I have to agree with Jaga here.

Constitution Refit is, in my opinion, the most beautiful ship the designers ever made. That is the ship that introduced me to Trek, and it is pretty much what I think of.

After that, though, Excelsior (in service for 80 years - of course that is awesome), another great design.

Of the rest - (any 24th cent. design), I love them all, as long as they aren't kitbashes! They just don't have that emotional attachment. to me,

Except for one scene - Most people I talked to don't like the music for Nemesis, but the best moment in the recent movies, in my opinion, was the beauty shot of the E with the same music that the refit was introduced with. That was a great moment, really tying up old and new for me.

I was wonder how to classify vulcan ships. I really like their design from 'Enterprise' series, but in that time they weren't in UFOP yet, and I don't know what happened with their shipyards when they joined. Did they continue to build their own projects or was constructing only ships approved by Starfleet?
Remember that all of classes you mentioned in this thread are Starfleet designs not Federation in general.

Anyway, when someone ask me what I like:

1. Sovereign

2. Defiant

3. Akira

4. NX

5. Galaxy

To be honest, I think that the Vulcan ship yards are still around, even at the time of Nemseis etc.

They have never been mentioned, (As far as i know) but there have been a few Vulcan ships floating around. I can't imagine the Vulcans accepting to scrap all their designs as soon as the Federation was formed, but I do imagine them perhaps altering their designs to coincide with the new Federation rules, or allowing the construction of a couple of ships in their yards.

Over time, as the races became closer, I imagine that the Vulcans would have concentrated more on Starfleet designs, than on truly 'Vulcan only' ships. Their shipyards may even have became less important over time, as the Vulcans concentrated more on Diplomacy and Research, but I doubt that they have been completely scrapped.

Chances are, they are more often used to build commercial ships, or they are used to refuel and repair vessels. Over time, other shipyards would have become more important (Like Utopia Planitia, and the Beta Antares fleetyards, once they were built and established) so this is probably why they have never been mentioned.

You have to bear in mind however, that my comments are not based on canon sources, since as far as I know, there aren't any. But if anyone knows otherwise, let us know. My comments are based on what I think is common sense, (And logic) that's all.

Even though its never mentioned, I wouldnt doubt theres a Starfleet shipyard in every MAJOR Federation member home system. I would think Starfleet's mindset would be trying to have as many shipyards in service making ships as possible, since the majority of their vessels are very time consuming to completely build. I really just cant see only a handful of shipyards (most based in Sol) being what has constructed all of Starfleet.

In regards to wether the Vulcans were building their own vessels or not. I believe that during the formation of the Federation, and the time shortly after, Vulcans, Andorians, and Tellerites were probably all still designing and building their own vessels. But after the alliance had been around for some time, all member planets would have contributed their best engineering minds and designs to the construction of new fleet vessels, since these would be the vessels that would defend all of them. Any tech from one race that was better would be what would be used in the newer Starfleet designs (Vulcan engines over human engines, etc...).

Just my thoughts.

I am thinking in same way. But still how to consider early vulcan (just after creating UFOP) ships? As federation vessels or not?

They probably would not be starfleet ships. Still just vulcan ships, but I bet if they were needed for fleet activities (defend this outpost/colony, etc...) they could be temporarily 'commisioned' for active duty..

How can everyone ignore the greatest class of ship ever:

The Danube Class Runabout!

Okay, not really, but they do rank very high on my list. They are shuttles that are larger than my apartment, but small enough to hide in the magnetic pole of a planet that can blow up a Jem'hadar attack ship (with some Vorta instructions). Talk about utility. I am sad DS9 only had 3 at a time. Can anyone imagine the defense of the station being 5000 quantum torpedoes and 9 runabouts But here is my top 10 list!

Tied for 10th:
10) USS Centaur Kit bash. I know alot of people don't like the kit bashes, but that ship was the Miranda of today. I loved it.
10) Miranda Class. Seemed like the starship Orange County Chopper enthusiasts dream of. You could modify it in a hundred ways and each one looks good but maintains that classic look. (I.e. Rollbar, no rollbar, the Bozeman, Weapons on the tops of the nacelles, under the saucer, etc.)

