The Royal Starfleet of the Golden Empire was the space-based branch of the Glorious Armada of the Golden Empire. It was composed of the Royal Navy and the Royal Starfighter Corps.
Role[]
Royal Navy Officer: “We're the first line.”
Civilian: “Of offense or defense?”
Royal Navy Officer: “Both”
— A Royal Navy officer discusses the Starfleet's role in the Empire
The Royal Starfleet as a whole was tasked with space superiority, maintaining the internal security of the Golden Empire against pirates, smugglers, and other criminals while holding the Empire's borders against any foreign attackers. In wartime, the Starfleet was also responsible for force projection, and was usually the first branch of the Armada to engage the enemy in combat.
Generally, the two components of the Starfleet operated independently of one another for recruiting, training, promotion, and command. The sole regular exception was that the captain of a ship with a starfighter complement had command of the fighters, as well as the ship.
High Command[]
Both the Navy and the Starfighter Corps were served by the single High Command of the Royal Starfleet. Like its Army counterpart, High Command was composed of enlisted personnel in the EN-10 pay grade and flag officers in the OF-7 through OF-10 pay grades. Also like the Army, Starfleet High Command had authority over promotions and supervised military training and procurement, but had no actual command authority.