Starship Enterprise

The Enterprise or USS Enterprise (often referred to as the "Starship Enterprise") is the name of several fictional spacecraft, some of which are the main setting for various television series and films in the Star Trek franchise.

Development
According to The Star Trek Encyclopedia, the registry number "NCC-1701" was devised by Matt Jefferies, art director of the first Star Trek series, inspired by an old science fiction cover that Gene Roddenberry liked, with a starship flying through space. Jefferies, who was a pilot, based NCC on 20th century aircraft registration codes. In such 20th century usage, an "N" first letter refers to an aircraft registered in the USA. A "C" for a second letter refers to a civil aircraft. Jefferies added a second "C" because he thought it looked better.

The Franz Joseph Blueprints, the book The Making of Star Trek and a handful of Star Trek novels state that NCC is an initialism for "Naval Construction Contract".

In an interview with the BBC, Jefferies explained that NC was a US designation for commercial vehicles. The Russians used CC CC. He concluded that as common opinion was that any future major space projects would be a combined effort, he would use a combined designation NCC. The 1701 had two functions, it represented the first (01) ship of a 17th federation cruiser design, and that the digits were unlikely to be misread, unlike 6, 8, or 9.

In Gene Roddenberry's original Star Trek pitch, the starship is described as a "United Space Ship," and in two episodes of the original series (TOS), Kirk refers to the "United Space Ship Enterprise".

Star Trek: Phase II
Before Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Paramount had planned a new Star Trek television series to have been named Star Trek: Phase II. Early in the production, Ralph McQuarrie had been hired to redesign the ship. The major feature of the redesign was to replace the cigar-shaped secondary hull with a larger, triangle-shaped section. McQuarrie's design was discarded in favor of keeping the general shape of the ship intact.

Pre-Federation era
Three spaceships with the name Enterprise predate the United Federation of Planets.

Registry: Enterprise (OV-101) Class: Space Transportation System

Service: February 15, 1977 through April 27, 2012

Commander: Haise, Engle

This Enterprise appears in Star Trek: The Motion Picture among a series of illustrations depicting ships named Enterprise. While this is the only real space craft ever to be actually crewed named Enterprise, it was retroactively entered into continuity. The original name for the orbiter was Constitution but was renamed due to Star Trek fans and the personal intervention of President Gerald Ford.

Registry: USS Enterprise (XCV 330)

Class: Declaration

Service: circa 2130s

Captain: Unknown

This USS Enterprise (XCV 330) appears in Star Trek: The Motion Picture among a series of illustrations depicting ships named Enterprise. The 1979 Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology describes this "first interstellar liner" as a Declaration-class ship launched in 2123. Its length is given as 300 m, and it has a capacity of 100 crew and 850 passengers. The Star Trek Maps by New Eye Photography Editors, also published in 1979, listed this ship as a Fusion drive probe that was Earth's first attempt to explore another star system. The Making of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, published in 1980, describes the ship as "the very first starship U.S.S. Enterprise". A painting of this ship hangs on the wall of Earth's 602 Club in flashbacks from the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "First Flight".

Registry: Enterprise (NX-01)

Class: NX

Service: 2151–2161

Captain: Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula), Alternate Reality - T'Pol (Jolene Blalock), Maximilian Forrest (Vaughn Armstrong)

The United Earth Starfleet's Enterprise is the main setting of Star Trek: Enterprise (2001–2005).

The Original Series era
Three ships named USS Enterprise are featured in the original Star Trek television series and the first through seventh Star Trek films.

Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Class: Constitution

Service: 2245–2285 Captains: Robert April (James Doohan, Gene Roddenberry), Christopher Pike (Jeffrey Hunter), James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Willard Decker (Stephen Collins) (refit), Spock (Leonard Nimoy) (refit)

The Federation's first Enterprise is the main setting of the original Star Trek series (1966–1969) and The Animated Series (1973–74). Having undergone an extensive rebuilding and refitting, the Enterprise then appears in Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) and Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982), before being destroyed in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984).

Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A)

Class: Constitution refit

Service: 2286–2293

Captain: James T. Kirk (William Shatner)

This ship first appears at the conclusion of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) and is the main setting in the following Star Trek movies which use the original crew. The ship is ordered decommissioned at the end of The Undiscovered Country. Paperwork included with the model kit indicated the ship was mothballed at the Memory Alpha ship museum, and William Shatner's novel set in the Shatnerverse The Ashes of Eden (1996) depicts the Enterprise-A's removal from the mothball fleet before being destroyed defending the planet Chal.

Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B)

Class: Excelsior refit

Service: 2293–2329

Captains: John Harriman (Alan Ruck) and Demora Sulu (Jacqueline Kim)

Launched at the start of Star Trek Generations (1994). James T. Kirk is missing, presumed killed, after the ship encounters the Nexus energy ribbon on its maiden voyage. According to Star Trek novels, Demora Sulu becomes captain after Harriman.

The Next Generation era
Three ships named Enterprise are featured in Star Trek: The Next Generation and four TNG-era films. Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C)

Class: Ambassador

Service: 2332 – 2344

Captains: Rachel Garrett (Tricia O'Neil), Richard Castillo (Christopher McDonald)

This ship appears in the Next Generation episode "Yesterday's Enterprise" (1990). It was destroyed attempting to defend the Klingon outpost Narendra III from Romulan attack. Survivors included Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby), whose alternate timeline version from "Yesterday's Enterprise" travels with the ship back in time to the battle over Narendra III. The actions of the Enterprise-C's crew became a catalyst for the alliance between the Federation and the Klingon Empire.

Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)

Class: Galaxy

Service: 2363–2371

Captains: Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), William T. Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Edward Jellico (Ronny Cox)

The main setting of Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994). During Star Trek Generations, the Enterprise was lost in 2371 after an attack by a renegade Klingon Bird-of-Prey (commanded by the Duras sisters) caused extensive damage, leading to a warp core breach. Although the saucer section was safely separated before the breach, the shock wave from the exploding engineering hull threw it out of control, and caused it to crash land on Veridian III.

Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)

Class: Sovereign

Service: 2372 – Active (as of 2387)

Captain: Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart)

The main setting for the films Star Trek: First Contact (1996), Star Trek: Insurrection (1998), and Star Trek Nemesis (2002). According to Star Trek: Countdown (2009), Data (in the form of the android B-4) assumed command of the Enterprise after Captain Picard retired from Starfleet to become the Ambassador to Vulcan.

25th century
Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-F)

 Class:  Odyssey

Service: 2409 – Unknown

Captain(s): Va'Kel Shon

The USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-F) appears in Star Trek Online and replaces the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E) as the flagship of Starfleet. It is an Odyssey-class Federation starship launched in 2409. The Odyssey Class Development Project was based in San Francisco Fleet Yards in Earth's orbit. Like the Galaxy class, the Odyssey class vessels are capable of saucer separation. The vessel also comes equipped with an Aquarius class escort support vessel which launches from the aft section and assists in battle.

Alternate Future
Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)

Class: Galaxy II

Service: Unknown-2388-Unknown

Captain: Admiral William T. Riker (Jonathan Frakes)

In "All Good Things...", the final episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, the Enterprise-D was shown in an alternate future where it had not crashed during the events of Star Trek: Generations, and instead had been made Admiral William T. Riker's personal flagship. The ship has a third nacelle, cloaking ability, a Spinal Phaser Lance, and large phaser cannons on the saucer section.

Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-J)

 Class:  Unknown Service: 26th century

Captain(s): Unknown

The "Azati Prime" episode of Star Trek: Enterprise involves time travel and features a scene in which the Enterprise-J appears. The Enterprise-J operates in an alternate timeline during the 26th century.

