Ark Royal class

From FEInfobase

Revision as of 15:15, 30 June 2008

Template:FEshipclassThe Ark Royal-class was the first dedicated carrier built by the Federation in the aftermath of the Borg War of the late 24th/early 25th century.

Specifications

Class Specifications

• Expected Hull Life: 200 Years
• Resupply Time: 15 Years
• Refit: 10 years
• Systems:
  • Bio-Neural Computer System
  • Mark V Fusion Reactor

Accommodations

• Crew: 1160
  • Officers: 100
  • Enlisted: 490
  • FMI: 570 (3 Companies)
• Passenger Limit: 700
• Evacuation Limit: Unknown

Dimensions

• Overall Length: 1105.8 meters
• Overall Beam: 620.4 meters
• Overall Height: 210 meters
• Decks: 44

Warp

• Power Core: M/ARA Dilithium-mediated
• Cruise Speed (warp): Warp 7
• Maximum Cruising Speed: Warp 9
• Maximum Warp Velocity:Warp 9.756 (for 8 hours)

Armaments

• Primary: 6 Type-XII phaser arrays, 8 Type-XV multi-fire phaser strip arrays, 6 Type-U pulse cannons along top of hull (Three starboard three port side.)
• Secondary: 4 fixed torpedo launchers (Photonic/Quantum Load) (2 fore, 2 aft), 2 Rapid Fire Torpedo Turrets (2 forward primary hull)
• Torpedo Complement: 200 Photons, 200 Quantum

Defences

• Shields: Multi Layered Shielding System (MLSS)
• Hull: Tritanium composite hull, augmented by Ablative Armour.
• Additional: Deflector screens (navigational standard) [deflects harmful interstellar material such as meteorites, cosmic radiation, etc.]

Transportation

Auxilary Vessels

• Hangarbays: 3 (2 fighter deployment hangers, one service craft hanger.)

Shuttles

• 10› Type 19 personal shuttle
• 6› Type 18 shuttlepods

Fighters

• 30› Valkyrie Class fighters. (Not all in service 4-6 kept in reserve.)
• 14› Redemption Class heavy bomber. (2 kept in reserve.)

Runabouts

• 2› Delta Flyer Class Runabout
• 4› Huron Class Runabouts
• 4› Mustang Class Runabout

Technical Data

Physical arrangement

Command and Control systems

Propulsion systems

Warp core ejection

Tactical systems

Phaser systems

Torpedo systems

Deflector shields

Tractor beam

Transporter systems

Auxiliary spacecraft systems

The Ark Royal-class starship was typically equipped with the following types of shuttlecraft and runabouts:

• Type 19 personal shuttle
• Type 18 shuttlepods
• Valkyrie Class fighters.
• Redemption Class heavy bomber.
• Delta Flyer Class Runabout
• Huron Class Runabouts
• Mustang Class Runabout

Interior design

Bridge

Briefing Room

Main Engineering

Medical facilities

Sickbay

Transport and cargo

Transporter rooms

Shuttlebays

Cargo bays

Crew quarters

Mess

Deck Plan

History

Great Loss

During the Borg War, no Federation entity suffered greater total loses and causalities than the Starfighter Corps.

Stationed mostly on starships in limited flight squadrons they were often the first elements in a direct Borg conflict eliminated by the enemy. Multiple squadrons stationed planet side or on starbases had the highest survival rates. After the war and with the success of the Angry Apes publicity Starfleet realised that stationing more than a single flight of fightercraft on a starship was an experiment worth trying.

However, it was generally known that only a scant few of the Akira class battlecruisers were capable of carrying more than a single squadron of fighters without sacrificing needed shuttle capacity. Thus a project was proposed for the first dedicated carrier class design ever in Starfleet.

The Proposal

The initial proposal was for a craft of such great size and length that the first four designs were turned down as impractical and unrealistic. It was wanted to have a craft designed carry at least five squadrons with one in ready reserve, to do this the carrier would need at least four hanger bays with one filling the need for maintenance.

Needing an unprecedented support staff to carry out day-to-day operations of such a behemoth, such a vessel would also needed multiple crew amenities unseen in most ships built since the Galaxy class.

One design which was submitted seemed to fill all of the requirements along with being of sufficent feasibility that it could actually being built. Equipped with twin warp cores and four warp nacelles, the carrier would be one of the most complicated ships to ever set out into space.

Borrowing from a Leviathan

The Chief Designer of the project, one William Newcastle had worked on another highly secret project begun shortly after the start of the Borg War, the Leviathan colony ship.

During the early days of the war it was decided that if the Borg would claim victory, the Leviathan would be launched carrying the best and the brightest along with plant and animal samples as well as seedlings along with historical records from all the Federation members and known worlds in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. The ship was the most massive construction ever attempted in the history of the Federation.

Measuring some six miles in length she was powered by four sets of twelve fusion reactors and was driven by four triple linked warp cores combined with six sets of nacelles. Much of what went into the hastily designed and constructed Leviathan project had been refined over the course of many years by Newcastle and in due course he incorporated much of this into the Ark Royal's design. More powerful and efficient warp cores lead to the inclusion of only two needed for standard propulsion. The custom designed nacelles mean only four would be needed to move the massive ship only a fraction of the size of the Leviathan.

Some more radical innovations to make it through the design process included the placement of a large Command and Control centre instead of the more common Federation starship bridge. It was decided that due to the large number of fighter craft aboard the common bridge would be insufficient to control and coordinate the functions of such a large ship. Along with this unorthodox system it was decided that due to the ships large size the old style team of Navigator and helm control would be well served on the ship. Both are needed to move the ship safely while in port and while at warp speed given the highly unknown nature of space after the borg conflict.

The number of Fusion reactors needed for internal power and impulse propulsion would have been prohibitively large on even a ship of this size. So it was decided late in the design process to include a hybrid Quantum singularity drive in the design. Housed in the lower engineering section the drive serves mainly as a means of internal and impulse system power. In cases of extreme emergency or catastrophic failure of the main warp propulsion the Singularity drive can be engaged for warp propulsion with a maximum speed of warp 6.7 for two and a half hours. If utilized for longer then that the drive could possibly suffer from containment failure and a black hole will form.

Construction History

Notable "Ark Royal class" vessels

• USS Ark Royal

Behind the Scenes

• Presumably this class was inspired by the Battlestars of the series "Battlestar Galactica".