USSEnterprise (NCC-1701)

USSEnterprise

TheUSSEnterprise (NCC-1701) was a23rd centuryFederationConstitution-classstarship operated byStarfleet, and the first Federation starship to bearthe nameEnterprise. During its career, theEnterprise served as the Federationflagship and was in service from2245 to2285. During the latter years of its life, theEnterprise was converted into aConstitution II-class starship to continue its missions of exploration, then served as a training vessel until its destruction in 2285.

Lineage[]

SeeEnterprise history

Service history[]

Construction and launch[]

In the early- to mid-23rd century, at least twelveheavy cruiser-typestarships, theConstitution-class, were commissioned by theFederationStarfleet. (TOS: "Tomorrow is Yesterday") Constructed at theSan Francisco Fleet Yards inSan Francisco,California, the Federation vesselregisteredNCC-1701 was christened "theEnterprise", the latest ina long line of ships of the same name. (DIS: "Brother";TAS: "The Counter-Clock Incident")

CaptainRobert April oversaw construction of the ship's components as well as its initial trial runs. His wife,Sarah April, designed several tools for the ship'ssickbay. (TAS: "The Counter-Clock Incident")Larry Marvick was one of the designers of theEnterprise itself, whileDoctorRichard Daystrom designed its computer systems. (TOS: "Is There in Truth No Beauty?", "The Ultimate Computer")

A piece of theEnterprise NX-01 was incorporated into the newer craft, as it was the previous ship to bear the name. (SNW: "Those Old Scientists")

Robert April's command[]

TheEnterprise was launched onApril 11,2245, under the command of Captain April. (DIS: "Brother") Sarah April served as the ship's firstchief medical officer, withChristopher Pike serving as Captain April'sfirst officer. (TAS: "The Counter-Clock Incident";DIS: "Brother";SNW: "Strange New Worlds")

In2246, April chose to breakGeneral Order 1 and warn a pre-warp civilization, thePerricans, about a possible apocalyptic meteor shower that was due to hit their planet. (SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera")

In2248, April senthis science officer to the industrial-age planetNa'rel to solve the imminent threat of an extinction-level drought by sharing Federation technology. (SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera")

Una Chin-Riley was assigned to theEnterprise as Captain April'sscience officer. (SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera";display graphic) One deep space cruise took it within half a light year of99 Pegasi. (ST: "Q&A")

He also visitedMan-us II without his security officer, during which he chose to reveal theEnterprise to theOhawk, a pre-warp civilization. (SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera")

Christopher Pike's command[]

In2250, April left theEnterprise and command was turned over to Pike. Pike also chose Chin-Riley to be his first officer. (DIS: "Brother";SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera"display graphic)

Early voyages[]

At one point, theEnterprise visitedPragine 63, where science officerLynne Lucero was transferred to theUSSCabot, to serve as its new captain. (ST: "The Trouble with Edward")

A new science officer[]

In2253, Pike and theEnterprise traveled toStarbase 40 to receive the ship's newhalfHuman-Vulcan science officer,Spock, who went on to serve under his command for over eleven years. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I";ST: "Q&A";SNW: "Among the Lotus Eaters"display graphic)

Rigel VII[]

In2254, onstardate 2496.4, theEnterprise visitedRigel VII as a routine exploration of a remoteclass M planet. Captain Pike, along with a landing party consisting of Spock,YeomanZac Nguyen,EnsignC. Plummer andM. Aberth and several others went down to the planet's surface, where they were attacked by theKalar. Yeoman Nguyen, Ensign Plummer, and Aberth were presumed killed, while Spock and six others were injured. The mission lasted all of four hours. The remaining members of the landing party returned to theEnterprise and set course toVega colony to get medical aid for those injured. Unbeknownst to the crew, Nguyen had actually survived and had been left stranded on the planet. (TOS: "The Cage";SNW: "Among the Lotus Eaters")

Talos IV[]

While traveling to the Vega Colony, theEnterprise learned there were survivors of theSSColumbia that were marooned onTalos IV nearlyeighteen years earlier. Following the stop at Vega, theEnterprise traveled to Talos to rescue theColumbia survivors only to find out it was atrap devised by theTalosians. (TOS: "The Cage")

Federation-Klingon War[]

In late2256,Michael Burnham encouragedCadetSylvia Tilly to improve her physical conditioning so that she would stand out amongst her peers and be assigned to theEnterprise or one of its "sister ships." (DIS: "Lethe")

At that time, theEnterprise was on afive-year mission under Pike. With theFederation-Klingon War underway, Starfleet elected not to recall the starship and leave the vessel as an instrument of last resort, so ordered Pike and his crew to remain out of the fighting. (DIS: "Brother")

Pike later accused Starfleet Command of not recallingEnterprise because they knew he would steadfastly remind them of Federation values, butAdmiralKatrina Cornwell, the only Starfleet Command representative present to hear the accusation, countered that they "wanted the best of Starfleet to survive," if the war was lost, and they had deemed that to beEnterprise. (DIS: "Project Daedalus")

The red bursts[]

Following the conclusion of the war in2257, theEnterprise was dispatched by Starfleet to investigate one of a series of unidentified signals detected throughoutthe galaxy. (DIS: "Brother") En route, the ship suffered multiple catastrophic systems failures, leading Pike to issue apriority 1 distress call.

