In 2373, the standard Starfleet uniform was again modified, retaining the same basic shape and division colors from the previous design, but reversing the colors on the shoulders and turtleneck. The blue-gray shoulder area was now quilted with vertical stitches. The division colors were also displayed on each wrist as a colored hoop.
A succession of other Starfleet uniforms and a new combadge were also phased into service during this time and used concurrently. By 2380, the blue-gray version continued to be used aboard the USS Titan, USS Archimedes, and Starbase 25, while a newer uniform with a different combadge was worn by personnel aboard California-class and Parliament-class vessels. (LD: "Second Contact", "No Small Parts", "We'll Always Have Tom Paris", "An Embarrassment Of Dooplers")
In addition to these uniforms, earlier versions of the standard duty attire were still used among some Starfleet officers during this time. (DS9: "Tears of the Prophets")
As Data's uniform was not liquefied when he ruptured the coolant tank on the USS Enterprise-E, it appears these uniforms were created with non-organic fibers. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Standard duty uniform
Type A
While the standard, two-tone duty uniform introduced in the late 2360s remained in service (at least) until 2373, it was phased out of regular use aboard Starfleet vessels and space stations beginning in 2373.
Although the new duty uniform retained the same basic structure and style of the last standard duty uniform, the yoke/shoulder area usually displaying division colors was given a standard, blue-gray color and quilted. Cuffs were also added to the uniform, bearing a stripe of corresponding division color.
The uniform shirt and undershirt were also modified. (Star Trek: First Contact; DS9: "Rapture"; VOY: "Message in a Bottle")
This uniform style was created for First Contact and was first seen on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in the episode "Rapture" before being used for the remainder of DS9. The crew on Star Trek: Voyager and the crew aboard the USS Equinox continued to use the previous uniform style, but beginning with "Message in a Bottle", all Starfleet personnel from the Alpha Quadrant were seen wearing the gray and black uniform. It is interesting to note that Julian Bashir was captured by the Dominion shortly before the uniform change, thereby showing Bashir in the old uniform and Worf in the new uniform in the episode "In Purgatory's Shadow". Ronald D. Moore commented that "The grey & black were designed to give the Enterprise-E crew a more military look that would also have more texture and variations in usage and thus look better on the big screen." (AOL chat, 1997)
While several prominent closures are visible on the First Contact-style uniform, several more "unseen" closures appear to exist in the uniform. Despite its generally sleek, jumpsuit-like appearance, the uniform seems to have the ability to split in two pieces becoming a separate jacket and trousers. This function was demonstrated in several episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine; "Rocks and Shoals" and "Change of Heart" among them.
In an alternate timeline, this uniform stayed in service as late as the year 2390. (VOY: "Timeless")
Transitional variant
By 2380, the greenish-blue division coloring of this era's sciences uniform was seemingly phased out in favor of a brighter shade of blue. (Star Trek: Lower Decks)
Type B
This version, introduced by 2381, featured an extension of the gray shoulder material down the center of the jacket to mid-chest. To either side along the shoulder area, a black stripe with division-colored piping ran across the torso, over the arms, and around the back. This design would eventually inform the look of the division colors at the shoulders of the standard Starfleet uniform of the mid-2380s. (PIC: "Seventeen Seconds")
Captain's variants
With this new wave of duty uniforms, so too came minor variants available to commanding officers. Similar to the so-called "captain's jacket" variant worn in the 2360s, a new vest or waistcoat was introduced aboard starships and space stations. Bearing the same gray, quilted yoke as the duty uniform (extended lower, below the combadge), this sleeveless, low-necked vest allowed the wearer a more casual appearance. (Star Trek: First Contact; DS9: "Rapture")
While the waistcoat was first donned in First Contact by Captain Picard, that film was the only circumstance in which audiences saw the captain wearing it. Cut from a small scene in Insurrection (and not used at all in Star Trek Nemesis), the waistcoat was most prominently seen worn by Captain Sisko, who wore his on several occasions, including the episodes "Rocks and Shoals" and "In the Pale Moonlight". A similar vest was also worn by Section 31 operative Luther Sloan when posing as a deputy director in "Inquisition".
While Picard seemed to switch between the standard duty jacket and the vest, Sisko was seen wearing it beneath his uniform, sometimes causing his uniform to seem quite bulky. Minor differences in the construction of the uniform notwithstanding (Picard's featured round openings for the arms, while Sisko's were squared off), the vests appear identical.
