Biographies of Captains Kirk and Picard are in VOYCABULARY.
Ambassador-class
Type of Federation starship. The prototype starship, the USS Ambassador, bore registry number NCC-10521. (It has not been seen on the tv screen but is listed as being the prototype in ST TNG Tech and TOSTFF.) At the time of its development, the Ambassador-class starship was the largest Starfleet ship, with a mass over 3.71 million tons, and hence it incorporates a compact spacetime driver coil in its impulse engines to morph the spacetime continuum around it and thus allow for high acceleration. Previously, such a component had been incorporated into warp engines only. An innovative system developed for the Ambassador-class was a new system of docking coils, and that configuration is still in use in later starship designs including the Galaxy-class. Despite its size, the Ambassador-class is not designed or equipped to carry families. The useful life of this starship class has extended to over half a century.
USS Gandhi (NCC-26632), ref. 2369's story [TNG: Second Chances].
USS Horatio (NCC-10532), destroyed in 2364 near Dytallix B to cover up a conspiracy within Starfleet
Command, [TNG: Conspiracy].
USS Adelphi (NCC-26849), destroyed ref. [TNG: Tin Man].
USS Yamaguchi (NCC-26510), destroyed at the Battle of Wolf 359 in 2367, ref. [DS9: Emissary].
USS Valdemar NCC-26198, ref. [DS9: Tribunal]. (Named for Valdemar Poulsen, inventor of the tape recorder.)
USS Zhukov (NCC-26136), Reg Barclay's first assignment; he transferred from there, along with some science teams, in 2368, mentioned in [TNG: Hollow Pursuits]. The Zhukov is seen in [TNG: Data's Day] and [TNG: The Game].
USS Enterprise-C (NCC-1701-C), which features in [TNG: Yesterday's Enterprise] and which was destroyed in 2344 at Narendra III while defending a Klingon outpost, an event which significantly changed Klingon attitudes to the Federation.
The second USS Excalibur (NCC-26517), noted in [TNG: Redemption, Part 2], encountered the Borg at an unknown date. That encounter is mentioned in [#122 Survival Instinct].
USS Exeter (NCC-26531) was Tom Paris' former post ([#22 Non Sequitur]) and served in the Ninth Fleet in 2374 ([DS9: You Are Cordially Invited]). (That USS Exeter should not be confused with the destroyed Constitution-class USS Exeter, 2268, [TOS: The Omega Glory].)
screenshot of USS Zhukov (bottom right) rendezvousing with USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D (part in top left), [TNG: The Game]; this screenshot also gives a rough size comparison
The Ambassador-class ship was designed by Rick Sternbach and Andrew Probert. The model, built by Greg Jein, was intended to suggest an intermediate step between Excelsior-class and the Galaxy-class starships, as the Enterprise-B and Enterprise-D were Excelsior-class and Galaxy-class respectively. The model was slightly modified after appearing as the Enterprise-C, for use as USS Zhukov and USS Yamaguchi.
See also the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-C.
Constitution-class
Constitution-class was one of Starfleet's most famous types of vehicle, and included the acclaimed original USS Enterprise NCC-1701. During the time of Captain James T. Kirk's celebrated first five-year mission of exploration, only 12 of these ships were in existence [TOS: Tomorrow Is Yesterday]. Although the actual number of Constitution ships is at least 17, Kirk's statement in that there are 12 of them as at 2267 can be sustained as some were lost and if others were, as likely, commissioned in the 2260's.
Constitution-class starships commissioned by Starfleet included, with registry number in brackets: Constellation (NCC-1017), Constitution (NCC-1700), Defiant (NCC-1764), Eagle (NCC-956), Endeavour (NCC-1895), Enterprise (NCC-1701), Essex (NCC-1697), Excalibur (NCC-1664), Exeter (NCC-1672), Hood (NCC-1703), Intrepid (NCC-1831), Lexington (NCC-1709), Potemkin (NCC-1657), Republic (NCC-1371), and Yorktown (NCC-1717). Several are named as lost/destroyed in [TOS], namely Constellation, Defiant, Excalibur and Intrepid.
The dedication plaque ("Starship Class") of USS Enterprise NCC-1701 picture here(and a note in the book 'The Making Of Star Trek' by Gene Roddenberry and Stephen E. Whitfield (later a.k.a. Stephen Poe) suggests that "starship" was not the generic term it is now but was specifically used for spaceships like the Enterprise.
It is not known when the tradition of naming a starship class for the prototype ship was first introduced, but it does not seem to have been tradition in the 2260's i.e. at the time of [TOS].
SPECIFICATIONS : CONSTITUTION-CLASS EXAMPLE USS ENTERPRISE NCC-1701 FIRST COMMISSIONED 2245
Dimensions
Overall Length: 288.6 metres
Overall Beam: 127.1 metres
Overall Draft: 72.6 metres
Displacement
190,000 metric tons
Number of Decks
21
Crew Complement
430 persons
Velocity*
Cruising: warp factor 6
Maximum: warp factor 8
Acceleration*
Rest-Onset Critical Momentum: 17.14 sec
Onset Critical Momentum-Warp Engage: 2.01 sec
Warp 1-Warp 4: 1.02 sec
Warp 4-Warp 6: 0.56 sec
Warp 6-Warp 8: 2.21 sec
Duration
Standard Mission: 5 years
Recommended Yard Overhaul: 18 years
Propulsion Systems
Warp: (2) PB-32 Mod 3 Circumferential Warp Drive Units
Impulse: (4) SBE Subatomic Unified Energy Impulse Units
Weapons
2 447/54 Retractable Single Mount Phaser Emplacements (1 Bank/2 Each)
2 Mk 12 Mod 2 Indirect-Fire Photon Torpedo Tubes
Primary Computer System
Daystrom Duotronic Processor
Primary Navigation System
Starmark Warp Celestial Guidance
Deflector Systems
R776.A3 Subsurface Hull Deflector Grid System
Embarked Craft
5-7 Shuttlecraft (various classes)
* Velocity and acceleration figures reflect the rated specifications in the Original Cochrane Unit (OCU) warp scale as set prior to 2312, after which time Starfleet adopted the Modified Cochrane Unit (MCU).
