A long while back, when these forums were at Utopia Planitia I posted brief descriptions of each class of Starships. I would like to post them again. Some have been updated, some have not. Feel free to critique what I have.Part One: A-D
Akira Class�A class of medium-sized (about the size of the Excelsiors) Federation warships that entered service around the middle of the 24th century. Their registry numbers (NCC-63000s) would indicate that they are contemporaries of the Nebula and New Orleans class ships. The Akiras have the traditional Starfleet saucer section, but no engineering hull. Long bulges run across the dorsal side of the saucer to either side of the bridge unit. These bulges form extensions to the aft of the ship, to which the engine nacelles attach. The nacelles themselves angle downward at about a 45 degree angle. Between the aforementioned extensions is a small connecting strut which forms the weapons platform for the photon torpedo launcher. Since there is no engineering hull, the navigational deflector is mounted inside a bulbous protrusion on the ventral side of the saucer.
Ambassador Class�A class of heavy cruiser starships that entered service around the early part of the 24th century. This class appears to have been intended as the successor to the Excelsior class as the workhorse of Starfleet. It is unknown whether or not they actually fulfilled this role, as far more of the Excelsior-class ships are seen in service than the Ambassador class.
There appears to be two different variants of the Ambassador class. They can be distinguished by the shape of their secondary hulls. The engineering section of the first variant has an oval shape when viewed head on. The Ambassador-class ship seen in profile in the observation lounge of Enterprise-D is of this early variant. The engineering section of the second variant has a round shape when viewed head on. The starships Enterprise-C and Excalibur (NCC-26517) are of this second variant. The registry numbers would tend to corroborate this theory. The registry numbers fall into two distinct groups: those with NCC-10500 hull numbers and those with NCC-26000. The most famous ship in this class was the USS Enterprise that was destroyed by Romulan forces at Narendra III.
Andromeda Class�A class of starships about which little is known. No example has even been seen. Their hull numbers are in the NCC-68000 and 70000 range which would suggest these ships entered service around the third quarter of the 24th century. With only two known representatives, this may not have been a successful class of ships.
Antares Class�A name for at least four different classes of ships:
1) A class of small cargo and science vessels used by Starfleet during the mid-23rd century. They had a crew of only about two dozen. The most famous ship of this class was the namesake USS Antares that was destroyed by Charlie Evans.
2) A second class of Starfleet vessels that entered service in the early 24th century. Nothing is known about these ships and no example has been seen. The hull number of the only known representative of this class (USS Hermes, NCC-10376) would suggest that they are contemporaries of the first version Ambassador-class ships.
3) A class of long, box-like freighters that are in common use by a number of races. They are presumably Talarian in origin. Examples of this class include the SS Xhosa, and SS Batris.
4) A class of wedge-shaped transports most notably used by the Bajorans. Often seen docking at DS9.
Apollo Class�A class of starships that would, by their registry numbers in the 11000s and 12000s, appear to have entered service in the early 24th century (The USS Ajax was in service by 2327). These vessels would appear to be some kind of general purpose starship. It seems that these vessels were also constructed for non-Starfleet contracts. This is noted by the Vulcan-registered T�Pau (NSP-17938).
Bradbury Class�A class, so far of a single ship, that entered service in the latter half of the 24th century. This is still an experimental class of an unknown type as evidenced by the registry of the namesake ship (NX-72307).
Challenger Class�A class of starships about which there is some degree of confusion. Their registry number (in the NCC-57000 range) would appear to suggest they entered service around the middle of the 24th century. The design of the ship itself, however, would move this date back to the late 23rd century. (There is a USS Challenger, NCC-2032, from this era. Is she the namesake of the class?) The Challengers look like they were constructed from parts of other vessels. They consist of the primary and secondary hulls of a refitted Constitution class. The engines, which appear to be half of a Constellation-class quad mount, are mounted to the aft end of the saucer section on the dorsal side. The pylons must straddle the impulse engines since they do not appear to have been displaced. Either the designers used old ideas for a new ship in the middle of the 24th century or the Challengers have had a long lifespan with new ships being built for nearly 50 years. The most famous member of this class is probably the ill-fated USS Buran, NCC-57580, destroyed by the Borg at Wolf 359.
Cheyenne Class�A relatively new class of starships that entered service in the third quarter of the 24th century. Like the Constellation class, they are the only known class of starships with four warp nacelles. In fact they appear to be a modernized version of the Constellation class (or least have the same design concept). The saucer section has the rounded oval shape seen on Galaxy and Nebula class ships. The four warp engines are also of the modern design seen on the aforementioned Galaxy and Nebula classes.
Chimera Class�Another class of starships in use by Starfleet. Nothing is known about them except that their registries, which are in the NCC-57000 range, would make them contemporaries of the Challenger and New Orleans classes.
Constellation Class�A class of starships that entered service near the end of the 23rd century (The Constellation herself carried her prototype registry of NX-1974 in 2293). Along with the Miranda and refitted Constitution classes they were the first starships to display the sleeker oval warp nacelles (as opposed to the older cylindrical shape) and overall �streamlined� design. Unlike all previous Starfleet vessel designs, the Constellation class differed in two respects: 1) they were equipped with four warp engines instead of the traditional two, and 2) they do not have a secondary hull a.k.a. engineering section. They do have a larger primary hull than usual, probably to include engineering and whatever else was normally located in the secondary hull. As reflected by the wide range of registry numbers, the Constellation class appears to one of those ships that remained in production for several decades. Although no longer produced, some are still in service to this day, including, apparently the class namesake herself, USS Constellation (NCC-1974).