The call was received by theUSSDiscovery, en route toVulcan. (DIS: "Will You Take My Hand?", "Brother") Pike and two senior officers transferred toDiscovery to continue their mission, while a team was dispatched to tow theEnterprise back toSpacedock for adiagnostic, where the damage was assessed as severe, with no estimate for repair. (DIS: "Brother")

A week later, Pike's first officer, Una Chin-Riley, reported to Pike that theholographic comm system was the source of the failures, which had compromised primary systems. Pike ordered Una to tellChief EngineerLouvier to strip the system from the ship in favor ofviewscreen communication. (DIS: "An Obol for Charon")

Battling Control[]

After theDiscovery acquired data from aSphere that would ultimately lead to the evolution ofSection 31artificial intelligenceControl which would threaten all sentient life in theMilky Way Galaxy, Pike was left with no other option but to set theDiscovery's auto-destruct system and call theEnterprise for immediate evacuation of the ship's crew. (DIS: "Through the Valley of Shadows")

On stardate 1051.8, theEnterprise finally rendezvoused with theDiscovery and began taking on the ship's crew. When all personnel were fully evacuated, Captain Pike orderedDiscovery's destruction. However, the Sphere intelligence utilizedDiscovery's defensive systems to block theEnterprise's torpedo volley. Unable to eliminateDiscovery, the crew determined that sending theDiscovery into the future was the only method to secure the Sphere data from Control.

With the appearance of a fifth red burst, both ships traveled to the planetXahea, which was ultimately the position Cornwell and Pike decided to fight Leland/Control's armada. (DIS: "Such Sweet Sorrow")

After the decision was made to destroyDiscovery to prevent its capture by Control, the ship deployedevacuation corridors to transfer its crew toEnterprise. (DIS: "Such Sweet Sorrow")

During adecisive battle with Control, theEnterprise lost a significant portion of her saucer section when an undetonatedphoton torpedo penetrated it and later detonated. AdmiralKatrina Cornwell was killed while sacrificing herself to stop the torpedo from destroying the entire ship. As theDiscovery traveled into the future, theEnterprise and a fleet ofKlingon andKelpien reinforcements provided covering fire against the attackingSection 31 drone ships and then finished them off whenGeorgiou neutralizing Control left the enemy ships dead in the water. Following the battle, theEnterprise underwent extensive repairs in orbit of Earth while the crew lied to Starfleet that theDiscovery had been destroyed. (DIS: "Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2")

Continuing mission[]

Following the repairs to theEnterprise, the ship resumed its mission of exploration, once again under the command of Christopher Pike. Their first stop was ashakedown run to a newmoon that was discovered atEdrin II. (DIS: "Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2")

Following the mission to Edrin II, theEnterprise returned to Earth where its crew was enjoying some much-needed downtime. In2259, theEnterprise was undergoing scheduled maintenance and system upgrades when April, now a fleet admiral, pulled Pike out ofexile and theEnterprise out of drydock when Una Chin-Riley and theUSSArcher went missing during afirst contact mission toKiley 279.General Order 1 was violated in this mission, leading to Starfleet command to rename it the "Prime Directive". (SNW: "Strange New Worlds")

On stardate 2259.42, theEnterprise leftStarbase 1 to continue its third five-year mission of exploration. (SNW: "Strange New Worlds")

TheEnterprise's first stop on her mission was observing a planet in thePersephone system, at which she tried to divert a comet away but ended up getting into a fight with a species known as the "Shepherds". (SNW: "Children of the Comet")

TheEnterprise visited an abandoned Illyrian colony atHetemit IX to find out what had happened to the colonists; however, an Illyrian light-based virus broke out aboard the ship, forcing the crew to shut theEnterprise down. After becoming infected, chief engineerHemmer nearly destroyed the ship after disengaging the ship's warp core containment field. (SNW: "Ghosts of Illyria")

TheEnterprise later encountered a small Gorn fleet atFinibus III, and narrowly escaped after taking major damage to her hull, torpedo bay, and structural integrity field. (SNW: "Memento Mori")

The ship visited Starbase 1 after the fight with the Gorn and underwent repairs. While the crew enjoyed some shore leave, Captain Pike engaged in negotiations with theR'ongovian Protectorate. (SNW: "Spock Amok")

TheEnterprise encountered a shuttlecraft under attack by presumed pirates and assisted, delivering the inhabitants back to their planet, and later investigated what the pirates were doing when looking into the wreckage. (SNW: "Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach")

TheEnterprise was hijacked by a group of rogue pirates after her crew was betrayed by apassenger. After tricking the pirates and taking control of one of their ships, the crew were able to reclaim theEnterprise after disabling her warp and impulse engines. (SNW: "The Serene Squall")

TheEnterprise, along with theUSSCayuga, visited theNeutral Zone and helped with retrofitting theEarth Outpost Stations and delivering supplies. However, after witnessing analternate timeline version of theNeutral Zone Incursion, Captain Pike became aware ofJames T. Kirk, recognizing that he had the potential to be a good captain for theEnterprise. Commander Chin-Riley was arrested shortly thereafter after being discovered to be anIllyrian. (SNW: "A Quality of Mercy")

While Captain Pike was off of the ship securing a lawyer for Chin-Riley and it was undergoing routine maintenance and inspection by CommanderPelia's inspection team atStarbase 1, theEnterprise received adistress call from LieutenantLa'an Noonien-Singh onCajitar IV, a planet on the edge of Klingon space, about an "anti-Federation threat." However, Admiral April refused to allow the ship to investigate, fearing that it could reignite theKlingon War due to the Klingons currently being in control of the planet following a painstakingly-negotiated treaty. (SNW: "The Broken Circle")

Under Lieutenant Spock's leadership, the crew faked a potentialwarp core breach in order to evacuate the inspection team, steal theEnterprise and go to Noonien-Singh's aid. Although Pelia deduced their deception, she aided the crew in stealing the ship rather than stopping them and she acted as Chief Engineer. (SNW: "The Broken Circle")

The crew uncovered afalse flag operation by theBroken Circle to reignite the Klingon war using the rebuiltNCC-1279. TheEnterprise destroyed the rogue ship and foiled the Broken Circle's plot. Afterwards, Pelia expressed an interest in sticking around as a part of the crew and April let Spock off easy, concerned about a potential upcoming war with theGorn that Starfleet would need every good officer they had for. (SNW: "The Broken Circle")

TheEnterprise returned to Earth for Commander Chin-Riley'scourt martial. After Chin-Riley was acquitted, she was allowed to return to duty aboard the ship as first officer. (SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera")

