Ambassador class
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference.
| Ambassador class | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Affiliation: | Federation/Starfleet |
| Type: | Heavy cruiser |
| Active: | 24th century |
| Length: | 526 meters |
| Armament: | Ten phaser banks; two photon torpedo launchers |
| Defenses: | Deflector shields |
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 | |
The Ambassador class starship was a Starfleet heavy cruiser launched during the mid-24th century. (TNG: "Conspiracy")
Contents |
[edit] History
The origins of the Ambassador-class date back to the first half of the 24th century.
One of the most notable Ambassador-class ships was the USS Enterprise-C. In 2344, while under the command of Captain Rachel Garrett, the ship responded to a distress call from a Klingon colony on Narendra III. Four Romulan warbirds had ambushed the colony. The Enterprise responded to the attack, and despite being destroyed there, defended it long enough to impress the Klingon High Council; hostilities ended almost immediately between the Klingon Empire and the Federation. A lasting peace agreement would not be reached until 2352, but the cessation of nearly 60 years of conflict between the two powers was a welcome step toward galactic peace. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")
Ships of the Ambassador-class were utilized during the Klingon Civil War, and fought against the Borg and the Dominion. (TNG: "Redemption II"; DS9: "Emissary", "You Are Cordially Invited")
[edit] Technical data
[edit] Physical arrangement
The Ambassador class featured the saucer section-engineering section-warp nacelle layout common to most Starfleet vessels. It was intermediate in size between the Excelsior-class and the Galaxy-class. In addition, the class boasted at least three engineering levels. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")
Several Ambassador class ships were seen with minor alterations from the original design. The saucer section's connection to the engineering hull was shifted slightly aft, with the nacelle pylon assembly moved a corresponding distance in the same direction. Cowlings were added around the Bussard collectors, making them appear closer to that of the Galaxy class, while the impulse engine exhaust changed from a blue to a red glow. The lower sensor dome became more elaborate and closer in appearance to the Excelsior class and the deflector dish was modified. Finally, the width of the shuttlebay was increased and a second facility resembling that on the Excelsior class engineering hull was mounted directly underneath the original one. Graphics were upgraded with the Starfleet insignia of the 2360s. (TNG: "Data's Day"; DS9: "Emissary")
Families were allowed aboard Ambassador class ships, but only if they were related to a Starfleet crewmember who had served on the ship exceeding six months. (TNG: "Second Chances")
[edit] Tactical systems
The Ambassador-class was armed with both phaser banks and photon torpedoes with coverage to both fore and aft firing arcs.
A phaser emitter was also located on the secondary hull in proximity of the deflector dish. (DS9: "Emissary")
According to Natasha Yar, during the 2340s, the Ambassador-class had "a lot more maneuverability than the Romulan counterparts of that era." Yar would go on to explain that in her alternate timeline, deflector shield technology of the 2360s would advance considerably during the war, allowing the Galaxy-class to posses a heat-dissipation rate that was almost double those of the Ambassador-class, allowing the Galaxy to hang in a firefight longer. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")
[edit] Interior design
[edit] Main bridge
Primary operational control of the Ambassador class starship was provided by the Main Bridge. Located on top of the primary hull, the bridge directly supervised all primary mission operations and coordinated all departmental activities.
In 2344, the central area of the bridge provided seating for the captain only. Directly fore and to the right of the captain was the ops station, with the helm station to the left. The consoles were similar to that used on the bridges of Excelsior and Galaxy class starships. At the very front of the bridge was a large viewscreen, with a freestanding console located directly below. Against the back walls of the bridge were consoles for the tactical, engineering, and science positions. Additional displays flanked the aft consoles. The bridge was accessed through two doors, located on the forward halves of the port and starboard walls. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise")
 Original bridge configuration |
 Bridge with upgraded LCARS interface |
 Desk with communications station |
The original design incorporated flat-panel, LCARS-based, control panels using the interface introduced in the late 23rd century. (TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise") By the 2360s, the Ambassador-class bridge was upgraded to include the standard LCARS interface and consoles typically found on board modern vessels of that era. (TNG: "Redemption II")
- The bridge of the Enterprise-C, the only internal space seen in detail aboard an Ambassador class starship, was a modification of the battle bridge, which in turn was built on the remains of the bridge set from Star Trek: The Motion Picture. William T. Riker and Geordi La Forge were seen on the Excalibur in "Redemption II", but the scene was filmed against a generic console, with an Ambassador MSD, recycled from the set used for the Enterprise-D science lab, among other locations.