Mirror Universe
The Mirror Universe first appeared in the original series as reality where a militaristic empire exists in place of the regular universe's United Federation of Planets ("Mirror, Mirror"). Subsequent episodes have shown that the divergence at least predates the Moon landing, with licensed novels putting the divergence before Shakespeare, or even classic Greek literature.

Registry: ISS Enterprise (NX-01)

Class: NX

Service: 2150s

Captains: Maximilian Forrest (Vaughn Armstrong), Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula)

The Star Trek: Enterprise episode "In a Mirror, Darkly" features a Mirror Universe version of the NX-01 Enterprise. This ship is equipped with a cloaking device, deflector shields, a tractor beam, a prototype Agony Booth, and different exterior markings. It is commanded by Captain Maximilian Forrest, although for a brief time his first officer, Commander Jonathan Archer, takes command following a mutiny. This Enterprise is destroyed by the Tholians.

Registry: ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Class: Constitution

Service: 2260s

Captains: Christopher Pike, James T. Kirk (William Shatner), Spock (Leonard Nimoy)

A Mirror Universe Enterprise appears in the original Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror". The ship is equipped with an agony booth and the mirror in the captain's quarters conceals Captain Kirk's deadly Tantalus device. The ISS Enterprise was originally the same shooting model as the regular Enterprise. The remastered version of "Mirror, Mirror" includes a CGI version of Enterprise with "ISS" markings on the hull and minor physical differences from USS Enterprise, such as a larger deflector dish, a taller bridge, and altered nacelle details.

Altered reality timeline
The 2009 Star Trek film takes place in an altered reality created when the Romulan character Nero traveled through time via a black hole. Registry: USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Class: Constitution

Service: 2258—

Captains: Christopher Pike (Bruce Greenwood), Spock (Zachary Quinto), James T. Kirk (Chris Pine)

Measurements for this version's final size range from 610 meters to 910 meters. In an interview in Cinefex magazine No. 118, Industrial Light & Magic Art Director Alex Jaeger discussed the design's growth in size during early production of the film, saying "The reconfigured ship was a larger vessel than previous manifestations – approximately 1200 ft long compared to the 947 foot ship of the original series. Once we got the ship built and started putting it in environments it felt too small. The shuttle bay gave us a clear relative scale – shuttles initially appeared much bigger than we had imagined – so we bumped up the Enterprise scale, which gave her a grander feel and allowed us to include more detail." A special feature on starships in the Blu-ray Disc (BD) version of the movie gives the length as 2379 ft.

Captain's yacht
The captain's yacht is a large auxiliary starship built into the design of several Federation starship designs including the Galaxy-class and Sovereign-class. It was docked to the underside of the saucer section. On the USS Enterprise-E, the name of the captain's yacht is the Cousteau. In 2375, the crew of the USS Enterprise-E used the Cousteau to travel to the surface of the Ba'ku homeworld.

Designer Andrew Probert came up with the concept of the captain's yacht while designing the USS Enterprise-D. Although it was never seen in use, it is labeled on the master systems display screen in main engineering, docked at the bottom of the saucer section almost directly opposite the main bridge. Probert suggested possible ways for the yacht to be used during the first season, including not showing the yacht but mentioning it in dialogue, but his ideas were rejected. The Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual (page 164) claims that the producers almost used the yacht in TNG: "Samaritan Snare", but decided to use an "executive shuttlecraft" due to budgetary constraints. According to Patrick Stewart, the yacht would have been called the Calypso. Rick Sternbach designed similar craft into the USS Voyager and the USS Equinox, known as the aeroshuttle and the waverider, respectively. Like on the Enterprise-D, however, these vessels were only depicted on technical schematics and never seen in operation or referred to in dialog.

Ronald B. Moore notes in the Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual that naval tradition would insist on calling such a craft the Captain's gig rather than the Captain's yacht.

Reception and impact
As the result of a successful letter writing campaign, NASA named the initial flight-test Space Shuttle Enterprise. In 1994, the real aircraft carrier Enterprise hosted a Star Trek convention, and Star Trek memorabilia can be found throughout the ship.