Pavel Chekov ( alternate reality ) Pavel Andreievich Chekov was a 23rd century Human Federation Starfleet officer . As a starfleet cadet and was considered a child prodigy and assigned as a navigator to the in 2258 , at the age of seventeen where he was involved in the defeat and death of Nero , a Romulan bent on the obliteration of the entire United Federation of Planets . ( ) A year later , in 2259 , Chekov was promoted to acting chief engineer following Lt . Commander ' s resignation . During this time , Chekov was present when the " Enterprise " crew faced , an enhanced Human from the late 20th century with superior strength and intellect . However , the crew of the " Enterprise " managed to stop him and afterwards in 2260 , the " Enterprise " set out on the first five - year mission with Chekov at his regular post as navigator . ( ) In 2263 , during its five - year mission , Chekov was present when the " Enterprise " was destroyed by Swarm ships , led by Krall , stranding the crew on Altamid . The crew and Jaylah , who was also stranded by Krall , later managed to leave the planet after repairing the , a ship commanded by Balthazar M . Edison that went missing in 2164 . The crew traveled to Starbase Yorktown and stopped revenge plans put into motion by Krall , who was revealed to be Edison . Afterwards , Chekov continued to served under Kirk when he was given command of the and continued the five - year mission . ( ) Early life . Pavel Chekov , son of Andrei Chekov , was born in 2241 . Originating from Russia , he spoke with a heavy Eastern European accent , which caused him difficulty when speaking to Starfleet computer systems ; his authorization code aboard the " Enterprise " – " 9 - 5 - Victor - Victor - 2 " – was particularly difficult for him to pronounce . Starfleet career . Navigator of the USS " Enterprise " . Stopping Nero . In 2258 , Chekov was the navigator assigned to the " Enterprise " during her impromptu maiden voyage – an emergency mission to protect the planet from attack by the time travel ling war criminal , Nero . Departing Earth ' s , Captain addressed Chekov as " Russian whiz - kid " , ordering the ensign to use the ship wide comm to brief the " Enterprise " crew on the task at hand . As the " Enterprise " confronted Nero , Chekov used his superior mathematical skills to calculate the coordinates for beaming faster than the computer – allowing him to personally transport and back aboard the " Enterprise " before they fell into the singularity created on Vulcan by Nero . Remaining in the transporter room , Chekov also transported , and the surviving members of the Vulcan High Council from the surface of Vulcan . He was , however , unable to save Spock ' s mother , , before she fell to her death from a rock ledge that gave way shortly before transport . After the destruction of Vulcan , Chekov devised a way to beam Kirk and Commander to the " Narada " , without Nero knowing the " Enterprise " was in proximity to his ship . Chekov ' s plan required the " Enterprise " to drop out of warp near Titan , one of Saturn ' s moons . The radiation from the rings obscured the ship from the Romulan s ' sensor s , allowing Kirk and Spock to successfully beam over undetected . Chekov ' s plan was ultimately instrumental in saving Earth . After the defeat of Nero , Chekov served again as navigator under newly promoted Captain James T . Kirk and left with the crew to explore space . ( ) Nibiru . One year later , Chekov was still serving in his role as navigator when the " Enterprise " was ordered to monitor the inhabitants of Nibiru . He offered a suggestion to Kirk on beaming Spock back from inside a volcano , as the planet ' s magnetic field prevented them from using the transporter . Chekov believed that if they had a direct line of sight , they could retrieve him . Chekov ' s suggestion was immediately shot down by , who reminded him the " Enterprise " would have to be near an active volcano . Kirk ended up following Chekov ' s suggestion , which resulted in a violation of the Prime Directive by exposing the " Enterprise " to the primitive Nibirans and also put the entire crew in danger . Acting chief engineer . Shortly after the Nibiru mission , Chekov was temporarily promoted to chief engineering officer after the departure of Montgomery Scott . Upon learning of his promotion , Chekov expressed apprehension about donning a red shirt . Before the " Enterprise " could reach its destination of Qo ' noS , Chekov discovered a coolant leak in the warp core and was forced to drop the ship out of warp manually . Assured by Kirk that the coolant leak was likely the result of sabotage , Chekov succeeded in the repairing the warp drive , allowing the " Enterprise " to avoid an initial attack by Section 31 ' s . The " Vengeance " , however , was able to catch up to the " Enterprise " and quickly crippled the ship , sending it into Earth ' s gravitational pull . Catching a dangling Kirk and Scott before they plummeted to their deaths aboard the foundering " Enterprise " , Chekov reestablished the ship ' s power systems before it crashed into the surface , then retook his post on the bridge to aid in the hunt for and eventual capture of John Harrison . The five - year mission . Almost a year later , Chekov attended a memorial service for those who died and resumed his role as navigator on the repaired " Enterprise " when it embarked on the first five - year mission . ( ) Altamid . In 2263 , halfway through its five - year mission , the " Enterprise " docked for resupply at the Federation Starbase Yorktown . After receiving a mission to escort Kalara through the Necro Cloud in an attempt to find her crew , the ship was attacked by Krall ' s forces . In the midst of the battle , Chekov remained on the bridge helping the ship stay afloat as Captain Kirk hid an artifact known as the Abronath from the attackers and executed a saucer separation , so the saucer section could safely land on the surface of nearby planet Altamid . Chekov , along with Kirk , Kalara and Sulu , escaped from the ship in their Kelvin pod s to the surface of Altamid . On the planet ' s surface , Chekov landed in the same location as Kirk and Kalara . Given Chekov could not get any transmissions on his communicator , they decided to return to the crashed saucer to locate the stranded crewmembers . In the meantime , Chekov was ordered by Kirk to investigate on Kalara as he suspected of her intentions . He was proven right as Chekov traced her communications back to Krall , proving she had been working for him all along . As Kalara pointed a phaser to Kirk demanding an artifact he hid on the saucer , Chekov appeared behind her with a gun of her own . Krall ' s troops attacked , but Kirk and Chekov escaped by activating the " Enterprise " thrusters , causing an explosion which in turn killed Kalara and thrust them through the air as they made their getaway . The next morning , Kirk and Chekov walked into one of multiple traps prepared by Jaylah , a scavenger who was living on the planet , but they were freed after Scotty told her they were friends of his . Jaylah revealed she had made the wreckage of a 22nd century Federation starship – the – her home and Chekov helped Scotty use the scanners to locate Spock and McCoy , who were beamed onboard . Using Chekov ' s trace from Kalara ' s communication and pinpointing it with a Vulcan amulet Spock had given Uhura , Kirk ' s team was able to learn the exact location of their former shipmates and formulate a plan to not only rescue them but also stop Krall before he attacked Yorktown . Kirk wanted Chekov to be part of the extraction team , but Spock convinced the captain that the Ensign was better off helping Scotty fix the " Franklin " , to make sure the transporters could rescue the crew and also that the ship could fly again . Once all the crew was beamed aboard , Chekov seated at the helm with Sulu , who proceeded with some difficulty to fly the ship from the Altamid surface to a crash landing in Yorktown . Following the defeat of Krall , Chekov and the crew of the late - USS " Enterprise " gathered in Yorktown to celebrate the birthday of Captain Kirk . He was seen flirting with an alien woman named Natalia , claiming that Scotch whisky had been invented by " a little old lady from Russia . " ( ) Memorable quotes . " " Russian wizkid , what ' s your name ? Chanko ? Cherpov ? " " " " Ensign Chekov , Pavel Andreievich , sir . " " " " Fine , Chekov , Pavel Andreievich , begin ship - wide mission broadcast . " " " " Yes , sir . Happy to . " " " " Ensign authorization code Nine - Five - Wictor - Wictor - Two . " " " " Authorization not recognized . " " " " Ensign authorization code Nine - Five . . . Victor . . . Victor - Two . " " " " Move , move , move , move , move ! I can do that ! I can do that ! Move , move , move , move ! " " " " Ё моё ! " " ( Russian exclamatory expression pronounced " " Yo moyo ! " " , meaning " " Oh man ! " " ) " " The " Enterprise " . . . She may not even have power to the bridge Keptin . " " " " She still has a few tricks up her sleeve . I ' d bet on it . " " " " Did you know that scotch was actually invented by a little old lady from Russia ? " " Appendices . Background information . Chekov was played by the late Anton Yelchin . Chekov ' s age in 2258 places his birth in 2241 , which is different from the birth of his prime universe counterpart , who was born in 2245 , according to . Anton Yelchin was unsure precisely why he was cast in the role of Chekov , though he figured it had to do with his young age and the fact that he was " familiar with Russian people . Very , very familiar . " ( His parents are Russian . ) During his audition , Yelchin had to try out his Russian accent , which included saying Chekov Prime ' s famous line from : " nuclear wessel " . When he took the role of Chekov , Yelchin signed on to reprise the character in a total of three " Star Trek " films . Yelchin prepared to play Chekov in the films , and by consulting , paying close attention to the portrayal of the prime version of the character therein . " " I try and embrace that energy every time , and be respectful of that [ . . . ] It ' s a little different from how I approach other characters , " " Yelchin noted . Although he personally preferred the first and second seasons of the series , he based his performance of Chekov mainly on TOS Season 3 due to how much it emphasized the character of Chekov Prime . ( " Star Trek Magazine Movie Special 2016 " , pp . 