Fate of the Crossfield-class Starship in later series and films

[Admiral Archer]

Not sure where I should put this, since it spans several series and movies.

So, this is my own head canon, but I personally feel that, after extensive refits to keep the ship class in service, the Crossfield-class starships such as USS Discovery serve Starfleet roughly contemporary to Constitution-class ships (basically, from the 2250's until the 2290's), and that the ship we saw in Spacedock in the far background in 'Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" that was designed for Planet of the Titans was, in fact, a refitted Crossfield-class.
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Fast forward to the 24th century, to the late 2360's, during the events of the TNG episode "Unification, part I", during which the Enterprise-D visits the Federation Surplus Depot Z15. It's obviously similar in shape to the ship in Spacedock during Star Trek III.
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If there are any noticeable on screen differences between the two appearances of the ship, it can be explained that the ship received a third refit at some point after Star Trek III but before TNG. There were after all different models used for the two scenes, which could also lead credence to the theory of two refits.

What do you think? How does the Crossfield-class starship design fit in with these two ship appearances?

 

[F. King Daniel]

The dark shadows they're seen in actually help to make them look like dark DSC hulls and help sell the illusion.

Back in the 80's, unlicensed Treknical manuals and blueprint sets called them the Arial-class shuttlecarriers.

 

[Admiral Archer]

The dark shadows they're seen in actually help to make them look like dark DSC hulls and help sell the illusion.

Back in the 80's, unlicensed Treknical manuals and blueprint sets called them the Arial-class shuttlecarriers.

Arial-class, huh? I guess since some people refer to the Constitution-class refit as the Enterprise-class (because the Enterprise was the first of that class to be refitted) I suppose it's safe to say the USS Arial was the first Crossfield-class starship to be refitted.

 

[Timo]

It's also possible that the design is much older than NCC-1031, and the DSC hero ship is the last hurrah - an old warship repurposed as a shiny new platform for weird scientific experiments. The "fate" of the class would then simply be to fade to obscurity: as a warship, the design would be a goner in the 2250s already, and the science platforms would cease to be relevant when their experiments did.

It's not as if we'd see these ships perform any sort of a mission in either the 2280s or the 2360s... And the Ariel/Fredrikstad, while quite appealing, isn't exactly canon.

The STIII:TSfS ship would then in fact be an unrefitted, original-configuration Crossfield, with those antiquated cylinder engines rather than the latest 2250s fashion rectangulars. Perhaps a museum exhibit, even. Also helps explain why there's no USS Crossfield in evidence when the DSC ships are discussed: the lead ship for the DSC variant is the Glenn, while the Crossfield merely pioneered the basic class.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Notsubway]

My head canon is that the model seen in STIII is refit Crossfield-class. As part of the refit, the ships are given shorter warp nacelles, which are raised up to give them better line-of-sight of each other.

 

[iliescu]

Would say some feedback but 'fate' is not the word in the country of residence. Proclaiming fate is something else sometimes, just saying.

 

[Ronald Held]

A good question would be: what was the main mission for Crossfield ships when designed?

 

[Timo]

Up until DSC, we could have argued that a triangular secondary hull must be triangular because of some very special mission. Say, the shuttlecarrier one.

DSC shows us all-new starship configurations, though, adding perhaps more to the menagerie than any single other spinoff since the Wolf 359 kitbashes. The triangle doesn't stand out as all that unique now, and may merely be the fashionable shape for the generic secondary hull as of the 2220s or whatnot, meaning the mission may also be generic.

What remains non-generic is the two-ring saucer. But even that isn't so special compared with the other DSC saucers, all split and cut in various odd ways. And supposedly the Mirror Starfleet built a ship of the exact same shape whilst not believing in mushroom drives or science missions. So split saucers probably are perfectly fine for combat cruisers, or other ship types befitting Captain Killy's command style.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Admiral Archer]

A good question would be: what was the main mission for Crossfield ships when designed?

According to the USS Discovery entry on Memory Alpha, "By November of 2256, it was still considered impressively new, fresh out of the shipyards, and equipped with some of Starfleet's most advanced technologies (in contrast with the relatively old USS Shenzhou).

As a Crossfield-class starship, Discovery was officially designated a science vessel. The ship's facilities were able to accomodate three hundred discrete scientific missions, a Starfleet record at the time."

 

[STR]

Arial-class, huh? I guess since some people refer to the Constitution-class refit as the Enterprise-class (because the Enterprise was the first of that class to be refitted) I suppose it's safe to say the USS Arial was the first Crossfield-class starship to be refitted.

"Enterprise Class" actually shows up in TWOK. Nobody ever refers to a "Constitution Class Refit" that's Okuda's invention for the encyclopedia. The only other direct reference to the type is in TUC, when Scotty is reading a diagram labelled "Constitution Class" before he disovers the missing space suits.

"The refit" is the only non-canon name out of the three.

Up until DSC, we could have argued that a triangular secondary hull must be triangular because of some very special mission. Say, the shuttlecarrier one.