SPECIFICATIONS : CONSTITUTION-CLASS REFIT EXAMPLE USS ENTERPRISE NCC-1701 FIRST COMMISSIONED 2273
Dimensions
Overall Length: 304.8 metres
Overall Beam: 141.1 metres
Overall Draft: 71.3 metres
Displacement
210,000 metric tons
Crew Complement
500 persons
Velocity*
Cruising: warp factor 8
Maximum: warp factor 12
Acceleration*
Rest-Onset Critical Momentum: 8.51 sec
Onset Critical Momentum-Warp Engage: 1.12 sec
Warp 1-Warp 4: 0.78 sec
Warp 4-Warp 8: 0.67 sec
Warp 8-Warp 12: 2.13 sec
Duration
Standard Mission: 5 years
Recommended Yard Overhaul: 22 years
Propulsion Systems
Warp: (2)LN-64 Mod 3 Linear Warp Drive Units
Impulse: (2)RSM Subatomic Unified Energy Impulse Units
Weapons
12 RIM-12C Independent Twin Mount Phaser Emplacements (6 Banks/2 Each)
6 RSM-14B Single Mount Phaser Emplacements
2 Mk 6 Mod 1 Indirect-Fire Photon Torpedo Tubes
Primary Computer System
Daystrom Duotronic III Processor with Multitronic M-7 Supplement
Primary Navigation System
Warp Celestial Guidance
Deflector Systems
Primary Force Field and Deflector Control System
Embarked Craft
8 Work Bee General Utility Craft
4 Shuttlecraft (various classes)
* Velocity and acceleration figures reflect the rated specifications in the Original Cochrane Unit (OCU) warp scale as set prior to 2312, after which time Starfleet adopted the Modified Cochrane Unit (MCU).
See also the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701.See also the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A.
NOTE ON CONSTITUTION-CLASS REGISTRY NUMBERS: The registry number of the Constitution (NCC-1700) is from one of the technical manual screens of Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott ("Scotty") seen in [TOS: Space Seed]. Since the class ship has a 1700 registry number, it would seem only reasonable that the other ships of the class would have higher, possibly even sequential numbers. Unfortunately, the U.S.S. Constellation [TOS: The Doomsday Machine], bore a much lower number namely NCC-1017 (behind-the-scenes explanation: it was a simple re-arrangement of the decal sheet from the AMT Enterprise model kit) and the Republic was designated as NCC-1371. All this indicates the Constitution-class ships had registry numbers that not only varied widely in range, but also could not be sequential. Star Trek's modelmaker Greg Jein (through an amazingly complex and admittedly only barely logical means) managed to match up the various Constitution ships with the starship status chart in Commodore Stone's office in Starbase 11, seen in [TOS: Court Martial]. Most of these registry numbers are from Greg Jein's conjectural list, although several are from various Starfleet charts and readouts spotted in [Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country]. A few of the Constitution-class ships listed above are not from any episode or movie, but are from the original Star Trek production office's starship list in the well-known (and highly recommended) book 'The Making of Star Trek' by Stephen E. Whitfield (a pseudonym; writing as Stephen Poe, he is the "Poe" who wrote one of the canon sources often cited on this website).
Enterprise
The name given to six Starfleet starships: Enterprise NX-01, USS Enterprise NCC-1701, USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A, USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B, USS Enterprise NCC-1701-C, USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D (flagship), and USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E. The famous Captain James T. Kirk commanded two, and the equally famous Captain Jean-Luc Picard has commanded two. Kirk is mentioned in [#44 Flashback] and [#165 Q2], and Picard is mentioned in [#68 and #69 Scorpion]. Events in which Picard plays (played) a major part, as depicted in [Star Trek VIII: First Contact], are inferred in [#76 and #77 Year Of Hell], as part of the trivia quiz that Torres and Kim play while trapped in a turbolift during an eventually unrealised timeline, and in [#118 Relativity] when Seven repeats lessons about time paradoxes given her by a 29th century Federation timeship crew. See also the entries: Constitution-class, Excelsior-class, Ambassador-class, Sovereign-class.
Enterprise-A
See under the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A.See also the entry: Constitution-class.
Enterprise-B
See under the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B.See also the entry: Constitution-class.
Enterprise-C
See under the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-C.See also the entry: Ambassador-class.
Enterprise-D
See under the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D.See also the entry: Galaxy-class.
Enterprise-E
See under the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E.See also the entry: Sovereign-class.
