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Description

The Constitution class heavy cruiser and its variants ( Constellation fusion testbed (2226), Constellation dilithium testbed (2238), Republic heavy cruiser prototype (2238), Constitution heavy cruiser (production prototype) (2242), USS Enterprise heavy cruiser (production prototype) (2245), USS Constitution heavy cruiser (operational standard) (2245), USS Constellation heavy cruiser (operational standard) (2245), USS Republic heavy cruiser (operational standard) (2245), Constitution heavy cruiser class (2247), Constitution Flight II heavy cruiser (2251), Bonhomme Richard heavy cruiser subclass (2251), Bonhomme Richard heavy cruiser subclass (Type 2) (2256), Bonhomme Richard heavy cruiser subclass (Type 3) (2256), Constitution Flight III heavy cruiser (2260), Victory heavy cruiser subclass (2265), USS Republic heavy cruiser (Academy trainer) (2286)) are Part 5 of the Project Starship series.

Image provided by: Adrasil
Inspirations from: Star Trek (The Original Series), Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Fleet Technical Manual (Franz Joseph), Ships of the Star Fleet (Calon Riel), FASA, captshade , Nichodo
History from: Hobbyist's Guide to the UFP Starfleet , by Timo Saloniemi

Variant blueprints: Access via Adrasil's Download button

Featured in: Starship Recognition Manual #298

Project Starship, initiated in the century’s first decade, had a plan: take the Horizon secondary hull and transform it into an advanced generation heavy cruiser design. To do this, two ships from the Horizon class—USS Constellation (NCC-1017, Advance Flight II ) and USS Republic (NCC-1371, Archon subclass )—were assigned as test vessels for the development project. Constellation was the sole recipient of the various redesign iterations in the project’s early years, with the endgame having the ship be the first to meet the final production standards. Republic would be held in reserve until that standard was established and then upgraded, with every effort meticulously catalogued to develop the procedures necessary to transform the rest of the Horizon type.

When the design team firmly established the exact parameters for the dilithium-regulated antimatter reactor and the proper placement for the warp nacelles, their plans were approved and signed off to the Republic’s reconstruction crew. This second team came to a quick and significant realization: the Constellation had gone through so many yard periods to install new equipment and reinforce this hull section or that structural member, that there was really no point in tearing apart each and every Horizon to meet the exact same standards. Afterall, the intent was to adapt a given Horizon hull in order to save both time and costs and come out with a better ship than had gone in. Therefore, some aspects of the Constellation were streamlined with the Republic’s redesign to ensure that only the necessary components, members, and equipment were overhauled. The result was a ship that was noticeably different externally from the Constellation, but had the same performance characteristics as the dilithium testbed.

However, time had marched on and an independent commission on Fleet strength strongly suggested it was not efficient nor logical to depend on upgrading an Horizon fleet that was nearly 15 years older than originally envisioned for the overhaul. Instead, a production run of 12 newbuild ships was authorized, based upon the Republic prototype . As previously detailed, the prototype Constitution faced unexpected combat challenges that tested her capabilities to the extreme, and provided valuable and informative data for improvements. What was to be the first of the production run vessels of Project Starship would now herself be a production prototype. While the Constitution was undergoing both repairs and upgrades, the Enterprise was in a nearby drydock going through her own keel-to-yardarm construction to very similar standards.

Would you like to learn more about this class of ship? Download the free Hobbyist's Guide to the UFP Starfleet , a three-volume, 1236-page history of space flight, by Timo Saloniemi.

For an extremely rich gallery of Star Trek starships and vessels from other universes, check out my partner, Adrasil , here on DeviantArts.

Description

The Constitution class heavy cruiser and its variants ( Constellation fusion testbed (2226), Constellation dilithium testbed (2238), Republic heavy cruiser prototype (2238), Constitution heavy cruiser (production prototype) (2242), USS Enterprise heavy cruiser (production prototype) (2245), USS Constitution heavy cruiser (operational standard) (2245), USS Constellation heavy cruiser (operational standard) (2245), USS Republic heavy cruiser (operational standard) (2245), Constitution heavy cruiser class (2247), Constitution Flight II heavy cruiser (2251), Bonhomme Richard heavy cruiser subclass (2251), Bonhomme Richard heavy cruiser subclass (Type 2) (2256), Bonhomme Richard heavy cruiser subclass (Type 3) (2256), Constitution Flight III heavy cruiser (2260), Victory heavy cruiser subclass (2265), USS Republic heavy cruiser (Academy trainer) (2286)) are Part 5 of the Project Starship series.

Image provided by: Adrasil
Inspirations from: Star Trek (The Original Series), Star Trek: Enterprise, Star Fleet Technical Manual (Franz Joseph), Ships of the Star Fleet (Calon Riel), FASA, captshade , Nichodo
History from: Hobbyist's Guide to the UFP Starfleet , by Timo Saloniemi

Variant blueprints: Access via Adrasil's Download button

Featured in: Starship Recognition Manual #298

Project Starship, initiated in the century’s first decade, had a plan: take the Horizon secondary hull and transform it into an advanced generation heavy cruiser design. To do this, two ships from the Horizon class—USS Constellation (NCC-1017, Advance Flight II ) and USS Republic (NCC-1371, Archon subclass )—were assigned as test vessels for the development project. Constellation was the sole recipient of the various redesign iterations in the project’s early years, with the endgame having the ship be the first to meet the final production standards. Republic would be held in reserve until that standard was established and then upgraded, with every effort meticulously catalogued to develop the procedures necessary to transform the rest of the Horizon type.

When the design team firmly established the exact parameters for the dilithium-regulated antimatter reactor and the proper placement for the warp nacelles, their plans were approved and signed off to the Republic’s reconstruction crew. This second team came to a quick and significant realization: the Constellation had gone through so many yard periods to install new equipment and reinforce this hull section or that structural member, that there was really no point in tearing apart each and every Horizon to meet the exact same standards. Afterall, the intent was to adapt a given Horizon hull in order to save both time and costs and come out with a better ship than had gone in. Therefore, some aspects of the Constellation were streamlined with the Republic’s redesign to ensure that only the necessary components, members, and equipment were overhauled. The result was a ship that was noticeably different externally from the Constellation, but had the same performance characteristics as the dilithium testbed.

However, time had marched on and an independent commission on Fleet strength strongly suggested it was not efficient nor logical to depend on upgrading an Horizon fleet that was nearly 15 years older than originally envisioned for the overhaul. Instead, a production run of 12 newbuild ships was authorized, based upon the Republic prototype . As previously detailed, the prototype Constitution faced unexpected combat challenges that tested her capabilities to the extreme, and provided valuable and informative data for improvements. What was to be the first of the production run vessels of Project Starship would now herself be a production prototype. While the Constitution was undergoing both repairs and upgrades, the Enterprise was in a nearby drydock going through her own keel-to-yardarm construction to very similar standards.

Would you like to learn more about this class of ship? Download the free Hobbyist's Guide to the UFP Starfleet , a three-volume, 1236-page history of space flight, by Timo Saloniemi.

For an extremely rich gallery of Star Trek starships and vessels from other universes, check out my partner, Adrasil , here on DeviantArts.