FTL key

Felix Gaeta uses a FTL key to authorize an FTL jump (TRS: "Miniseries, Night 2").

The FTL key is a separate electronic activation device that integrates into a FTL control console, used to authorize the activation of a faster-than light drive aboard a starship. The key comprises a metal handle with two lit rods that enter into a FTL console's "key slot," which is used to manually turn the slot as one would a key tumbler with a properly cut key.

While an integral part of battlestar Galactica's operations process to execute a jump (TRS: "Miniseries, Night 2", "Scattered", "Blood on the Scales", "Daybreak, Part II"), a physical FTL key does not appear to be in use aboard newer ships, including Pegasus or Raptor craft. For most civilian ships within The Fleet (TRS), a separate launch key is used to authorize ship operations including, but not limited to, FTL control (TRS: "Precipice", "Exodus, Part I").

Demetrius, an older craft, also uses a physical FTL key to authorize jumps (TRS: "The Road Less Traveled").

Re-imagined Series definition: technology enabling travel across distances faster than the speed of light would permit, see: FTL