franchise-star-trek-tng-technical-manual1

15.0 USS ENTERPRISE FLIGHT OPERATIONS15.2 MISSION TYPES15.1 INTRODUCTION TO FLIGHT OPERATIONS 15.2 MISSION TYPESOperations aboard the USS Enterprise are divided intothree general categories: flight operations, primary missionoperations, and secondary mission operations.Flight operations are those that relate directly to the functionof the starship itself. These include power generation,propulsion, environmental support, utilities, and other systemsthat are required to maintain the spaceworthiness of thevehicle.Mission operations are those tasks that have been assignedto the ship and its crew. Mission operations are dividedinto two categories, primary and secondary missions.Primary missions are those whose execution is undercurrent direct supervision of the Main Bridge. Primary missionsoften require flight control of the spacecraft, or use ofsignificant fractions of the ship's sensors or other resources.Secondary missions are those that are not under directsupervision of the Main Bridge. These operations are usuallyrun in parallel with and are designed not to impact uponprimary mission operations. Secondary missions are typicallylong-term scientific or cultural studies that are run semiautonomouslyby specialized mission teams.It is not uncommon for a dozen secondary missions to berunning concurrently. It is also not uncommon for a secondarymission to be designated as a primary mission for a specifiedperiod of time. For example, the launch of a specializedinstrument probe is a primary mission when controlled by theMain Bridge, but the subsequent data collection phase, supervisedby a specialized mission team, might be treated as asecondary mission.The multimission starship is by definition capable ofperforming a wide range of mission scenarios, offering autonomouscapability of executing nearly any of Starfleet'sobjective. This capability is extremely valuable for vehiclesoperating near the frontier of Federation influence where additionalStarfleet support may be unavailable.Missions for the Galaxy class USS Enterprise generallyfall into one of the following categories, utilizing the followingspacecraft capabilities:• Deep-space exploration. The Enterprise is equippedfor long-range stellar survey and mapping missions, as well asa wide range of planetary exploration.• Ongoing scientific investigations. The Enterprisehas support capability for a number of ongoing scientificresearch projects. Many such projects are classified assecondary missions.• Contact with alien lifeforms. Pursuant to the StarfleetLife Contact Policy Directive, facilities to support such missionsinclude a full exobiology and cultural sociology staff, aswell as a highly sophisticated complement of universal translationsoftware.• Federation policy and diplomacy. The Enterprise isfrequently the sole Federation envoy during deep-spaceoperations.• Tactical and defense. Typical tactical and defensivemissions might include patrol of the Romulan Neutral Zone, orprotection of Federation interests in planetary or interstellarconflicts.• Emergency and rescue. Typical rescue scenariosinclude rescue of Starfleet and non-Starfleet spacecraft indistress. Planetary rescue scenarios include medium-scaleevacuation from planetary surfaces of humanoid and nonhumanoidpopulations. Large-scale evacuation of planetarypopulations is not feasible.