FLIGHT MODES AND OPERATIONAL CONDITIONS/ALERTS :: Ship's Tour :: Janet's Star Trek Voyager Site

U.S.S. Voyager :
FLIGHT MODES AND OPERATIONAL CONDITIONS/ALERTS

screenshots by Janet

Contents: DRIFT MODE GREY MODE CRUISE MODE BLUE ALERT / CODE BLUE CONDITION GREEN PERIMETER ALERT (PROXIMITY ALERT) YELLOW ALERT RED ALERT BATTLE STATIONS INTRUDER ALERT BRIDGE SEPARATION MODE

SHIP SEARCH ENGINE

DRIFT MODE
Janeway orders Paris to use the reaction control thrusters (known as RCS) in drift mode only in order to navigate Voyager into the random eddies of the lifeform encountered in [#6 The Cloud], and they travel at 200 kilometres per hour.

[#6 The Cloud]

GREY MODE
Grey Mode comprises Voyager's operational protocols designed for severe energy conservation. In grey mode power to non-essential decks and systems is discontinued, and remaining systems are operated at 20%.

USS Voyager entered gray mode in late 2374, stardate unknown, when its supply of deuterium was almost exhausted [#92 Demon].

USS Voyager enters grey mode.
(pop-up window)
[Demon]

Kim reports 'grey' status

Janeway states 'grey mode' and Tom Paris has a suggestion

In 2375, stardate unknown, in [#104 Counterpoint], to reach the wormhole which means an escape route out of the oppressive telepath-hunting Devore Imperium, Voyager needs to pass the detection grid of the Devore guardpost in the Tehara sector. Voyager tries to match the frequency of the array's signals and drift past in grey mode, but an engine problem means that Voyager is detected whereupon grey mode is immediately cancelled and Voyager heads off at high warp speed. Aboard the larger Galaxy-class starships such as USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D in the late 2360s, grey mode equated to Reduced Power Mode.

CRUISE MODE
This is Voyager's normal operating status. According to Starfleet regulations, Cruise Mode requires a minimum bridge staff of commanding officer (typically the captain or, for two night shifts a week, Ensign Kim), conn officer and operations manager, and at least one other officer available to serve at tactical or other stations as required. Other stations may be attended as specific mission requirements dictate. In fact, when Voyager's bridge is seen on tv in normal operating status, whoever is the commanding officer is present, and the following stations are manned: tactical/security, ops, conn, and the master situation display/mission ops stations which often has three bridge personnel in attendance; and there is often someone at the science and/or engineering station.
Cruise Mode operating rules allow each crewmember to define a customised operating configuration for her/his work station i.e. crewmembers are free to configure panel layout and procedural menus to suit personal working styles and levels of training (though this sounds also like a coverall for non-continuity use of controls, a topic which came to dog Star Trek producers on [TOS] and more so on [TNG] as fans complained about the lack of consistency in the way controls were operated). In the case where a system upgrade has recently been installed, but the dutyofficer has not yet been trained on the new configuration, panel software can usually be instructed to emulate the previous version until the individual has been properly certified. Standard configuration can be activated at any time, and Full Enable configuration is automatically activated during Yellow Alert and Red Alert.

BLUE ALERT/CODE BLUE
Aboard Federation starships with the ability of making planetfall such as USS Voyager and other Intrepid-class starships, blue alert is a state of readiness for landing operations. Blue alert notifies the ship's crew to occupy Code Blue stations, and is ordered before the starship's landing on a planet and prior to liftoff. A starship commander should not order the start of descent until all decks report that condition blue has been set [#20 The 37's]. Blue alert can be ordered by the second officer e.g. Tuvok ordered blue alert in 2371 prior to planetfall on the planet inhabited by descendants of humans kidnapped from Earth in 1937 [The 37's]. Code Blue would have been called (but no mention is made on the tv screen) in 2372 when Janeway ordered Paris to land on the planet in search of Chakotay [#25 Tattoo] and again in 2377, in [#154 Nightingale], in which Voyager made planetfall in order to carry out essential maintenance.
More information at SHIP USS VOYAGER: Specifications: Page 4.

CONDITION GREEN
Condition Green is a covert Starfleet code used to secretly indicate on a clear channel that the speaker is being held captive. Captain James T. Kirk relayed a Condition Green signal to his Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott when he was being held captive on planet Eight Ninety-Two-IV in 2267. Condition Green also prohibits the listener from taking any action such as a rescue mission [TOS: Bread and Circuses]. Condition Green is not seen on [Star Trek: Voyager] (nor in [TNG] or [DS9] so far as I recall), but there is no indication in canon sources that Condition Green has been discontinued. Presumably Condition Green leads to Red Alert being ordered.

PERIMETER ALERT
A perimeter or proximity alert protocol has been incorporated within Starfleet ship systems since at least stardate 1512.2 (year 2266) [TOS: The Corbormite Maneuver]. Voyager has a perimeter alert when a Vidiian ship approaches [#37 Deadlock]: Paris reports: "We've got a perimeter alert. A vessel is approaching bearing 005 mark 318. They've just dropped out of warp." In [#93 One] the ship's automated proximity alert informs Seven that a ship is approaching, which turns out to contain Trajis (however, subsequent behaviour of his turns out to be a hallucination). In [#162 Workforce, Part One], the ship's automated systems issue a proximity alert to the Doctor, the ship's only occupant, to the approach of a vessel which turns out to be returning Chakotay and Paris to Voyager.