Excelsior-class
This class was dubbed 'the Great Experiment' with the launch of the first Excelsior-class vessel in 2285 (with registry number NX-2000), under Captain Styles, as a testbed for what proved to be the unsuccessful transwarp drive development project. The ship, later refitted with a standard warp drive, and re-designated NCC-2000, became the prototype for the numerous Excelsior-class starships built over the next several decades. Commanded by Captain Hikaru Sulu, USS Excelsior NCC-2000 began a three-year research mission in 2290, cataloguing planetary atmospoheric anomalies, after which, in 2293, ship and crew played a key role in ensuring the success of the Federation-Klingon peace conference at Khitomer. Those events are depicted in [Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country]. More of Sulu and his bridge crew are seen in [#44 Flashback] in which Janeway "accompanies" Tuvok as he "revisits" his posting on the USS Excelsior via a particular Vulcan mind-meld technique.
Worth noting here are the following Excelsior-class starships:
USS Al-Batani NCC-42995, on which Janeway served as science officer under Captain Paris, Tom Paris' father [#1 and #2 Caretaker].
USS Roosevelt NCC-2573, which was lost at the Battle of Wolf 359. Dr Riley Frazier was a science officer aboard the Roosevelt and at that time was assimilated by the Borg and taken into the Delta Quadrant where she and others likewise assimilated became severed from the Borg Collective and established a colony. Those events are mentioned in [#59 Unity].
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B (refit), seen in [Star Trek VII: Generations].
Numerous other Excelsior-class starships are mentioned and/or seen in Star Trek, including:
USS Berlin NCC-14232 [TNG: Angel One]
USS Cairo NCC-42136 [TNG: Chain Of Command]
USS Charleston NCC-42285 [TNG: The Neutral Zone]
USS Crazy Horse NCC-50446 [TNG: Descent, Part 1] [TNG: The Pegasus]
USS Crockett NCC-38955 [DS9: Paradise]
USS Fearless NCC-14598 Starfleet propulsion specialist Kosinski performed an unsuccessful series of experimental engine software upgrades on the Fearless in 2364 [TNG: Where No One Has Gone Before]
USS Gorkon NCC-40521 [TNG: Descent, Part 1]
USS Grissom NCC-42857 [TNG: The Most Toys] presumably a newer USS Grissom as the earlier ship of the same name was destroyed in [Star Trek III: The Search For Spock]
USS Hood NCC-42296 [TNG: Encounter at Farpoint]
USS Intrepid NCC-38907 [TNG: Sins of the Father]
USS Lakota NCC-42768 (refit) [DS9: Home Front] [DS9: Paradise Lost] the Lakota was a re-use of the modified Excelsior-class Enterprise-B model used in [Star Trek VII: Generations]
USS Lexington NCC-14427 [TNG: Thine Own Self]
USS Livingston NCC-34099 [DS9: Invasive Procedures]
USS Malinche NCC-38997 [TNG: Identity Crisis]
USS Melbourne NCC-62043 [TNG: 11001001] [TNG: The Best Of Both Worlds] Encyclopaedia says: "There were actually two Starships Melbourne used in these episodes. The first was a Nebula -class model, barely glimpsed as a wrecked hulk in the spaceship graveyard from 'The Best of Both Worlds, Part II' (TNG). When the scene was redone three years later for 'Emissary' (DS9), a decision was made to instead use the more detailed U.S.S. Excelsior model originally built for Star Trek III. Both models were given the same Starfleet registry number, but since the Excelsior version was seen fairly clearly on screen, and the Nebula version was not seen well, we now assume that the Melbourne 'really' was an Excelsior-class ship."
USS Okinawa NCC-13958 [DS9: Home Front] [DS9: Paradise Lost]
USS Potemkin NCC-18253 [TNG: Peak Performance] [TNG: Second Chances] [TNG: Legacy] [TNG: Ethics], (not to be confused with the Constitution-class USS Potemkin NCC-1657, [TOS: The Ultimate Computer] [TOS: Turnabout Intruder])
USS Repulse NCC-2544 [TNG: The Child]
USS Tecumseh NCC-14934 [DS9: Nor The Battle To The Strong]
It is assumed that the Excelsior mentioned in [TNG: Interface] was the same ship first seen in [Star Trek III: The Search For Spock]; there is no evidence to suggest otherwise. By contrast, we know that there have been at least three starships called USS Intrepid: one, presumably Constitution-class, ref. [TOS: The Changeling]; an Excelsior-class USS Intrepid was Sergey Rozhenko's ship mentioned in [TNG: Family]; and the USS Intrepid that named the starship class Intrepid and served as the prototype for USS Voyager, and which is mentioned in ST:M's article 'Intrepid-class Design Lineage').
See also the entry: USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B.
Enterprise NX-01
See under the entry: NX-01 Enterprise
Galaxy-class
Galaxy-class was the type of starship that was among the most advanced and most powerful vessels in the late 24th century, and the first to utilise routine hull-separation capabilities. The class is also the first to be equipped with expanded quarters designed specifically to support civilians, as the complement aboard routinely includes families and children. This accounts for the family-style quarters and the extensive holodeck facilities. However, during the crisis of the Borg invasion of the Alpha Quadrant in 2366-67 which included Federation casualties of over 11,000 and 39 starships in the Battle of Wolf 359, Starfleet's strategic plans were reviewed. The review resulted not only the development of the Defiant-class and Akira-class, but also the second set of six Galaxy-class starships which were built to upgraded specifications.
