General quarters
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference
General quarters was a command that dated back to early naval tradition to prepare for battle.
By the 23rd century, the term had been adopted by Starfleet for use aboard Federation starships as a stage of red alert to describe a ship's condition of maximum readiness. The general quarters order is typically issued as a call for all hands to man their battle stations but can also vary in state by a number of conditions. By the late-24th century, usage of this alert was phased out in favor of more specific alerts for various situations, such as yellow alert, red alert, security alert, and intruder alert.
[edit] Conditions of general quarters
- Security Condition Three indicates that ships security has been compromised and an intruder is aboard the ship. This is otherwise known as "security alert three" or "intruder alert". (TOS: "The Man Trap", "Dagger of the Mind", "The Lights of Zetar"). General quarters was sounded under this security condition in 2366 on the USS Enterprise-D. (TNG: "The Hunted")
- Security Condition Four orders all halls to be sealed off and all weapons to be accounted for and locked away on all levels of the ship. (TOS: "The Man Trap")
- Alert Condition Baker Two was an alert used on Starfleet vessels when confrontations among the crewmembers on a starship increase to the point where security becomes involved. In 2266, the crew of the USS Enterprise were under the influence of polywater intoxication. Security reported to Lieutenant Uhura that incidents among crewmembers of the Enterprise were growing. First officer Commander Spock had Uhura declare Alert Condition Baker Two over the ship's intercom. (TOS: "The Naked Time")
