This naturally goes for both, STO and Star Trek.
TOS: "Tomorrow is Yesterday"
This proves that they are at least a navy in a "combined service".
United Earth Space Probe Agency
TAS: "The Counter-Clock Incident"
Star Trek: The Animated Series
TOS: "Catspaw"
Navy bean
Star Trek: Generations, 19th century naval uniforms.
![Star-Trek-Generations-02.jpg]()
DS9: "Rapture"
DS9: "Behind the Lines"
Navy
In the case of Starfleet, it is a fleet of spaceborne military vessels (spacecraft). A real-life navy includes non-combat duties too, but it's still a military service.
USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was an aircraft carrier and the flagship of Nuclear Task Force One in the United States Navy. It is one of the drawings on the ship wall in Star Trek: The Motion Picture and in Captain Archer's ready room (pictured below):
![292?cb=20061012013249&path-prefix=en]()
Star Trek's USS Enterprise carries shuttlecraft, so it's a carrier too.
Naval officers first attend a naval college or academy such as the United States Naval Academy. This corresponds to Starfleet Academy in Star Trek.
Therefore, Starfleet is a naval force in space that combines military forces such as navy, marine corps and coast guard. It also means that the Federation is a militaristic society.
This should settle it.![:)]( ":)")
UPDATE:
Starfleet Marine Corps.
Colonel West, reinstated in the VHS version of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
![270?cb=20160325231755&path-prefix=en]()
Operation Retrieve
![Star-Trek-VI-The-Undiscovered-Country--Operation-Retrieve-Flip-Chart-Page-4.jpg]()
"Standby Ground Troops Starfleet Tactical Marine Corps Entry Point"
![attachment.php?attachmentid=90796&d=1307271118]()
Oh, by the way, this is not a ship of exploration:
![292?cb=20061012013249&path-prefix=en]()
UPDATE:
Navy
Additionally, "the Navy" in TOS: "Tomorrow is Yesterday" was a specific reference to the U.S. Navy, which is a military service.
This should settle any confusion about other types of navies.![:)]( ":)")
UPDATE:
Militarism
Star Trek has been predominantly about Starfleet and its ideals, a military organization that the Federation uses to achieve its goals, despite the existence of Federation civilians who captain non-Starfleet ships. Therefore, the Federation is a militaristic society.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (canon)
![270?cb=20120316205709&path-prefix=en]()
David Marcus.
David Marcus was a Federation scientist who worked on Project Genesis.
TNG: "The Measure of a Man" (canon)
![270?cb=20121210232015&path-prefix=en]()
Captain Phillipa Louvois, Starfleet Officer Judge Advocate General.
Judge Advocate General's Corps
Court-martial
Therefore, Starfleet is a military organization at all times. It also means that Picard and Scotty were lying.
![Starfleet-Sam.jpg]()
UPDATE:
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (transcript)
AIDE-DE-CAMP
C in C
Military aide: a military assistant.
Mothballed: a term for a reserve fleet.
More evidence that Starfleet is a navy; therefore, a military force.
TNG: "The Perfect Mate"
A clear line of dialogue that Picard doesn't consider the crew of the Enterprise to be civilians.
DS9: "The Sound of Her Voice"
A clear line of dialogue that O'Brien doesn't consider the crew of the Defiant to be civilians.
Paramilitary:
TNG: "Preemptive Strike"
A clear evidence that Starfleet is not a paramilitary.
Rick Berman Talks 18 Years of Trek In Extensive Oral History
Rick Berman
What would he know, right?
Star Trek: Into Darkness
Maybe Starfleet hasn't told Scotty it's a "paramilitary" yet?![:)]( ":)")
Star Trek is being shown in the present and uses the language of the present such as court-martial. What some posters are essentially suggesting is that people need a special dictionary that discards the existing dictionaries, just to be able to properly watch the show. It doesn't work like that.
UPDATE:
Don't you see where this is going?
![AAEAAQAAAAAAAAV9AAAAJDNkYjA4MWRkLTliZDktNDJmOS1hYzRkLWYzMDY3MmI1MGQ0OA.jpg]()
A "GLOBAL" force?
Coronado Naval Base, San Diego:
![726ad7a1928fae6bf95d5e83be8ba1a2.jpg]()
![Naval_Barracks.jpg]()
For "GOOD", indeed.
[Fascist] Symbols in the US Military: “Accidental” Giant US Navy Swastika Building Was No Accident.
