Captain's Chair |
Helm and Navigation |
Weapons and Defense Systems |
Shuttlecraft Galileo |
Shuttlebay |
2270-2271 Refit
The combines helm and navigation stations were located at the front of the main bridge. They
controlled a wide range of essential systems.
On the
USS Enterprise NCC-1701, the navigation and helm
stations were combined on a single console known as the conn. This featured the controls required for
interstellar flight, navigation, and combat. Conn operations were shared by two officers: the helmsman,
who sat on the captain's left, and the navigator, who sat on the captain's right. The duties of the
helmsman included piloting the ship and management of the warp and impulse engines. The navigator was
responsible for plotting and updating the ship's course and making warp speed and trajectory calculations.
The two officers shared responsibility for tactical operations.
The helm panel had three main sections. On the far left was a flap which opened automatically to permit
operation of the targeting scanner. Next to this was the main helm control panel, which operated
maneuvering thrusters, impulse engines, and the warp drive. Directly below this panel was a row of
eight flip-switches used to set speeds for warp flight. The central section of the conn was fitted with
a number of sensor monitor lights, and was doinated by two main features: the alert indicator (which
flashed yellow or red during alerts) and the astrogator, which was used for long-range course plotting.
The astrogator panel also featured an intercom for intraship communications, the ship's chronometer, an
tertiary switches for impulse power and secondary weapons operation.
The navigator's station had a control panel for inputting course and heading data and the flight path
indicator (a secondary screen that displayed the ship's current course), and supplied information on any
deviations or course corrections in progress. It also had controls for the weapons systems; these were
duplicated on the helm station.