TheEnterprise and theCayuga were assigned to a joint mission charting a newbinary star system when theEnterprise was reassigned to investigate and correctcultural contamination onRigel VII after depiction of aStarfleet delta was discovered in agarden.Five years after theEnterprise's disastrous mission to the planet, the ship returned to discover that "High Lord Zacarias" was actuallyYeomanZac Nguyen who was believed to have been killed in the mission five years before but had actually been left behind instead. Due to exoticradiation from the debris field around the planet, the crew lost their memories, but eventually managed to pilot theEnterprise out of it to a safe distance. Spock was subsequently able to develop ashield harmonic that protected the crew against the radiation and Pike had the ship lift anasteroid from the planet that was emitting the same radiation and keeping theKalar from forming explicit memories and was thus stunting the growth of life on Rigel VII. Pike arrested Nguyen who was then transferred to theCayuga to face punishment for his actions from Starfleet. (SNW: "Among the Lotus Eaters")

TheEnterprise joined theUSSFarragut in repairing adeuterium refinery that would serve as a "gas station" forFederation starships for further exploration of that region. Ensign Uhura and LieutenantSaul Ramon of theFarragut began to experience hallucinations, and the intense brain damage this caused to Ramon caused him to sabotage theEnterprise and die in an explosion. Uhura eventually realized that the deuterium contained a living species that was trying to communicate with them. Uhura then convinced Captain Pike to destroy the refinery to save them. (SNW: "Lost in Translation")

On stardate 2291.6, theEnterprise crew encountered EnsignsBrad Boimler andBeckett Mariner from the late24th century while they were investigatinga time portal onKrulmuth-B. To return the officers to their own time, the crew discovered a hidden component from theEnterprise NX-01 built into the ship that containedhoronium, the very material needed to power the time portal. (SNW: "Those Old Scientists")

AmbassadorDak'Rah, son ofRa'Ul, was picked up by theEnterprise from theUSSKelcie Mae on stardate 1875.4 to transport the ambassador toStarbase 12. However, his divisive presence on the vessel resulted in his death. (SNW: "Under the Cloak of War")

On stardate 2398.3, while theEnterprise was traveling in the far edges of theAlpha Quadrant, they encountered a naturally-occurringsubspace fold. While conducting experiments, Ensign Uhura sent a message containingmusic through the fold. This caused the fold to release aquantum uncertainty field that created a musical reality aboard the ship. Crewmembers started to express themselves through uncontrollable singing, which was deemed a security threat by Lieutenant Noonien-Singh. The entire crew, singing in unison, were able to shatter the uncertainty field before an approaching Klingon force could fire upon it, with disastrous consequences. (SNW: "Subspace Rhapsody")

James T. Kirk's command[]

In 2265, after nearly twenty years of service aboard theEnterprise, Captain Pike was promoted back to fleet captain and left the ship. (TOS: "The Menagerie, Part I";DIS: "Brother").

Command of theEnterprise was transferred to Captain James Kirk, upon which it was assigned to another five-year mission ofdeep space exploration. Before taking to the stars once more, theEnterprise was outfitted with the latest technologies which included a small structural redesign. (TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before")

The ship's primary goal during this mission was to seek out and contact alien life. Kirk's standing orders also included the investigation of allquasars and quasar-like phenomena.

Beyond its primary mission, theEnterprise defended Federation territories from aggression, aidedmemberworlds in crisis, and providedscientific expeditions andcolonies in its patrol area with annual examinations and support. (TOS: "Balance of Terror", "The Man Trap", "The Cloud Minders", "Journey to Babel";TOS: "The Galileo Seven", "The Deadly Years")

Discoveries[]

From 2265 to 2270, theEnterprise visited over seventy different worlds and encountered representatives of over sixty differentspecies. More than twenty of those werefirst contacts withbeings previously unknown to the Federation, including stellar neighbors like theFirst Federation and Gorn, voyagers from theKelvan Empire in distantAndromeda, and powerfulnon-corporeal entities like theThasians,Trelane, and theOrganians. (TOS: , "The Corbomite Maneuver", "Arena", "By Any Other Name") Two discovered species were the first known examples ofsilicon-based lifeforms: theHorta and theExcalbians. (TOS: "The Devil in the Dark", "The Savage Curtain", "That Which Survives")

TheEnterprise was the first Federation vessel to survive an encounter with thegalactic barrier. The ship's warp drive and other systems, however, were critically damaged (which later prompted the ship to be refit and repaired, changing its appearance slightly for the rest of Kirk's mission) and casualties totaled twelvecrewmembers andofficers. By stardate 4657.5, theEnterprise was traveling through space in a region hundreds of light years further than any Earth starship had explored. (TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before", "Return to Tomorrow")

The reality oftime travel, externally influenced, had been known for over acentury, but following two accidentaltemporal displacements, theEnterprise became the Federation's first deliberately-controlledtimeship. Observing the death-throes ofPsi 2000, the crew suffered frompolywater intoxication and theEnterprise nearly lostorbit after an engine shutdown. A previously untested "cold start", via controlledmatter-antimatter implosion, saved the ship, but the high-speed escape from the planet'sgravity well caused the ship to travel threedays into the past. (TOS: "The Naked Time")

In2267, while escaping the gravitational pull of ablack star, theEnterprise was hurled through space and time to Earth of1969. The crew developed and executed a method to return to their own time, bywarping aroundthe sun'sgravity well in aslingshot maneuver. A year later, theEnterprise was ordered to repeat the recently proven slingshot effect, and returned to Earth's past on a mission ofhistorical observation. (TOS: "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Assignment: Earth")

Some missions of discovery confrontedEnterprise with entities and mechanisms that threatened great swaths of Federation and neighboring space.

