Constitution class starship

In the fictional Star Trek universe, the Constitution class is a series of Starfleet vessels first put into service in the mid-23rd century. In the original Star Trek series, ships of this class support multiple roles, GeneRally used for exploration and diplomacy, but also equipped for combat with armaments consisting of at least two photon torpedo launchers, two main phaser banks, and a number of secondary phasers. While it is not widely known, Constitution-class vessels were capable of a Saucer separation. Unlike the later Galaxy-class starship though, it was not strictly designed for this and was only meant to be used in the event of grave emergency ("The Apple (TOS episode)"). Once separated, the SAUCER would be limited to impulse power with the impulse engines being located at the stern of the saucer.

Constitution-class ships are the only type of large Starfleet ship seen in the original series. The next type to be introduced in live-action Star Trek was the Miranda class. A ship of an older design, the Bonaventure, had been seen in the animated series episode "The Time Trap", which is now considered non-canonical.

The Constitution class label does not Appear in The Original Series; the Enterprise's dedication plaque indicates it is a "Starship Class" vessel. The Constitution-class label was firmly attached to the ship by fandom in the early 1970s (specifically in Gene Roddenberry's novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture -- in which the Klingon K't'inga-class battle cruiser was also identified as such.)

The USS Enterprise underwent an extensive refit after Kirk's five-year mission was completed (as seen in Star Trek: The Motion Picture). The 1987 reference work Mr. Scott's Guide to the Enterprise asserts that the refit Enterprise is now of a new "Enterprise-class" (Author Shane Johnson based this assertion on interviews with Andrew Probert, one of The Primary designers of the movie Enterprise, who explained that the ship was intended to be the first vessel of the Enterprise class).

Dialog in the first-season TNG episode "The [...] Now" identifies the pre-refit Enterprise as being Constitution class. A diagram seen in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country confirms the Enterprise-A is also Constitution class.

Constitution-class ships are not seen in service in the TNG era, set about 100 years after the original series, although the roughly contemperaneous Excelsior and Miranda-class ships are frequently seen. A planned appearance of a Constitution-class model for the USS Stargazer was changed, and dialog redubbed to make this a Constellation-class ship instead. The Starfleet museum is said to have a Constitution class ship. (TNG: "Relics").

In "Tomorrow is Yesterday", Kirk says that there are "only twelve ships like [the Enterprise] in the fleet".

Star Fleet Technical Manual

According to the 1975 Star Fleet Technical Manual, the Constitution-class ships are as follows (the addition of the USS Defiant is from the season one of the remastered original series, with corrections in the registry numbers in the other ships occurring later)

This makes a total of 14 Constitution-class starships. Of these, Farragut is established (by the episode "Obsession") to have been destroyed at the time Kirk makes his statement. The Constellation, Intrepid and the Excalibur have yet to be destroyed in the first season, making a total of 12 other Constitution-class starships.

The Technical Manual notes that the Constellation, Farragut, Intrepid and Valiant have been destroyed, and that replacement ships have been ordered. The replacement Intrepid, named the USS Intrepid II appears in several novels of the era: this naming convention was not followed in the series. The Technical Manual also provides a List of ships to be of an improved Constitution class type, the Bonhomme Richard-class (including a USS Eagle NCC-1719, USS Essex NCC-1727, and USS Hornet NCC-1714), and a further improved variant, the Achernar-class. None of these types or registry numbers have ever been confirmed on screen, except for the Kongo.

The Technical Manual calls the class the "Constitution-class heavy cruiser". It posits the existence of a Saladin-class destroyer and a Federation-class dreadnought.

The Constellation's has the registry number "1017" because the model used for the Constellation was constructed from the AMT model kit of the Enterprise. The labels for the Enterprise registry numbers (the only digits available with the kit) were rearranged on the model which was to become Constellation.

Matt Jeffries, art Director for Star Trek: The Original Series (TOS), stated that the call-letters (based on 1960s aircraft designations "NC") didn't have a specific meaning when he designed the Enterprise for the original Desilu production. He would simply suggest that they could possibly mean "Naval and Civilian Craft"; series-creator Gene Roddenberry is said to have designated the Naval Construction Contract title, as referenced in one of "The Making of Star Trek" books, which was published by the early 1970s.

