or did they just rename an old ship Enterprise?
Its not really answered on screen, but what's the next best answer?
Its not really answered on screen, but what's the next best answer?
Was the Enterprise-A a new ship?
- Thread starter Beyerstein
- Start date
As far as I know, every background source has the Enterprise-A being a renamed ship. Mr. Scott's Guide to the Enterprise says it was originally the USS Ti-Ho, while the TNG Technical Manual and Encyclopedia both say it was originally the USS Yorktown (presumably the same Yorktown we saw on the big screen at Starfleet Command making a distress call). The Yorktown version of the story was suggested by Gene Roddenberry.
Agreed,... I am in the camp that it was the Yorktown since I do not believe IMHO Starfleet would not be commissioning a ship in that bad of condition unless it was a dire emergency, if even that. No matter what crew was on it.
As I recall, Yorktown was one of the names originally proposed for the ship in TOS, so that would be rather fitting. I'd say it was a refit and renamed ship, owring to all the problems it had. -- RR
my personal canon. the enterprise is the yorktown renamed. the whale probe caused the yorktown to become adrift inspace. the solar sail worked to provide enough power to keep the crew alive, but it was still a few days before starfleet could rescue the ship and bring it back to spacedock. this all took place during the counsels deliberations. when the ship was brought back to spacedock the computer system was restored from a previous version of the software. the ship is cleaned up and given to kirk. kirk takes it out for a test flight and everything is fine.
starfleet r&d finds a ship that encountered the probe but was not effected by the signal. they decide to bring that ships computer system configuration and make it a fleet wide upgrade so this never happens again. its pushed to all ships in the fleet but the old connie refits cant handle the new software. therefore another refit is scheduled to bring the computer systems up to present versions. this includes new bridge modules and the like.
this is what takes place between 4 and 5.
starfleet r&d finds a ship that encountered the probe but was not effected by the signal. they decide to bring that ships computer system configuration and make it a fleet wide upgrade so this never happens again. its pushed to all ships in the fleet but the old connie refits cant handle the new software. therefore another refit is scheduled to bring the computer systems up to present versions. this includes new bridge modules and the like.
this is what takes place between 4 and 5.
It's probable...
I'll throw in my two cents worth. I agree that there was no where nearly enough time to build a ship from scratch. I always supposed that another Connie was being either built already, or upgraded from an older ship. This probably started before TWOK even happened. By the time of TVH, the ship was ready. It was real convenient to christen her Enterprise. In fact, it's possible that Starfleet always intended to name the ship Enterprise, but for whatever lame reason they never told Kirk. This might even explain why they were decomissioning her in TSFS.
Starfleet wanted to make a gesture to Kirk by giving him an Enterprise, so they had to rename the Yorktown. I would guess that the Yorktown name would soon pass to a newly constructed ship, perhaps an Excelsior.
It seems to me that there wouldn't have been enough time to construct a new ship from scratch, or even to refit one, so it had to be an existing ship.
However, I don't buy the argument that it was another ship already in service that was rechristened and turned over to Kirk. Unless it was just a random coincidence that all the senior officers aboard the ship were ready to move on, it would seem rather rude and unprofessional to just tell the entire senior staff, "well, Kirk got us out of a jam, so you're now on garbage scow duty and this is his ship."
I much prefer the explanation that the Enterprise-A was either a new ship or a refit that had already been under construction for some time and just coincidentally was completed around the time of the events of TVH and that, based on those events, Starfleet chose to abandon whatever name was originally planned for the ship and christen her Enterprise and give her to Kirk and his senior staff.
However, I don't buy the argument that it was another ship already in service that was rechristened and turned over to Kirk. Unless it was just a random coincidence that all the senior officers aboard the ship were ready to move on, it would seem rather rude and unprofessional to just tell the entire senior staff, "well, Kirk got us out of a jam, so you're now on garbage scow duty and this is his ship."
I much prefer the explanation that the Enterprise-A was either a new ship or a refit that had already been under construction for some time and just coincidentally was completed around the time of the events of TVH and that, based on those events, Starfleet chose to abandon whatever name was originally planned for the ship and christen her Enterprise and give her to Kirk and his senior staff.
Captain Wazzo: And now we have returned to Star Base 1 for some R&R, let me say it's been an honour to serve with the finest crew in the fleet and I look forward...to.. wait, what are you men doing with the dedication plaque?
Workman: Got orders innit - says here in the maintenance schedule to stick this Enterprise plaque on the wall.. it's nothing to do with me gov.
Personally I figured that the Enterprise-A was one of the last full production models of the Constitution class before the Excelsior class took over as Starfleet's ship of the line. The whalesong crisis happened during the final stages of construction before a command crew was assigned to the vessel. Starfleet command then renamed the vessel in a manner similar to what happened when the Sao Paulo was renamed the Defiant-A near the end of DS9.
And just what was it to say that the crew of the Yorktown didn't need that R&R with enough time to get another ship? I'm sure that in a life or death situation that they went through that any of them were ready to return to active duty the next day.
This is actually a good argument for the idea; Star Trek could benefit from more bitter irony and Cockney workmen.
Personal theory: The 1701-A is just some connie-refit that was already laid up in mothballs at the time. Say some random Constitution that was already phased out for whatever reason. They haul it in from the reserve yards, repaint the pendants, upload SF-Windows 85, and say hello to the 1701-A.
I don't buy into it being the Yorktown, unless the 1701-A is a Yorktown; meaning a previous Connie that was named Yorktown, but not the same Yorktown we see in the movie.
I don't buy into it being the Yorktown, unless the 1701-A is a Yorktown; meaning a previous Connie that was named Yorktown, but not the same Yorktown we see in the movie.
I find the ship's OS labled SF-Win 85 entertaining.
It could have been another Constitution class under construction before TWOK happened. But that doesn't make much sense, because they decommission the NCC1701 in TSFS. So why would Starfleet make more Connies if they were phasing them out in favour of the newer Excelsior class vessels?
I don't buy the Yorktown argument. It seems a bit rude for Starfleet to give the Yorktown crew medals of bravery for surviving the Whale Probe incident, and then booting them off their ship, and spraypainting Enterprise on it.
I don't buy the Yorktown argument. It seems a bit rude for Starfleet to give the Yorktown crew medals of bravery for surviving the Whale Probe incident, and then booting them off their ship, and spraypainting Enterprise on it.
The Enterprise was
A) Decomissioned due to age
B) Commissioned in 2245
How are we to know that all other Constiution-Class ships are
A) Commissioned in 2245-ish, and thus as old as the Enterprise
B) Built at the same time.
I find it highly likely that the Constitution was built throughout the 2240s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s. I also find it highly likely that a number of Constitution-Class ships remained in service well beyond the last time we left the TMP era, particularly the newer ones. Thus, it's perhaps reasonable to speculate that the E-A is an old ship, and not a new build.
I got the impression in TSFS that SF was mothballing the Connies, and focusing on the Excelsior class.
