nog's promotions

[Timo]

Why would the Bajoran ranks be translated into Earth ranks in such an inconsistent manner? If they are worth translating at all, surely the translation would leave no gaps anywhere. If there "is no Lieutenant Colonel", then the rank above Major would still get translated as Lieutenant Colonel rather than Colonel. And if the Bajoran system is not an exact copy of the Earth system, then there is no point in arguing which ranks are "matches".

We do hear of rank systems that differ from the Earth one. They use alien terminology ("daimon"), or Earth terminology from sources better befitting the alien set (such as "legate"). On occasion, we get words that might be of Earth origin ("subhadar") but probably are not, or words that harken back to Earth systems different from the USN one ("sublieutenant"), but that just goes to show that such terminology strives to be accurate and to account for differences and distinctiveness. Since there is no evidence of such striving in the Bajoran ranks, it's unlikely there would be any differences or distinctiveness, either.

Besides, we already have two different canonical rank pins for Bajorans holding a rank called "Colonel". It seems logical to assume that one is for the rank of Lieutenant Colonel while the other is for the rank of Colonel, both of which would be called Colonel in dialogue.

(And no, there is no Bajoran rank called "Field Colonel" in any DS9 episode. Memory Alpha is completely in error there.)

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Ithekro]

The structure reminds me of the Japanese system were you have two sets of three ranks followed by a set of three flag ranks normally. First, Second, and Third Lieutenants, and First, Second and Third Captains. Followed by Rear, Vice, and Admiral. Then a special Admiral of the Fleet in wartime.

 

[toughlittleship]

(And no, there is no Bajoran rank called "Field Colonel" in any DS9 episode. Memory Alpha is completely in error there.)

Timo Saloniemi

It comes from the script of "The Siege", describing Steven Weber's character.

 

[Timo]

Indeed, but that's simply false. The actual episode features relevant Star Trek terminology. Scripts tend to feature ill thought out and irrelevant Hollywoodspeak*, as here, but thankfully it doesn't make its way to the Star Trek universe itself. Not often, at any rate.

Timo Saloniemi

* Such as defining Okona as "ruggedly handsome", with an "infectious" laughter...

 

[Ithekro]

Nog did get a lot of field experience during the first three to six months of the war before he was promoted to Ensign just prior to the battle to retake Deep Space Nine. Roughly two years later he is promoted again to Lt. jg. Again after a lot of field experience.

In the alternate timeline we see with Jake, Nog gets promoted at a fair rate, making the rank of commander within 15 years of graduating from the academy (by 2389) and was a seasoned captain the last time we see him in 2422.

 

[Timelord79 (he/him)]

Nog did get a lot of field experience during the first three to six months of the war before he was promoted to Ensign just prior to the battle to retake Deep Space Nine. Roughly two years later he is promoted again to Lt. jg. Again after a lot of field experience.

In the alternate timeline we see with Jake, Nog gets promoted at a fair rate, making the rank of commander within 15 years of graduating from the academy (by 2389) and was a seasoned captain the last time we see him in 2422.

And (not canon) was promoted to Captain with his first command shortly before his first appearance in Star Trek Online in 2410. also seems consistant.

 

[wingsabre]

I think Nog was promoted at a fairly fast rate, however he had a lot more experience than the average cadet. He had combat experience, bridge officer experience, and even as a cadet played several pivotal roles due to his hearing ability that gave him a high ranking advisory role even above some ensign or lieutenants. His promotion from cadet to ensign was a battle field commission, so it was an exceptional case. He was also an Ensign for enough of the war to dignify a promotion to lieutenant jr grade after the war was over.