An ancient "planet killer", fueled by the consumption of planets it destroyed with itsantiprotonweapon, approached Federation population centers in 2267. It required the combined efforts of theEnterprise and its "sister ship",USSConstellation, to destroy the invader. (TOS: "The Doomsday Machine")

One year later, in2268, asingle-cell organism of colossal scale emittednegative energy, toxic tohumanoid life, killing the entireVulcan crew of theUSSIntrepid. TheEnterprise penetrated thecell interior and destroyed the organism before its imminent cell division threatened to overwhelm the rest of the galaxy. (TOS: "The Immunity Syndrome")

In around 2268, theEnterprise visitedPlanet 0042692 where they detected an approaching catastrophe, but couldn't intervene directly due to thePrime Directive.EnsignDavid Garrovick volunteered to embark upon a solo mission in the shuttleGalileo, but theGalileo ended up crashing. TheEnterprise departed the planet without Garrovick after which no other Starfleet ship would visit thatsector for over a hundred years and there was no record offirst contact. Having survived the crash, Garrovick predicted that Starfleet would return one day and sent outadistress call. Learning about Starfleet from Garrovick, the planet's natives began calling themselvesEnderprizians, named their settlementNew Enda-Prize, and adopted versions of theEnterprise crew's names. (PRO: "All the World's a Stage")

Battles[]

The nature of its mission of exploration meant theEnterprise was frequently the only Federationmilitary asset in a little-known, otherwise undefended frontier. When called into harm's way, the ship regularly did so with little chance of immediate support against previously unknown enemies and threats.

Happily, theEnterprise's earliest engagement of its five-year mission, against a deceptively powerful starship called theFesarius, ended with an amicable first contact with the First Federation in2266. (TOS: "The Corbomite Maneuver") Following the destruction of a colony onCestus III, a surprise attack – from a previously unknown species – led theEnterprise to battle and pursue an evenly matchedGorn starship in 2267. (TOS: "Arena")

TheEnterprise played thefox for four of its "sister ships" in awar games problem on stardate 4729.4, as part of a series ofM-5 drills. Equipped with the newM-5 multitronic unitcomputer and stripped of most of its crew, theEnterprise became a killing machine – crippling theUSSExcalibur and killing its entire crew – before Kirk could re-assert control. (TOS: "The Ultimate Computer")

Klingon engagements[]

Warships of theImperial Klingon Fleet were frequent opponents of theEnterprise.CommanderKor held theEnterprise and Kirk in high professional regard, and relished the prospect of battle. Lowerranks chose to mock the starship; on one such occasion,Korax compared the vessel to a "garbage scow" before he corrected himself, adding, "It should be hauled away as garbage." (TOS: "Errand of Mercy", "The Trouble with Tribbles")

While Starfleet rallied its forces at the outbreak of aFederation-Klingon War in 2267, theEnterprise was sent forward to secure a border region anchored by the planetOrgania. The vessel destroyeda Klingon ship and prepared to engagean approaching Klingon fleet, before theOrganian Peace Treaty precluded a full-scalewar. (TOS: "Errand of Mercy")

TheEnterprise sporadically engaged Klingons throughout its voyage.A warship failed in an attempt toblockade theEnterprise fromCapella IV in 2267.Sabotaged during adiplomatic mission to theTellun system in 2268, the ship successfully fought off the assault of a harassingD7. The same year, theEnterprise was forced to destroy abattle cruiser thatKang had commanded but had recently abandoned, and the rescued Klingons (influenced by theBeta XII-A entity) subsequently made an unsuccessful attempt to wrest control of theEnterprise from Kirk. (TOS: "Friday's Child", "Elaan of Troyius", "Day of the Dove")

Romulan engagements[]

TheRomulan Star Empire re-emerged from a century of isolation to antagonize the Federation with theNeutral Zone Incursion of 2266. TheEnterprise responded and was victorious against a newRomulan Bird-of-Prey, which was equipped with acloaking device and aplasma torpedo system. (TOS: "Balance of Terror")

In later encounters, theRomulan fleet used strength of numbers in their efforts to overwhelm theEnterprise. WhenCommodoreStocker took temporary command and violated theNeutral Zone in 2267, up to tenBirds-of-Prey swarmed and pummeled the starship until Kirk's "corbomite"bluff inspired their withdrawal. (TOS: "The Deadly Years")

In 2268, theEnterprise again violated the Neutral Zone – for the purpose ofespionage – and was quickly surrounded by three RomulanD7-class battle cruisers. TheEnterprise escaped by becoming the first Federation vessel to install and successfully utilize a (stolen) Romulan cloaking device. (TOS: "The Enterprise Incident")

NearTau Ceti in the following year, Kirk employed theCochrane deceleration maneuver, allowing theEnterprise to defeata Romulan vessel. (TOS: "Whom Gods Destroy")

In the final year of Kirk's original mission, the ship was ambushed by a trio of Romulan battle cruisers while on a routine survey. TheEnterprise managed to escape through anenergy field that adversely affected the ship's main computer. The malfunctioning systems were corrected by another pass through the field, this time with the Romulan ships in pursuit. The attackers then became incapacitated by the same computer malfunctions, and theEnterprise managed to escape. (TAS: "The Practical Joker")

Refit of the 2270s[]

In 2270, following the completion of Kirk's historic five-year mission, theEnterprise returned to Earth. Originally the ship was going to be decommissioned and dismantled after returning to Earth, but the high profile nature of theEnterprise and her crew led Starfleet to reverse that decision.