Admiral Patterson mentions the Galaxy-class to Janeway in [#118 Relativity]
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D was one of the first of this starship class to be constructed and was launched in 2363. Four Galaxy-class ships have so far been named in Star Trek, five if one includes USS Challenger commanded by Captain Geordi La Forge in the eventually unrealised timeline of 2390 depicted in [#100 Timeless]; these are USS Galaxy, which named the starship class [TNG: Encounter at Farpoint], USS Yamato NCC-71807 (destroyed 2365) [TNG: Contagion], USS Odyssey NCC-71832 (destroyed in 2370) [DS9: The Jem'Hadar], and USS Venture (destroyed in 2371) [DS9: Way of the Warrior]. Unnamed Galaxy-class starships seen at a distance in, say, space battles are also seen e.g. two in [DS9: Favor The Bold].
The Galaxy-class still seems to be in use, though no doubt with systems and materials upgrades, at the end of 2377. What looks like a Galaxy-class starship is amongst the group of Federation starships assembled to counter a Borg incursion less than a light-year from Earth, an event which turns into the far happier one of USS Voyager's dramatic return to the Alpha Quadrant, depicted in [#171 and #172 Endgame]. In the eventually unrealised timeline depicted in [#100 Timeless], Geordi La Forge captains a Galaxy-class starship in 2390.
SPECIFICATIONS : GALAXY-CLASS EXAMPLE USS ENTERPRISE NCC-1701-D FIRST COMMISSIONED 2357
Dimensions
Overall Length: 641 metres
Overall Beam: 467.1 metres
Overall Draft: 137.5 metres
Displacement
4,5000,000 metric tons
Number of Decks
42
Crew Complement
1,012 persons (varies)
Velocity*
Cruising: warp factor 6
Maximum: warp factor 9.6
Acceleration*
Rest-Onset Critical Momentum: 12.04 sec
Onset Critical Momentum-Warp Engage: 0.45 sec
Warp 1-Warp 4: 0.68 sec
Warp 4-Warp 6: 0.42 sec
Warp 6-Warp 9.6: 3.76 sec
Duration
Standard Mission: 5 years
Recommended Yard Overhaul: 20 years
Propulsion Systems
Warp: (2)LF-41 Advanced Linear Warp Drive Units
Impulse: (3)FIG-5 Subatomic Unified Energy Impulse Units (1 in stardrive, 2 in saucer)
Weapons
11 Type X Collimated Phaser Arrays
3 Mk 80 Direct-Fire Photon Torpedo Tubes
Primary Computer System
M-15 Duotronic V Processor
Primary Navigation System
RAV/ISHAK Mod 3 Warp Celestial Guidance
Deflector Systems
CIDSS-3 Primary Force Field and Deflector Control System
Embarked Craft (typical)
4 Work Bee General Utility Craft
8 Shuttlecraft (various classes)
8 Shuttlepods (various classes)
1 Captain's Yacht (Mark 1)
* Velocity and acceleration figures reflect the rated specifications in the Modified Cochrane Unit (MCU). That measurement scale replaced the Original Cochrane Unit (OCU) from 2312.
This starship features in [Enterprise] (the show, starting with Season 3, was re-named [Star Trek: Enterprise] but for consistency continues to be referred to as [Enterprise] on this site), the Star Trek series that succeeded [Star Trek: Voyager], and pre-dates the other five Enterprises in the chronology of the Star Trek universe. NX-01 Enterprise was launched in April 2151 to carry out Starfleet's first mission of deep space exploration. It was commanded by Captain Jonathan Archer. It carried a fledgling matter transportation system, prototype phase cannon, and its maximum speed capability was warp factor 5.
Sovereign-class was the type of starship that was the most advanced in Federation Starfleet. It the longest ship type so far in the fleet, but overall it is smaller than the Galaxy or Ambassador class. USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E, Sovereign-class, was launched in 2373 (as indicated in [Star Trek: First Contact] and under Encyclopaedia heading 'starship chart', but in 2372 under Encyclopaedia heading 'Sovereign-class starship'. There is also a USS Sovereign, begun in 2365, that gave its name to the starship class, but major changes were made to the prototype design from 2266 when Starfleet shifted its focus to defence in view of the Borg threat. The Sovereign-class was one of several major new starship designs influenced by Starfleet's new policy of strengthening its defensive capabilities. USS Sovereign was commissioned in 2369. USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E was launched two years later and is first seen in [Star Trek VIII: First Contact]. The large dorsal between the primary (saucer) and secondary (engineering) hulls was eliminated, which augments the structural integrity and making the starship less vulnerable to attack. Another advance was the modified warp drive, an advance made necessary by Starfleet's discovery in 2368 (in [TNG: Force Of Nature]) that use of warp drive caused harm to the fabric of space. However, come [Star Trek Voyager]'s internal technical manual writen by Rick Sternbach and Michael Okuda, USS Voyager's design indicates that "warp fields may no longer have a negative impact on habitable worlds as established in [TNG: Force Of Nature]." This modified warp drive is now standard throughout Starfleet.