Encyclopedia list

The list of Constitution-class ships used internally at Paramount has been derived from Greg Jein's fan list, first published in 1975. This matched up registry codes from a wall display in "Court Martial" with known ship names in reverse alphabetical order, to get registries for other ships. The list given in the Star Trek Encyclopedia is based on Jein's list.
{| class="wikitable" ! Name ! Registry ! Status ! Notes |- |USS Constellation |NCC-1017 |On-screen |Destroyed in TOS: "The Doomsday Machine". The ship was represented by a commercially-available model kit of the Enterprise, with the digits rearranged. |- |USS Constitution |NCC-1700 |Freeze-frame |Likely the class pathfinder. Recent technical manuals date its launch to 2244. Its registry appears on a wall display in "Court Martial" (TOS). Both the Joseph and Jein make this the Constitution. |- |USS Defiant |NCC-1764 |On-screen |Disappears into a rift in space in "The Tholian Web".
According to Ent: "In a Mirror, Darkly", it reappears 100 years in the past in the Mirror Universe. |- |USS Eagle |NCC-956 |Freeze-frame | |- |USS Endeavour |NCC-1895 |Freeze-frame | |- |USS Enterprise |NCC-1701 |On-screen |The ship featured in Star Trek under the command of James T. Kirk. Recent technical manuals date its launch to 2245. It was refitted before Star Trek: The Motion Picture and is destroyed in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock when Kirk orders the ship's self-destruction to avoid its capture by Klingons. |- |ISS Enterprise |NCC-1701 |On-screen |The "Imperial Starship" Enterprise is seen in the original series episode Mirror, Mirror and is part of the Mirror Universe. It was commanded by James T. Kirk, who rose to command after assassinating the former captain, Christopher Pike. |- |USS Enterprise |NCC-1701-A |On-screen |The second Constitution-class Enterprise. Non-canon sources generally agree that a renaming of some other ship: the USS Yorktown is often suggested.The crew of the Enterprise-A under the command of James T. Kirk are ordered home to be decommissioned following the Khitomer Conference in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. The final log entry by Kirk states that this would be the final cruise of the starship Enterprise under his command and that the Enterprise-A would become the care of another crew. |- |USS Essex |NCC-1697 |Non-canon | |- |USS Excalibur |NCC-1664 |Registry non-canon |Destroyed in "The Ultimate Computer" |- |USS Exeter |NCC-1672 |On-screen |Commanded by Captain Ronald Tracey. Found in orbit over Omega IV with its crew dead (TOS: "The Omega Glory").
The Exeter's later career is the subject of a series of fan-made short films in "Starship Exeter." The registry number was not seen in the original version of the episode, but was finally revealed in The New CGI visual effects for the 40th anniversary "Remastered" version of the episode. |- |USS Farragut |NCC-1647 |Presumed Constitution class. Registry non-canon. |Commanded by a Captain Garrovick, was James T. Kirk's first starship post. See TOS: "Obsession". Asserted in the Star Trek Encyclopedia to be of Constitution-class, although it was never seen on screen. Registry from the Star Trek Encyclopedia. Jein gives this number, but not from the "Court Martial" list. |- |USS Hood |NCC-1703 |Registry non-canon |Damaged in "The Ultimate Computer" |- |USS Intrepid |NCC-1831 |Presumed Constitution class. Registry non-canon. |Entirely crewed by Vulcans, the Intrepid is destroyed in "The Immunity Syndrome". Asserted in the Star Trek Encyclopedia to be of Constitution-class, although it was never seen on screen. Registry number from Jein's list via the Encyclopedia. Earlier versions of Jein's list instead give this as the visually similar NCC-1631. |- |USS Lexington |NCC-1709 |Registry non-canon. |Damaged in "The Ultimate Computer" |- |USS Republic |NCC-1371 |Presumed Constitution class. Registry non-canon. |A ship that Kirk served on earlier in his career. Asserted in the Star Trek Encyclopedia to be of Constitution-class, although it was never seen on screen. |- |USS Potemkin |NCC-1657 |Registry non-canon. |Damaged in "The Ultimate Computer" |- |USS Yorktown |On-screen |The starship Yorktown (a Constitution-class starship) is disabled by an alien probe (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home). Both The Star Trek Encyclopedia and the Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual assert that Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry suggested that the Yorktown was rechristened as the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A) following the Probe Crisis. Another publication however; "Mr. Scott's Guide to the Enterprise-A", states that the Enterprise-A was a new construction Constitution (refit) class Starship built as USS Ti-Ho, and subsequently re-named Enterprise-A as a tribute and thanks to CAPT Kirk and crew for saving the Earth (ST-IV). This debate is on-going. |}

A USS Kongo, NCC-1710, is listed on a computer readout in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. The Star Fleet Technical Manual had previously asserted there was a USS Kongo NCC-1710. Jein's 1975 essay had proposed NCC-1732. The ship is not listed in the 1999 EDition of the Encyclopedia. Jein's original list also gives Hornet (NCC-1868), Lafayette (NCC-1866), Tashik-Sotra (NCC-1865), and Valiant (NCC-1623).

External links

• "Constitution class" at STARTREK.COM

it:Classe Constitution ja:コンスティテューション級 pl:Klasa Constitution