However, theEnterprise was still 25 years old by 2270. Despite undergoing several refits over the years, it became apparent that the technology on the ship was becoming outdated, and that a major refitting of theEnterprise would be required. During the final days of Kirk's historic five year mission, new warp technology was being perfected, and Starfleet's Corps of Engineers decided that theEnterprise would be an ideal test-bed for the new technology. This decision was also encouraged by Commodore Antonio Delgado, who was interested in the ship's slingshot-capable engines as part of his own efforts to properly research time travel. When the ship arrived at Earth, she was put into dry dock for this major refit, which would take eighteen months to complete. The original warp nacelles were replaced with newer and larger units, with Delgado and the newly-formed Department of Temporal Investigations discreetly taking 'custody' of the engines to create Timeship One (DTI:Forgotten History). When it was found that the original pylons would not support the weight of the new nacelles, nor would they be large enough to house the plasma transfer conduits, they were also replaced. A new matter/anti-matter reactor was placed in the secondary hull. The impulse engine deck at the rear of the primary hull was switched out during the refit. The exterior navigational deflector was replaced with an internal unit, and a new photon torpedo launching system was added to the connector between the primary and secondary hulls. This updated torpedo deployment method channeled propulsion directly from the matter/antimatter intermix. The bridge module was replaced with a new unit, and the original bridge module was taken and placed on board the USSYorktown. Docking ports were added at various points to allow secondary craft - such as shuttlecraft and travel pods - to dock with theEnterprise without needing to enter the shuttle bay. When it was found that the main computer would not be powerful enough to handle the new technology - especially the new warp systems, it was replaced. During the course of the refit, Romulan spies managed to infect the new computer systems with a Trojan Horse virus, which was discovered and removed from the computer systems just before the ship launched. It was operated by Mark VII multitronic software. As the refit ofEnterprise neared completion, Starfleet decided not to paint the hull with the customary thermocoat that had been applied to vessels previously. Engineers offered to paint the hull of theEnterprise following the final outfitting, but Admiral Kirk declined, preferring the appearance of theEnterprise without the thermocoat. In fact, on the whole this new look was so favorably received that Starfleet eliminated thermocoats from all ships displacing 90,000 metric tons and above.

V'ger[]

A massive cloud which destroyed three Klingon cruisers was heading directly for Earth. James T. Kirk assumed command of the refit USSEnterprise over Captain Willard Decker and launched the ship as quickly as possible. Commander Spock arrived from Vulcan and assisted Montgomery Scott with the engines. TheEnterprise entered the mysterious cloud. Inside was a vessel 78 kilometers long which called itself V'Ger. Its probe inspected the bridge, killing a security officer and Lieutenant Ilia. The probe returned, this time in the form of an android Ilia, redesigned to more easily investigate the human infestation aboard the ship. Concerned with their lack of information, Spock left the ship in a thruster suit and mind melded with V'Ger. When awakened in sickbay, Spock had an epiphany. V'Ger was a vast machine intelligence, as admirably logical as Spock had hoped to become. Yet without a soul or personality, V'Ger wandered without purpose or hope, unable to understand even a simple feeling. Decker and the Ilia-probe merged with V'Ger, allowing the entity to ascend to a higher plane of existence. Rather than return to Earth, Kirk accepted Scott's suggestion that the ship needed a proper shakedown cruise and ordered the ship to go "Out there. Thataway." (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)

Khan's return[]

In2285, theEnterprise had been pulled from the front lines of Starfleet and the Federation and, near the end of its life, was relegated to a training vessel. The ship participated in a low-tempotraining cycle, based in theSol system. Admiral Kirk boarded his old command to observe acadet training cruise.

Meanwhile,Khan Noonien Singh had escaped from exile onCeti Alpha V andhijacked theUSSReliant, after which he stole theGenesis Device from theRegula Ispace station.

TheEnterprise was tasked to investigate, and Spock deferred his command to Admiral Kirk. Subsequentengagements withReliant left the ship badly damaged, with cadet and crew deaths, including Captain Spock. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)

Final mission[]

Upon theEnterprise returning to Earth,Starfleet CommanderFleet AdmiralMorrow announced that the starship, at that point forty years old and heavily damaged, would be decommissioned. When Morrow denied Kirk requesting permission to return to theMutara sector, Kirk conspired with hissenior officers and stole theEnterprise fromSpacedock One, in order to recover Spock's body from theGenesis Planet – to bring it and Spock'skatra, the latter possessed byLeonard McCoy, toMount Seleya onVulcan. As part of the plan, Kirk had Scott rig up an automation system to run theEnterprise so easily that "achimpanzee and twotrainees" could have handled the craft.

At theEnterprise's destination, the ship wasattacked bya Klingon Bird-of-Prey operated by Klingon CommanderKruge, an assault that left theEnterprise disabled; Scotty's automation system was not designed for combat and overloaded when the ship was attacked. After setting the auto-destruct sequence, Kirk and his crew abandoned the ship for the surface of the Genesis Planet.Demolition charges in place on the bridge, and elsewhere throughout the ship, exploded, killing a Klingonboarding party. The battered secondary hull (with what was left of the saucer) fell from orbit and blazingly streaked across the planet'satmosphere. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)

Being forty years old at the time of its destruction, theEnterprise had surpassed its designer's original projected eighteen-year endurance by twenty-two years, when the ship was launched back in 2245. (DIS: "Brother"graphic display) The next USSEnterprise, aConstitution II-class heavycruiserUSSEnterprise-A, was launcheda year later. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

Legacy[]

TheEnterprise's long history would be remembered for the next century. (TNG: "The Naked Now";DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations";VOY: "Flashback", "Q2";PIC: "Penance", "Fly Me to the Moon") CaptainJohn Harriman of theUSSEnterprise-B would learn of Kirk's missions when he was ingrade school. (Star Trek Generations)

In2369, when Montgomery Scott was rescued from thecrash landedUSSJenolen, and his surprise that he was found by theUSSEnterprise-D, Scott's immediate response was "Enterprise? I should have known. I bet Jim Kirk himself hauled the old girl out ofmothballs to come looking for me," even though he, along with Pavel Chekov and Kirk were on the USSEnterprise-B during its maiden voyage when Kirk was presumed killed. (TNG: "Relics";Star Trek Generations)

In2383,Hologram Janeway showed the young crew of theUSSProtostar an image of theEnterprise while explaining the history of the Federation and Starfleet to them. (PRO: "Starstruck")

