The U.S.S. Enterprise-A undergoes final testing and preparation for service under the direction of Engineering Officer Montgomery Scott. Romulan, Federation, and Klingon diplomatic representatives on Nimbus III are seized by Sybok, Spock's half brother. The crew of the Enterprise-A is dispatched to parlay for their release.
Negotiations are unsuccessful, and an attempt is made to free the hostages by force.
This attempt is also unsuccessful, resulting in the capture of the Enterprise-A by Sybok and his followers. Sybok commandeers the Enterprise-A in a search for the mythical planet Sha Ka Ree, located at the center of the galaxy. The planet is eventually located, but Sybok is killed by a malevolent entity living there. Gene Roddenberry reportedly said he considered some of the events in Star Trek V to be apocryphal. The Transwarp Development Project is deemed unsuccessful by Starfleet Command.