SPECIFICATIONS : SOVEREIGN-CLASS EXAMPLE USS ENTERPRISE NCC-1701-E FIRST COMMISSIONED 2371
Dimensions
Overall Length: 685.3 metres
Overall Beam: 250.6 metres
Overall Draft: 88.2 metres
Displacement
3,205,000 metric tons
Number of Decks
24
Crew Complement
855 persons
Velocity*
Cruising: warp factor 6
Maximum: warp factor 9.7
Acceleration*
Rest-Onset Critical Momentum: 6.62 sec
Onset Critical Momentum-Warp Engage: 0.72 sec
Warp 1-Warp 4: 0.62 sec
Warp 4-Warp 6: 0.54 sec
Warp 6-Warp 9.7: 3.96 sec
Duration
Standard Mission: 7 years
Recommended Yard Overhaul: 18 years
Propulsion Systems
Warp: (2)LF-44 Advanced Linear Warp Drive Units
Impulse: (2)FIG=5 Subatomic Unified Energy Impulse Units
Weapons
12 Type XII Collimated Phaser Arrays
3 Mk 95 Direct-Fire Quantum/Photon Torpedo Tubes
Primary Computer System
M-16 Bio-Neural Gelpack Isolinear III Processor
Primary Navigation System
RAV/ISHAK Mod 3 Warp Celestial Guidance
Deflector Systems
FSS-3 Primary Force Field and Deflector Control System
Embarked Craft (typical)
8 Work Bee General Utility Craft
4 Shuttlecraft (various classes)
8 Shuttlepods (various classes)
1 Captain's Yacht (Mark 2)
* Velocity and acceleration figures reflect the rated specifications in the Modified Cochrane Unit (MCU). That measurement scale replaced the Original Cochrane Unit (OCU) from 2312.
Perhaps the most famous spacecraft in the history of space exploration, the original U.S.S. Enterprise was a Constitution-class vessel, registry number NCC-1701. Launched in 2245 from the San Francisco Yards orbiting Earth, the Enterprise was first commanded by Captain Robert April, then by Captain Christopher Pike [TOS 1st pilot: The Cage]. The ship achieved legendary status during the five-year mission commanded by Captain James Tiberius Kirk from 2264 to 2269. Many events from that mission are depicted in [TOS]. To honour the achievements of ship and crew, Starfleet adopted the Enterprise's ship emblem as the emblem for all of Starfleet. The emblem change is noted in sources as occurring in 2270 (i.e. for the uniforms worn in [Star Trek I: The Motion Picture]) but is noted in source ST TNG Tech as being 2277. We therefore need to maintain that the change was made gradually, with 2277 being the final year of the changeover.) The starship was refitted several times during its lifetime, most notably in 2270, when virtually every major system was upgraded, a new bridge module was installed, and the warp-drive nacelles were replaced. Some of that work is seen or noted in [Star Trek I: The Motion Picture]. The ship was self-destructed by Kirk in 2285, immediately before its scheduled retirement, in order to prevent the ship from falling into Klingon hands during a rescue mission to recover the body of Captain Spock; events are depicted in [Star Trek III: The Search for Spock]. "Robert April" was the name that Gene Roddenberry first conceived for the name of the Enterprise's captain.
publicity shot of USS Enterprise NCC-1701 with space station K-7, [DS9: Trials And Tribble-lations]; the shot also appears on Star Trek pictures, posters or calendars (e.g. 2004's Star Trek Day-To-Day Calendar) but with K-7 removed
screenshot of USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A [Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home]
The Federation starship USS Enterprise-A was a Constitution-class vessel, registry number NCC-1701-A. Launched in 2286, the Enterprise-A was placed under the command of Captain James T. Kirk by the Federation Council and Starfleet Command in appreciation for Kirk's role in saving the planet Earth from the destructive effects of an alien space probe (events depicted in [Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home]). Although shakedown tests and systems installation under the supervision of Captain Montgomery Scott had not been completed, the Enterprise-A was rushed into service in early 2287 to intervene in a hostage situation at planet Nimbus III. The outcome of those events are depicted in [Star Trek V: The Final Frontier].
As depicted in [Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country], the starship, under the command of a reluctant Captain Kirk, was pressed back into service to escort Klingon Chancellor Gorkon to Earth for a peace conference. Although the scheduled talks were cancelled after the assassination of Gorkon, the Enterprise-A and her crew were instrumental in the success of the historic Khitomer peace conference shortly thereafter. Early in 2373 Kathryn Janeway "witnesses" some of the events of that momentous period when she "accompanies" Tuvok via mind-meld and "visits" the bridge of the USS Excelsior under the command of Captain Hikaru Sulu (in [#44 Flashback]). The Enterprise-A was scheduled to be decommissioned shortly after the Khitomer conference. Behind-the-scenes: The Enterprise-A's exterior was virtually identical to the upgraded original Enterprise first seen in [Star Trek I: The Motion Picture], although many of the interiors were re-designed for [Star Trek V: The Final Frontier] and [Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country].
The Federation starship USS Enterprise, Excelsior-class, Starfleet registry number NCC-1701-B, was launched from a Spacedock orbiting Earth in 2293, with Captain John Harriman in command. Its maiden voyage was planned as a publicity junket consisting of a brief trip out past Pluto. Dignitaries aboard the Enterprise-B for the occasion included Captain James T. Kirk, Captain Montgomery Scott and Commander Pavel Chekov, veteran officers who had served aboard the previous incarnations of the USS Enterprise (USS Enterprise, not NX-01 Enterprise).
