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AT: "xx" Aboard a starship the first officer was the second-in-command, just below the captain. On a Federation starship, the first officer had the following functions:

In Starfleet the position was usually held by an officer with the rank of commander or lieutenant commander. The position was also referred to as executive officer (or XO).

In Starfleet's early period of existence, the first officer would accompany the captain on landing parties, depending on the situation. By the 24th century, however, it was the first officer who usually led away teams while the captain remained on the ship.

In the 22nd and 23rd centuries, the first officer served as a department head first and the executive officer second (similar to the second officer and third officer) and only took command when the captain left the bridge, as such, there was no first officer's station as there would be in the 24th century, as the XO would alternate between the command chair and their station as a department head.

By the 24th century it was not uncommon for the first officer, as adviser, to give orders to the crew even with the captain on the bridge. While the captain had the authority to countermand such orders, the captain usually supported the first officer's decisions.

Some noted first officers in Starfleet history were:

The Starfleet of the alternate reality established in 2233 by the temporal incursion of the Romulan Nero had the following noteworthy first officers:

List of first officers

Earth Starfleet

Federation

  • Commander Chakotay
    • USS Voyager (2371-2378)
  • Lieutenant Commander Data
    • USS Enterprise-D (2369)
  • Lieutenant Saavik
    • USS Enterprise
Saavik is never named as a First Officer, however the Enterprise was being used at that time to train cadets and give junior officers command experience, in particular, Saavik. As she was given command several times during the training, it can be assumed that, as a trainee, Saavik was the First Officer.
  • Lieutenant Commander/Commander Shelby
    • USS Enterprise-D (2367)
  • Lieutenant Commander/Commander/Captain Spock
  • Lieutenant/Lieutenant Commander Worf
    • USS Enterprise-D (2370)
    • USS Defiant (2372-2375)
    • USS Sao Paulo (2375)
A deleted scene from Star Trek Nemesis introduced Commander Martin Madden as the new first officer of the USS Enterprise-E

Klingon Empire

  • Commander Kurn
    • USS Enterprise-D (2366, part of the Officer Exchange Program)

Other

Mirror universe

Alternate timelines

  • Lieutenant Sato
    • Enterprise NX-01 (2165)
  • Commander Thelin
    • USS Enterprise (2269)
  • Commander Worf
    • USS Enterprise-D (2367-2370)
  • Commander Spock
    • USS Enterprise (2258)

Appendices

Apocrypha

  • Commander Worf
    • USS Enterprise-E (2380)

External link

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