10 Favorite Starfleet Ship Designs

10

Constitution class (original)

I included the original Constitution class by Matt Jefferies to the list because the iconic design is the starting point for everything starship-related in Star Trek. From an aesthetic viewpoint, the refit from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" is sexier, but it would neither exist without the original, nor would I want the TOS Enterprise to look any different than it does. Speaking of which, while it is not a bad looking design, the revisionist Enterprise as it appears on Discovery and Strange New Worlds will never be the true ship for me.

9

Prometheus class

The USS Prometheus prominently appeared in VOY: "Message in a Bottle". The most notable feature of this prototype ship is its multi-vector attack mode, for which it splits up into three separate parts, all warp-capable. It doesn't seem that this feature was further pursued in future ships, and the Prometheus may have remained a one-off design. I like the ship best anyway when its parts are combined. It looks a bit like a faster version of the Intrepid class, and I have a soft spot for the rare four-nacelled ships.

8

Olympic class

Just like the Daedalus, the Olympic class takes its inspiration from an old sketch by Matt Jefferies of a ship with a spherical main hull. But the Olympic class combines the sphere with the aesthetics of the 24th century. The result is an overall totally credible and attractive design for a hospital or other support ship, something we saw on TNG only in form of the anachronistic and impractical Oberth. I would wish the Olympic had been used more often!

7

Miranda class

The USS Reliant started off as a classmate of the Enterprise refit, until it was decided it had to be a new class, to be able to distinguish the ships in the battle in "Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan". This was an extremely important decision for the direction of ship design in Star Trek. I don't want to imagine where we would be now, had the Reliant been just another Constitution refit. Although essentially a derivative design, the different arrangement of the components and the new, boxy aft hull extension gives the Miranda class a distinctiveness as if it could have been the very first ship of Trek. And for what it's worth, the Miranda's in-universe lifespan is much longer than that of the Constitution.

6

Defiant class

In DS9: "The Search I/II", the USS Defiant was introduced as the big game-changer in the series with its so far literally static setting. The unusual compact shape and odd angles instead of cylinders, ellipses and spheres is an expression of the military purpose of this tough little ship. The design aesthetics continue inside the Defiant, with low ceilings, crammed quarters and overall very little comfort. While I'm not a friend of militarized Star Trek, I think DS9 always managed to keep the balance, and the Defiant went into battles less often than initially expected. As I said, I'm generally not a friend of military action in Trek, but I would have loved to see the powerful pulse phasers and quantum torpedoes fired more often. The Defiant, and only the Defiant, got me hooked in this regard.

5

Akira class

The Akira class showed up only in some brief takes in "Star Trek: First Contact" and in some Dominion War episodes of DS9. Still, the class is on many fan-compiled list of favorite starships, and it lately appeared in PIC, LOW as well as PRO. I too included the Akira because the design looks dynamic and powerful, while sticking to the construction principles of the TNG era much like a mean little cousin of the Galaxy and sister of the Sovereign class. Well, Rick Berman even liked the Akira so much that he purportedly wanted the exact same ship to be used for Enterprise NX-01...

4

Intrepid class

My impression is that Rick Sternbach is proud of this design, and I think that feeling is totally justified. Voyager may be the most carefully designed ship of the whole franchise, even though inconsistencies came to pass in the course of the series, such as pertaining to the size of the shuttlebay. The exterior design picks up the elegant lines of the Galaxy class and introduces the pointed primary hull. On the inside, Voyager may not be quite as luxurious as the Enterprise-D but offers essentially the same amount of space for each crew member and the same amenities (which may also have to do with the sets of the TNG lead ship being used up).

3

Sovereign class

The Sovereign class is a bit like a Galaxy class on adrenalin. The stretched, "fast" appearance as well as the overall more military look & feel caters to the requirements of Star Trek movies with their different stories and tone, just as the Galaxy was perfect for the TV series. But overall the Sovereign retains the rounded shapes and the pleasant décor, and I would love to serve on the Enterprise-E. Other ships of the class appeared as late as in the most recent Trek series, whereas the Enterprise-E herself was sadly retired before her time and replaced with an unbalanced design just because the people in charge are keen on moving up in the alphabet.

2

Constitution class (refit)

In fiction, unlike in real life, redesigns or design upgrades usually don't surpass the original. The Enterprise refit from "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" is such a rare exception. As the movie was produced, Andrew Probert had the opportunity to redo the iconic ship from TOS by Matt Jefferies. He changed more than only details and only kept the basic structure and the size the same, for which the extensive refit provided the perfect in-universe rationale. The result is the ultimate Enterprise, one that doesn't only have the necessary detailing for the big screen but also looks glorious from any angle. The scene with Kirk and Scotty flying around the completed ship in a travel pod is a starship buff's dream come true, and still unsurpassed today.

1

Galaxy class

The Galaxy class (designed by Andrew Probert) is my absolute favorite as the outer appearance is concerned. Graceful lines from any angle, an overall very streamlined shape, yet comparably compact for its massive internal volume. The Enterprise-D looks appropriately more advanced for a ship that was commissioned some 80 years after the Excelsior (keeping in mind that the two are merely 4 years apart in real life!). On the inside, the designers indulged themselves in comfort over practicability in several regards. The carpeted floor, even in engineering, is the most obvious sign that this is not a warship but is meant to represent the values of the Federation, and of Star Trek in a real-life view. Still, the Galaxy class comes with formidable armament. The only notable design flaw, and a catastrophic one no less, is that the ships tend to explode easily, beginning with the USS Yamato in TNG: "Contagion". But that is the fault of the writing, rather than of the design.