The Second Flagship of Starfleet

By Mikal Pendergast, political historian and starship enthusiast

The Federation Council had reached a point in history where everything that they did had already been done before them. A period of conservatism hit with full force. But there was one thing that the Council refused to budge on. The end of the Enterprise Legacy.

When the Enterprise C was destroyed, it was up to the Council to commission another flagship. Debate quickly sparked about building another Enterprise or ending the line with Rachel Garrett. The debate was heavy and constant for nearly six months. Those opposed to a new Enterprise were stating that it was unnecessary to designate any ship with a 'D' serial number. Some of those who were for the Enterprise were vying for a new serial number while the rest, and a small number of council members, were continuing that the Enterprise has a reputation that should not be scoffed at. That the Enterprise will always and should always be the flagship of the Federation and Starfleet.

But the winning argument was when a council member stated that every Enterprise has been destroyed, though valiantly, resulting in the loss of a ship and the resources needed for other projects. Any other Enterprise is sure to die, though valiantly, and the Federation would be without a flagship again. The Enterprise Legacy should end and a new, better ship should take up the mantle of flagship. To everyone's surprise this argument won over the Council, but not the public.

After exactly one century after the first Enterprise was launched, the second flagship of the Federation was launched, ending the line of Enterprises. The U.S.S. Coronado, NCC-26530, was launched from the San Francisco Shipyards on June 23, 2345. This vessel was a Surak class starship with the latest technology installed and was given an immediate mission of exploration and research. Her captain was relatively experienced, commanding two other ships in his thirty year career. Thomas Peterson, an Australian descendant, was honored with the highest possible command as a captain. What he did would set the precedent for future space exploration and diplomatic relations. Or at least that is what a flagship captain should be like.

The Coronado did nothing particularly important. Cataloging stars, rouge comets, and nebulae were all it did for the first two years of service. It was always graced with a starbase docking every two months, scheduled. But in 2347 things changed for the captain. He was now being posted at the Cardassian-Federation border after the attack on Setlik III. There was no offensive plan that the Federation was considering during the entire war, just maintaining the border was their prime objective. But Peterson had something else in mind.

Single-handedly, Peterson was responsible for escalating the war and making it much bloodier. He sent his ship into Cardassian space and attacked a civilian outpost near the Federation border. His justification was 'an eye for an eye'. This sent the Federation into turmoil and the Cardassians into a fury. What few actual battles there were over the twenty years of the war, they were much more brutal than they needed to be, from both sides. Though it was later discovered that Cardassians had placed a military facility at the civilian outpost, Peterson was still court-martialed and released on probation. Every captain was needed to fight the 'Cardies'.

Captain Peterson came to the conclusion that the new flagship should fight for its place in history and earn everyone aboard her a medal. Unfortunately, this thought was to undo the Coronado. The next battle that the Coronado flew into was one that the Federation forces lost at. And badly, too. Captain Peterson was forced to limp home at barely impulse speed. The Cardassians had attacked the Coronado the hardest, leaving the rest of the attacking fleet comparatively unscratched. After sixteen weeks in repair, it was almost useless to continue on. But Peterson was a very stubborn man and refused to be denied a victory.

In January, 2361, the Coronado flew into Cardassian space once more. Backed up with nearly twenty other ships, old and new, they were intending on attacking a major Cardassian shipyard only ten light-years deep in enemy territory. The Cardassians were waiting for them, though, attacked before they were even two light-years deep. Not a single person on the Coronado survived the attack. Only two ships were able to retreat to Federation territory.

It was decided that immediately the construction of the Enterprise D would begin. Although Starfleet had already jumped to this conclusion. The Galaxy class project included an Enterprise whether the Federation Council liked it, or even noticed it, or not. Starfleet seemed more aware of what the public wanted to serve on than the Council did. It was discovered that the citizens of the Federation had put a lot of trust and faith in the Enterprise, regardless of its incarnation. Though there was one thing that everyone did appreciate over all else. The number was the same. That seemed to solidify the faith in the ship. It was the name and the number that became famous. Everyone who commanded her became the framework for the entire Federation, military and civilian. Starfleet was well aware of this fact and began the work to incorporate the Enterprise in this new starship project.

The Galaxy project was started and accepted before the beginning of this whole ordeal in 2343. The 'C' was not yet dead, but the improved systems and design was enough to decommission the 'C' when it came time to christen the 'D'. No one even flinched at the thought when the project was brought to the Council. This was the only time that Starfleet had gone against the Federation Council and it was going to be its last. The 'D' was commissioned nineteen years after the Coronado was launched, October 4, 2363. Just with the commissioning of the Enterprise, the war with the Cardassians quieted down and peace was reached four years later.

The Council had changed over by this point and many more events were occurring. This Council was very fortunate that the Enterprise was launched and on its way to making history as the next flagship of the Federation. The Legacy continues....

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