Pavel Chekov

Pavel Andreievich Chekov was a human Starfleet officer, best known for serving aboard the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) and USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A) as navigator, weapons officer, and chief of security.

Later in his career, he served as first officer aboard the USS Excelsior (NCC-2000) under Captain Hikaru Sulu, as captain of the USS Potemkin (NCC-1657), USS Cydonia and USS Undaunted, and as Commander-in-Chief of the Federation Starfleet.

Early life
Pavel Chekov, son of Andrei Dimitrievich Chekov and Larisa Irinova Chekov, was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, Earth, on 19 September 2245. He was his parents' first and only child. 

Prior to being able to read, Chekov and his family lived on Luna. 

Pavel's interest in space and alien life-forms began at the age of 6 when he was brought his first telescope. 

Sometime during his childhood, his mother died and he grew up somewhat distant from his father. 

Starfleet Academy
While at the Academy, Chekov entered into a relationship with fellow Russian Irina Galliulin, who was also attending the Academy. Unable to adapt to the rigid structure of the Academy, she dropped out and broke off her relationship with Chekov. Having moved on to other promising women, Chekov had once even fallen in love with a Melkotian, telepathically-induced illusion. "She" left such an impression on him, all his other memories were nearly gone from the experience on Theta Kiokis II. Although Pavel never made it widely known, he admired Klingon women and found them very attractive. In 2264, Cadet Chekov was assigned to the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) to undergo navigation training, while the Enterprise conducted a three-month voyage around the Federation Phalanx, its first voyage under James T. Kirk. 

''According to the elder Spock in, "In both our histories, the same crew found its way onto the same ship in a time of ultimate crisis." This may imply that there is an untold story set in the prime timeline in which Kirk's crew faced an extremely serious challenge while still a new and untested unit. Startrek.com states they Chekov was assigned to the Enterprise as navigator in 2263, his first posting.''

When Chekov graduated in 2266, he was re-assigned to the Enterprise as an ensign. 

Chekov's Starfleet serial number was 656-5827D. 
 * According to the novel Uhura's Song, Chekov's serial number was SD710-820.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)
When Chekov was first assigned to the Enterprise, he was assigned to study in as many areas of starship operations as possible, as is normal with a command track ensign. Chekov spent several months in engineering, as well as the science departments. Durin Khan Noonien Singh's and his crew's takeover of the Enterprise, Chekov led an organized resistance against him. Even as gas filled the engine room, Chekov remained calm and got the others to safety without thinking of himself. Chekov received recommendations from other members of the crew for his actions. 

Ensign Chekov finally earned the respect and trust of Captain Kirk in 2267, when Chekov was on assignment in the auxiliary control room. The Enterprise had become trapped in the gravity well of a black hole, while traveling at warp. While the bridge crew are disabled, Chekov managed to plot a spiral course out of the gravity well, saving the Enterprise. Captain Kirk temporarily assigned Chekov to the navigator's position. (SS TOS (Indomitable))

Mission to Modala
Ensign Chekov's first days of bridge duty did not go well as he was rebuked by Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott for daydreaming while on duty during his first bridge shift. However, Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu introduced himself, after his shift was over, for encouragement. This was the beginning of their long-time friendship. 

When the Enterprise was assigned to perform a follow-up survey to the planet Modala, and Captain Kirk announced that he wanted Chekov to accompany him. Both Commander Spock and Doctor Leonard McCoy had concerns about Kirk beaming down with such an inexperienced officer, but Kirk and Chekov beamed down to Modala anyway. Kirk later observed the ensign's "hero worship" of him.

On the world's surface, Kirk and Chekov help restore the planet legitimate government from an usurping force using alien (later revealed to be Ferengi) weapons. 

Following this mission, Ensign Chekov was permanently assigned to the bridge crew as navigator and junior science officer under Commander Spock's tutelage. 

Julia Crandall
On Chekov's first assignment as permanent navigator, the Enterprise was charting the unexplored Mariotian sector, when they received a distress call from a unexplored planet. On arrival at the planet, they discovered a large vessel bombarding the Harahni colony with radiation.

Chekov and Lt. Julia Crandall transported down to the colony and learned that the colonists had never tried to adapt local plant life for their needs, and instead tried to recreate their homeworld.

After managing to break through the radiation ship's shields, Kirk and Chekov beamed aboard and found a malfunctioning ark, with dead creatures and plants in its cargo hold, and managed to shut down the ship.

When Crandall decided to remain behind and study the ship, Chekov proposed to Crandall, and they vowed to find each other again. Unfortunately, this never occurred; she died in late 2290. 

