So we all know why the NX-01 was decommissioned prior to the founding of the Federation: Because TPTB needed to maintain consistency with the fact that the U.S.S. Enterprise NCC-1701 was the first Federation Starfleet vessel with that name. But there was more than 80 years between the decommissioning of the NX-01 and the commissioning of the NCC-1701. Why such a long period of time without another ship named Enterprise? The only reasons I can come up with are:
1. The NX-01 wasn't actually decommissioned in 2161 like what TATV showed, and still continued to serve the new Federation. This of course contradicts the above, unless the ship was operating in secret.
2. There were other Federation organizations such as UESPA, etc. which had their own Enterprises, and Starfleet didn't want a name conflict.
3. Despite the adventures of the NX-01, the Federation simply didn't think the name was all that noteworthy.
Can anyone think of any more?
1. The NX-01 wasn't actually decommissioned in 2161 like what TATV showed, and still continued to serve the new Federation. This of course contradicts the above, unless the ship was operating in secret.
2. There were other Federation organizations such as UESPA, etc. which had their own Enterprises, and Starfleet didn't want a name conflict.
3. Despite the adventures of the NX-01, the Federation simply didn't think the name was all that noteworthy.
Can anyone think of any more?