away missions.

Assuming that it is a daily routine part of being a starfleet officers job, what do you think there expectations are?

How are they collecting data?

How much time do they spend on survival training?

What deicisions does the leader of a team have to make?

etc etc?

 

[Melakon]

It would depend on the type of away team mission. Some missions might be scientific investigation, others cultural in nature, some would be related to forensics following a disaster, etc. In nearly every case, you'd want some form of security detachment, whether a security specialist or trained ranking officer.

 

[T'Girl]

While the members of a away team would have specialties, you would want people who were also generalists, with a wide ranging knowledge beyond their particular specialties.

People who were observant.
People with weapons training.
People who knew how to comport themselves in diplomatic or official situations.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

I would say that most people do have a specialty but they're also required to have general knowledge in all fields. Like, science officers specialize in science but are also required to have basic combat competency.

 

[Terok Nor]

Red shirts are prepared to die.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Red shirts are prepared to die.

Of course. They're starfleet officers, they do not fear death.

I'd imagine most Starfleet missions, other than during the Dominion War, were far less eventful and dangerous.

 

[MacLeod]

Red shirts are prepared to die.

Admiral 1: The casualty rate is awful amongest Red shirts, however the casualty rate for Gold is fairly good.

Admiral 2: Lets try switching those two colours and see if the survavalbility of red shirts is increased.

 

[Melakon]

Admiral 2: Lets try switching those two colours and see if the survavalbility of red shirts is increased.

I've never seen an explanation for the shift that can be traced to the production staff. The gold always put the focus on Kirk when surrounded by blues and reds.

 

[Nerys Myk]

"Go for the gold"- Old Klingon sniper's saying.

 

[TheGoodStuff]

It always strikes me that Starfleet seems to have no idea what it is doing in regards to its away teams.

1. They happily send most of the senior staff into unknown areas or worse, outright battle zones. Additionally, many times the captain wishes to be 'first on the scene' which is insane. In so many episodes the hero ship could be left entirely without a senior staff if someone lobbed a well placed grenade.

2. They are woefully underequipped. Beaming into a skirmish in a prison? "Suppose we should take a phaser". Planet where dozens have vanished? "Eh, I will see what my tricorder says". Body armour, heavy weapons, grenades...all seem missing. Im not trying to suggest it should be Star Trek online but it can be jarring in some episodes.

I also love when the beam down to a generally inhospitable planet still wearing their cotton jumpsuits with no thought towards temperature/condition specific clothing.

3. Tactics mean absolutely nothing. Huge fire-fight going on? "Lets beam down into the middle of it...then dive behind whatever cover may, or may not be there". So many situations would have been handled much better if [using TNG as an example] Riker had beamed down with a dozen security personnel.

4. Also....away teams seem to be largely arbitrary. Mostly decided by the captain. "Hmm, we have arrived at the planet where 46 ships have vanished so you Will and...Worf...and...*gazes around the bridge*...Geordi you all go...oh and take Troi just incase. Toodles!"

 

[Greg Cox]

Red shirts are prepared to die.

Of course. They're starfleet officers, they do not fear death.

I'd imagine most Starfleet missions, other than during the Dominion War, were far less eventful and dangerous.

Haven't seen TOS recently, eh?

You can beam down to check on a random outpost and end up losing a redshirt before the opening credits . . ..

 

[Nerys Myk]

Red shirts are prepared to die.

Of course. They're starfleet officers, they do not fear death.

I'd imagine most Starfleet missions, other than during the Dominion War, were far less eventful and dangerous.

Haven't seen TOS recently, eh?

You can beam down to check on a random outpost and end up losing a redshirt before the opening credits . . ..

That's just the Enterprise. Damn ship's a trouble magnet.

 

[Melakon]

I suspect on all the ships we don't see, fewer high-ranking officers are beamed down into dangerous situations, and always have a full kit of gear. This is because they have more credits available since they're not paying the crews thousands per week.

 

[Drone]

I also love when the beam down to a generally inhospitable planet still wearing their cotton jumpsuits with no thought towards temperature/condition specific clothing.

Yes, I bet that issue made a lasting impression on Sulu and his contingent after The Enemy Within!


I don't know if one can surmise by what's been actually shown on innumerable away missions on the various series, but does anyone know if there is a certain rank or higher that is required to accompany every mission as the nominal lead personnel?

 

[Melakon]

does anyone know if there is a certain rank or higher that is required to accompany every mission as the nominal lead personnel?

I don't know about required, but first thing that comes to mind is in "Nightingale", when Ensign Kim leads a mission with only civilians Seven and Neelix.

 

[T'Girl]

I also love when the beam down to a generally inhospitable planet still wearing their cotton jumpsuits with no thought towards temperature/condition specific clothing

Christine Chapel was able to beam down to sub-zero temperatures in a mini and stocking and by all appearance was quite toasty, the standard issue clothing seems to handle a wide range of temperatures with ease. In Sulu's case the intent was to beam the party up before it got too bad.

the captain wishes to be 'first on the scene' which is insane

If the Captain was a man in his mid-sixties perhaps. But if the Captain is more than just the bus driver for the actual mission commander, then the Captain as the mission commander should be the one on the scene, doing their job.

This is the way it worked (and worked quite well) in four of the five series.

 

[stardream]

Sometimes it seemed like Eeny, meeny, miny, moe or 'Whose turn is it this time?"

Should the Captain and First Officer be on an away team together?

I also wondered about Tom and The Doctor in Gravity. Who was minding sick bay?

 

[Timo]

Why would a landing party armed with Phaser II pistols be considered lacking in heavy weaponry? They can level cities and remove armies at the push of a trigger! If anything, one should worry about allowing these people to carry such weaponry around.

Generally, the role of a landing party seems simple enough. It's to get the lay of the land, to let the top officers form an opinion, and perhaps to speak to the locals. There's no scientific need: sensors on orbit can already do all that. There's no tactical need: weapons on orbit can already do all that.

So there'd be little point in having a landing party at all if the CO were not part of it. His or her underlings would come back empty-handed as regards anything that might be of value to the CO.

Starfleet sends starships rather than probes so that people could implement policies. Better have the top people rather than the underlings do that!

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Jedman67]

Sometimes it seemed like Eeny, meeny, miny, moe or 'Whose turn is it this time?"

Should the Captain and First Officer be on an away team together?

I also wondered about Tom and The Doctor in Gravity. Who was minding sick bay?

The backup EMH which is never seen

I like to view it as a TV show, not a comprehensive guide to Starfleet in the 24th Century. Budget, shooting time, props, costume prep and just the story in general don't allow for a high level of combat realism (DS9 was best in this regard).
There are dozens of episodes in TNG alone which could have benefited from better choreography and pacing with regards to combat scenes, and borrowing some elements of ENT, where the crew have field jackets for cold weather and portable strap-on armor for the MACOS would have added a nice touch...but the budget wasn't really there.
don't overthink it.

I keep saying this, but i think there is a ring of truth: if you want to see what starfleet should have looked like; read the Honor Harrington novels, which spend a lot of time trying to build a consistent and "realistic" (as much as you can in an FTL future) world-building.