The design of the waistcoat can be attributed to the one worn by Captain Kirk in Star Trek Generations.
In addition to the vest, a more formal uniform was also available to commanding officers. Featuring only minor differences from the standard duty uniform, a variant uniform without cuffs and bearing a more formal collar was also in use as early as 2373. (DS9: "Rapture", "The Darkness and the Light")
Sisko's other variant uniform has caused some confusion among fans, though it appeared only twice. The uniform seems to be the same style worn by the captain throughout the rest of the series, simply missing its cuffs and zipped all the way up. It is unclear whether this was intended to be an attempt at a new uniform to set the captain apart, or whether it was simply supposed to be another option, like the vest. Whatever the case, the uniform was either modified or replaced during "The Darkness and the Light" and never reappeared.
Uniform undershirt
When compared to the previous design, the mock turtleneck shirt worn beneath the jumpsuit uniform was made of a heavier material, now displaying one of three division colors and opening in the front from a prominent closure. Beneath this, a blue-gray tee, or sleeveless tee, was worn, similar in style to the undershirt of the previous design. (Star Trek: First Contact; DS9: "You Are Cordially Invited", "Take Me Out to the Holosuite", "Strange Bedfellows", "The Dogs of War")
Flag officer uniform
First appearing in 2374, Starfleet issued a new uniform for flag officers, such as admirals, reflecting the new duty uniform.
Retaining the same basic form as the previous style, the next generation of flag officer service uniform incorporated the adjusted color scheme and quilted yoke. The jacket was longer and edged in gold, and the tunic displayed rank insignia on both sides of the collar. The cuffs were wider than present on the standard uniform, displaying admiral's rank insignia on both sleeves. A belt was also introduced to the uniform, with either a plain gold rectangular buckle or an oval buckle displaying the Seal of the United Federation of Planets. (DS9: "Behind the Lines", "Favor the Bold"; Star Trek: Insurrection)
The new style was first seen donned by Admiral William Ross in the DS9 episode "Behind the Lines". Just a few episodes before this (in "A Time to Stand"), Ross was seen wearing the previous style uniform indicating that Starfleet didn't introduce this version for at least a year after first adopting the First Contact-style duty uniform. The rectangular belt buckle appeared only in "Behind the Lines"; by the next episode, Ross was wearing the belt with the Federation Seal.
Dress uniform
Again, coinciding with the alterations made to the duty uniform, two distinct variations on the Starfleet dress uniform were introduced.
Type A
The first, used around 2374, closely resembled the preceding style of dress uniform, a standard two-tone long jacket and black trousers. New to this version, which retained the previous coloration of black with one of the three division colors, was the quilted yoke, cuffs with a gold band, and a black belt displaying the seal of the United Federation of Planets. The gold trim along the collar was widened to three parallel gold bands, with the middle band retaining the broken style of the few previous dress uniform styles, while the outer bands were solid. (DS9: "You Are Cordially Invited")
Clearly an alteration of existing dress uniforms, this variant existed only long enough to appear in the wedding of Worf and Jadzia Dax, and even then, it was obscured by dark lighting and the ceremonial Klingon robes worn by Miles O'Brien, Julian Bashir, and Sisko. Only Nog appeared in this uniform without the Klingon robes.
Type B
In 2375, the second dress uniform variant was introduced, this time a stark departure from previous styles. Throwing out the old color scheme and long jacket, the new style favored a white, short jacket with gold trim and a quilted gray center section, worn over black trousers, which were also trimmed in gold.
Division colors were less prominent than in the preceding style, appearing as piping around the collar, and wide bands on the cuffs and side seams of the trousers.
While this uniform was standard to all duty officers, captains and flag officers wore white in place of blue-gray in the center section. Flag officers had a wider cuff braid with a solid white line running through it, upon which rank insignia was affixed.
Members of the Starfleet band at the Riker-Troi wedding wore solid gray uniforms, which featured longer, looser jackets than the standard uniform. The gold and division color trim of the standard jacket was replaced with white, and the collar, now distinguished by white trim where it met the shoulders, sported a thick band of white running the center of it where rank was displayed. The division color strip on the pants was also white. (Star Trek: Insurrection; DS9: "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges"; Star Trek Nemesis)
Introduced in Insurrection, the new dress uniform appeared only once on Deep Space Nine but was featured prominently in the Riker-Troi wedding in Nemesis. Despite wearing a special dress uniform baldric throughout TNG, Worf did not wear one over this iteration.