DSC shows us all-new starship configurations, though, adding perhaps more to the menagerie than any single other spinoff since the Wolf 359 kitbashes. The triangle doesn't stand out as all that unique now, and may merely be the fashionable shape for the generic secondary hull as of the 2220s or whatnot, meaning the mission may also be generic.

What remains non-generic is the two-ring saucer. But even that isn't so special compared with the other DSC saucers, all split and cut in various odd ways. And supposedly the Mirror Starfleet built a ship of the exact same shape whilst not believing in mushroom drives or science missions. So split saucers probably are perfectly fine for combat cruisers, or other ship types befitting Captain Killy's command style.

Timo Saloniemi

Actually, the triangular secondary hull is unique to Crossfield class. Most ships of the time don't even have dual-hulls. The only other type depicted with a secondary hull thus far is the two Constitution Class ships.

 

[Relayer1]

I'm taking the ship in the first teaser released as an original unmodified version or earlier refit. It certainty didn't have the cutouts or revolving primary - that could well be a mission specific upgrade just for the two spore drive test ships.

 

[Timo]

Hard to tell whether it had the revolving surfaces or not. I mean, why not? It's not as if they are particularly visible in the finished product, either. And the mushroom drive was always going to be the gimmick - the artists probably wanted that to show to the outside somehow.

Agree, though, that if we are to embrace that earlier version as an in-universe feature, then it's gonna be earlier in-universe, too, rather than later. I wonder why Starfleet added those stern extensions to the warp nacelles...?

According to the USS Discovery entry on Memory Alpha, "By November of 2256, it was still considered impressively new, fresh out of the shipyards, and equipped with some of Starfleet's most advanced technologies (in contrast with the relatively old USS Shenzhou). As a Crossfield-class starship, Discovery was officially designated a science vessel. The ship's facilities were able to accomodate three hundred discrete scientific missions, a Starfleet record at the time."

Amusingly, almost everything in that Memory Alpha entry is false.

Nobody in the actual show comments on anything but the shuttlebay having a shiny new floor. Perhaps Lorca re-carpeted after that nasty business with trying to bring the Gorn aboard through the shuttlebay? (Or then Landry was a believer in the old brush-and-polish school of shipboard discipline.)

Also, nobody ever calls the ship a science vessel in an official capacity. It's mere speculation by one of the convicts in the third episode, to explain the presence of so many silvershirts. And there's absolutely no reason to think that even the unofficial designation of science vessel (if indeed there is such a thing) would be related to what class the ship happens to be.

Actually, the triangular secondary hull is unique to Crossfield class.

Yes. But there's no longer anything unique to having a uniquely triangular secondary hull. That's the bit where the multitude of designs from, say, Wolf 359 or the Battle of the Binaries comes in: nowadays, anything goes. (Including three or more hulls, as per the Abrams movies, and assuming those elderly-looking ships predated the timeline split.)

If we invented an in-universe connection where triangular hulls are for special mission X, then we'd have to invent a special mission Y for those clam hulls of TNG ships, a special mission Z for the inverted slippers of Excelsior derivatives, and so forth.

Perhaps a triangle simply was, well, simple? As in, they tried everything: cylinders for the Constitutions, rectangles for the Engles, and triangles for the Crossfields. And one of those basic shapes worked better than others.

Or then didn't, as we don't see Starfleet apply the cylinder hull again much, either: the Ambassador is so far the only other known user.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Ronald Held]

Still isthe Crossfield class older than 2250's but the two ships we saw had a recent major refit?

 

[Timo]

For all we know, they were brand new but constructed to original (or once-upgraded, or whatever) specs and adopting the registries of vessels originally proposed (and perhaps approved but cancelled) decades ago.

Using outdated designs for an acute need might be practical if the current stock of blueprints had nothing in the required size range or, more probably, nothing with those saucer spinners. There might even be surplus components (possibly spares, such as for the engines with their "old" oOo rather than "modern" OOO Bussards) available. And it would make the cloak-and-dagger folks rub their hands together with glee if they could obfuscate with "false" registries and appearances...

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Ronald Held]

So early in the Klingon war, there might have been enough spare Crossfield parts to construct two ships?

 

[Timo]

Possibly more like abandoned former ships, given a refurbishing and a quick commissioning (either under all-new names, or then under the names the ships held back when they were frontline combat vessels and/or explorers).

But probably chiefly just existing blueprints, for quickly creating a ship without having to stop to design or otherwise think...

So far, we have been given no real reason to think of the hero ship as more or less modern than the other ships of the show. The interiors are the same as on the Shenzhou, a ship described as elderly. So, a concurrent refit in both? Or an example of the technology in vogue back when the old Shenzhou was built? If the latter, the Discovery just plain has to be an old ship minimally modernized, as it would mean extra cost and complication to install outdated and old-fashioned interiors (down to bunks, lockers and computer interfaces), even if otherwise building out of old blueprints and parts!

Timo Saloniemi