[edit] Ships commissioned
- Named
- USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-C)
- USS Excalibur (NCC-26517)
- USS Horatio
- USS Yamaguchi (NCC-26510)
- USS Zhukov (NCC-26136)
- Uncertain
- USS Adelphi
- USS Exeter (NCC-26531)
- USS Gandhi
- USS Valdemar
[edit] Appendices
[edit] Appearances
- TNG:
- "Conspiracy" (debris, and interior via subspace communication)
- "Yesterday's Enterprise"
- "Data's Day"
- "Redemption II"
- DS9: "Emissary"
[edit] Background
[edit] Model
Very little is known about the Ambassador class starship. The term Ambassador class actually dates back to an early draft of TOS: "Patterns of Force", which describes the source of cultural contamination arriving aboard a small Ambassador-class vessel called the Magellan. The term would later be used in TNG: "Conspiracy" to describe the Starship Horatio. It was connected to the Enterprise-C design on display graphics in "Yesterday's Enterprise."
The studio model was designed by Rick Sternbach, based on sketches produced by Andrew Probert for the first season of Star Trek: The Next Generation. The design was intended to suggest an intermediate step between the Excelsior class and the Galaxy class starships. A relief sculpture of Probert's design was placed in the observation lounge aboard the USS Enterprise-D. Unfortunately, the model was needed for "Yesterday's Enterprise" much sooner than the time it would take to fabricate the smoother lines of Probert's concept, requiring Sternbach's alterations which ended up on Greg Jein's final model.
The next appearance of the Ambassador class was as the Zhukov in "Data's Day." As noted above, the model was noticeably changed after it was rehabbed to remove the battle damage it sported as the Enterprise-C. This It would later appear in "Redemption II" as the Excalibur, appearing both as a redressed model and recycled footage, and would make its final appearance in "Emissary" as the Yamaguchi.
In actuality, the model of the ship was not destroyed, and was sold on October 7, 2006 as Lot #694 in the 40 Years of Star Trek: The Collection auction for $48,000 including the buyer's premium (the winning bid was $40,000). The model contained markings of both the Excalibur and Yamaguchi. [1]
Aside from the frequent appearances of the Ambassador-class relief sculptures throughout TNG, and later Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek Nemesis, there were at least two other depictions of the Ambassador-class appearing on various LCARS displays, including a display shown in TNG: "Second Chances", and a classroom "Starship Chronology" display appearing during DS9 Season 2. No known computer generated model of the Ambassador was ever created. However, a cartoon version of the Ambassador-class vessel appears in a episode of the Cinar-Paramount animated series, "The Busy World of Richard Scarry."
[edit] Supplementals
According to the Star Trek Encyclopedia and the Star Trek: The Next Generation Technical Manual, the prototype of this class was the USS Ambassador, registry number NX-10521.
The ST: TNG Technical Manual further explained that during the design phase the combined vehicle mass of Ambassador was expected to be at least 3.71 million tons. (pg. 75)
The length of this vessel was established by Probert, and utilized in the Encyclopedia and the Technical Manual.
In a line established in the script, but not the final airing, of "Yesterday's Enterprise", the crew complement of the Enterprise-C was 700.
Finally, the Technical Manual established that the Galaxy-class was designed to replace the aging Ambassador- and Oberth-classes as primary instruments of Starfleet's exploration programs. (pg. 1)
[edit] Apocrypha
- The DS9 novel "Antimatter", mentions the Ambassador class USS Hannibal under construction at the newly reopened Okana shipyards, on Bajor's surface.
- The Ambassador class Excalibur was the star of the Peter David Star Trek: New Frontier novel series.
- The Decipher role-playing games supplement Starships includes the USS Krotus (NCC-26544).
- The USS Gandhi, listed here as an Ambassador class ship, is stated as being a Galaxy class ship in John Vornholt's Double Helix book, Quarantine.
- The Ambassador class ships Excalibur and Zhukov make appearances in the Star Trek: Bridge Commander PC game.
- In Star Trek: Elite Force II, an Ambassador class was among the ships sent to intercept Sphere 634, due to the games re-use of Bridge Commander ship models.
[edit] External links
- Ambassador class at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
- Ambassador-class Variants at Ex Astris Scientia: a full analysis of the modifications made between the Enterprise-C and Yamaguchi models