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion, ? ed., p. ?, designer Robert Blackman described the new look: "We wanted something that really popped. No matter what, white over black has a formal look to it."
Desert robes
For harsh or desert conditions, specialized robes were worn to protect against sunlight and provide comfort in hot and humid conditions.
This particular uniform consisted of white hooded robes, with off-white pants and short-sleeve shirts trimmed with division colors and was used when the standard duty uniform might have proved uncomfortable or inappropriate for some environments.
Specialized boots were also part of the desert uniform, also off-white, with treads better suited to mountainous or more rugged terrain. (DS9: "Shadows and Symbols")
Appearing only once, this attire was described in the episode's script as "some kind of lightweight poncho with a hood for protection from the beating sun. But even with the protection, they're hot."
This uniform incorporated boots that closely resembled the tennis shoe-like boots worn by the USS Voyager crew during their climbing excursion in "Blood Fever". These boots were made by Reebok, and were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay. [1](X) [2](X) [3](X) [4](X) [5](X) [6](X)
Combat uniform
Retaining the same general appearance as its predecessor, the uniform used by Starfleet personnel in combat situations was a black combat jacket with a division color stripe running across the chest.
The division color mock turtleneck was worn beneath the rubber-like body armor. (DS9: "The Siege of AR-558")
Also known as Surface Operations Blacks, or SOBs. (citation needed • edit)
Utility uniform
As with the previous generations of Starfleet uniforms, a plain, operations mustard-colored jumpsuit used by technicians and utility workers was available as late as 2379. (Star Trek Nemesis)
This jumpsuit also seemed to be available for visitors in need of wardrobe as evidenced by the crew of the USS Enterprise-E dressing the newly found android B-4 in such a uniform. Data's other twin "brother" Lore also wore a mustard-colored utility jumpsuit in The Next Generation episode "Datalore".
Cadet uniform
Some time around 2372, a corresponding alteration was made to the uniform worn at Starfleet Academy and by Starfleet cadets serving aboard starships.
While essentially the same design as the preceding style – gray jumpsuit with division-colored shoulders – quilting was again added to the yoke as were cuffs bearing division colors. Instead of being a one-piece uniform, however, it was split, now sporting a gray mock turtleneck beneath.
As with the earlier style, the uniform was gray (rather than black worn by officers) and featured pockets running down the trousers. (DS9: "Valiant", "Field of Fire")
Oddly, while Nog continued to wear his Academy-style uniform (sans First Contact alterations) until 2374, all evidence indicates the new style existed as early as 2372 – the year the USS Valiant left Earth carrying a group of cadets, and the same year Hector Ilario graduated from the Academy, seen wearing this version in a photograph.
Section 31 uniform
In use since the mid-22nd century, the distinctive black uniforms worn by operatives involved with Starfleet's secret organization Section 31 remained basically unchanged in the 2370s. Made from a black, leather-like material, the Section 31 uniform consisted of a long, black coat worn over a black mock turtleneck tunic and black trousers. (DS9: "Inquisition") Given Section 31's high level of autonomy, secrecy, and their overall lack of protocol, it was more likely that they had no standard duty uniform - at least none that Starfleet could critique.
As Section 31 mastermind Luther Sloan has been seen throughout DS9 wearing various, more recognizably Starfleet uniforms, it's possible that this uniform is some kind of covert or black-ops uniform, or simply civilian clothing.
Other uniform features
Depending on their various circumstances and traditions, some Starfleet officers were allowed to augment their uniforms with the addition of cultural items.
Klingon Starfleet officer Worf wore a baldric displaying various family emblems throughout his tenure in Starfleet. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Bajoran colonel Kira Nerys was allowed to retain her culture's traditional earring when given a field commission of commander. (DS9: "Tacking Into the Wind")
Ferengi cadet, and later officer, Nog wore a headdress traditional among his people. The headdress matched the color and texture of the shoulder material on his uniform. (DS9: "Homefront", "Favor the Bold")
Medical doctors and other scientists also adorned their Starfleet uniforms differently than other officers, wearing lab coats over their standard uniforms. (DS9: "Doctor Bashir, I Presume"; PIC: "Disengage", "Seventeen Seconds")
It is unclear why audiences never saw Dr. Beverly Crusher in her blue lab coat following the uniform change in First Contact, but Dr. Zimmerman's use of his wrinkled, off-white lab coat in his season five appearance on Deep Space Nine seems to indicate that the practice continued and was at least informally accepted by uniform regulations.