With Sisko and Dax, my opinion is that they both should have been promoted long ago. As commander of a Starbase, it should at least be a Captain if not Admiral. I guess for an abandoned and dilapidated Cardasian starbase in a fairly minor sector in the quadrant, and with the command's task chiefly being to help local Bajorians recover from the occupation, a Commander would be a reasonable post. However, once they found the Wormhole, and the Bajor sector became much more important, Star Fleet should have placed a Captain on command, or promoted Sisko to Captain sooner than they did. Heck, he should have been made a Captain when the Defiant was stationed on DS9. His position as Emissary probably complicated prospects of a replacement. During the Dominion War he was the lead attache for Admiral Ross, and was essentially Fleet Captain. Given his title, he definitely outranked other captains on the front lines.

As for Dax, I doubt outranking Kira would ever be a factor. Look at Enterprise A. There were 3 captains. There was still a clear chain of command, with Kirk being the ship's CO, and Spock being the ship's XO. Scotty was Captain of Engineering, and could hold command of the ship, however if he was in engineering, and Chekov were in command of the bridge while Kirk and Spock were off, Scotty would have to follow orders sent from the bridge. In the end of the day, I think Title exceeds Rank in Star Trek. Look at the case of Lieutenant Commander Dexter Remmick of the Inspector General's office from TNG's Conspiracy, he was clearly in a position where he could issue commands to higher ranking officers outside of the department due to his position in the Inspector General's office. Additionally, Kira was head liaison officer from the Bajorian Militia, and XO on the station. So even if Worf or Dax was promoted to Captain, they would still have to take command from her because of her position on the station. However from what I understand, if either Worf or Dax are in command of the Defiant, and Kira was not, then Kira would have to take command from them because it's a Starfleet ship. However if Sisko puts Kira in command of the Defiant, then she would still outrank Worf and Dax. Dax however should at least be made a full commander during the war when she was made Captain of the Defiant. I guess the most logical reason why ranks were so unclear on the Defiant was because the ship essentially functioned as a powered up Runabout stationed at DS9, and it's role was different from other ships.

 

[kkt]

The Defiant was confusing because it was handled strangely. In a more realistic show, the Defiant would have her own permanent captain and crew. The captain would probably have been a commander or lt. cdr. Worf would have been good for that role. But that would have meant additional cast as the junior officers on the Defiant, which wouldn't really advance the story, and it would have meant DS9 officers would be just passengers, possibly able to direct a mission but not in command of the ship.

 

[wingsabre]

Yeah, in reality, the entire senior command staff of a starbase would not leave on missions in a ship without having a reasonable command structure left behind. The Defiant essentially had no permanent crew, which sort of made sense since their quarters were every spartan

 

[Jedman67]

If they need more officers they could of simply promoted O'Brien to a a full Lieutenant since he fought in the Dominion War. Chief O'Brien had the very same experience before fighting in the Cardassian War. They pretty much did this in many armies of the world start off as a private, sailor, and airman. When war comes around promotions come quick and for some they become junior officers Ensigns and Lieutenants to fill in the spots because there is a need of junior officers. Since a lot of them are fresh and don't have the experience in combat they might be to easy pick off and that can go for the privates, sailors, and airmen as well.

We did have an officer O'Brien in TNG, who daydreamed in his "favorite transporter room." Senior NCO O'Brien had much more (indirect) authority (out of recognition of experience) and played more pivotal roles in the life of the station and the Defiant. Of course, we don't know how the difference between senior NCO and junior officer plays out in the ST universe. I would guess that some opportunities were open to O'Brien if he were an NCO and not an officer. He might have manned opps for seven years on an Intrepid-class ship without promotion.

http://chiefobrienatwork.com/

The Defiant was confusing because it was handled strangely. In a more realistic show, the Defiant would have her own permanent captain and crew. The captain would probably have been a commander or lt. cdr. Worf would have been good for that role. But that would have meant additional cast as the junior officers on the Defiant, which wouldn't really advance the story, and it would have meant DS9 officers would be just passengers, possibly able to direct a mission but not in command of the ship.

The Defiant was basically used as an oversized runabout. Maybe not realistic, but since when is anything on Star Trek very realistic?