2151 / [ENTERPRISE] ERA

Screenshots are from [Enterprise: Broken Bow].  Scans and screenshots by Janet.  Text - adapted from section sources.  Optimum page viewing.

crew of Enterprise NX-01 in 2151; publicity shot

In April 2151, when the starship Enterprise NX-01 begins its first official mission, which is the first by a Starfleet starship into deep space on a broad mission of exploration, Starfleet is a well-established organisation. Starfleet has adopted many aspects of Earth's earlier military forces, even though its main role is scientific development and exploration. Ranks within Starfleet closely follow the naval traditions of the United States of America, a powerful nation at the end of the Earth's First Millennium and beyond, and which contributed greatly to space exploration at the time.

The same basic Starfleet uniform is worn by all members of Starfleet, with differences in insignia and colour-coded elements designed to distinguish rank and departmental function. The purpose of a uniform is the age-old one, namely the desire to foster a strong team identity, while also allowing personnel to recognise each other immediately. The uniform is designed for function, comfort and durability.   The garment worn by all active duty Starfleet personnel is similar to an overall or jumpsuit, but it has a series of vents and cuffs that allows it to be altered into a more fitted outfit. The advantage of the one-piece style is that it can be mass-produced easily in a number of sizes, and then altered to fit by the wearer once he or she has pulled it on. Commander Charles "Trip" Tucker III (chief engineer) Lieutenant Malcolm Reed (tactical officer) Ensign Travis Mayweather (helmsman) Ensign Hoshi Sato (communications officer) above 4 pictures: some main crew of Enterprise NX-01 in 2151; publicity shots

duty uniform - captain - gold trim (as worn by Capt. Jonathan Archer); see also Pictures B and C below

A long, frontal, centrally mounted zip runs from the top of the straight slightly raised collar all the way down to the lower abdomen. This allows the uniform to be taken off quickly, or put on swiftly, simply by stepping into the trousers, placing the arms into the upper section and the pulling the upper half up and over the shoulders until it is correctly fitted on a male or female crewmember. The zip can be worn high or low for additional comfort round the neck. The colour of the uniform is blue, and is manufactured from a hard wearing mixture of materials that provides some protection to the wearer during normal duties, as well as warmth and comfort. The sleeves feature long zips built into the forearms just behind the cuffs, which fold over the wrist to create a relatively close fit above the hands. This combination is particularly useful for engineering personnel or those carrying out maintenance, as the close-fitting sleeves will not get in the way of potentially sensitive equipment while carrying out their duties, and leaves the hands completely exposed while working. If the crew members need to have their upper arms completely exposed when working in wet or extremely hot conditions, the cuffs can be quickly opened with the zips, and the entire lower section of the sleeve rolled up over the bicep.   The right sleeve of the uniform includes a small zipped pocket on the outside of the garment, and is large enough to hold small tools. Pockets are a significant feature on the uniforms of 2151 - the upper chest of the uniform includes a horizontal pocket on the right breast just below the identification piping, along with three narrow vertical stitched flaps into which can be placed narrow tools or implements for immediate access. There is a longer vertical pocket positioned on the left side of the uniform's front, along with two large pockets located on the upper left and right thighs of the garments. This combination provides great opportunity for the crew to carry a number of items with them at all times, with the accessibility of the uniform's design reflecting a need for the carriage of additional equipment within the highly experimental environment of the Enterprise.   Clearly mounted on the upper left sleeve of the uniforms is the vessel's mission badge or emblem (shown here on a black background), a tradition that is continued from the early missions of space exploration undertaken by NASA, and dating back to the 20th century. The crew of the Enterprise therefore wear the stylised image of their vessel. This patch shows backward-conformity as regards image content and styling by the show's producers as it is established in the first pilot for [TOS] called [The Cage] that United Earth is the authority under which the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 operates, and a United Earth patch (a variant on the one in [Enterprise]) is worn by certain crewmembers in that pilot including Dr Boyce, a main character.   Some of the crew may also wear a black coloured baseball cap with the letters 'NX-01' stitched onto the front in red and silver lettering - see Pictures H, I and J below. The caps are not worn by all members of the crew, but can often be seen in engineering, and are occasionally worn by Captain Jonathan Archer, commander of the Enterprise NX-01 on its first mission, when he takes part in landing party missions.   The nature of the Enterprise's interior construction also calls for comfortable and protective footwear due to the large number of exposed metallic surfaces and ladders, so all personnel wear the same thick soled black zipped ankle boots around which the lower part of the uniform's trouser is fitted to prevent the leg of the uniform being caught while climbing or walking.   In addition to the basic outer uniform, all personnel up to the rank of captain wear a black undershirt fastened by buttons - see Pictures F and G below.   Rank is indicated by a series of small rectangular silver pips that are worn on the right shoulder flash, as follows: one pip: ensign (the lowest rank; in the British navy the equivalent is midshipman) two pips: lieutenant three pips: commander four pips: captain Higher ranks, such as admirals, have pips on both the left and right shoulder pads with the piping coloured silver above red. The coloured piping running past the collar and over the upper shoulders begins Starfleet's tradition of using colours to denote an individual's function. Admiralty Command, Navigation Engineering, Security Science, Medical, Communications COMMAND including helm and navigation are coloured gold ENGINEERING and WEAPONS/SECURITY are coloured red SCIENCE is coloured a turquoise blue-green. These colours continue to be used by Starfleet (with some slight variations) over a century later, as seen worn in, say, the duty uniforms of the crew of the USS Enterprise NCC-1701 during its historic five-year mission. The concept is continually refined and used throughout Starfleet's history, and is no exception even centuries on such as the late 24th century, as evidenced by the uniforms worn by the crew of USS Voyager.