84 & 86 ) Despite appearing as Chekov in as many as three films , Anton Yelchin remained passionate about the role . " " The character is so much fun to play , so I ' m always game for it , " " commented Yelchin , shortly after completing his work on " Star Trek Beyond " . " " It ' s interesting , because I ' ve never had the experience of making three films in a row with the same people , and , most importantly , the same character , before . I grow as I learn . How I look at my work has changed . Every time , I get to apply these new ideas to the same character . That ' s the thing that excites me the most [ . . . ] Inevitably , I start drawing from other sources that I wasn ' t aware of when I was younger . I ' ve been very fortunate to be playing this character , this joyous , fun role [ . . . ] I ' ve developed a different way to look at work , and what I was trying to accomplish [ when first playing Chekov ] . The more my perspective on the actual process changes , the more different ways I look at my own work . Even this time versus last time , I viewed things another way , and borrowed from different things . That being said , I always try and accomplish a similar character . You can see what you ' ve learned about yourself every time you go to work . It ' s kind of odd , but I like it . " " ( " Star Trek Magazine Movie Special 2016 " , pp . 84 & 87 ) Remaining in character as Chekov wasn ' t always easy for Anton Yelchin . " " It ' s a little hard to stay in character with Chekov throughout , because he ' s so goofy , " " he admitted . ( " Star Trek Magazine Movie Special 2016 " , p . 86 ) Anton Yelchin once joked that , in " Star Trek Beyond " , Chekov , much to Kirk ' s disbelief , is revealed to be instead of Russia , though the actor then clarified , " " No , that is " not " true . " " Aspects of Chekov ' s depiction in " Beyond " that Yelchin approved of included the character getting to leave the ship , which the actor compared to the occasions Chekov Prime left the in TOS , and take part in some action sequences , which Yelchin enjoyed performing . " " I probably have more action than in any of the previous two films , " " he reckoned . ( " Star Trek Magazine Movie Special 2016 " , pp . 86 & 87 ) Following the tragic death of Anton Yelchin on , the alternate reality version of Chekov will not be recast . Chekov Prime actor Walter Koenig approved of this decision , remarking , " " I think it ’ s the right call ; it ’ s paying Anton the most respect . " " In the screenplay of " Star Trek " , Chekov at one point physically fought with Kirk , about to stun him with Chekov ' s own phaser . However , he was assaulted by Kirk in retaliation , causing Chekov to drop his phaser , before Kirk was finally subdued by Spock . The decision to have Chekov , in " Star Trek Beyond " , become isolated with Kirk , away from the rest of the " Enterprise " crew , was made by Simon Pegg and Doug Jung , while they wrote the film together . " " We liked the idea of the youngest and seemingly most naïve character pairing up with the slightly older statesman , " " said Pegg . ( " Star Trek Magazine Movie Special 2016 " , p . 77 ) Apocrypha . In the " " video game , an audio log can be found in engineering where Chekov mentions he ran away at a young age to join Starfleet . When a Gorn is transported onto the " Enterprise " by accident , Chekov hides under a transporter room console until it leaves . One of the game ' s tasks involves the rescue of an injured Chekov who is hurt while barricaded in a room , defending other crew members . He must be helped to sickbay by one of them , but is still able to defend Kirk and Spock from the invading Gorn with his phaser . ( The player takes control of Pavel ' s shooting arm . ) Later , when Kirk orders the " Enterprise " to , if necessary , go back through the rip whether or not he and the landing party return , McCoy begs Chekov not to leave him down there , giving the navigator conflicted feelings over who to obey . According to the " Star Trek " iTunes movie app , Chekov was born in Tagnarog , Russia ( the real - life home of ) . His mother ' s name was Anna ( who is now deceased ) . His family spent several years at the Mare Imbrium colony on Luna . He graduated from Moscow State University in 2256 , where he then enlisted in Starfleet , graduating from the Academy in 2258 . It should be noted that he beat " Big Blue " in a game of 3D chess . Chekov received a special commendation for bravery in the line of duty during " Enterprise " s recent mission to Pollux IV . According to the " " novel " " The Gemini Agent " " " , " Chekov liked to run on the academy grounds barefoot . Due to his youth , he was often treated like a little brother by the older girls in his dorm . He was also known in the underground web for being a white hat hacker . According to " The Khitomer Conflict , Part 1 " , issue 25 of " " , in 2261 , Chekov was promoted to Lieutenant . The virtual collectible card battle game " " is using his pictures for card # 79 " Ensign P . Chekhov " and card # 95 " Acting Engineer P . Chekhov " . In the of IDW ' s " " comic series that is set after the events of , Chekov joins Kirk and McCoy on the USS " Endeavour " .