Robert Wesley Robert " Bob " Wesley was a former 23rd century Starfleet officer , and later a governor of the planet Mantilles . He had one daughter , named Katie , and he was an old friend of James T . Kirk . In 2268 , Commodore Wesley commanded the and was assigned command of the battle group in the disastrous M - 5 war games . During that tactical exercise , the M - 5 computer installed aboard the malfunctioned and inflicted heavy damage and loss of life to the battle group , including fifty - three dead on board the " Lexington " alone . Following the destruction of the , the " Enterprise " was deemed out - of - control , and Wesley requested permission to destroy her with his remaining battle force in order to end the threat that the rogue ship posed . His request was approved . However , fortunately , the " Enterprise " was able to deactivate the M - 5 computer and drop her shields . For his part , although communication with the drifting ship was impossible at that point , Wesley successfully gambled that Kirk had gotten the situation under control and held his fire to confirm that conjecture . ( ) Wesley retired from Starfleet to become governor of Mantilles , the most remote inhabited planet in the Federation . ( By that time , he had also changed his hair color from gray to brown . ) The planet was threatened by a cosmic cloud in 2269 , but Governor Wesley remained calm and prevented panic from spreading on the planet . He evacuated 5 , 000 children from Mantilles , in an attempt to spare their lives . Their ships were later recalled , following the diversion of the cosmic cloud . ( ) Appendices . Background information . Commodore Wesley was portrayed by actor Barry Russo in ; in his appearance , he was voiced by James Doohan . The first draft of " The Ultimate Computer " script described Wesley as being " a flight officer , slightly older than Kirk . " Alan Dean Foster ' s novelization of " One of Our Planets Is Missing " ( in " Star Trek Log 1 " ) also refers to Robert Wesley as " only slightly older than Kirk . " Commodore Wesley was only called " Bob " on - screen ; use of his full given name " Robert " appears in " Star Trek Log 1 " and the . The name " Robert Wesley " was originally the pen name Gene Roddenberry used when getting his start as a professional writer , while still an officer of the LAPD . ( ) Wesley ' s personnel file , written by Michael Okuda and included with the " " video game , describes the following details : Wesley was born in Limerick , Ireland in 2216 . He had a wife , Fiona , and three sons , Robert Jr . , Bruce , and Roger , all of whom lived in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania . His interests included team sports , water skiing , xenozoology , and jazz piano . Wesley graduated from the Starfleet Academy class of 2238 , and had since earned fourteen citations for bravery , 2238 - 50 ; the Grankite Order of Tactics ( Class of Excellence ) , 2242 ; Preantares Ribbon of Commendation , 2243 ; Karagite Order of Heroism , 2247 ; Palm Leaf of Lyceus , 2251 ; Silver Palm With Cluster , 2254 ; Medal of Valor , 2258 . Wesley ' s previous assignments included : Apocrypha . His mirror universe counterpart appeared in the novel " The Sorrows of Empire " . He also appeared in the anthology novel " Seven Deadly Sins " as the captain of the USS " Lexington " which crossed the Romulan Neutral Zone in order to rescue a derelict Federation ship .