cthia wrote:I watched Star Trek's "Wrath of Khan' a-gain. When it got to the part of Spock giving Lt. Saavik the helm and letting her take the Enterprise out of docking status and away from the space station, Kirk was threatening to have his own bout with apoplexy.
It got me to thinking. Why do we not see a naval officer's first time at the helm? They're always already seasoned. But from whence did they acquire that seasoning? Surely it isn't all Sims.
I wonder how many officer's actually flew anything. We know Honor had her sail planes and older jet aircraft. Are all officers at least allowed, if not required, to demonstrate first-hand kinesthetic aptitude, and the humble skills of an air-breathing iron eagle?
Who wants a Captain that can't fly a cargo plane full of rubber dogshit out of Hong Kong without a stink?
Any textev regarding?
Not that I can recall. But I'm sure they have a well planned curriculum and progression for how you're trained to be a helmsman.
At a guess once you graduate from computer sims you'd get taken up to a training craft - possibly something like an older LAC that can be configured to handle like a variety of starships (kind of like NASA had a Gulfstream II bizjet modified into the Shuttle Training Aircraft that can "fly" like the Space Shuttle on landing approach) - by having the computers restrict its acceleration and roll rates it could maneuver like anything from a LAC to an SD(P) to a lumbering freighter.
And I'd bet that you start out driving it
well away from anything breakable, then practice approaches on something expendable (in case you sideswipe it with your wedge) well before you're allowed to handle active wedge anywhere near a station or other ship.
But what exactly the training involves before being allowed to touch the helm of a spaceship I wouldn't even guess.