Rank insignia
| Crewman | Chief petty officer |
|---|---|
| No insignia | 
|
| Ensign | Lieutenant junior grade | Lieutenant |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
| Lieutenant commander | Commander | Captain |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
| Rear admiral | Vice admiral | Admiral |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
These charts represent the rank insignia seen on screen throughout these uniforms' appearances. Crewmen wore no insignia.
| Starfleet uniform styles | |
|---|---|
| By era: | 2140s-Early 2160s • Mid 2160s • 2230s • Late 2230s-2250s • 2250s-Early 2270s • Mid 2270s • Late 2270s-2350s • 2350s-2370s • Late 2360s-Early 2370s • 2370s-Early 2380s • Early 2380s • Mid 2380s • Late 2390s • Early 2400s • 29th century • 32nd century • 33rd century |
| By type: | Casual duty attire • Alternate & parallel uniforms • Alternate reality uniforms • Fictional uniforms • Terran Empire uniforms |
| Related topics: | Assignment patch • MACO uniform and equipment • Starfleet decorations • Starfleet insignia • Starfleet ranks • Terran Empire ranks • Uniform |
Appendices
Appearances
Type A
- DS9:
- "Rapture" (Season 5)
- "The Darkness and the Light"
- "The Begotten"
- "For the Uniform"
- "In Purgatory's Shadow"
- "By Inferno's Light"
- "Doctor Bashir, I Presume"
- "A Simple Investigation"
- "Business as Usual"
- "Ties of Blood and Water"
- "Ferengi Love Songs"
- "Soldiers of the Empire"
- "Children of Time"
- "Blaze of Glory"
- "Empok Nor"
- "In the Cards"
- "Call to Arms"
- Season 6 (all episodes)
- Season 7 (all episodes)
- VOY:
- "Message in a Bottle" (Season 4)
- "Hope and Fear"
- "Timeless" (Season 5)
- "Pathfinder" (Season 6)
- "Life Line"
- "Inside Man" (Season 7)
- "Author, Author"
- "Friendship One"
- "Endgame"
- Star Trek films:
- PIC:
- "Remembrance" (dream) (Season 1)
- "Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2" (quantum simulation)
- "The Bounty" (photograph) (Season 3)
- LD:
- "Cupid's Errant Arrow" (flashback) (Season 1)
- "Much Ado About Boimler"
- "No Small Parts"
- "Strange Energies" (Season 2)
- "Kayshon, His Eyes Open"
- "We'll Always Have Tom Paris"
- "Mugato, Gumato" (image on PADD)
- "An Embarrassment Of Dooplers"
- "Where Pleasant Fountains Lie"
- "I, Excretus" (hologram)
- "First First Contact"
- "Grounded" (Season 3)
- "Mining The Mind's Mines"
- "Reflections" (flashbacks, hallucinations, and images on PADD)
- "Hear All, Trust Nothing"
- "Crisis Point 2: Paradoxus"
- "Trusted Sources"
- "The Stars At Night"
- "Dos Cerritos" (Season 5) (image on PADD)
Type B
- PIC: "Seventeen Seconds" (flashback) (Season 3)
Background information
The Starfleet uniforms introduced in the 2370s were designed by TNG, DS9, and VOY veteran costume designer Robert Blackman, based upon William Ware Theiss's designs from The Original Series.
In an audio commentary for Star Trek: Insurrection, Jonathan Frakes revealed that he hated wearing this style of Starfleet uniform for the TNG Star Trek films.
Apocrypha
Though these uniforms were not seen in canon until 2373, the fourth and final issue of the IDW Publishing miniseries Star Trek: Spock: Reflections shows Picard wearing this uniform in 2372, after Spock had taken Kirk's body from Veridian III and re-interred it at the Kirk family farm in Iowa.
External links
- Starfleet uniform (2373-2386) at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
- Starfleet uniforms 2373- at Spike's Star Trek Page
- 24th century Starfleet uniforms at Ex Astris Scientia