YELLOW ALERT
Yellow Alert is a state of significantly increased readiness aboard Federation Starfleet vessels. During Yellow Alert condition, all bridge stations are automatically brought to Full Enable Mode. Auto diagnostics (level 4) (details of diagnostics levels) are initiated for all primary and tactical systems: level 4 is an automated procedure intended for use whenever trouble is suspected with a given system. This protocol is similar to Level 5, but involves more sophisticated batteries of automated diagnostics. For most systems, Level 4 diagnostics can be performed in under 30 seconds.
Ops is responsible for evaluating all current operations and shipboard activities, and suspending any which may interfere with the ship's readiness to respond to potential crisis situations. Should an actual, expected or imminent emergency occur, the ship's captain, first officer when the captain is present, or whoever is the ship's commanding officer in the captain's absence can order Red Alert, the highest state of readiness.

[#6 The Cloud]

RED ALERT
Red Alert is the highest state of readiness and is also implied by the command "Battle Stations" (for which, see below). It is also known as "general quarters". Aboard 23rd century vessels, certainly around 2266, it was also just called "alert" or "general alert".

Although normally ordered by a command officer, usually the captain or acting captain, Red Alert can be ordered by any member of the crew, not just command officers, as Seven puts Voyager on Red Alert in 2376, in [#133 Virtuoso], when she mistakes the Qomar's overwhelming number of fan-mail signals for sabotage.
During Red Alert condition, all bridge stations are automatically brought to Full Enable Mode. Tactical systems are placed on full alert and, if the station is unoccupied the duty security chief will occupy the bridge's tactical/security station. Klaxons sound (but can be disabled), the red alert panels around the ship flash on and off to indicate the ship's mode, and the level of lighting will reduce throughout the ship except in sickbay.

This animated screenshot (43Kb) shows the lights at the bridge's master situation display flashing to signal the ship's red alert status. The narrow oblong panels between the wall-mounted LCARS displays normally also flash red (with data, it seems) - they are extremely faint in this image.
[#155 and #156 Flesh and Blood]

on the bridge the red alert klaxon is sounding but it is soon switched off [#74 The Raven]

[#6 The Cloud]
The EMH activates automatically whenever Red Alert is called [#17 Projections], although it is not clear if the Doctor has control over this after Janeway gives him the ability to control his program's activation/deactivation, though it is likely that he would retain this feature in case personnel are injured during a Red Alert.
When Red Alert is cancelled, the command "stand down Red Alert" or "secure from general quarters" or similar is given.

[#25 Tattoo]

[#8 Ex Post Facto]

BATTLE STATIONS
This automatically initiates Red Alert status. During Battle Stations, particularly in conditions of long-term combat readiness e.g. against the Kazon in 2371, the security department, supervised by the chief of security (Tuvok) distributes arms to certain personnel and take up posts at strategic or vulnerable points throughout the ship; there are weapons lockers in strategic locations throughout the ship e.g. aft of the bridge, in main engineering (lower and upper levels), and bridge stations have a phaser under the main console e.g. security/tactical in [#88 Vis à Vis] and ops in [#157 Shattered]. When Battle Stations is called, all hands, even those off-duty, have a prior designated post.

Chakotay: "Red alert. All hands to battle stations!" source CC

[#103 Thirty Days] Janeway [Year of Hell] Chakotay [Year of Hell]

INTRUDER ALERT
Intruder Alert can be ordered at any time by any crewmember without prior clearance from a senior or command officer. Klaxons sound (they can be disabled), and usually the commanding officer or acting commanding officer or the chief of security will make an announcement either to the whole ship or solely to the security department/bridge. Such an announcement might involve critical information about the intruder, known or potential, as well as including a tactical scenario for their apprehension. When Intruder Alert is sounded, security teams are brought to an increased state of readiness. It is likely that certain strategic positions throughout the ship are automatically checked or attended in person, and security scans of the ship are also done. Intruder Alert can include a deck-by-deck search by security personnel armed with phaser rifles. Starfleet Handweapons
In 2374, on Day 65 of the Year of Hell [#76 and #77 Year of Hell], Neelix consults Tuvok as they are about done rebuilding the internal security sensors and are ready to program the audio signal. Neelix asks would Tuvok like "intruder alert" or to try something more daring such as "warning, intruder alert!" or "intruders among us, danger, danger, intruders among us!" Tuvok prefers the first option.

BRIDGE SEPARATION MODE
The bridge is a free-flying module, complete with its own maneuvering thrusters. This mode has not been seen on [Star Trek: Voyager], but it is likely, as with the Saucer Separation Mode of Galaxy-class starships when saucer and primary hull separation is to be initiated, that when the bridge is to separate from the ship, assuming that the captain or other commanding officer in her absence takes command of the bridge, a designated officer will assume responsibility for the rest of the ship.

TOP

BACK