In2384, theProtostar responded toEnsignDavid Garrovick'sdistress call that had been sent fromPlanet 0042692 over a hundred years before, discovering that Starfleet had no record of theEnterprise's mission to the planet, but learning of it from the natives, theEnderprizians. TheProtostar crew madesecond contact and fulfilled Garrovick's promise that Starfleet would some day return to save the Enderprizians from thecurse of "the Gallows," in realitytoxic runoff caused by the crashed shuttleGalileo. (PRO: "All the World's a Stage")

In2399, retired Starfleet AdmiralJean-Luc Picard observed holographic images of the originalEnterprise from 2258 and theEnterprise-D in the central lobby ofStarfleet Headquarters. (PIC: "Maps and Legends")

Kirk's use of the slingshot maneuver using theEnterprise in order to travel through time was mentioned as an example by Picard as one of the methods for travelling back through time in order to repair changes made in2024 byQ. (PIC: "Penance")

Alternate timelines and realities[]

• In analternate timeline shown toCommanderMichael Burnham by thetime crystal,Enterprise failed to destroy theUSSDiscovery withphoton torpedoes afterDiscovery'sauto-destruct didn't go off. As in the current timeline,Enterprise was hit in the saucer section with an undetonated photon torpedo during theBattle near Xahea, which presumably destroyed the ship asControl won in that timeline. Having been shown this vision moments beforeEnterprise's failure to destroyDiscovery, Burnham stopped the crew from even attempting to do so. Later,AdmiralKatrina Cornwell sacrificed herself to saveEnterprise from destruction by the torpedo which she predicted would kill at least the bridge crew if it went off and maybe everyone else on the ship. Burnham and Spock came to the conclusion that the time crystal had showed her this possible future so that she could change it. (DIS: "Such Sweet Sorrow", "Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2")

• In an alternate timeline in which CaptainChristopher Pike managed to avoid his crippling fate, he was still in command of theEnterprise in2266 during theNeutral Zone Incursion whileJames T. Kirk was the captain of theUSSFarragut instead. In this timeline, the ship suffered heavy damage from the Romulan warbird and took on theFarragut's survivors before Pike negotiated a cease fire between the two sides. When the Romulans showed up with a full armada in response to the perceived weakness of the Federation, theEnterprise barely escaped, taking severe damage to several more decks and incurring several casualties, most notably Spock. The incident resulted in an endless war between the Federation and the Romulans, before the Pike of this future traveled back in time and showed his past self the consequences of avoiding his fate. (SNW: "A Quality of Mercy")

• In an alternate timeline created by thedeath of Spock at the age of seven,Thelin served as thefirst officer andscience officer of theEnterprise. Upon learning of the damaged timeline that Kirk and Spock decided to correct, Thelin was supportive. Upon hearing that, Spock wished Thelin a long and prosperous life in whatever circumstances the corrected timeline placed him in. (TAS: "Yesteryear")

List of first contacts[]

Over its forty-years of service, theEnterprise madefirst contact with numerous species.

Robert April's notable first contacts[]

• 2246
  • Perricans (SNW: "Ad Astra per Aspera")

Christopher Pike's notable first contacts[]

• 2254
  • Kalar (TOS: "The Cage";SNW: "Among the Lotus Eaters")
  • Talosians (TOS: "The Cage";DIS: "If Memory Serves")

• 2259
  • Gorn (SNW: "Memento Mori")
  • Kerkhovian (SNW: "Charades")
  • Kiley (SNW: "Strange New Worlds")
  • Shepherd (SNW: "Children of the Comet")

James T. Kirk's notable first contacts[]

In most cases, the date indicated is the first time open communication was initiated with at least one member of the species. Otherwise, it is the first known contact with the species.

• 2266
  • Balok's species (TOS: "The Corbomite Maneuver")
  • Miri natives (TOS: "Miri")
  • Thasians (TOS: "Charlie X")

• 2267
  • Greek gods (TOS: "Who Mourns for Adonais?")
  • Guardian of Forever (TOS: "The City on the Edge of Forever")Note: While the Guardian is not necessarily a species, theEnterprise did make first contact with the Guardian of Forever
  • Horta (TOS: "The Devil in the Dark")
  • Keeper's species (TOS: "Shore Leave")
  • Metrons (TOS: "Arena")
  • Organians (TOS: "Errand of Mercy")
  • Ornithoids (TOS: "Catspaw")
  • Trelane's species (TOS: "The Squire of Gothos")
  • Vaalians (TOS: "The Apple")

• 2268
  • 892-IV natives (TOS: "Bread and Circuses")
  • Beta XII-A entity (TOS: "Day of the Dove")
  • Cheron natives (TOS: "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield")
  • Fabrini (TOS: "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky")
  • Gem's species (TOS: "The Empath")
  • Gorgan (TOS: "And the Children Shall Lead")
  • Kelvans (TOS: "By Any Other Name")
  • Melkots (TOS: "Spectre of the Gun")
  • Platonians (TOS: "Plato's Stepchildren")
  • Providers (TOS: "The Gamesters of Triskelion")
  • Arretan (TOS: "Return to Tomorrow")
  • Scalosians (TOS: "Wink of an Eye")
  • Sigma Draconis VI natives (TOS: "Spock's Brain")
  • Vians (TOS: "The Empath")

• 2269
  • Aquans (TAS: "The Ambergris Element")
  • Excalbians (TOS: "The Savage Curtain")
  • Lactrans (TAS: "The Eye of the Beholder")
  • Matter-energy cloud (TAS: "One of Our Planets Is Missing")
  • Megans (TOS: "The Magicks of Megas-Tu")
  • Phylosians (TAS: "The Infinite Vulcan")
  • Planet 0042692 natives (PRO: "All the World's a Stage")Note: date approximate
  • Sarpeidon natives (TOS: "All Our Yesterdays")
  • Theela's species (TAS: "The Lorelei Signal")
  • Zetarians (TOS: "The Lights of Zetar")

