posted
(I am sort of amused that after all this time "Star Fleet" still shows up, even in official places.)
The first time part of the Utopia Planetia shipyard was seen was that one TNG episode with the space baby, surely, albeit limited to that one room of an apparently orbital facility.
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
When locations like "Utopia Planitia Yards" or "San Francisco Yards" are shown to be orbital facilities, one begins to wonder whether they have a surface component in their respective "locations" at all.
I mean, surely they have a surface component. But there's no particular reason to think that the San Francisco Yards would have a surface component at San Francisco (which isn't even conveniently situated on the equator for regular vertical access to its namesake docks, nor on the east coast for easy ballistic access). Rather, "San Francisco Yards" could be a name only, a trademark having nothing to do with the city.
Okay, granted, the Enterprise dedication plaque does explicitly say "San Francisco, Calif."... But that is a rather unique case. The Antares shipyards seem to be anywhere BUT Antares, since it would be extremely awkward to have "Bajor Sector" anywhere near the star of that name. "Utopia Planitia Yards" don't necessarily have anything to do with the Utopia plains, either, and may simply have been named after the scenic site or the historic colony. And extreme planetary congestion would be needed to turn Mount McKinley into an industrial site...
Also, the wording "Antares Shipyards, Bajor Sector" suggests that such contractors have yards at multiple physical locations. It wouldn't be impossible for Utopia Planitia Yards to have built the E-D entirely on Earth orbit, for example.
posted
I assume each ship yards have planet-based facilities, only that they are less prominent because raw materials are processed there or electronic components are built which is little spectacular. On the other hand, the preparation of raw materials or of small components would rather not be done by the ship yards. There should be suppliers for that.
-------------------- Bernd Schneider
Registered: Mar 1999
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posted
Was McKinley Station named specifically after the mountain? I don't remember it as such. If it's not, the station doesn't necessarily have to have a ground based portion at the mountain. It could be just a space facility named after the explorer or someone else with the name McKinley.
posted
Indeed, the McKinley Station is almost certain that the station has nothing to do with the mountain, which cannot be assumed to be an industrial area supporting an orbital dockyard. Perhaps it, like the mountain, is named after US President McKinley?
Antares Yards in turn could be named in sarcastic defiance of the near-monopoly of the supposedly mainly Martian Utopia Planitia Yards on starship orders: the name of the star Antares apparently derives from "anti" ("against", "apart from") and "Ares" (the Greek god of war that the Romans called Mars), since it is a sort of "second Mars" on the sky.
posted
Regarding Star Fleet vs. Starfleet, I was sort of under the (apparently mistaken) impression that Earth had a Star Fleet, while the Federation has Starfleet. No? Was it all one word on Enterprise?
posted
It was always one word on ENT. AFAIK, the only places "STAR FLEET" has appeared onscreen were on the monument in front of the Starfleet Medical Center (but not on the building itself) in "Endgame" (VGR) and on the Star Fleet Battle Group Omega display from Star Trek: Nemesis.
Ironically, IIRC the single-word phrasing was seen in "Court Martial" (TOS). I'm not even sure where people got "Star Fleet" from in the first place. But now it's become one of those "us versus them" things in Fandom.
-MMoM
-------------------- The flaws we find most objectionable in others are often those we recognize in ourselves.
Registered: Jun 2001
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posted
There is also the Yoyodine shipyards which built the Constellation class ships, Earth Station McKinley which the Enterprise-C was built at. San Fransico Fleetyards and there is also one in Japan too but I cant remember the name of it.
-------------------- "Who cares if we bomb a few hospitals, it just means we got them a second time" Warrant Officer Robert Clift, CVN-71 OEF
Registered: Aug 2002
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The Pasteur was built by the Skywalker Division of the Marin County Starfleet Yards.
And as far as Utopia Planitia is concerned, we did see the surface facilities on several occasions. They were obviously on Mars, and therefore most likely on the Utopian plains.
posted
When did we see the surface facilities? The holographic recreation was the orbital facility. And I think the shot in Voyager was just the orbital drydocks. I don't remember ever seeing the planetside part...
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