Respected officer
After being assigned to the bridge, Chekov became a valued member of the crew and built friendships with Hikaru Sulu and Nyota Uhura, as well as earned the respect of Captain Kirk, Commander Spock and Lt. DeSalle who were all very pleased with his progress. His reputation grew also with his brand of connecting various items/events with his country and referring to those he disliked as "Cossack."

In an attempt to give Chekov all the experience he needed as an officer, Captain Kirk had Chekov assigned to numerous landing parties with him, including missions to Pollux II, Gamma Hydra IV, Mudd, Triskelion, and Melkotia. 

By 2269, Chekov had progressed so well that he took an interest in security, and began training aboard the Enterprise. After being temporarily re-assigned, his old navigation instructor, Lt. Arex, took his place on the bridge. When Chekov returned a few months later, he was made temporary chief of security. (Star Trek: The Animated Series; ; )


 * Startrek.com gives Chekov's promotion to lieutenant and becoming the refit Enterprise's security chief under Will Decker as occurring in 2269.

Security career
When the Enterprise returned to Earth at the end of its five-year mission in 2270, Ensign Chekov entered Starfleet Security Academy in Annapolis to continue his security training. While there, Pavel studied many subjects, including Klingon weaponry, such as disruptors. Chekov's experience was unique in this regard, as he was the only student on Earth who had ever seen a Klingon disruptor in operation, during his Enterprise service. 

In December 2271, Chekov was enjoying dinner with Nyota Uhura, Hikaru Sulu, and Dr. McCoy at New Harborplace Restaurant in Baltimore, when he was approached by former Enterprise CMO, Dr. Mark Piper. Piper enlisted Chekov to help in a research project at Johns Hopkins University involving the mitigating effects of a Klingon sonic disruptor blast.

A few days later, Piper was found murdered by a Klingon disruptor, and Chekov was implicated for the crime. Realizing that he had been framed for the crime and that he had assassins following him, Chekov fled Earth to board the abandoned secondary hull of the Enterprise along with Sulu and Uhura, who were also being framed for the alleged theft of a Romulan cloaking device.

It was later revealed by Commander Kang of the Klingon Defense Force that Chekov, Sulu, and Uhura had been framed as part of a conspiracy between the Klingons and the Romulans to start a war with the Federation. The real perpetrators, Commodore Adam Willis and Jackson Kahle, were arrested and charged with murder, attempted murder, theft of restricted technology, and high treason.

Following this incident Chekov was promoted to full Lieutenant and was offered the position of Chief of Security aboard the Enterprise, once the refit was completed. 

Second five-year mission
In 2273, shortly after the launch of the refitted Enterprise, Chekov took the opportunity to tell the story of his Kobayashi Maru test to Kirk, McCoy, Scotty and Sulu while they were stranded aboard a drifting shuttlecraft following an accident. When a child was killed by a plasma grenade during a fight between Klingons and an Enterprise landing party on Cragon V, Weyland, the omnipotent ruler of the planet, punished Kirk by sending Chekov, Scotty and Sulu back in time. Chekov found himself in Stalingrad in 1942 during the great battle in the city. He was incarcerated in a German prison camp, where his cellmate was John Kirk, an ancestor of James T. Kirk. Chekov and Kirk escaped together and made their way to Moscow, where Chekov was inducted into the Russian Army and joined a Red Guard pilot squadron. While protecting a transport piloted by Kirk from German planes, Chekov lost a wing and bailed out into the Baltic Sea, but was returned to the 23rd century by Weyland. 

Following the end of the second five-year mission in 2278, Chekov was promoted to full Commander and accepted a position as first officer aboard the USS Reliant (NCC-1864), but the offer evidently fell through. 

Belle Terre
When Admiral Kirk volunteered the Enterprise to lead the colonization mission to Belle Terre in 2279, Chekov readily accepted his old post as Chief of Security for the mission. 

During the expedition, the post of first officer of the Reliant opened up once more, and this time, Chekov received the position. 

Aboard the USS Reliant
Commander Chekov signed aboard the Reliant as first officer in 2280, and developed a good working relationship with his new captain, Clark Terrell.


 * Startrek.com gives the date of Chekov's Reliant assignment as 2277.

A few months later, the Reliant proceeded to the planet Halka after learning that they had been attacked by the Orions. Chekov led a landing party to the surface and learned that a local boy named Lojur took up arms against the Orions, and was subsequently banned from his village by the Elders. Chekov took pity on the boy and beamed him aboard the Reliant. 

In 2282, Chekov and the Reliant were assigned to the planet Mestiko to help monitor elections. 

Later in 2282, Chekov, Captain Terrell and several Reliant crewmembers crashed the shuttlecraft Kepler on a Gorn planetoid. After some misunderstandings, the crew of the Kepler was able to get rescued by the local Gorn garrison. 