![swastika-coronado-plan.jpg~original]()
Signed off on March 5, 1968 by United States Rear Admiral Robert Reynolds Wooding.
Was Star Trek created to promote American fascism under the guise of "democracy"?
UPDATE:
STO Wiki: Aegis Technological Research
Wikipedia: Aegis Combat System
![220px-USS_Lake_Champlain_%28CG-57%29.JPG]()
"USS Lake Champlain, a Ticonderoga-class Aegis guided missile cruiser, launched in 1987."
United States Marine Corps promotional images:
![united-states-marine-corps.jpg]()
![dadfb69b3ef39aeb6adfb160345b8fc4.jpg]()
Star Trek Online-related image:
![7e57bb1db4f84113378f5db4dc2f53b21427933547.png]()
Memory Beta: MACO
Wikipedia: Semper fidelis
The same theme.
UPDATE:
Robert Fletcher’s Costume Design – Forgotten Trek
More evidence.![:)]( ":)")
UPDATE:
TNG: "Time's Arrow, part 2"
![156159.gif]()
There were periods in Earth's history when the navies were dedicated to exploration, which was also used as a euphemism for colonial conquest. Additionally, Starfleet has JAG officers who administer courts-martial, no matter what its mission is.
UPDATE:
Memory Alpha: Reserve activation clause
UPDATE:
TNG: "Hide and Q"
TOS: "Tomorrow is Yesterday"
CHRISTOPHER: Must have taken quite a lot to build a ship like this.
KIRK: There are only twelve like it in the fleet.
CHRISTOPHER: I see. Did the Navy
KIRK: We're a combined service, Captain. Our authority is the United Earth Space Probe Agency.
KIRK: There are only twelve like it in the fleet.
CHRISTOPHER: I see. Did the Navy
KIRK: We're a combined service, Captain. Our authority is the United Earth Space Probe Agency.
This proves that they are at least a navy in a "combined service".
United Earth Space Probe Agency
UESPA (pronounced "you-spah") was [. . .] one of several names given in early episodes for the agency under which the Enterprise and its crew operated before writers finally settled on "Starfleet".
TAS: "The Counter-Clock Incident"
APRIL: I was there in the San Francisco Navy Yards when her unit components were built. [referring to the Enterprise]
Star Trek: The Animated Series
With the release of The Animated Series DVD, the studio appears to have changed its stance, and is leaning towards the animated series being part of established Star Trek canon.
TOS: "Catspaw"
DESALLE: Maybe we can't break it, but I'll bet you credits to navy beans we can put a dent in it.
Navy bean
It is commonly known as the "Navy Bean" due to its use as a staple of United States Navy rations in the 19th century.
Star Trek: Generations, 19th century naval uniforms.
DS9: "Rapture"
WORF: That will not do. Rifkin commands a starship. Protocol requires he be given equal quarters.
ODO: But he's only a captain.
WORF: It is naval tradition.
ODO: But he's only a captain.
WORF: It is naval tradition.
DS9: "Behind the Lines"
DAX: Are you two ever going to be finished?
NOG: Just a few more minutes, Commander.
O'BRIEN: That's Captain. It's an old naval tradition. Whoever's in command of a ship, regardless of rank, is referred to as Captain.
NOG: Just a few more minutes, Commander.
O'BRIEN: That's Captain. It's an old naval tradition. Whoever's in command of a ship, regardless of rank, is referred to as Captain.
Navy
A navy or maritime force is a fleet of waterborne military vessels (watercraft) and its associated naval aviation, both sea-based and land-based. [. . .] recent developments have included space-related operations.
[. . .]
In most nations, the term "naval", as opposed to "navy", is interpreted as encompassing all maritime military forces, e.g., navy, marine / marine corps, and coast guard forces.
[. . .]
In most nations, the term "naval", as opposed to "navy", is interpreted as encompassing all maritime military forces, e.g., navy, marine / marine corps, and coast guard forces.
In the case of Starfleet, it is a fleet of spaceborne military vessels (spacecraft). A real-life navy includes non-combat duties too, but it's still a military service.
USS Enterprise (CVN-65) was an aircraft carrier and the flagship of Nuclear Task Force One in the United States Navy. It is one of the drawings on the ship wall in Star Trek: The Motion Picture and in Captain Archer's ready room (pictured below):
Star Trek's USS Enterprise carries shuttlecraft, so it's a carrier too.
