Federation Merchant Service
The Federation Merchant Service (FMS) is an agency within the United Federation of Planets that regulates and manages the state's interstellar cargo fleet.[1] Merchant ships need a license to operate under the FMS, which can be lost if regulations of conduct are not followed. The FMS is overseen and code enforcement is conducted by Starfleet.
The FMS was established in 2161, upon the formation of the United Federation of Planets. In March 2167, the UFP Council authorized Starfleet to militarize any or all ships within the FMS in times of crisis or war in order to support the fleet, its activities or interests vital to the Federation. The ships so militarized operate under the Starfleet Merchant Marine (SMM) charter. Commissioned officers in the SMM come with Federation subsidies and other advantages when employed within the FMM fleet.
The prefix for ships operating under the authority of the Federation Merchant Service is 'FMS.' Example: FMS Kobiyashi Maru, FMS Star Maersk.
Notes
- The authority and creation of the FMS is inspired (only) by the Memory Alpha web source article.