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-B at its official launch, [Star Trek VII: Generations]
During this flight, the Enterprise-B responded to an emergency distress call from two El-Aurian transport ships en route to Earth. The ships were trapped in the Nexus energy ribbon and were on the verge of structural collapse. Problems with Enterprise -B equipment prevented the rescue of one El-Aurian ship, but some 47 passengers from the second ship, the S.S. Lakul, were transported to safety just before the Lakul exploded. Among those rescued were scientist Dr. Tolian Soran and future Enterprise-D crewmember Guinan. Captain James T. Kirk was missing and believed killed in the incident. Kirk had been making emergency modifications to the Enterprise-B deflector system, permitting the ship to escape the Nexus ribbon. It was later learned that Kirk had not been killed, but rather had been swept into the Nexus. Kirk eventually meets Captain Jean-Luc Picard and together they thwart Soran's evil plans, although Kirk dies a hero's death in doing so. Events are depicted in [Star Trek VII: Generations].
The dedication plaque on the Enterprise-B bridge suggests that the ship had been launched on stardate 9715. It is not known when the Enterprise-B was retired or even if it was destroyed in action, but such event had to have happened well before the destruction of the Enterprise-C in 2344.
The Enterprise-B miniature was a modification of the Excelsior model, originally designed by Bill George for [Star Trek III: The Search For Spock]. The Enterprise-B modifications were designed by John Eaves under the supervision of production designer Herman Zimmerman. See also the entry: Excelsior-class.
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-C
screenshot is from [TNG: Yesterday's Enterprise] An Ambassador-class vessel, USS Enterprise registry number NCC-1701-C was lost and presumed destroyed near Narendra III in 2344. In that year this ship, commanded by Captain Rachel Garrett, responded to a distress call from the Klingon outpost on Narendra III. The outpost was under a massive Romulan attack. During the battle, a torpedo explosion opened a temporal rift, and the Enterprise-C was sent some 22 years forward in time. This turned out to be a focal point in history. With the Enterprise-C gone from the 'normal' timeline, an alternate timeline was formed, in which the Federation and the Klingon Empire engaged in an extended war of attrition. The Federation was near defeat by 2366, when the Enterprise -C emerged from the rift, encountering the Enterprise -D. It was soon realised that the Enterprise-C had to return to its proper time if history was to be restored and the terrible war with the Klingons was to be averted. The tragedy of the war was emphasised when a Klingon attack resulted in the death of Captain Garrett, after which Enterprise -C officer Lieutenant Richard Castillo agreed to assume command of his ship and return it to 2344. Enterprise-D officer Natasha Yar (alternate), dead earlier in the proper timeline but still alive in this timeline, volunteered to return with Castillo to help defend Narendra III against the Romulans. All Enterprise-C personnel understood that returning to the past was a virtual suicide mission because of the intensity of the Romulan attack on Narendra III. Once the Enterprise-C returned through the temporal rift, the time flow returned to normal, and history was restored to its proper shape. These events are depicted in [TNG: Yesterday's Enterprise].
Screenshot is from [TNG: Season 1: Homesoil] This Federation starship, a Galaxy-class vessel, Starfleet registry number NCC-1701-D, was launched in 2363 [TNG: Lonely Among Us], from Starfleet's Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards orbiting Mars and placed under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard with its first mission being one of deep-space exploration and diplomacy [TNG: Encounter at Farpoint]. The ship was severely damaged in the Borg encounter of early 2367, and had to undergo six weeks of repair work at Earth Station McKinley [TNG: Family]. (Earth Station McKinley is mentioned in [#45 The Swarm] and [#166 Author, Author].) A dilithium chamber hatch installed at McKinley station was defective, resulting in a severe explosion in the ship's warp-drive system that crippled the Enterprise-D for two weeks. Although sabotage was initially suspected, it was later learned that undetectable flaws in the hatch were responsible. [TNG: The Drumhead]. The Enterprise-D was repeatedly destroyed in 2368, when the ship was trapped in a temporal causality loop near the Typhon Expanse [TNG: Cause and Effect]. The Enterprise-D was briefly commanded by Captain Edward Jellico in early 2369 when Captain Picard was assigned to a covert Starfleet mission on planet Celtris III [TNG: Chain of Command]. The Enterprise-D was destroyed in 2371 during a mission to prevent a deranged scientist from destroying the Veridian system. During the mission, the Enterprise-D took a direct hit from a Klingon bird-of-prey, causing a loss of antimatter containment. Executive Officer William T. Riker (seen in [#34 Death Wish]) ordered an emergency saucer separation, and Commander Deanna Troi was successful in maneuvering the Saucer Module to a relatively safe distance, just before the ship's stardrive section exploded. The resulting concussion knocked the saucer module out of orbit, but Troi was successful in piloting the vessel to a soft landing on the surface of planet Veridian III. (Deanna Troi is a close friend of Lt. Reginald Barclay and she is seen in [#130 Pathfinder], [#144 Life Line] and [#152 Inside Man], as also is Barclay, who appears in two other [Star Trek Voyager] episodes in addition.) Although the Enterprise-D was considered to be a total loss, there were no fatalities in the emergency landing. However, in the anti-time future created by the Q Continuum, the Enterprise -D was not destroyed at Veridian III, but remained in service until at least 2395, when Admiral Will Riker had saved the ship from being decommissioned, by making it his personal flagship. In this future, the Enterprise-D had undergone significant modifications, including the addition of a third warp nacelle [TNG: All Good Things]. (Q's anti-time future is not likely to come to pass, if only because the Enterprise-D was destroyed in [Star Trek VII: Generations].) (This Q is the Q seen in [#34 Death Wish] as an opponent and ultimately an admirer of the Q renegade who took the name Quinn, and is also seen in [#53 The Q And The Gray].)
