Commodore

Commodore is a military rank, typically applied in a pro tempore or transitional fashion, for a officer in a Navy who commands several ships in addition to his or her own. The rank may be given as a per-need field promotion (and be recinded as such), or as a permanent promotion in keeping to an order of ascendency to that of Admiral status. Indeed, Commodore is typically classified one rank below that of Rear Admiral, and one above Naval Captain.

In Union Service
The Caspian Navy has several dozen Commodores, since Union tactics prefer dividing fleet assets into smaller three to five ship sections called squadrons or flotillas. These flotillas often patrol wide tracts of territory, and coordinate with the Admiralty rather than to a specific Admiral. In this instance, the rank and title of Commodore is more akin to that of a "Senior Captain" than of a Flag Officer (ie Admiral). There are a few Commodores within the Admiralty of Caspia, but more often than not, they are acting as an aide to an established Admiral on that board, and more than likely have not had extensive field command experience.

One exception is the Aerospace Commodore (or AeroCom), who is head of the Naval Aerospace Arm and has a chair on the Admiralty. This individual holds the rank of Commodore, and acts as the department head and bridge between fleet operations (ships) and aerospace operations (fighters, lifters, etc.).

In Other Service
The larger galactic navies, such as the Imperial Navy or New Republic Navy, would bestow the title and rank of Commodore upon the senior or lead officer of a tributary or allied homogenous force attached to their fleets for a campaign. They would do this so as not to confuse their own ranking structure by making the officer in question a bonafide Admiral.

Smaller independent flotillas occasionally christened their most senior commanding officer a Commodore, but this was rare. Pirate clans would frequently state that their leader held the rank of Commodore, since multiple ships were involved, and as Commodore, would qualify under the Articles of War as a Flag Officer, and thus be granted quarter. But, as often the case, the major navies stipulated that any and all pirates, regardless of rank, were granted no quarter whatsoever.