In 25th century Khitomer Alliance starship classification, a strike wing escort[1], initially called heavy escort carrier, was a type of heavy escort modified to house a single hangar bay. This type was formalized by Starfleet with the launch of the Armitage-class escort USS Armitage, a modern iteration of the 24th century Akira-class heavy escort, in the year 2409. (STO website: Under Siege: Heavy Escort Carrier: Armitage Class)
History and specifics[]
A Defiant-class escort in 2371.
An escort was generally a combat-oriented starship, or warship. Starfleet categorized Defiant-class, designed to combat the Borg and launched in 2371, as an escort vessel but unofficially as a warship. (DS9 episode & novelization: The Search)
The Akira-class escort USS Thunderchild.
Around the same time, the Akira-class was one of several new ship classes launched in that decade. (TNG movie, novelization & comic adaptation: Star Trek: First Contact)
The Akira class was intended to be a compact ship with the capacity to carry and deploy Federation fighter ships. (TOSC Issue 12: "USS Thunderchild")
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The USS Armitage in 2409.
In 2409, the USS Armitage was an evolution of the Akira-class spaceframe, and housed a hangar bay for a fighter squadron in its saucer section. It combined the capabilities of a heavy escort, or mid-sized warship, with the quality of a carrier. (STO website: Under Siege: Heavy Escort Carrier: Armitage Class)
In the 2410s, the Khitomer Alliance applied the term strike wing escort on escorts with a single hangar bay. (STO website: Rise of Discovery: Putting the "Temporal" in "Temporal Starships")
The designation was applied to older classes retroactively, like the 23rd century Engle-class. (STO website: Ascension: Strike Wing Escort Bundle!)
Subtypes[]
Command strike wing escort[]
Valdres-class command strike wing escort and Valkyrie-class fighters.
Starfleet operated a broad range of purpose-built starships. These included modular ships built for hauling detachable mission pods. In The year 2411, Starfleet modernized two classes of such workhorse ships in the form of the Hiawatha-class—derived Seneca-class command carrier, and the Norway-class—derived Valdres-class command strike wing escort. The upgrade to the Norway class and introduction of the Valdres class combined the maneuverability and carrier-capability of strike wing escorts with the coordination feature of command ships. A key feature of the tier 6 Norway and Valdres were there powerful tractor beams. Both classes were fitted with the experimental weapon Mjolnir that dealt electrical damage to opponents in battle. The single hangar bay housed a squadron of Valkyrie-class fighters. (STO website: Ascension: Federation Command Carrier Bundle!)
- Command strike wing escort classes
- Norway-class • Valdres-class
Known classes[]
- Armitage-class: Federation Starfleet tier 5 heavy strike wing escort
- Alita-class: tier 6 heavy strike wing escort
- Earhart-class T6 strike wing escort[2]
- Engle-class T6 fleet strike wing escort
- Olaen-class: T6 Xindi-Insectoid strike wing escort[3]
Appendices[]
Connections[]
References[]
External links[]
- Strike Wing Escort article at Star Trek Online Wiki.