In 2284, the Reliant was detached from active service and assigned to assist Dr. Carol Marcus and her Project Genesis team find a suitable uninhabited planet for testing. In 2285, Terrell and Chekov beamed down to a planet they believed to be Ceti Alpha VI. When they discovered Khan Noonien Singh and his followers, they discovered that they were, in fact, on Ceti Alpha V, and that Ceti Alpha VI had been destroyed.

Using Terrell and Chekov, Khan took control of the Reliant, marooned it's crew and stole the Genesis Device. Although Terrell was later killed, Chekov was rescued by his old comrades from the Enterprise, and returned to duty aboard his old ship. Chekov manned the weapons console and fired the torpedo that destroyed his old ship, defeating Khan. 

In 2286, Chekov and his Enterprise crewmates were charged and cleared of the theft of the Enterprise (events that had occurred in 2285). 

Aboard the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A)


When the Enterprise-A was launched in 2286, Commander Chekov resumed his old duty-post as Chief of Security. 

Later that year, Chekov attended Ensign Konom's bachelor party, where he spiked the fruit punch with some vodka. He then attended Konom's and Ensign Nancy Bryce's wedding. When Sulu caught the wedding bouquet, Chekov told M'Ress about the "Russian" tradition that, when someone catches the bouquet, they might get married. When Sulu left, Chekov told M'Ress that Sulu was inscrutable. Chekov was on the bridge when the crew started to experience hallucinations being created by Lt. Castille, receiving reports about a three-headed dog, etc.

During the priority situation on Nimbus III in 2287, Chekov had a first-hand taste in the responsibility of being a commanding officer. Even though his ruse to distract Sybok from Kirk's landing party failed, Pavel benefited from the experience. 

Peacekeeper
In 2290, Commander Chekov and Captain Montgomery Scott were assigned to the USS Pacific to prepare to test a new protomatter weapon, which was to be tested on an asteroid, while the Enterprise observed.

When the Pacific fired the protomatter device at the asteroid, the Pacific was transported over 30,000 light years away. Scott and Chekov discovered that the weapon and the Pacific were tampered with by group that called themselves the Aegis, who were rebel supervisors, like Gary Seven. They demanded that Chekov and Scott conduct repairs on the ship.

The Enterprise managed to track down the Pacific with Gary Seven's assistance. The Pacific was then destroyed in battle, but Scotty saved the crew by jury-rigging the vessel's transporter. 

Temporary assignment to Excelsior
When Commander Sulu was promoted to Captain and given command of the USS Excelsior (NCC-2000) in early 2290, he requested that Chekov come aboard as first officer, but Chekov did not accept this position until near the end of the year.

Before leaving Deep Space 3, both the Excelsior and the base were attacked by the Anjiri-Nykuss, who captured six crewmembers, including Chekov. The Excelsior set off in pursuit, and discovered that the Anjiri-Nykuss's recent hostile actions were due to incubation problems and internal conflict. Chekov was eventually rescued, but decided to decline Sulu's offer to continue serving as first officer. Chekov returned to the Enterprise-A as second officer and Chief of Security. 

Mission to Sanctuary
When the Enterprise finally returned to Earth in 2293 for decommissioning, Chekov started teaching at Starfleet Academy. However, this post was short-lived when, a few months later, he joined Captains Kirk and Scott on a colonization mission to the planet Sanctuary in the Besar system along with Kirk's nephews, Alexander and Julius.

On the planet, Chekov helped Kirk uncover a secret Falorian base on the planet, which was part of a plan to retake their homeworld Huan. While exploring the Falorian base, Chekov discovered a nano-virus that would render all dilithium inert, and would have created warp core breaches in all infected vessels. With the help of their former colleagues Spock, McCoy, and Uhura, as well as with Klingon aid, they managed to destroy the virus and stop the invasion of Huan. 

Sidetracked: Those Believed Lost
At the end of the Sanctuary affair, Sulu offered Chekov the chance to replace the Excelsior's soon-to-be-departing first officer, but Chekov refused, feeling he was in line for a command of his own. In the meantime, he returned to teaching at the Academy, and other shore duties in Starfleet's San Francisco complex. He joined Kirk and Scott for the launch ceremony of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B) from the San Francisco Fleet Yards, which some in Starfleet Command had played up for its symbolism in "passing the torch" to a new generation of men and ships.

Unfortunately, the fitting-out of the Enterprise-B was behind schedule, with key systems still offline and key personnel not yet aboard. However, since the launch ceremony was supposed to merely consist of a short trip around the solar system, these systems and people were not considered vital, and the Enterprise-B's young captain, John Harriman, succumbed to pressure not to delay the press- and dignitary-laden launch ceremony.

