Red Alert (Star Trek)
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Red Alert is the highest state of alert for Starfleet in the Star Trek fictional universe. Red alert may be called on starships, installations, regions, or the entire fleet. Aboard Starships, it is similar to a call to "General Quarters" aboard real-life Navy vessels.
When Red Alert is called, a loud warning klaxon begins blaring, accompanied by flashing red warning lights. All Starfleet personnel are required to report to duty stations - even those who were sleeping at the time. But there are a number of other things that occur as well:
- The ship's weapons — phasers and photon torpedoes — are brought to ready status.
- All crew members are to report to duty, whether that be their primary duty station or a secondary duty station within five minutes. Those crew members asleep at the time are to report to duty within fifteen minutes.
- Secondary stations can include medical duty. On larger ships, a good portion of the crew receive training as medical technicians.
- The defensive shields are brought to full power.
- On starships that have the ability to separate the saucer section, the crew prepares for possible separation.
- Backup crews for the main bridge standby in the event separation is called for.
- Crews for the battle bridge also go on standby status in case separation is called for.
- Non-essential crew and other individuals (such as civilians and mission specialists) are moved to the saucer section.
- Security also makes a number of preparations.
- They make sure lifeboat access ways are clear so that if people need to evacuate the starship they can easily get to the lifeboats.
- Security teams are also stationed at key areas throughout the ship.
- Sensors record the locations of individuals. This is used to determine if unauthorized access occurs.
- Security teams are placed on standby status.
A rarely used variation of this alert is the "double-red alert", which is only used in extreme, time-critical situations. In The Conscience of the King, Captain Kirk declared a "double-red alert" when a phaser set to overload was planted in his cabin in a failed assassination attempt.
On space stations such as Deep Space Nine, red alert procedures are similar to those of starships. Civilians either return to their quarters or are placed in special shelter areas. Public areas are closed down for the duration of the crisis.
Origins
The conditions Red Alert and Yellow Alert were not used by Starfleet in the mid-22nd Century timeframe of the first voyages of the Enterprise NX-01 (as seen in Star Trek: Enterprise). The series established that the vessel's tactical officer, Malcolm Reed introduced the concept of a "tactical alert" which when activated would sound an alarm and automatically polarize the hull plating (since the NX-01 had no energy shielding array) and bring weapons on line. Reed considered a number of names before settling on tactical alert; one of the first (suggested as a joke by Trip Tucker) was "Reed Alert". It is implied that Reed's tactical alert system is the forerunner of the later Red Alert/Yellow Alert systems used by Starfleet. Red Alert is similiar to the "Call To General Quarters (GQ)" used in contemporary blue water Navies. In the fictional Klingon Imperial Navy, "Battle Stations" is the preferred term.