See also the entry: Galaxy-class.
The Federation starship, Sovereign-class, USS Enterprise-E was launched in 2372 under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and was the most advanced starship in the fleet at the time. The Enterprise-E is almost 700 metres in length and has 24 decks. In 2373, ship and crew pursue a Borg sphere back into Earth's history, to the year 2063, at the time of mankind's first contact with extraterrestrials (specifically, the Vulcans). The Enterprise crew succeeds in thwarting the Borg's attempt to assimilate Earth at that time. The crew also succeeds in ensuring that the timeline is not harmed, so that first contact goes ahead. Events are depicted in [Star Trek VIII: First Contact]. References to those momentous events are made in [#76 and #77 Year Of Hell] and [#118 Relativity].
lighted model of USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E
The Enterprise-E and its crew are instrumental in rescuing the Ba'Ku people from a misguided Federation-So'na joint-venture plan to relocate them and harness their planet's unusual life-extending properties (in [Star Trek IX: Insurrection]). In 2376 [Star Trek Voyager] tv viewers can surmise from [#144 Life Line] that Deanna Troi is still serving under Jean-Luc Picard, because she says that to meet Barclay's request for her presence at Jupiter Station she must clear it with Captain Picard.
lighted model of USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E
In 2378 Admiral Kathryn Janeway (who returned from the Delta Quadrant at the end of 2377) orders the Enterprise-E on a diplomatic mission that turns into a struggle to save Earth from destruction by the evil Shinzon, Picard's nemesis. The Enterprise-E is nearly destroyed when, in extremis, Picard orders that it ram Shinzon's powerful starship. The desperate measure begins the final events that result in the Enterprise-E crew thwarting the Reman assault on Earth. Those events are depicted in [Star Trek X: Nemesis].
The Starship Enterprise-E was designed by production designer Herman Zimmerman with illustrator John Eaves. Rick Sternbach did the working construction drawings of the model, which was built at Industrial Light and Magic. Exterior footage of the starship is always portrayed by CGI (computer-generated imagery).
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E approaching the rendezvous with Shinzon, creative impression artwork from source ST SOTL
Constitution-class was one of Starfleet's most famous types of vehicle, and included the acclaimed original USS Enterprise NCC-1701. During the time of Captain James T. Kirk's celebrated first five-year mission of exploration, only 12 of these ships were in existence [TOS: Tomorrow Is Yesterday]. Although the actual number of Constitution ships is at least 17, Kirk's statement in that there are 12 of them as at 2267 can be sustained as some were lost and if others were, as likely, commissioned in the 2260's.
Constitution-class starships commissioned by Starfleet included, with registry number in brackets: Constellation (NCC-1017), Constitution (NCC-1700), Defiant (NCC-1764), Eagle (NCC-956), Endeavour (NCC-1895), Enterprise (NCC-1701), Essex (NCC-1697), Excalibur (NCC-1664), Exeter (NCC-1672), Hood (NCC-1703), Intrepid (NCC-1831), Lexington (NCC-1709), Potemkin (NCC-1657), Republic (NCC-1371), and Yorktown (NCC-1717). Several are named as lost/destroyed in [TOS], namely Constellation, Defiant, Excalibur and Intrepid.
NOTE ON CONSTITUTION-CLASS REGISTRY NUMBERS: The registry number of the Constitution (NCC-1700) is from one of the technical manual screens of Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott ("Scotty") seen in [TOS: Space Seed]. Since the class ship has a 1700 registry number, it would seem only reasonable that the other ships of the class would have higher, possibly even sequential numbers. Unfortunately, the U.S.S. Constellation [TOS: The Doomsday Machine], bore a much lower number namely NCC-1017 (behind-the-scenes explanation: it was a simple re-arrangement of the decal sheet from the AMT Enterprise model kit) and the Republic was designated as NCC-1371. All this indicates the Constitution-class ships had registry numbers that not only varied widely in range, but also could not be sequential. Star Trek's modelmaker Greg Jein (through an amazingly complex and admittedly only barely logical means) managed to match up the various Constitution ships with the starship status chart in Commodore Stone's office in Starbase 11, seen in [TOS: Court Martial]. Most of these registry numbers are from Greg Jein's conjectural list, although several are from various Starfleet charts and readouts spotted in [Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country]. A few of the Constitution-class ships listed above are not from any episode or movie, but are from the original Star Trek production office's starship list in the well-known (and highly recommended) book 'The Making of Star Trek' by Stephen E. Whitfield (a pseudonym; writing as Stephen Poe, he is the "Poe" who wrote one of the canon sources often cited on this website).
Galaxy-class was the type of starship that was among the most advanced and most powerful vessels in the late 24th century, and the first to utilise routine hull-separation capabilities. The class is also the first to be equipped with expanded quarters designed specifically to support civilians, as the complement aboard routinely includes families and children. This accounts for the family-style quarters and the extensive holodeck facilities. However, during the crisis of the Borg invasion of the Alpha Quadrant in 2366-67 which included Federation casualties of over 11,000 and 39 starships in the Battle of Wolf 359, Starfleet's strategic plans were reviewed. The review resulted not only the development of the Defiant-class and Akira-class, but also the second set of six Galaxy-class starships which were built to upgraded specifications.
