Hermes-class schematic
The Hermes-class was a class of Federation starship in operation during the 23rd century.
The Hermes consisted of a saucer section and nacelle, each similar in exterior design to that of a Template:ShipClass vessel of the 2260s. Its configuration was significantly different, however, as it employed only a single nacelle.
Ships of the Class
- USS Hermes (NCC-585)
- USS Revere (NCC-595)
- USS Columbia (NCC-621)
Appendices
Appearances
References
Background
The Hermes-class starship was a design originally created by Franz Joseph in his Star Fleet Technical Manual. The production staff of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock used some of the ships in the Technical Manual as background display images on monitor screens on the bridge.
Intended to be merely background decoration, freeze frames and close examination have shown it likely (but not conclusively) that the images used were taken from the Joseph book with little or no modification. This would be confirmed later by Rick Sternbach on a few occasions on www.trekbbs.com's forums. The Saladin, Hermes, and Federation classes appear as part of the loop.
The concept of a single-nacelle starship has been derided by some as contrary to Gene Roddenberry's design requirements for Starfleet ships, but there is nothing in canon that mandates a minimum number of nacelles for a ship. Indeed, single-nacelle vessels would appear in The Next Generation with the appearance of the Freedom-class, which it itself an homage to the Saladin and Hermes classes.
According to the Star Fleet Technical Manual, the Hermes-class' only distinctiveness from her sister class, the Saladin destroyer, were her armaments. Where the Saladin-class housed three phaser banks and two photon torpedo launchers, the Hermes scout only housed one bank of two phasers.
The class may have been named for Hermes, the Greek god of, among other things, boundaries and the travelers who cross them.
The information on the name of the class and its resemblance to Constitution components comes exclusively from the Star Fleet Technical Manual, which, while not itself a Memory Alpha permitted resource, appears to be the source for the artwork shown in the film.
Apocrypha
The Hermes-class is also present in the Star Fleet Universe series of games.
External Links
- Forgotten Starships at TrekPlace - an article from February 15, 2003 discussing the canon appearance of this class
- Template:Exastris - an article from December 20, 2005