Benjamin J. Maxwell

Early life
Born on April 21st, 2338 in Seattle, Washington, Terra to Daniel Howard Maxwell and Angela Wanda Maxwell, née Galden. Daniel Maxwell, a native from Glasgow, Scotland, Terra was employed as geoworker with E&E at their New Aberdeen, Aldebaran headquarters. Angela Maxwell, a native of New Aberdeen, was a student at the Biological Department of New Aberdeens Hyades University and conducting research at the University of Washington at that time.

Maxwell spent most of his childhood in New Aberdeen and surrounding Munro County. During the summer holidays he often accompanied his father with colonization teams in the Orion Arm-area. The experiences of these deployments led him to enrolling at Starfleet Academy in San Francisco, California for the class of 2359 - the still teenage Maxwell had gotten quite a reputation for repairing machinery. While his parents would have liked him to sign in for a more scientific specialization, he naturally did choose engineering as major. His minors did change over the years.

When he did graduate in 2359 it was with Engineering as major (with a specialization in low-energy plasma systems) and History as minor. He graduated with a 98th Percentile, ranking him in the top 10 of engineering commissions of that class.

He chaired the academies own "Cadet Propulsion Study Group" during his third and fourth year and published four times during his final year, once in "Dockyard Review", twice in the "SFCE Journal" and once in "Nuts and Bolts".

He was the only human member in the academies "Tellarite Discussion Club" in his fourth year - not unsurprisingly as he already had gained a reputation as a fierce combatant in arguments, with his opponents up to Captain Sarole, who would later become Commanding Admiral of RADCOM, but back then served as the Dean of the Propulsion Engineering Department at the Academy.

He was named Senior Midshipman Engineer for his midshipman cruise aboard the U.S.S. Captain De la Hoya in 2358.

Although eligible for free choice of assignment due to his grades and commendations, his first assignment was aboard the Olympic Class transport U.S.S. Tucano with the Propulsion Engineering Staff.

During his tour aboard the Excelsior Class cruiser U.S.S. Thule he envisaged, planned, designed and implemented several changes to the Excelsiors aged auxiliary power, impulse propulsion and RCS systems securing him runner-up in the SFCE's annual “Frank M. Harman Award” competition.

After completion of the XO Fleet Up Course he was posted to the Akira Class Cruiser U.S.S. Repetition as Chief Engineer. Serving with the Seventh Fleet, the Repetition took part in the Dominion War including the Second Battle of Chin'toka in 2375. The Repetition (the ‘Rep’ as she was commonly called) was severely damaged by Breen forces during the engagement with Maxwell conducting and executing damage control operations in particularly affected parts of the ship under threat to his life, being wounded while doing so. The damaged Repetition was relegated to perimeter defense of the Bolarus Fleetyards until the end of the war.

While doing so Maxwell got promoted to CDR and assigned as XO of the Repetition, the XO slot becoming empty when the former Number One replaced the killed Captain of another ship.

In the wake of the Dominion War and the heavy death toll in the Starfleet officer corps many Commanders were fast tracked for their own command. This also applied to Maxwell, who was promoted to Captain in autumn 2377 and placed as acting CO of the U.S.S. Canopus NCC-69237, then undergoing refit to Nebula II at the New Aberdeen Fleetyards. With the recommission of the Canopus Maxwell was assigned as actual CO.