duty uniform - sciences - blue trim (as worn by Ensign Hoshi Sato)   duty uniform - engineering/armoury - red trim (as worn by Lt. Malcolm Reed)   underwear; as worn by male crewmembers; see also Pictures D, E, F below   general - shirt; as worn by many Starfleet officers; see also Pictures F and G below Captain Archer; publicity shot Admiral Forrest; his speech to launch Enterprise NX-01 on her historic mission; note the white shirt and tie (actor Vaughn Armstrong appears in several [Voyager] episodes)   Admiral Forrest's aides; note the rank pips; note the white shirt and tie worn by the man in the left of the picture   Admiral Forrest, viewed from behind; note the rank stripes on his sleeve cuff (which are on both sleeves); note also other ranks in the audience; speech to launch Enterprise NX-01 on her historic mission

PICTURE A Enterprise officers - note the gold piping and (centre) Lt. Reed's red piping

PICTURE B Capt. Archer - note close-up uniform details including gold piping and four rank pips; the shirt under the outer garment is buttoned to the neck; he wears the outer garment (kind of jumpsuit) with the zip someway down

PICTURE C Archer in the captain's chair - note the emblem on the upper left arm

PICTURE D Archer in Starfleet underwear; to his left note also the emblem on the upper left arm of Tripp's duty uniform

PICTURE E Starfleet underwear

PICTURE F putting on the shirt that is worn over the underwear and outer garment

PICTURE G wearing, unbuttoned, the shirt that is worn over the underwear and under the outer garment

PICTURE H

PICTURE I; the above three pictures show the baseball-style cap (worn by Captain Archer) embroidered with the registry number of the Enterprise

PICTURE J

Starfleet Command patch (shown on black background). The design of this motif, although it develops over the next few centuries, will stay basically the same as regards general colour scheme, the circle, its wide border, stars being included in the design, and the arrowhead. Like the starship's patch, the Starfleet Command patch was designed with backward-conformity in line with later Starfleet Command logos.

PICTURE K

In addition to the standard uniform described above, a thick jacket can also be worn for situations such as a landing party expecting severe weather conditions. This field jacket is first seen in [Enterprise: Broken Bow] when an Enterprise landing party visits the planet Rigel X - it is cold, icy and snowing on the planet surface. The screenshots show them being worn by the landing party during the pre-mission briefing on board the Enterprise.

PICTURE L

The jacket possesses the coloured piping to indicate departmental function and, like the standard outer garment, has a zipped breast pocket, and the vessel's mission emblem on the upper left sleeve. It also has a thick turn-down collar.

PICTURE M

Captain Archer in spacesuit; publicity shot