Naval officers first attend a naval college or academy such as the United States Naval Academy. This corresponds to Starfleet Academy in Star Trek.
Therefore, Starfleet is a naval force in space that combines military forces such as navy, marine corps and coast guard. It also means that the Federation is a militaristic society.
This should settle it.
UPDATE:
Starfleet Marine Corps.
Colonel West, reinstated in the VHS version of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
While identified in dialogue as a "colonel", West wore the uniform of a Starfleet vice admiral (equivalent to a lieutenant general). The display that West shows during the briefing, does mention a Starfleet Marine Corps, suggesting (along with his rank) that West is actually a Marine himself.
Operation Retrieve
The details of the operation involved a direct incursion by several starships, plus several teams of Starfleet Marines.
[. . .]
The Operation Retrieve briefing is, so far, the only canonical mention of the Starfleet Marine Corps. They are not spoken of in dialogue, but are mentioned on the display that Colonel West (who, given his rank, is presumably a SF Marine himself) shows to the assembled gathering.
[. . .]
The Operation Retrieve briefing is, so far, the only canonical mention of the Starfleet Marine Corps. They are not spoken of in dialogue, but are mentioned on the display that Colonel West (who, given his rank, is presumably a SF Marine himself) shows to the assembled gathering.
"Standby Ground Troops Starfleet Tactical Marine Corps Entry Point"
Oh, by the way, this is not a ship of exploration:
UPDATE:
Navy
In modern usage "navy" used alone always denotes a military fleet.
Additionally, "the Navy" in TOS: "Tomorrow is Yesterday" was a specific reference to the U.S. Navy, which is a military service.
This should settle any confusion about other types of navies.
UPDATE:
Militarism
- the opinions or actions of people who believe that a country should use military methods, forces, etc., to gain power and to achieve its goals
- predominance of the military class or its ideals
- exaltation of military virtues and ideals
- a policy of aggressive military preparedness
Star Trek has been predominantly about Starfleet and its ideals, a military organization that the Federation uses to achieve its goals, despite the existence of Federation civilians who captain non-Starfleet ships. Therefore, the Federation is a militaristic society.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (canon)
David Marcus.
CHEKOV (on viewscreen): The order comes from Admiral James T. Kirk.
DAVID: I knew it! I knew it! All along the military has wanted to get their han... [referring to Starfleet]
[. . .]
DAVID: I've tried to tell you before. Scientists have always been pawns of the military [referring to Starfleet].
DAVID: I knew it! I knew it! All along the military has wanted to get their han... [referring to Starfleet]
[. . .]
DAVID: I've tried to tell you before. Scientists have always been pawns of the military [referring to Starfleet].
David Marcus was a Federation scientist who worked on Project Genesis.
TNG: "The Measure of a Man" (canon)
Captain Phillipa Louvois, Starfleet Officer Judge Advocate General.
PHILLIPA: I am in charge of the Twenty third Sector JAG office. We're brand new.
[. . .]
PHILLIPA: When I prosecuted you in the Stargazer court martial, I was doing my job.
PICARD: Oh, you did more than your job. You enjoyed it.
PHILLIPA: Not true! A court martial is standard procedure when a ship is lost. I was doing my duty as an officer of the Judge Advocate General.
[. . .]
PHILLIPA: So you came to me for help.
PICARD: Yes, I came to you. You're the JAG officer for this sector. I had no choice but to come to you.
[. . .]
PHILLIPA: When I prosecuted you in the Stargazer court martial, I was doing my job.
PICARD: Oh, you did more than your job. You enjoyed it.
PHILLIPA: Not true! A court martial is standard procedure when a ship is lost. I was doing my duty as an officer of the Judge Advocate General.
[. . .]
PHILLIPA: So you came to me for help.
PICARD: Yes, I came to you. You're the JAG officer for this sector. I had no choice but to come to you.
Judge Advocate General's Corps
Judge Advocate General's Corps, also known as JAG or JAG Corps, refers to the legal branch or specialty of a military concerned with military justice and military law.
Court-martial
A court-martial (plural courts-martial, as "martial" is postpositive) is a military court.
[. . .]
Most navies have a standard court-martial which convenes whenever a ship is lost.
[. . .]
Most navies have a standard court-martial which convenes whenever a ship is lost.
Therefore, Starfleet is a military organization at all times. It also means that Picard and Scotty were lying.
UPDATE:
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (transcript)
AIDE-DE-CAMP: This briefing is classified. Ladies and Gentlemen, the C-in-C.
