USS Defiant NX-74205

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U.S.S. DEFIANT NX-74205: Information

The U.S.S. Defiant NX-74205 is officially classified as an experimental escort vessel. But unofficially, the Defiant is a warship. It has no provision for families or diplomatic missions, no science labs, no holodecks, or any other comforts of home. It is a heavily armoured, stripped-down starship, and the first built of its class (for a long time it was the only one of its class). It was created as a 'first strike' vehicle for use in war, and incorporates the latest in Starfleet weaponry and defensive technology.

The Defiant was originally designed and built by Starfleet as a final defence against the Borg. It is a prototype, the first ship in what was to become a new Federation battle fleet. Work on the Defiant begins in 2266, after Starfleet is alerted to the Borg threat. After the battle of Wolf 359, Commander Benjamin Sisko is assigned to the Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards on Mars, where he supervises the design and construction of the Defiant. However, after a shakedown cruise, serious design flaws come to light. Given the diminished Borg threat, Starfleet takes the decision to suspend work in the Defiant.

With the emergence of the Jem'Hadar and the Dominion, the Defiant is activated and, despite its flaws, placed on active duty. An armed guard is stationed at all times outside the airlock on DS9 in which the Defiant is docked, with voice prints and other identification required for access.

The Defiant is equipped with the latest in Federation weaponry, including multiple phaser banks, pulse phasers, and quantum torpedoes. In combat, it has proved superior to Jem'Hadar warships, and is easily more powerful than a Klingon Bird-of-Prey. When the Borg threat re-emerges in 2373, the Defiant is part of a fleet that engages a Borg Cube. Although more powerful than other Starfleet vessels, it is severely damaged after the attack, and undergoes repairs before returning to Deep Space Nine.

What makes the U.S.S. Defiant unique among United Federation of Planets starships is that it is the only Starfleet ship to possess a Romulan cloaking device. Initially, use of the cloaking device is restricted to the Gamma Quadrant, but after the Klingon attack on Cardassian space, the agreement is modified to allow limited use within the Alpha Quadrant. In exchange for supplying the cloaking device, the information Starfleet gathers on the Dominion will be transmitted to the Romulans.

The Defiant featured predominantly in many key battles during the Dominion war, including the initial taking of the Chin'toka system from the Cardassian/Dominion alliance. Unfortunately the Defiant was destroyed thanks to a Breen Energy Weapon when the Dominion and their new Breen allies took back the Chin'toka system. The U.S.S. Sao Paulo, another Defiant-Class starship, was later renamed the U.S.S. Defiant, when it was assigned to Captain Sisko and Deep Space Nine.

The motto on the Defiant's bridge plaque was: "All I ask is a tall ship, and a star to steer her by." - John Masefield

Source: The Official STAR TREK Fact Files
Published by GE FABBRI Ltd
Produced by Aerospace Publishing Ltd

 

U.S.S. DEFIANT NX-74205: Basic Details

Class Defiant-Class Escort
Dimensions 545ft Long , 350ft Wide, 50ft Tall
Crew 50 (Max)
Engines Class M Warp Drive (Cruising - Warp 7; Max Sustainable - Warp 9 (Can go higher for short periods of time.))
Tactical Systems Four pulse phase cannons, phasers, two torpedo launchers
Defensive Systems Romulan Cloaking Device, Ablative Armour, Federation Shields



U.S.S. DEFIANT NX-74205: Other Information

Engineering
 Main Bridge
 Mess Hall
 Mirror-Universe Defiant
 Shuttlepod
 Shuttlecraft - Type-10
 Ship Schematics