• 2270
  • Delta Theta III aborigines (TAS: "Bem")
  • Kukulkan's species (TAS: "How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth")

Command crew[]

Robert April's command crew[]

• Commanding officer
  • Robert April (2245–2250)
• First officer
  • Christopher Pike (2240s–2250)
• Chief medical officer
  • Sarah April (2245–2250s)
• Science officer
  • Una Chin-Riley (2240s–2250)

Christopher Pike's command crew[]

• Commanding officer
  • Christopher Pike (2250–early2260s)
  • Katrina Cornwell (2258)
• First officer
  • Una Chin-Riley (2250–)
• Chief engineer
  • Louvier (2257)
  • Hemmer (2259)
  • Pelia (2259)
• Chief medical officer
  • Phil Boyce (2254)
  • Joseph M'Benga (2259)
• Helmsman
  • Una Chin-Riley (2250s–2259)
  • Erica Ortegas (2259)
• Communications officer
  • Garison (2254)
  • Nicola (2258)
  • Nyota Uhura (2259)
  • Christina (2259)
  • Shankar (2259)
• Navigator
  • José Tyler (2254)
  • Amin (2258)
  • Una Chin-Riley (2259)
• Operations officer
  • Jenna Mitchell (2259)
• Tactical officer
  • Mann (2258)
  • Zuniga (2259)
• Science officer
  • Lynne Lucero (sometime after 2250)
  • Evan Connolly (2257)
  • Kroad (2258)
  • Spock (2253–2260s)
  • George Samuel Kirk (2259)
• Chief of security
  • La'an Noonien-Singh (2259)

James T. Kirk's command crew[]

• Commanding officer
  • James T. Kirk (2265–2270,2270s,2285)
  • Robert April (2270)
  • Will Decker (2270s)
  • Spock (2285)
• First officer
  • Spock (2265–2270, 2270s, 2285)
  • Willard Decker (2270s)
• Second officer / Chief engineer
  • Montgomery Scott (2265–2270s, 2285)
• Chief medical officer
  • Mark Piper (2265)
  • Leonard McCoy (2266–2270, 2270s, 2285)
  • Christine Chapel (2270s)
• Helmsman
  • Gary Mitchell (2265)
  • Hikaru Sulu (2266–2270s, 2285)
  • Leslie (2266–2267)
  • Hansen (2267)
  • Hadley (2267–2268)
  • DePaul (2267)
  • Spinelli (2267)
  • Kyle (2268)
  • Rahda (2268)
  • Walking Bear (2270)
• Communications officer/Operations officer
  • Alden (2265)
  • Nyota Uhura (2266–2270s, 2285)
  • John Farrell (2266)
  • Palmer (2267–2269)
  • Angela Martine (2267)
  • Lisa (2269)
  • M'Ress (2269–2270)
• Navigator
  • Lee Kelso (2265)
  • Dave Bailey (2266)
  • John Farrell (2266)
  • Kevin Riley (2266)
  • Stiles (2266)
  • Hadley (2267–2269)
  • DeSalle (2267)
  • DePaul (2267)
  • Osborne (2267)
  • Leslie (2267)
  • Painter (2267)
  • Pavel Chekov (2267–2269)
  • Jana Haines (2268)
  • Arex (2269–2270)
  • Ilia (2270s)
  • DiFalco (2270s)
  • Saavik (2285)
• Security chief
  • Giotto (2267)
  • Pitcairn (2267)
  • Freeman (2268)
  • Pavel Chekov (2270s, 2285)
• Tactical officer
  • Hikaru Sulu (2266–2270)
  • Pavel Chekov (2267–2270s, 2285)
• Science officer
  • Hikaru Sulu (2265)
  • Spock (2265–2270, 2270s)
  • Sonak (2270s)
  • Saavik (2285)

Crew[]

Complement[]

The number of theEnterprise'screw complement more than doubled over the duration of its service.

In2254, theEnterprise had a complement of 203, this stated following the loss of three crewmembers at Rigel VII. (TOS: "The Cage", "The Menagerie, Part I")

In2257, scans showed the entire crew complement was also stated to be 203, yet in a display graphic specifically stated that the crew compliment was 430; 43officers and 387enlisted.

In2265, theEnterprise's complement consisted of "almost a hundred women." (TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before")

In2266, CaptainRamart commented toCharlie Evans that theEnterprise was "like a wholecity inspace,"compared to his ship, theUSSAntares, which had a relatively meager complement of twenty. Ramart further explained that there were "over 400 in the crew of astarship," which was clarified by Kirk as actually "428, to be exact." (TOS: "Charlie X")

Jadzia Dax observed toBenjamin Sisko, after they transported aboard theEnterprise, that "they really packed them in on these old ships." (DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations")

Casualties[]

Service aboard theEnterprise proved to be hazardous duty. Between 2265 and 2269,individuals who were killed while assigned to the ship included at least fifty-eight officers and crew. Nine crew members were killed when theEnterprise encountered thegalactic barrier in 2265.Gary Mitchell,Lee Kelso, andElizabeth Dehner later died onDelta Vega. (TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before")

Two of seven crewmembers assigned to studyMurasaki 312 on theshuttlecraftGalileo –Latimer andGaetano – both met an unfortunate end, by the hand ofa large creature on the planetTaurus II. (TOS: "The Galileo Seven")

In 2267,Enterprise security officersHendorff,Kaplan,Mallory, andMarple were killed on planetGamma Trianguli VI. (TOS: "The Apple") Further incidents with multiple fatalities included four security guards killed byNomad in 2267, as well as fivesecurity guards killed by adikironium cloud creature onArgus X in 2268. (TOS: "The Changeling", "Obsession") An outbreak ofRigelian fever, in 2269, killed three crewmen and imperiled the rest until a source ofryetalyn could be obtained. (TOS: "Requiem for Methuselah")