C in C: As you were. I'll break this information down succinctly. The Klingon Empire has roughly fifty years of life left. ...For full details, I am turning this briefing over to Federation Special Envoy.
[. . .]
MILITARY AIDE: Bill, are we talking about mothballing the Starfleet?
C in C: As you were. I'll break this information down succinctly. The Klingon Empire has roughly fifty years of life left. ...For full details, I am turning this briefing over to Federation Special Envoy.
[. . .]
MILITARY AIDE: Bill, are we talking about mothballing the Starfleet?
AIDE-DE-CAMP
aide-de-camp (ād′dĭ-kămp′)
n. pl. aides-de-camp
n. pl. aides-de-camp
A military officer acting as secretary and confidential assistant to a superior officer of general or flag rank.
C in C
commander in chief
n. pl. commanders in chief Abbr. CINC or C in C
n. pl. commanders in chief Abbr. CINC or C in C
- The supreme commander of all the armed forces of a nation.
- The officer commanding a major armed force.
Military aide: a military assistant.
Mothballed: a term for a reserve fleet.
A reserve fleet is a collection of naval vessels of all types that are fully equipped for service but are not currently needed, and thus partially or fully decommissioned. A reserve fleet is informally said to be "in mothballs" or "mothballed".
More evidence that Starfleet is a navy; therefore, a military force.
TNG: "The Perfect Mate"
KAMALA: Perhaps the ambassador is right. Perhaps I should remain in my quarters.
PICARD: I have confidence in the self-control of my crew, Kamala, but there are guests and civilians on board.
PICARD: I have confidence in the self-control of my crew, Kamala, but there are guests and civilians on board.
A clear line of dialogue that Picard doesn't consider the crew of the Enterprise to be civilians.
DS9: "The Sound of Her Voice"
KASIDY: I'm a civilian. Isn't it awkward having me aboard a warship?
O'BRIEN: We've had civilians aboard before. It doesn't bother me.
O'BRIEN: We've had civilians aboard before. It doesn't bother me.
A clear line of dialogue that O'Brien doesn't consider the crew of the Defiant to be civilians.
Paramilitary:
paramilitary (plural paramilitaries)
- A group of civilians trained and organized in a military fashion, but which do not represent the formal forces of a sovereign power.
- (colloquial) A member of a paramilitary group.
TNG: "Preemptive Strike"
GUL EVEK: The fact that my ship was attacked suggests that your efforts have met with limited success. They came at us with photon torpedoes and type eight phasers. Tell me, Captain, how do you suppose that a group of civilians acquired such weaponry?
PICARD: I can assure you it was not through official channels.
GUL EVEK: So you don't think the fact that some of the Maquis are former Starfleet officers has anything to do with it?
PICARD: Starfleet does not condone the Maquis' actions in the Demilitarised Zone any more than your government would condone the paramilitary actions of Cardassian civilians.
PICARD: I can assure you it was not through official channels.
GUL EVEK: So you don't think the fact that some of the Maquis are former Starfleet officers has anything to do with it?
PICARD: Starfleet does not condone the Maquis' actions in the Demilitarised Zone any more than your government would condone the paramilitary actions of Cardassian civilians.
A clear evidence that Starfleet is not a paramilitary.
Rick Berman Talks 18 Years of Trek In Extensive Oral History
Berman notes that veterans feel Sisko is "the most believable" as a military commander of the Star Trek captains.
Rick Berman
Richard Keith "Rick" Berman (born December 25, 1945) is an American television producer. He is best known for his work as the executive producer of several of the Star Trek series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager; and several of the Star Trek theatrical productions, and for succeeding Gene Roddenberry as head of the Star Trek franchise, until the cancellation of Star Trek: Enterprise in 2005.
What would he know, right?
Star Trek: Into Darkness
SCOTT: That's what scares me. This is clearly a military operation. ls that what we are now? Because I thought we were explorers.
KIRK: Sign for the torpedoes, that's an order.
SCOTT: Right, well, you leave me no choice but to resign my duties.
KIRK: Oh, come on, Scotty.
SCOTT: You're giving me no choice, sir. I will not stand by
KIRK: You're not giving me much of a choice. Will you just make an exception and sign
SCOTT: Do you accept my resignation or not?
KIRK: I do!
KIRK: I do. You are relieved, Mister Scott.
KIRK: Sign for the torpedoes, that's an order.
SCOTT: Right, well, you leave me no choice but to resign my duties.