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D was one of the first of this starship class to be constructed and was launched in 2363. Four Galaxy-class ships have so far been named in Star Trek, five if one includes USS Challenger commanded by Captain Geordi La Forge in the eventually unrealised timeline of 2390 depicted in [#100 Timeless]; these are USS Galaxy, which named the starship class [TNG: Encounter at Farpoint], USS Yamato NCC-71807 (destroyed 2365) [TNG: Contagion], USS Odyssey NCC-71832 (destroyed in 2370) [DS9: The Jem'Hadar], and USS Venture (destroyed in 2371) [DS9: Way of the Warrior]. Unnamed Galaxy-class starships seen at a distance in, say, space battles are also seen e.g. two in [DS9: Favor The Bold].
screenshot is from [TNG: Yesterday's Enterprise] An Ambassador-class vessel, USS Enterprise registry number NCC-1701-C was lost and presumed destroyed near Narendra III in 2344. In that year this ship, commanded by Captain Rachel Garrett, responded to a distress call from the Klingon outpost on Narendra III. The outpost was under a massive Romulan attack. During the battle, a torpedo explosion opened a temporal rift, and the Enterprise-C was sent some 22 years forward in time. This turned out to be a focal point in history. With the Enterprise-C gone from the 'normal' timeline, an alternate timeline was formed, in which the Federation and the Klingon Empire engaged in an extended war of attrition. The Federation was near defeat by 2366, when the Enterprise -C emerged from the rift, encountering the Enterprise -D. It was soon realised that the Enterprise-C had to return to its proper time if history was to be restored and the terrible war with the Klingons was to be averted. The tragedy of the war was emphasised when a Klingon attack resulted in the death of Captain Garrett, after which Enterprise -C officer Lieutenant Richard Castillo agreed to assume command of his ship and return it to 2344. Enterprise-D officer Natasha Yar (alternate), dead earlier in the proper timeline but still alive in this timeline, volunteered to return with Castillo to help defend Narendra III against the Romulans. All Enterprise-C personnel understood that returning to the past was a virtual suicide mission because of the intensity of the Romulan attack on Narendra III. Once the Enterprise-C returned through the temporal rift, the time flow returned to normal, and history was restored to its proper shape. These events are depicted in [TNG: Yesterday's Enterprise].
Screenshot is from [TNG: Season 1: Homesoil] This Federation starship, a Galaxy-class vessel, Starfleet registry number NCC-1701-D, was launched in 2363 [TNG: Lonely Among Us], from Starfleet's Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards orbiting Mars and placed under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard with its first mission being one of deep-space exploration and diplomacy [TNG: Encounter at Farpoint]. The ship was severely damaged in the Borg encounter of early 2367, and had to undergo six weeks of repair work at Earth Station McKinley [TNG: Family]. (Earth Station McKinley is mentioned in [#45 The Swarm] and [#166 Author, Author].) A dilithium chamber hatch installed at McKinley station was defective, resulting in a severe explosion in the ship's warp-drive system that crippled the Enterprise-D for two weeks. Although sabotage was initially suspected, it was later learned that undetectable flaws in the hatch were responsible. [TNG: The Drumhead]. The Enterprise-D was repeatedly destroyed in 2368, when the ship was trapped in a temporal causality loop near the Typhon Expanse [TNG: Cause and Effect]. The Enterprise-D was briefly commanded by Captain Edward Jellico in early 2369 when Captain Picard was assigned to a covert Starfleet mission on planet Celtris III [TNG: Chain of Command]. The Enterprise-D was destroyed in 2371 during a mission to prevent a deranged scientist from destroying the Veridian system. During the mission, the Enterprise-D took a direct hit from a Klingon bird-of-prey, causing a loss of antimatter containment. Executive Officer William T. Riker (seen in [#34 Death Wish]) ordered an emergency saucer separation, and Commander Deanna Troi was successful in maneuvering the Saucer Module to a relatively safe distance, just before the ship's stardrive section exploded. The resulting concussion knocked the saucer module out of orbit, but Troi was successful in piloting the vessel to a soft landing on the surface of planet Veridian III. (Deanna Troi is a close friend of Lt. Reginald Barclay and she is seen in [#130 Pathfinder], [#144 Life Line] and [#152 Inside Man], as also is Barclay, who appears in two other [Star Trek Voyager] episodes in addition.) Although the Enterprise-D was considered to be a total loss, there were no fatalities in the emergency landing. However, in the anti-time future created by the Q Continuum, the Enterprise -D was not destroyed at Veridian III, but remained in service until at least 2395, when Admiral Will Riker had saved the ship from being decommissioned, by making it his personal flagship. In this future, the Enterprise-D had undergone significant modifications, including the addition of a third warp nacelle [TNG: All Good Things]. (Q's anti-time future is not likely to come to pass, if only because the Enterprise-D was destroyed in [Star Trek VII: Generations].) (This Q is the Q seen in [#34 Death Wish] as an opponent and ultimately an admirer of the Q renegade who took the name Quinn, and is also seen in [#53 The Q And The Gray].)
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![3D cutaway drawing of the bridge of USS Enterprise NCC-1701 in the [TOS 1st pilot: The Cage] era i.e. before Kirk's command](javascript:popImage('btshtm/bts/cage_enterprise_bridge.jpg','Janet\'s Star Trek Voyager Site')){kind=link}
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