As well, twoEnterprise security officers were beamed out into open space while the ship was under the control ofGorgan. (TOS: "And the Children Shall Lead") LieutenantGalloway was vaporized by CaptainTracey onOmega IV, (TOS: "The Omega Glory") but later was somehow resurrected. (TOS: "Turnabout Intruder")YeomanThompson was reduced to a dry cuboctahedron solid. She was killed when theKelvanRojan crushed the object in his hand. (TOS: "By Any Other Name")

At some point after stardate 3619.2 in 2268, but before2270, security officer EnsignDavid Garrovick vanished along with theshuttlecraftGalileo from the ship. His ultimate fate onPlanet 0042692 was not discovered until2384. (PRO: "All the World's a Stage")

In the mid-2270s, CommanderSonak and anEnterprise officer were killed in atransporter accident while beaming to the ship. (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)

Appendices[]

Appearances[]

Background information[]

TheEnterprise and its interiors inThe Original Series were designed primarily byMatt Jefferies. A three-foot demonstration model was completed inNovember 1964 by theHoward Anderson Company to show toGene Roddenberry. After getting his approval, an eleven-foot model was then constructed byRichard C. Datin, Jr.,Mel Keys, andVern Sion atVolmer Jensen's model shop, and was finished inDecember 1964. The eleven-foot model was modified for "Where No Man Has Gone Before" and again for the regular series effect shots. Re-used footage of all three stages of the eleven-foot model's appearance are shown mixed together in TOS.

In the final draftscript of "The Naked Time", theEnterprise was somewhat poetically described thus; "Sleek... efficient... the look of man in space... tooled... equipped..."

ForStar Trek: The Animated Series, the color of theEnterprise was limited.D.C. Fontana commented, "For the purposes of animation you can't do the light white, silver kinds of colors. So they made theEnterprise gray and it came off all right." (Star Trek: The Magazine Volume 1, Issue 16, p. 68)

Some distinctive effects shots of theEnterprise from TOS were recreated in animation forStar Trek: The Animated Series. Depicting the ship performing any new, impressive maneuvers would have been too costly for TAS and would have taken the animators too long to show, despite frequent TAS DirectorHal Sutherland later implying that a desire to portray the ship doing "barrel rolls and that kind of thing" was quite common. (Star Trek: The Magazine Volume 1, Issue 16, pp. 63 & 64)

The 2270s configuration of theEnterprise depicted in thefilmsStar Trek: The Motion Picture,Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, andStar Trek III: The Search for Spock was designed byRichard Taylor andAndrew Probert, based on designs for the vessel made by Matt Jefferies for theundeveloped television seriesStar Trek: Phase II. The design for the movie version was the basis of adesign patent issued by the US Patent and Trademark Office.

TheEnterprise was to have appeared inStar Trek: The First Adventure, which would have revealed that the design of the ship in TOS was actually a refit; the original design resembledEnterprise NX-01, though that vessel was created years earlier. WhenStar Trek: Discovery season 1's finale aired, this idea was continued, as when theEnterprise showed up at the end, it had elements of the NX-01 incorporated into the new model.

TheEnterprise was recreated as a new physicalmodel for theDS9 Season 5 episode "Trials and Tribble-ations". The ship's interior was represented with sets built onParamount Stage 11. (Information fromLarry Nemecek) TheCG model ofConstitution-classUSSDefiant, created for "In A Mirror, Darkly", was relabeled as theEnterprise for the final scene of "These Are The Voyages...", the last episode ofStar Trek: Enterprise.

A new CG model, built from caliper measurements of the original eleven-foot physical model, was created for use in theremastered and recreated version ofThe Original Series (for more detailed treatises on the studio models used, seeConstitution-class model (original).

Visual effects artistGabriel Koerner created a re-imagined version of the pre-refitEnterprise from the movies. The design is more contemporary, while keeping the design ofThe Original Series version of the ship. A video showing the ship from various angles can be seen on YouTube. The model was also featured as the August image for the2007Ships of the Line calendar, as well as in theShips of the Line coffee-table book, placed between TOS and TMP images, which included text fromMichael Okuda suggesting it as one of the ideas on how to refit the ship.

TheEnterprise was pictured on threepaintings during theStar Trek franchise: on a painting in the recreation deck of the 2270s configuration of the vessel, inStar Trek: The Motion Picture; on a painting in the waiting area of thesickbay aboard theUSSEnterprise-D, in theStar Trek: The Next Generationfifth season episode "Ethics"; and on a painting on the wall of Kirk's kitchen in theNexus, inStar Trek Generations.

Upon preparing to view the bridge of theEnterprise in the first draft script ofTNG: "Relics",Montgomery Scott specified, "Show her the way she was before stardate 5928," referencing the stardate on which TOS series finale "Turnabout Intruder" takes place. Consequently, this line of dialogue would have established that the holographic simulation of theEnterprise's bridge in "Relics" was definitely contemporaneous with the exact setting of TOS. Scott did not specify that in the final draft of the script, however.[4] The line is also not spoken on screen.

TheEnterprise was to have been referenced in the first draft script ofVOY: "Flashback", in connection with its near-destruction atEminiar VII. However, all mention of the vessel was eliminated from the episode by the time the final draft of the script was written.

A newCGI model was created for the appearance of the USSEnterprise in the Season 1 finale ofStar Trek: Discovery, "Will You Take My Hand?". This model updated the appearance of the USSEnterprise to better match the style of other Starfleet ships depicted in the show, most noticeably changing theEnterprise'snacelles to have visible, glowing blue cutouts on the inner surface. Theimpulse engine was also different, and thenacelle pylons were swept back with openings in their centers similar to the2270s configuration. The new model also had a longer "runway" before theshuttlebay doors.

External links[]

• USSEnterprise (NCC-1701) atWikipedia
• USSEnterprise (NCC-1701) atMemory Beta, the wiki for licensedStar Trek works
• USSEnterprise (NCC-1701) attheStar Trek Online Wiki