This proved to be a tragic error, when, during the mission, the Enterprise received a distress call from two Federation freighters, the SS and SS, both containing El-Aurian refugees, caught in the phenomenon known as the Nexus. When the Enterprise-B arrived to rescue survivors from the freighters, Chekov had to draft the journalists as makeshift medical staff to treat them, as the medical staff was one of those not yet aboard. During the successful attempt to leave the Nexus, Captain Kirk was believed killed. The loss of his longtime commander, mentor, and friend was a severe blow to Chekov. 

A second tragedy came a year later with news of the (apparent) death of his "niece," Ensign Demora Sulu of the Enterprise-B. Chekov blamed Harriman for this death too, and sucker-punched him at Demora's memorial service. Starfleet Command considered the circumstances, and Chekov was allowed to avoid a court-martial by giving a formal and public apology to Captain Harriman. Subsequent events also revealed that Demora Sulu was not, in fact, dead. However, this incident was a black mark that sank any chance he had of gaining a captaincy at this time. 

The USS Excelsior
After a few years cooling his heels, the job of first officer on the Excelsior opened up again. This time Chekov accepted Sulu's offer and by 2295 he was a key member of Captain Sulu's team on the Excelsior. ( and )

Later career
After serving for many years as first officer aboard the Excelsior, he was promoted to captain and assumed command of the USS Undaunted. On one of his assignments on the Undaunted, Chekov made first contact with an enigmatic race known as the Watraii, who hid their true visages behind masks. The contact was brief as the Watraii had little or no interest in contact with other species. However, this brief contact was sufficient for Chekov to be Starfleet's only "expert" on the Watraii when they started a war of extermination against the Romulan Star Empire in 2377. 

Chekov later went on to command the starships USS Potemkin (NCC-1657) and USS Cydonia. He eventually served as Starfleet C-in-C for a time. 

By the time of the Dominion War, Chekov served as an Admiral and an instructor at Starfleet Academy. With the onset of the war, Chekov was instructed to accelerate his students' lessons, focusing primarily on tactical and battle strategies. After the war, Chekov was given a desk job at Starfleet Command. 

Later in the 2370s, Chekov had reached the rank of grand admiral, and was considered the foremost authority of Starfleet. In 2375, Jean-Luc Picard felt very strongly in his opposition to Starfleet orders to allow the Ferengi to donate sensor technology to the planet Halkan—so much so, in fact, as to feel that he would even object to Grand Admiral Chekov's orders if they had indeed been the orders that put him at odds with Captain Christine MacDonald in that situation. 

When the Watraii declared a war of extermination against the Romulans in 2377, Chekov was recruited by his old Enterprise shipmate, Admiral Uhura, who was now the head of Starfleet Intelligence, for an unsanctioned mission into Watraii space onboard the USS Alliance (24th century), commanded by another old Enterprise shipmate, Captain Saavik. Also along for the mission was another old shipmate from the Enterprise, Saavik's husband, Ambassador Spock.

The confrontation with the Watraii ended in a stalemate after Spock and the Romulan named Ruanek managed to steal a key piece of technology from the lead Watraii vessel. When the Watraii beamed somebody to the Alliance to retrieve their technology, Chekov struggled with him in an attempt to stop him. When the Watraii attempted to beam their man back, Chekov was caught in the transporter's energies and was believed to have been killed. 

Two months later, Admiral Uhura received word that Chekov was alive and being held on the Watraii homeworld. Uhura arranged another covert mission for Captain Saavik and the Alliance, this time to rescue Admiral Chekov. The Alliance successfully infiltrated Watraii space, and a rescue team consisting of Spock, Ruanek, Captain Montgomery Scott, and Lieutenant Commander Data of the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E) successfully retrieved Chekov from his Watraii captors.

Following his rescue, Chekov announced that he was now retired from Starfleet, and was looking forward to returning home. 

Information obtained from the future indicated that Chekov eventually served as Federation President, but the information was unspecific as to the date. (SS TOS (One Last Adventure))

Alternate timelines
In an alternate timeline created when Yeoman J. Mia Colt was sent forward in time from 2254 to 2293 after her tricorder scans released the tachyon energy contained in an Argollian artifact known as a Keepsake, Chekov served as the navigator of the USS Excelsior in 2293, which was under the command of the Enterprise's former first officer Number One. 

In another alternate timeline in which John Frederick Paxton destroyed Starfleet Command and ended the talks for the Coalition of Planets in 2155, Chekov was a crewman aboard the UESS who served in the security division during the early 2260s.

In 2264, he was part of the security team which boarded the crippled Romulan bird-of-prey where Lady T'Pol was being held prisoner. During the rescue mission, Chekov was struck and severely injured by a Romulan disruptor blast. He was unclear if he survived.