Starship Landings: Starfleet, alien, anything!

[Admiral Jean-Luc Picard]

I think our first glimpse at a starship landing was the Klingon Bird of Prey in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Our first glimpse at a full-size Starfleet ship landing was the Ent-D saucer crash in Star Trek: Generations. Our first glimpse at a ful-size Starfleet starship that can land... and lift off... Voyager!

I doubt Voyager or the Intrepid-class was the first starship built by Starfleet with landing in mind. This got me wondering, what other Starfleet starships are designed to land and lift-off or at least "safely" crash land like the Ent-D saucer?

Defient, Intrepid, Nova, and Prometheus: I believe all 4 of these can land and lift off. I always wondered what it would look like if a Borg Cube landed, and then PIC S1 showed us.

 

[blssdwlf]

I think our first glimpse at a starship landing was the Klingon Bird of Prey in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Our first glimpse at a full-size Starfleet ship landing was the Ent-D saucer crash in Star Trek: Generations. Our first glimpse at a ful-size Starfleet starship that can land... and lift off... Voyager!

I doubt Voyager or the Intrepid-class was the first starship built by Starfleet with landing in mind. This got me wondering, what other Starfleet starships are designed to land and lift-off or at least "safely" crash land like the Ent-D saucer?

Defient, Intrepid, Nova, and Prometheus: I believe all 4 of these can land and lift off. I always wondered what it would look like if a Borg Cube landed, and then PIC S1 showed us.

In TOS, the spaceship Horizon from "A Piece of the Action" was mentioned to have landed on Iotia one hundred years prior to the episode.

 

[Admiral Jean-Luc Picard]

In TOS, the spaceship Horizon from "A Piece of the Action" was mentioned to have landed on Iotia one hundred years prior to the episode.

Do we have anything more than a name and "it landed?" Genuine question, not sarcasm.

 

[blssdwlf]

Do we have anything more than a name and "it landed?" Genuine question, not sarcasm.

Just the dialogue The Horizon landed on the planet and then left.

 

[Ithekro]

They "Didn't have transporters back then", so either the ship landed, or they had shuttles.

 

[blssdwlf]

Oh and I forgot that Kirk says the Enterprise "won't land" in "A Piece of the Action". I interpreted as the Enterprise was capable of landing but chose not to (for budgetary reasons )

 

[Admiral Jean-Luc Picard]

Oh and I forgot that Kirk says the Enterprise "won't land" in "A Piece of the Action". I interpreted as the Enterprise was capable of landing but chose not to (for budgetary reasons )

I was under the impression that the original Enterprise can saucer separate and that the saucer can emergency land, setting down on landing feet. If both halves of the ship survive, the saucer may be able to return to orbit, but a starbase would need to reconnect the two halves.

 

[blssdwlf]

I was under the impression that the original Enterprise can saucer separate and that the saucer can emergency land, setting down on landing feet. If both halves of the ship survive, the saucer may be able to return to orbit, but a starbase would need to reconnect the two halves.

That type of separation is suggested in "The Apple" when the Enterprise with loss of warp drive was being forcibly pulled down into the planet in a way that would cause it to burn up. The thinking was that the saucer could escape as the rest of the ship is pulled down. They don't mention how difficult it would be to join back up.
In "A Piece of the Action" the Enterprise was operating under normal conditions when Kirk said she "won't land" which suggest that she could also land in one piece but chose not to (IMHO).

 

[Admiral Jean-Luc Picard]

That type of separation is suggested in "The Apple" when the Enterprise with loss of warp drive was being forcibly pulled down into the planet in a way that would cause it to burn up. The thinking was that the saucer could escape as the rest of the ship is pulled down. They don't mention how difficult it would be to join back up.
In "A Piece of the Action" the Enterprise was operating under normal conditions when Kirk said she "won't land" which suggest that she could also land in one piece but chose not to (IMHO).

Maybe I am thinking of fanon based on those two episodes. I do not saucer separation was confirmed with concept art for an abandoned ending to TMP. When V'Ger poofed, a Klingon battlecruiser would have emerged de-digitized and emerged back into the real world, shooting up the Enterprise and flying off. The engineering hull would have been ejected, the saucer pursuing the Klingons at full impulse.

 

[blssdwlf]

Maybe I am thinking of fanon based on those two episodes. I do not saucer separation was confirmed with concept art for an abandoned ending to TMP. When V'Ger poofed, a Klingon battlecruiser would have emerged de-digitized and emerged back into the real world, shooting up the Enterprise and flying off. The engineering hull would have been ejected, the saucer pursuing the Klingons at full impulse.

It might be. I've seen the storyboards in my Art of Star Trek book. Although I question the feasibility of an impulse powered saucer being able to take on a Klingon Battlecruiser. In "Elaan of Troyius" that was shown to be heavily in the Klingon's favor.

 

[Ithekro]

Especially with the saucer no longer having the warp power fed into them. Though I image that system would reroute to Impulse power. It can probably be bypassed, but they didn't have time for that while within the wormhole with less than a minute to impact.