Constitution Class heavy cruiser�One of the most famous class of vessels ever constructed by Starfleet. The first ships of this class appear to have entered service around the middle of the 23rd century. The most famous of these, and perhaps the single most famous starship ever, USS Enterprise (the first starship to carry this name, if you discount the Declaration-class SS Enterprise, which some do not consider a true starship as it had intrastellar capability only) was commissioned in 2245. Her registry number, NCC-1701, would suggest that she was the second ship in the class. Some of the ships in the class, most notably the USS Constellation (NCC-1017) however, have lower registry numbers. This would tend to indicate that Constitution class starships were in service prior to the 2245 date of the Enterprise. One explanation might be the dedication plaque on the Enterprise which states that the ship is of the Starship class. One might conjecture that this was the original designation for all ships of this class. At some later date the class was renamed Constitution class (the namesake vessel being NCC-1700) to avoid the confusion of the term starship applying to all Starfleet vessels while having a specific class with that same name. Or the ship with NCC-1700 might have been the second ship of this class to bear the name Constitution. These starships served as the first workhorse ships for the Federation Starfleet and served in front line duties through the end of the 23rd century. In 2270, the first of the Constitution class ships (Enterprise herself) underwent a major modernization refit which included, among other things, new warp nacelles, a recessed navigational/sensor dish, and relocation of photon torpedo launch bays to the dorsal connecting section between the primary and secondary hulls. This refit does not seem to have significantly extended the life-span of the Constitution class ships as none have been seen in service at any time in the 24th century.
Daedalus Class�Apparently the first class of starships ever commissioned for use by the Federation Starfleet. They are known to have already been in service around the middle of the 22nd century, which is when both the Federation and Starfleet were founded (2161). These vessels were the first to incorporate starship design features that are still used to this day and have come to characterize the look of Starfleet vessels ( i.e. a primary hull and a secondary or engineering hull that are connected to each other by a dorsal �neck� and two warp engines mounted on pylons that extended from the secondary hull). The main difference in the design of the Daedalus class and that of later Starfleet vessels is that the primary hull was a sphere instead of the flattened disk used today. The Daedalus class were in front line service for about 30 years. By 2196 they had been removed from service (except for the USS Carolina, NCC-160, which had been converted to a freighter and was still around by the mid-23rd century).
Danube Class�A small class of starships that are commonly called runabouts. The Danube-class runabouts entered service in 2368. They look like enlarged shuttlecraft and have limited speed and range. They consist of a long, box-like structure that has a four-man cockpit in front and crew accommodations in the back. Between them is a detachable, mission-specific mid-section. The warp engines, which also serve as the landing struts, extend to either side on outrigger-like pylons. Some runabouts have been equipped with sensor pods that mount on top of the vessel on a mini �rollbar�. The most famous use of the Danube-class runabouts has been on the Starfleet-operated Bajoran space station Deep Space Nine. This class is one of the few Starfleet vessels that have a common theme when it comes to names (i.e. rivers). It is also apparent from references that the commander, under which these vessels serve, has the authority to chose the names for the runabouts. It is possible that some commanders do not follow the river theme for their runabouts.
Dauntless Class�Not really a Federation starship at all. It is included here only because it was created by an alien named Arturis to simulate a Starfleet vessel. It had many features common to Federation vessels and might even be similar to future Starfleet designs. It incorporated a quantum slipstream drive that is capable of propelling a starship at velocities much higher than standard warp drive.
Deneva Class�A class of freighters that, judging from their registry numbers in the 6200s, entered service around the end of the 23rd and beginning of the 24th Centuries. They seem to incorporate a simple, rugged design as they are still in service at the present time.
Defiant Class�A class of small escort vessels that for awhile consisted of a single ship. The Defiant is a departure from traditional Starfleet designs and is the prototype for a class of dedicated warships that were originally intended as a response to the Borg threat. As that threat lessened further work on these warships was suspended and only the Defiant was completed. The ship is relatively small, consisting of only about six decks and no amenities that normally characterize Starfleet vessels. The ship has no science labs, no recreational facilities, no family accommodations, and crew quarters have bunk beds. The Defiant is completely dedicated to combat. It is equipped with rapid-fire phaser cannons, quantum torpedoes, and ablative armor plating. Many problems plagued the Defiant�s development. For its small size it is overpowered and overgunned. Since being assigned to Space Station Deep Space Nine many of Defiant�s problems have been resolved and it is now a very reliable vessel. From an exterior view the Defiant also departs from standard Starfleet design. It has a single hull with the warp engines attached to the side along the long axis of the ship instead of mounted on pylons. From a visual standpoint it resembles an armored turtle. Added note: the Defiant is the only Starfleet vessel equipped with a cloaking device. It is unknown how many Defiant-class vessels have been built. We know of at least four, including the ill-fated USS Valiant (NCC-74210). From its registry it is likely the second ship in the class. Others have been seen with Federation fleets in the war with the Dominion. Two took part in the recapture of the USS Prometheus.
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