Freighter

File:Huron-freighter.jpg

The freighter Huron

Federation freighters were specialized starships utilized by the Federation for hauling freight. These vessels encompassed a variety of designs, and were often operated with little or no crews.

During the 23rd century, the Federation was known to operate several automated designs, including robot ore freighters and grain ships. These vessels were esentially flying cargo holds that possessed no life-support systems. (TOS: "The Ultimate Computer"; TAS: "More Tribbles, More Troubles")

Manned vessels, both of the 23rd and 24 centuries, were often used for transporting more valuable cargo, such as deuridium or dilithium crystals. (TAS: "The Pirates of Orion"; DS9: "The Passenger")

Many times, these vessels travel in convoys, which sometimes allowed them to be more or less succeptable to alien attack. (TOS: "Errand of Mercy") In those cases, they may be accompanied by an escort. In 2374, the USS Defiant assisted in escorting and protecting Convoy PQ-1 to the Vegan system during the Dominion War. (DS9: "Image in the Sand", "The Sound of Her Voice")

In 2370, Cardassians living the in Demilitarized Zone attacked a Federation merchant ship using modified-Cardassian shuttles, before they were destroyed by the Maquis. The Cardassians later claimed that the ship refused to be boarded, and concluded that it was carrying weapons through the DMZ. The Federation, however, maintained that the ship was carrying medical supplies to Soltok IV. (DS9: "The Maquis, Part I")

List of freighters

• USS Arcos
• SS Deirdre
• SS Huron
• USS Lalo
• Norkova
• Woden

List of Federation freighter classes

• Deneva-class
• Huron-type
• Mediterranean-class

Appearances

• TOS: "The Ultimate Computer"
• TAS: "More Tribbles, More Troubles"
• TAS: "The Pirates of Orion"
• DS9: "The Passenger"