Leadership & Governance

The ISA is governed by a multi-tiered structure designed to balance independent military control with political oversight:

Governing Council (GC)

• Executive command and chief operational authority.
• Led by the Security Minister—the de facto Supreme Commander of all ISA forces.
• Controls budgets, promotions, procurement, and strategic planning.

Council of Ministers

• Composed of delegates from all OSC member states.
• Approves major deployments, funding, and GC appointments.
• Voting influence may be weighted by GDP or contribution level.

The Assembly

• Legislative oversight body with reps from national parliaments.
• Reviews budget and strategy.
• Holds censure power over the GC.

Court of Justice

• Resolves disputes, reviews decisions, and interprets OSC law.

Staffing & Fleet Organization

ISA vessels are built using member state contributions, and usually reflect the interests of those states. Ship crews are drawn from all nations but primarily staffed by the nation or bloc that funded the ship.

For example:

• The battleship Columbia is sponsored and staffed largely by the North American Federation.
• The destroyer Duma is crewed by officers from the African Union.
• Martian officers have begun integrating into the ISA with the construction of their own battleship, the Olympus Mons.

ISA academies are elite institutions hosted only by top contributors (typically those with battleships). Most officers either:

• Serve full careers in the ISA, or
• Use their commissions as a political springboard to influence back home.

Cross-assignment between ships is allowed—but only with sponsor nation approval. Prestige titles such as Captain, Commodore, and Admiral are often hereditary or patronage-based, mimicking the social stratification on Earth.

There is no ISA ground force. Shipboard security teams handle protection duties, similar to naval Marines.

Culture, Perception & Power

The ISA is a juggernaut, unmatched in firepower and reach. But it’s also deeply political.

• Nations fear the ISA, but its structure—nationally sponsored ships, internal oversight, and political officers on board—makes it almost impossible to wield as a weapon against a member.
• Criminals, pirates, and warlords fear the ISA’s zero-tolerance enforcement and rapid-strike capabilities.
• Wealthy elites see the ISA as a career platform, status symbol, or means to influence treaties.
• The poor view it as a job opportunity—and little else.

Famous Figures:

• Captain Benjamin Armstrong, captain of the Columbia, is the most famous officer in ISA history. A war hero, political celebrity, and veteran of the Martian Uprising, he commands deep respect across all classes. His story inspired a reality TV show and national admiration.
• Captain Elizabeth Windsor, former XO of the Columbia, now commands the ISA Britannia. Cool, sharp, and experienced, she’s Armstrong’s protégé and equal in many eyes.

Controversies & Criticism

Despite its power, the ISA is far from universally loved.

• Colonial resentment simmers in Martian and outer station politics.
• Conspiracy theorists claim the ISA’s creation was pre-planned—some say even orchestrated by the mysterious R5 attacks.
• Others argue the ISA is simply a new aristocracy in orbit, reinforcing the power of wealthy nations and pushing poorer ones into support roles.

Even so, the ISA has proven its worth time and again—against pirates, insurgents, and, now, something far stranger: an alien threat no one expected.

Summary

The Interplanetary Security Alliance (ISA) is the space-based military arm detailed in the book Fleet of the Forgotten written by the author Dan Thornton.

Created by the Orbital Security Convention, the ISA unifies all member states’ orbital and interplanetary defense forces under one supranational command. The ISA enforces law in space, defends Earth and Mars from external threats, and is staffed by officers from across the planet. Its most powerful ships, like the Columbia, are funded and staffed by wealthy nations, while poorer member states contribute smaller craft. The ISA is feared, politicized, and imperfect—but remains humanity’s only shield in the stars.