- For other uses, see Constitution.
The Kirk class[7], also known as the Constitution class[8], was a 31st century Federation starship type in Starfleet service during the Burn[1] and into the late 32nd[2] century. Upon getting her first view, the time-displaced 23rd century Starfleet officer Joann Owosekun called it a "new Constitution"[2] and estimated it could sleep a crew of 2,000.[2] (DSC episodes: "People of Earth", "Die Trying")
History and specifications[]
Ship of the 31st century.
The hull design of this class followed a traditional Starfleet configuration, consisting of a saucer-shaped primary hull suspended between a pair of warp nacelles attached to a slender secondary hull through nacelle pylons. (DSC episode: "People of Earth")
This configuration was reminiscent of the 22nd century Columbia-class cruiser, minus a neck structure. (ENT - Rise of the Federation novel: A Choice of Futures)
The design was in fact the product of centuries of upgrades to the original Constitution-class heavy cruiser, first launched in the year 2245[9], active beyond the 23rd century. (Shipyards reference: Starfleet Ships 2294 - The Future)
A trio of spotlights or navigational deflectors emitted white light from the ventral saucer. The slender warp nacelles had a bulkier bussard collector section. The area of what would be the bridge dome was raised. The saucer itself was segmented by support beams. (DSC episode: "People of Earth")
Name and registry number were written in black letters on the front of the dorsal saucer. (DSC episode: "That Hope Is You, Part 1")
In the 31st century, SB-19 was a project to experiment with new propulsion systems overseen by Ni'Var. Simulations conducted on SB-19 included a ship of this class approaching a circular aperture. The project was unsuccessful. (DSC episode: "Unification III")
Kirk-class starships in Devaloka's sensor range.
At some point between the 3060s and 3080s decades, at least seven ships of this class operated in the sensor range of the Federation Spaceport Devaloka near planet Prithvi[4] when the Burn occurred and destroyed all starships with an active warp core across the galaxy. When the ships' dilithium crystals went inert, matter/antimatter containment failed, and the vessels detonated instantaneously. (DSC episode: "People of Earth")
Parts of a saucer near Spaceport Devaloka.
Wreckage of this ship, including recognizable saucer sections, remained in orbit of planet Hima, and visible through an office window at the Federation relay station. On both saucers, the name and registry number had been ripped off, leaving only the USS and NCC markers legible. (DSC episode: "That Hope Is You, Part 1")
In the year 3188, acting communications chief Aditya Sahil shared his station's sensor logs with Commander Michael Burnham. These included graphics of the Starfleet ship locations and a visualisation of their destruction when the Burn was triggered. Burnham reported these findings in a transmission to her ship, the time-displaced USS Discovery on stardate 865211.3. A wrecked saucer of this ship remained visible from Sahil's office. (DSC episode: "People of Earth")
USS Armstrong at FedHQ.
A number of ships of this class were in operation at Federation Headquarters in the 32nd century. In the 3180s decade, the USS Armstrong and USS Excalibur-M were among these. In 3189, they were docked at Federation HQ when the Discovery arrived. (DSC episode: "Die Trying")
Known vessels[]
- USS Armstrong (NCC-317856)[2]
- USS Excalibur (NCC-1664-M)[2]
- USS Noble (NCC-325002[6]
- unnamed[3]
- (Probably) USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-?)
Appendices[]
Connections[]
| Variants and sub-classes of the Constitution-class starship | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Constitution-class (mk I) • Bonhomme Richard-class (mk II) • Achernar-class (mk III) • Tikopai-class (mk IV) • Enterprise-classes (mk I-III refits) • Excalibur-class (24th century) • Vesper-class (24th century) • Exeter-class (25th century) • Kirk-class (31st century) • Constitution-class (Kelvin timeline) • Constitution-class (mirror universe) | 
|
Appearances and references[]
Appearances[]
- DSC episode: "That Hope Is You, Part 1" (first appearance, unnamed wreckage)
- DSC episode: "People of Earth" (first intact appearance)
- DSC episode: "Die Trying" (identified as "new Constitution")
- DSC episode: "The Sanctuary"
- DSC episode: "There Is A Tide..."
- DSC episode: "That Hope Is You, Part 2"
- STO website: Reflections: The Kirk Class Takes Command (identified as Kirk class)
References[]
- DSC episode: "Scavengers" (ilegible class name on display)
- DSC episode: "Unification III" (featured in SB-19 holo)
- STU Issue 02: "USS Zheng He, "English Boost" promo" (Excalibur identified)
- Shipyards reference: Starfleet Ships 2294 - The Future (Constitution-class name established)
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 DSC episode: "People of Earth"
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 DSC episode: "Die Trying"
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 DSC episode: "That Hope Is You, Part 1"
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 DSC novel: Wonderlands
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 STO website: House Reborn: The Janeway Class Takes Flight
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 DSC episode: "That Hope Is You, Part 2"
- ↑ STO website: Reflections: The Kirk Class Takes Command
- ↑ Shipyards reference: Starfleet Ships 2294 - The Future
- ↑ ST reference: Federation: The First 150 Years
External links[]
- Constitution class (31st century) article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.
- Kirk_Temporal_Heavy_Battlecruiser article at STO Wiki, the FANDOM wiki for Star Trek Online.