Enterprise history The name Enterprise has a longstanding history as a ship name , starting some time prior to the 18th century and lasting at least into the 26th century . History . Earth . The was a noted sailing ship of the British Royal Navy . A galleon , she was active sometime between the 16th century and the early 18th century . A frigate named " " was a noted sailing ship , either of the Royal Navy or of the US Navy . She was active in the late 18th century . ( ) A from the age of the sail , , was used in a 24th century holodeck program . ( ) The was an aircraft carrier that served in World War II . Its successor was the , which was the first nuclear - powered aircraft carrier . ( ; ) The first space shuttle orbiter was the . Benjamin Sisko kept of the " Enterprise " docked with the International Space Station . ( ; ) The was an early spacecraft . ( ; ) The was the first warp 5 starship to be launched . The prototype of the , it was launched in 2151 and was decommissioned in 2161 . Its relatively short service life can be attributed to the formation of the Federation ; its technology was far behind that of some of the founding races , rendering it immediately obsolete . It participated in early first contact missions , the Xindi incident , and several other missions during its illustrious career under Captain Jonathan Archer . ( ) Federation . The was a starship that served under five captains from 2245 to 2285 , including Robert April , Christopher Pike , Will Decker , and in later years Spock . Its most famous commander was Captain James T . Kirk , whose five - year mission aboard the " Enterprise " became legendary . ( ; ; ; ; ; ) The was a refit " Constitution " - class vessel under the command of Captain James T . Kirk . The ship was launched in 2286 and served during the Khitomer Conference prior to its decommissioning in 2293 . ( ; ; ) The was a refit starship launched in 2293 . The ship was under the command of Captain John Harriman and was noted for rescuing 47 El - Aurian s from the Nexus . ( ) The was an starship that served in the early - to - mid 24th century under the command of Captain Rachel Garrett . The ship ' s destruction defending a Klingon outpost against four Romulan Warbird s eventually led to closer relations between the Klingon Empire and the Federation . ( ) The was a starship that served under three captains from 2363 to 2371 , most famously Jean - Luc Picard , who commanded the ship for the majority of its service . The ship was also briefly captained by William T . Riker and Edward Jellico . The " Enterprise " - D was the Federation flagship and made first contact with over thirty species . It also participated in the Klingon Civil War and was the first starship to visit another galaxy . ( ; ) The was a starship launched under the command of Captain Jean - Luc Picard in 2372 . The ship participated in the Battle of Sector 001 , the crew ' s insurrection against the forced relocation of the Ba ' ku , and was badly damaged in the battle against the Reman Warbird " Scimitar " at the Battle of the Bassen Rift . ( ; ; ) Alternate timelines and realities . Alternate reality . In the alternate reality created by a temporal incursion by Nero in 2233 , the was a starship launched in 2258 as the Federation flagship under the command of Captain . Under the acting command of Cadet , the crew was successful in defending Earth from the " Narada . " A year later , the " Enterprise " was nearly destroyed by the , but was later repaired and refit ted to embark on Starfleet ' s first five - year mission in 2260 . The " Enterprise " was ultimately destroyed by Krall and his Swarm ship s above Altamid in 2263 . ( ; ; ) The was a starship that was under construction at Starbase Yorktown in 2263 and was launched sometime afterwards following the destruction of the previous starship " Enterprise " . ( ) Yesterday ' s Enterprise . In an alternate timeline created when the accidentally traveled to the future rather than being destroyed defending a Klingon outpost , the Federation was at war with the Klingon Empire . The was designated a battleship , and its design was geared for combat . It was likely destroyed by the attack of two Klingon Birds of Prey . ( ) Battle of Procyon V timeline . In the alternate timeline in which the Sphere - Builder s attempted to invade the prime reality in the 26th century , the participated in the historic Battle of Procyon V to drive them out . ( ) All Good Things . In the timeline where an anomaly threatened to destroy life , the " Enterprise " - D was refitted by Admiral William Riker and was the flagship of Starfleet . It was fitted with a Spinal Phaser Lance Cannon and a cloaking device . ( ) Mirror universe . In the mirror universe , the was the flagship of the . It was commanded by Captain Maximilian Forrest and was destroyed by Tholian s in 2155 during the operation to capture the . ( ) The was a starship under the commands of and . The crew of this ship was one of the first Terran starships to come into contact with people from the prime universe . ( ) Legacy . The legacy of the ships named " Enterprise " were honored at various places , including : Appendices . Background information . Key ships in real - world history include : French / British . " L ' Entreprise " ( unknown – 1707 ) 320 - ton , 24 - gun , frigate – The first known Human ship named " Enterprise " . She was captured by the British and renamed HMS " Enterprize " in 1705 . As of , the Royal Navy has had thirteen more ships named " Enterprise " / " Enterprize " , of which ten were commissioned and therefore used the prefix " HMS " . American . As of 2013 , the United States Navy has had eight vessels named " Enterprise " , of which six were commissioned and used the prefix USS ( United States Ship ) . US Navy ( sail ) . One of these ships was the inspiration for the holographic sailing ship in " Star Trek Generations " : Apocrypha . In the " Star Trek Spaceflight Chronology " , the USS " Enterprise " XCV 330 was stated to be a ship launched in 2123 . The short story " Iron and Sacrifice " in the anthology " Tales from the Captain ' s Table " , describes the " Enterprise " - B as still being in service beyond 2315 . The " " novel " Well of Souls " , notes that the " Enterprise " - C as being launched in 2332 . In the William Shatner novel " The Return " , shortly after the destruction the of USS " Enterprise " - D , the was temporarily placed under the joint command of Ambassador Spock , Captain Kirk , and Captain Picard to attack the Borg central node , the equipment responsible for linking the Borg Collective in its group mind . The ship was temporarily renamed USS " Enterprise " by her regular captain for the duration of the mission , who noted that it was the least he could do for her new commanders . The is featured in " Star Trek Online " as the new Starfleet flagship and is commanded by an Andorian . Issue # 2 of the comic mini - series " " , set in the alternate reality right before , reveals a previous under the command of that reality ' s version of was in service for roughly twenty years before being decommissioned a year before the launch of the new one . In the alternate timeline from the DS9 book trilogy " " , following the destruction of the USS " Enterprise " - E , Starfleet launched the , which Thomas Riker described as being like the to the tenth power . The ship was originally commanded by Jean - Luc Picard , but was given over to William T . Riker after Picard ' s promotion to admiral . Among Riker ' s crew were Geordi La Forge , Deanna Troi , Tom Paris , and B ' Elanna Torres . The " Enterprise " - F was lost with all hands in a horrific battle that saw the destruction of Earth . This timeline was aborted thanks to the efforts of Benjamin Sisko and the rest of Deep Space 9 ' s crew . Several tie - in novels mention an Andorian starship named the " " , whose Andorian name translates into English as " Enterprise " . The anthology " " tells the stories of various ships , both space and sea , named " Enterprise " .