History
- Following the events at the Khitomer Conference in 2293, the
Federation Security Council began an exhaustive investigation into the whole affair. Those
in leadership positions knew that Admiral Cartwright had not acted alone during the Praxis
catastrophe. There were many in suborinate positions throughout the Command who were
sympathetic to his cause.
- The year-long hearings of the Council recorded the testimony of
hundreds of persons in every level of the hiearchy of Starfleet. After exhausting all
avenue of investigation, the Security Council hearings finally ground to a conclusion.
Early the following year, the Council's report to the Federation sounded the death knell
for many careers. Those in Starfleet who had let their feelings drive them to
inappropriate actions were soon history.
- A major component of the Council report concerned itself with
the decentralization of power at Starfleet Command. Some of the "difficulties"
that surfaced at Khitomer were caused by the very large concentration of senior Starfleet
personnel in San Francisco. The Council's conclusion was that such large concentrations of
senior command officers can easily become the breeding grounds for mutinous actions of the
like of Cartwright. Feasibility studies were ordered.
- The billet of Quadrant Officer was established in 2302 and was
filled in 2303 by Admiral Kenneth Brannon. Thus began an era that embodied the concept of
coordinating the activities of all ships, starbases, outposts and deep space stations
within the quadrant's boundaries from a headquarters well within the quadrant. In this
case, Quadrant Three.
Daran VI-D
- When the Daran System was first selected as a terminal for the
shipping and passenger routes which were expanding, the people of Daran V rejoiced. For
many years, the system reaped the benefits from the shipping and passenger business, but
slowly, the congestion began to increase. When the delays of both arrivals and departures
reached an occasional day and sometimes two, the authorities on Daran V demanded relief. A
Starbase 79 class installation was budgeted and within a year, the Rigel Structure Group
began the assembly of Daran VI-D. Towed to its ultimate place in orbit around Daran VI, it
began official operations in 2299 as an overflow port for all civilian craft arriving in
the Daran System. The majority of the commercial liners and transports, however, continued
to call at Daran V.
Daran VI might have been envisioned as an overflow port by the Federation, but that's not
the way Admiral Brannon saw it. On a mission to this part of the quadrant in 2301, he was
struck by the possibilities that the spaceport had to offer. It wasn't crowded. Though
there were as many as two dozen craft matching the orbit of the port most days, there were
never more than six liners in the docks at any one time. It could service either civilian
or military vessels with equal ease.
But most importantly, the port was advantageously located from a military point of view.
Off to port was the Neutral Zone behind which the Romulans were usually plotting. Off the
starboard bow was the space frequently in dispute with the Klingons. And in between, the
Delta Triangle, that area of space where all who were wise "kept their backs to the
wall and their hands on their wallets" at all times. Orion Traders were also quite
active in this area.
When Starfleet Operations established the billet of Quadrant Officer and selected Admiral
Brannon, he knew exactly where he would establish his headquarters. Within the year, he
had selected his staff and established his headquarters. The Third Fleet was born!
Click below to contact
Third Fleet Headquarters for more information.
