posted
And you also have to think about production runs. The mirandas and excelsiors ( for the most part) could be from the later production runs of their class. Old design, but technically a new(er) ship. i don't think we'll see any of the B-52's from the early production runs in the 50's and 60's in 2040.
Another example would be the Colt M1911 .45 cal pistol. Standard issue pistol of the US armed services from 1911 untill 1985, and the design is still in use and just as popular as it was when it originally came out. In fact, some military personell still carry .45's that were made in the Vietnam era, or earlier(that still function perfectly), instead of the Beretta M9 9mm. Sure we have newer and better pistols, with better accuracy and magazine capacity ( the .45 only holds 7 rounds ), but the good old 45 still has admirable qualities. It is simple to use, has excellent stopping power, it's durable. Just like Excelsiors, and to a lesser extent, Mirandas ( they would be like Colt Peacemakers).
There are faster, more heavily armed ships available, but there seem to be so many Excelsiors and Mirandas out there, and they can still get the job done. As to why we saw Excelsiors being used as flagships, most of the Admirals were old, and probably served on ships like them, and find them suitable for their purpose.
And they both blow up nicely in battle.
Wow, I just REALLY over explained this...
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Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
Member # 1689
posted
I don't think so. This is hardcore scifi geek central. To overexplain is to explain just enough
Actually I've never thought of it in quite that way before - Mirandas and Excelsiors could get the job done, so there wasn't much need to spend resources creating a newer class. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." In other words, don't improve the entire fleet at once just because it's technically possible - build small numbers of new Nebulas, Galaxies, Intrepids, and Soverigns, and build large numbers of tried-and-true, well-tested, well-proven workhorses like Excelsior and Miranda.
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posted
I've finished my timeline of starship information that will be pertinent to my essay about the conjectural classes, and I've come across some interesting things. I'll post a new thread about it.
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posted
And now that the end of the century is near, and a shit load of the older vessels were lost in the Dominion war, we will see less and less of them. But they will still have their place to some degree. Mirandas have already started to move to the rear echelon positions like freighters and transports, since they are older than the Excelsiors, but I'd assume that soon they too would get relegated to other roles. Perhaps target practice, training ships... The newer spaceframes (2330's) would probably stay in active duty for a while longer. If we see Mirandas on active duty in the 2400's, then Starfleet deserves a slap in the face, but Excelsiors in service into the 2420's and ready to be phased out would make perfect sense.
-------------------- "Kosh, I'd like to introduce you to our Resident schmuck and his side kick Kick Me."-Ritten
"Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity". -George Carlin
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posted
Fuck the old ships, I wanna see some new tech from the Federation. The Dominion War showed the price you pay when you rely on outdated ships for too long.
Registered: Feb 2005
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Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
Member # 1689
posted
Floating in bits and pieces on the front lines, mostly
I also don't necessarily think "new spaceframe design" = "new tech." I mean you don't have to have a new sexy sleek swanlike starship in order to bitch it out with quantum torpedoes and Class Fifty-billion probes, get me? I mean, look at ships and airplanes - the shapes don't change *that* much. Maybe there's as much difference between an early-, mid-, and late-model Excelsior as there is between a U-boat, Alfa class, and Los Angeles class subs.
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WizArtist II
"How can you have a yellow alert in Spacedock? "
Member # 1425
posted
It would be unusual to see, but you could see an old Connie-refit or a Miranda as a private vessel, same as seeing WW2 "warbirds" flown at airshows. Granted the cost of owning would be enormous but you never know. Now I wonder if any old tin cans were ever put in private hands.
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posted
Very true, although I was referring to what the military would have handed out, with the standard 7 rd mag, so if you count the round in the barrel, 8 rounds, yeah. That is still low by today's standards, where people don't see the need to aim their guns. Actually, there is a Canadian company that produces .45 variants with 12,13, and 14 round capacity magazines as standard. Just proves the longevity of a sound design.
-------------------- "Kosh, I'd like to introduce you to our Resident schmuck and his side kick Kick Me."-Ritten
"Fighting for peace is like screwing for virginity". -George Carlin
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quote:Originally posted by Daniel Butler: I also don't necessarily think "new spaceframe design" = "new tech."
Star Trek made a lot of a starship's performance independent of the spaceframe. You want a stronger ship? Put in an improved structural integrity field. You want better defenses? Put in improved shield generators, better torpedoes, and enhanced phaser banks. A better warp core and warp coils that fit in the old nacelles will get you more speed.
If you assume the Star Trek technical manuals have any validity, about the only thing that the spaceframe does for you (besides determining crew size and mission scope and flexibility) is shape the warp field. Unless you need a fast ship like the Intrepid Class, you can probably get away with a souped up older design.
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Daniel Butler
I'm a Singapore where is my boat
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posted
Exactly, thanks for pointing that out.
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