Galileo (NCC-1701-A/5)

For other uses, see Galileo.

Galileo
Class:	Type-4 shuttle
Registry:	NCC-1701-A/5
Affiliation:	Federation Starfleet
Launched:	2286
Assignment:	USS Enterprise-A
Status:	sunk (stardate 8715.3, 2291)

The Galileo (NCC-1701-A/5) was a 23rd century Federation auxiliary vessel, a Type-4 shuttlecraft in Starfleet service from the 2280s decade. The Galileo was assigned to the Enterprise-class heavy cruiser USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A). (Shuttle Collection Issue 19: "Galileo")

Service history and disposition

The Galileo was assigned to the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-A) in the mid-2280s, when that starship was commissioned in the year 2286. Galileo was the latest of a series of shuttles to bear that name, with previous examples having been assigned to the earlier USS Enterprise. They were named for after the Italian Galileo Galilei, a Human astronomer. (Shuttle Collection Issue 19: "Galileo")

In 2287, Captain James T. Kirk used the Galileo to transport a team down to Nimbus III to rescue the hostages that Sybok and his followers had taken in Paradise City. Sybok overcame Kirk's forces and together they returned to the Enterprise, where the Galileo was badly damaged during an emergency landing in the shuttlebay. (TOS movie, novelization & comic adaptation: The Final Frontier)

In the interim, the SW7 class Galileo carried the name and registry number for a mission to Datugad on stardate 8503.1 in 2287. (TOS - Annual comic: "So Near the Touch")

The Galileo at Mardelva in 2290.

In 2290, the Galileo brought Captain Spock and Lieutenant Saavik to the planet Mardelva. The Mardelvans sought Federation membership due to the proximity of the Mardelvan sector to the Klingon Empire. The mission went haywire, and the Galileo was temporarily stranded. (TOS - Deceptions, Part II comic: "Coup d'État")

The Enterprise-A at Varba II.

On stardate 8715.3 in the year 2291, the Enterprise-A ferried diplomats to Musgrave IV when the ship detected a supposed distress call from the second planet of the Varba star system. Unable to inconvenience the impatient diplomats, Captain Spock opted to take a team to Varba II. The Galileo crashed during an intense atmospheric storm on the planet. Sustaining catastrophic hull damage, the shuttle was abandoned by the surviving landing party members, and then sank into the depths of a swamp. The survivors were forced to fend off the Varban predators with vials of Spock's copper-based blood, leaving him on the verge of death. The Enterprise dispatched the Copernicus (NCC-1701-A/3), allowing the survivors to return in the nick of time. Doctor Leonard McCoy took care of Spock's treatment in sickbay. The Enterprise-A then deciphered the supposed distress call as a 20th century warning from the Earth ship Quantum Valence to stay away from Varba II, and resumed its course to the Musgrave system. (TOS eBook: Miasma)

In 2292, a refurbished or replacement Galileo brought a rescue party to an asteroid near the event horizon of a subspace rupture to rescue USS Feynman crash survivors. Soon after, the shuttle was assaulted and heavily damaged by dangerous animals that evolved in the unique environment. (TOS - Star Trek Special comic: "Bloodline")

Atop the observation galley of the Starfleet Air and Space Museum.

Legacy

Following the decommissioning of the Enterprise-A, the Galileo-5 and its mothership were placed on display, publicly accessible at the Starfleet Air and Space Museum. (SOTL calendar: Ships of the Line 2022 month: October)

Appendices

Appearances and references

Appearances

• TOS movie, novelization & comic adaptation: The Final Frontier (first appearance)
• TOS - Deceptions, Part II comic: "Coup d'État"
• TOS eBook: Miasma
• Shuttle Collection Issue 19: "Galileo"
• Illustrated Handbook reference: The USS Enterprise NCC-1701 & 1701-A
• SOTL calendar: Ships of the Line 2022

External link

• Galileo (NCC-1701-A/5) article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.