Er, we don't know if it was destroyed or not. We know NOTHING about the fate of the Enterprise-A, only that it was decommissioned and the Enterprise-B succeeded it.
New series: Enterprise-B or -C?
- Thread starter MarsWeeps
- Start date
Er, we don't know if it was destroyed or not. We know NOTHING about the fate of the Enterprise-A, only that it was decommissioned and the Enterprise-B succeeded it.
This.
It could've been repaired and had a new name stamped on it. But its days as "the Enterprise" were over with the Enterprise-B being commissioned a few months later.
If so, why did Kirk imply that there would be? At the end of the movie he says:
KIRK: "Captain's log, U.S.S. Enterprise, stardate 9529.1. This is the final cruise of the Starship Enterprise under my command. This ship and her history will shortly become the care of another crew"
Just this. Kirk spoke earlier in the movie about the crew (command crew?) was soon to stand down. "Has it occurred to you that this crew is due to stand down in three months?" The time period between that statement until the end of the movie could easily be three months.
Uhura was referring to the crew, and not the ship.
Also, where is it said on screen that the scenes with the Enterprise B in GEN take place the same year as TUC? My impression is that Kirk was supposedly long retired.
I believe that the Enterprise A returned to Earth, our heroes were "decommissioned," the ship was repair (yet again) and went out again with a new captain and crew.
"This ship and her history will shortly become the care of another crew"
†
You don't 'decommission' a crew, you decommission a ship. 'Retirement party' or something like that would make sense for that interpretation.
Kirk's speech at the end is a nod to The Next Generation, a torch-passing moment for the fans. That much is obvious from his correction of 'no man' to 'no one'.
According to the Enterprise B dedication plaque, it was commissioned later the same year; this would strongly imply that the E-A was taken off active service shortly after the TUC credits rolled.
It might have been Starfleet's original plan to retain Enterprise-A in service after Kirk, but after the battle with Chang the ship was deemed too badly damaged and a new Excelsior class vessel was named Enterprise instead.
I never liked the idea of Enterprises being renamed; Enterprise should always be Enterprise and always remain as Enterprise, until it is no more*. I'd like to think that Enterprise-A became a museum piece. Then, in some future series where some strange occurrence has disabled all other available ships in the system, the heroes need to borrow this antiquated vessel...
* (This is also why I prefer to think Enterprise-A in ST IV as a new ship rather than a renamed older one. ST V seems to support this idea.)
I never liked the idea of Enterprises being renamed; Enterprise should always be Enterprise and always remain as Enterprise, until it is no more*. I'd like to think that Enterprise-A became a museum piece. Then, in some future series where some strange occurrence has disabled all other available ships in the system, the heroes need to borrow this antiquated vessel...
* (This is also why I prefer to think Enterprise-A in ST IV as a new ship rather than a renamed older one. ST V seems to support this idea.)
The Enterprise B dedication plaque displays no year, only a stardate. Stardate 9715.5. And prior to TNG the stardates were all over the place.
You'd have a difficult time credibly maintaining that a stardate relates to any specific year.
Captain Sulu's log entry at the beginning of TUC was on stardate 9521.6, Captain Kirk's last log entry was on stardate 9529.1, a difference of seven and a half digits. Surely you're not going to suggest that the entire movie took place over the course of seven and a half days?
The diplomatic negotiations in-between the destruction of Praxis and the Starfleet conference meeting could have taken several months alone.
The time period between stadates 9529 and 9715 easily multiple years.
And Kirk's use of "This ship" becoming the care of another crew
says the Enterprise A continued with a new crew.
In The Ultimate Computer, Captain Kirk was referred to as "Captain Dunsel." I don't see anything odd that a official communication would refer to the officer's retirement as "decommissioning." Again, Kirk did earlier in the movie mention that the crew was going to stand down in three months.
I disagree, the Enterprise took one shot that went completely through the saucer without detonating (lucky) causing localized damage. Yes she was knocked around, but no major systems when down, and while the shield did weaken (typical of battle) they never failed.
The ship was hardly "a wreak."
Where do you get the idea that she is "outdated," as recently as The Final Frontier Starfleet was having new models constructed. Supposedly there were Constitutions present at the battle of Wolf 359, several decades after Khitomer.
At the end of the battle of Khitomer the Enterprise was lightly damaged and fully functional, patch up the hull and send her out again with a new crew.
†
Last edited:
But...we also have this from Star Trek: Generations, when Kirk was aboard the Enterprise-B:
JOURNALIST #1: Captain, ...this is the first Starship Enterprise in thirty years without James T. Kirk in command. How do you feel about that, sir?
KIRK: Oh just fine. I'm glad to be here to send her on her way.
So, if the Enterprise had another Captain after Kirk, why would the journalist make that statement? If they were wrong, why didn't Kirk say so? And still...we did have Spock as Captain of the Enterprise while training cadets so I guess the journalist ignored that?
I'm implying adventures of the Enterprise-A with Kirk in command.
Kirk did only say, "Last adventure with this crew."
Different crew, same ship.
Kirk could have been referring to the Starship Enterprise in general.
Each Enterprise is a different ship. The Enterprise is only a (star)ship. So what would he be talking about?
Again, the Starship Enterprise in general. Even Picard's Enterprise is called the Starship Enterprise. The only time individual Enterprises were identified by their suffixes with the NCC-1701 registry was to avoid confusing the current one with a previous one. Otherwise, they were all the Enterprise.
Except Kirk specifically says "This ship..."
Which would still be valid if he was talking about the Enterprise and not another ship called the Yorktown or whatever.
Yes, the Enterprise-A.
If you want to look at some future adventures of the Enterprise-A, I suggest you look at a thread of mine (in fanfiction) called Star Trek: A New Age
URL: http://www.trekbbs.com/threads/star-trek-a-new-age.279835/
There is no difference between the Yorktown and the Enterprise except for some differences in technology (as both were Constitution class).
The Enterprise-A was never destroyed in canon.
Except one was called Enterprise. The other was called Yorktown.
No, I don't think it took place over 7.5 days. The movie said it took place over 1 day. I think that is unrealistic.
The Enterprise's shields did fail. But she only took moderate damage.
I agree (lightly damaged) and I think it is realistic to repair it and send it out again with a single Captain.
Bad idea to throw out a good starship in favor of E-B. E-B is good, but so is E-A.
Similar threads