KIRK: Oh, come on, Scotty.
SCOTT: You're giving me no choice, sir. I will not stand by
KIRK: You're not giving me much of a choice. Will you just make an exception and sign
SCOTT: Do you accept my resignation or not?
KIRK: I do!
KIRK: I do. You are relieved, Mister Scott.
Maybe Starfleet hasn't told Scotty it's a "paramilitary" yet?
Star Trek is being shown in the present and uses the language of the present such as court-martial. What some posters are essentially suggesting is that people need a special dictionary that discards the existing dictionaries, just to be able to properly watch the show. It doesn't work like that.
UPDATE:
Don't you see where this is going?
A "GLOBAL" force?
Coronado Naval Base, San Diego:
For "GOOD", indeed.
[Fascist] Symbols in the US Military: “Accidental” Giant US Navy Swastika Building Was No Accident.
Signed off on March 5, 1968 by United States Rear Admiral Robert Reynolds Wooding.
Was Star Trek created to promote American fascism under the guise of "democracy"?
UPDATE:
STO Wiki: Aegis Technological Research
The Aegis Technological Research is a set of three items that are available from high-end R&D.
Wikipedia: Aegis Combat System
The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, and now produced by Lockheed Martin. It uses powerful computer and radar technology to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets.
"USS Lake Champlain, a Ticonderoga-class Aegis guided missile cruiser, launched in 1987."
United States Marine Corps promotional images:
Star Trek Online-related image:
Memory Beta: MACO
The MACO motto was Semper Invictus, Latin for "forever invincible". (ENT - The Romulan War novel: Beneath the Raptor's Wing, STO novel: The Needs of the Many)
Wikipedia: Semper fidelis
Semper fidelis is a Latin phrase that means "always faithful" or "always loyal". In the United States it is best known as the motto of the United States Marine Corps.
The same theme.
UPDATE:
Robert Fletcher’s Costume Design – Forgotten Trek
When Meyer joined the production, he had some very specific ideas about what he wanted to see in the costumes.
I decided that this was going to be Hornblower in outer space, so I said, ‘OK, if this is going to be the navy, let’s hem them look like the navy; they shouldn’t be walking around in pyjamas,’ which seemed to me to be what the uniforms in the first movie and the TV show looked like.
Fletcher then designed several variations of the uniform, most of which were worn by Kirk and not by the other characters.
It’s normal in any kind of military organization that you don’t have just one uniform; you have uniforms for specific tasks and specific times of day — formal, informal, combat, and so on. Kirk is the lead, so he goes through the most variations. When it seemed appropriate, he had a change.
More evidence.
UPDATE:
TNG: "Time's Arrow, part 2"
CLEMENS: Well, I know what you say, that this is a vessel of exploration and that your mission is to discover new worlds.
CLEMENS: That's what the Spanish said.
[. . . ]
CLEMENS: And the Dutch and the Portuguese. It's what all conquerors say.
CLEMENS: That's what the Spanish said.
[. . . ]
CLEMENS: And the Dutch and the Portuguese. It's what all conquerors say.
There were periods in Earth's history when the navies were dedicated to exploration, which was also used as a euphemism for colonial conquest. Additionally, Starfleet has JAG officers who administer courts-martial, no matter what its mission is.
UPDATE:
Memory Alpha: Reserve activation clause
The reserve activation clause was a Starfleet regulation which was in force during the 2270s. Described as "little-known" and "seldom-used," the clause provided for the recall of a discharged or retired Starfleet officer to active duty in response to a crisis or emergency.
In the mid-2270s, Fleet Admiral Nogura, at the request of Rear Admiral James T. Kirk, recalled Leonard McCoy to active duty in the Starfleet using the reserve activation clause. Upon reporting to the USS Enterprise, Doctor McCoy stated "In simpler language... they drafted me!" (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)
In the mid-2270s, Fleet Admiral Nogura, at the request of Rear Admiral James T. Kirk, recalled Leonard McCoy to active duty in the Starfleet using the reserve activation clause. Upon reporting to the USS Enterprise, Doctor McCoy stated "In simpler language... they drafted me!" (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)
UPDATE:
TNG: "Hide and Q"
PICARD: Why? At our first meeting you seized my vessel.
[. . .]
Q: Seized my vessel. These are the complaints of a closed mind too accustomed to military privileges.
[. . .]
Q: Seized my vessel. These are the complaints of a closed mind too accustomed to military privileges.