9) Constitution Class Refit. So much better than the original and brought the true splash to the first movie. I don't know who the people in the pajamas were, but that ship was magnificent.

Excelsior Class. The bulges were okay, but I prefer the original. Sleek lines that said stylish, yet filled with advanced technology, but not looking like a man with bricks in his front pockets. As sad as I was to see Enterprise cancelled, I would have prefered a Sulu helmed series exploring the time between TOS and TNG... Perhaps we would have seen the birth of the....

7) Ambassador Class. It looked like the Galaxy, but not so opulent. This is the era of Star Trek that I think I would have like the most. Borders were settling down and you needed Ambassadors to meet and greet and defend the new settled territories. But you were ready with the "big stick" of diplomacy.

6) Steamrunner. Man when the Federation needs a warship that looks slightly friendly, we get this :::Cue Shaft theme song::: a bad mother... This says major fire power, patrolling the Romulan Neutral Zone. Teddy Roosevelt would have sailed them into Panama.

5) Danube Class, See Above for the nearly greatest ship ever!

4) NX/Akira. Should we kid ourselves? This is the same ship design, just retrofitted to make it look old. But still, I like. It does have a distinct outline, that pushes the envelope of design but doesn't fall into the Yeager or Sabre class nonsense. I wouldn't mind seeing alot more of them.

3) Soveriegn Class. A thing of beauty deserving its name. When you see it emerge from a nebula, or spit blue sparklies of death, you got to say DAMN! It looks like a greyhound in mid-run, a perpertual capture of motion. Gotta love this ship.

2) Galaxy Class. What can I say? It seems like the design of a Federation that isn't afraid. They have moved beyond the wars and fear of invasion. A luxury liner is the greatest thing for a flagship exploratory vessel. What better way to awe and inspire than this ship. The new, more militaristic ships seem less....happy about being in space. I miss it, carpet and all. If you listened to the commentary on Star Trek Generations, they talk about how if the tv show had the budget, it would look like it did in the movie all the time.. The lighting, the packed 10-Forward, crew in the hallways. This is the way that ship should be seen.

and the number one ship of all time in my list.....

1) Nebula Class. What did you expect from the Captain of the Sutherland I love its curves, its pod, the warp engines.. Some would complain that it is too turtle like, which I understand. It seems like a ship that is like a turtle. It holds everything in its tight compact form for exploration, diplomacy, diplomacy's last resort (war). It seems better defensively, because the ship isn't spread across nearly a kilometer in length. Don't think Turtle, think Hedgehog. Could you see the Nebula doing the spin move that the Romulan Ship in the last episode of Enterprise did...That would be great. Plus you get the nice design flow from the Galaxy. If looking for pictures of it, don't look at the USS Phoenix, as the nacelles seem really far from the body of the ship. Look at the Faragut, the Honshu, and of course, the USS Sutherland.

Some may ask... No Defiant? I liked, I thought it was cool, but I think that it seemed less Star Trek to me than any other ship. Powerful, kick ass, but not my cup of tea. Cool, but not top ten in my book, and DS9 is my favorite series.

Long Live the Nebula! (And the Runabout!)

Your Ever Humble Servant

Horatio Hornblower of HMS Sutherland

RUNABOUTS!!!!



When's the last time you hugged your runabout?

Where's the kitchen sink?

Still think the pic of the Defiant with teeth is the best though...

If you look at the schematics of the Danube Class runabout, you will find that there is a special add on units for the middle compartments. Mostly they are science modules or sleeping quarters. But apparently, there is a prototype Emeril module made for catering runs to the Gamma Quadrant.



Also, the kitchen sink launcher is located in the nose of the runabout, because once phasers are down and all torpedoes launched, You throw the kitchen sink at 'em.

Horatio Hornblower, HMS Sutherland