Senior Crewman (SCR) Carl Franklin is a weapons director, specialising in the configuration, launch and flight management of Endeavour's primary weapons system: torpedoes.
Torpedoes are guided missiles, which means they can track targets over long distances using a variety of guidance systems.
Franklin is part of a team of specialists that assists the tactical officer by developing firing solution options. The senior member of that team would likely be based on the bridge during alert conditions and would have at least petty officer rank, which Carl can expect to achieve with a little more experience.
Interested in SCR Franklin's role as a weapons director?
Once you've completed training you'll be able to gain more experience by joining simulator missions chosen from a growing library of tactical, exploratory, scientific and diplomatic scenarios.
During missions a weapons director is responsible for developing firing solutions, which describe the optimal launch conditions needed to achieve a required tactical outcome. Factors include range to target, relative speed and the timing of the torpedo's flight phases.
Once the tactical officer accepts a firing solution, the weapons director ensures that torpedoes are configured and loaded, ready to launch once the firing solution conditions have been achieved.
After launch, the weapons director monitors the torpedo's progress and can make manual adjustments to flight phasing to compensate for evasion attempts by the target.
To become a weapons director you'll need to sign up as crew, which gives you access to online training at the Academy including the simulator facility.
Once you've complete training on weapons systems you'll become 'rated' on that system, which means you'll be able to work as a weapons director in the simulator during missions.
From there how your career develops is up to you. As you log mission hours you'll qualify as an advanced weapons director and eventually master specialist, making more complex and challenging missions available for you to participate in.
Your profile displays which systems you're rated on, as well as your current rank and qualification insignia.
Senior specialists may become eligible for selection to join the Mission Operations team or as Academy instructors.
Sign up now or contact a recruiter for help.