Intrepid class The " Intrepid " - class starship was a Federation design that entered service in the later half of the 24th century . The " Intrepid " - class was designed for long - term exploration missions . At less than half the size of a starship , it was considered " quick and smart . " ( ) General overview . When first commissioned , the " Intrepid " - class featured many innovations then becoming available , not least being the tricyclic input manifold of the warp core and variable geometry pylon s . The class was also the first to incorporate bio - neural gel pack s and was equipped with the Mark 1 Emergency Medical Hologram ( or EMH ) system . Capabilities upon introduction were equally impressive . The class boasted the best navigational sensor s , and the highest top speed of any Starfleet vessel until the development of the . Its multi - mission design was backed up by a main computer processor capable of simultaneously accessing 47 million data channels and sustaining 575 trillion calculations per nanosecond in operational temperatures from 10 to 1790 Kelvin . ( ) The " Intrepid " - class had a stable crew complement of 141 when departing Deep Space 9 in 2371 . ( ) Throughout its journey in the Delta Quadrant , the ship operated with a crew of approximately 150 . ( ) Class history . Development and construction of the " Intrepid " - class occurred at the Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards with the class entering service by 2370 . The second ship , USS " Voyager " , was commissioned in 2371 . It was the first ship to test the class 9 warp drive in deep space . At the time of its introduction , the " Intrepid " - class was considered to be the most technologically advanced out of all Starfleet ' s starship classes , though it would be superseded in that regard the following year by the . ( ; ) The performance of the " Intrepid " - class was well reflected by the starship " Voyager " . That ship was notable for independently , and successfully , completing an unscheduled seven - year journey across the previously unexplored Delta Quadrant , seventy thousand light year s from Federation space , from 2371 to 2378 . The vessel was completely cut off from communication with Starfleet until 2374 , and had no access to any Starfleet supplies or facilities for the entire length of its journey . ( VOY Season 1 through VOY Season 7 ) Technical data . Physical arrangement . The hull configuration of the " Intrepid " - class adopted the saucer - type shape of previous starship classes , that of primary hull , secondary hull , and nacelle s driven by the physics of warp generation and control . One of the " Intrepid " - class ' most notable characteristics were its warp nacelles , which angled when going to warp , a quality which has not been observed in any other starship . The " Intrepid " - class used a duranium hull structure , a plasma - based power distribution system , and tricyclic life support systems . ( ) Following the Starfleet standard , deck 1 was reserved for the main bridge , with the briefing room and captain ' s ready room located to port and starboard sides of the bridge . Located in the front section of deck 2 was the crew ' s mess hall and the captain ' s private dining hall , served by three windows that offered a spectacular view of space in front of the vessel . One deck below , located in the front section of deck 3 , were the quarters of the starship ' s commanding officer , served by five windows . The dorsal saucer section was covered by four phaser array s , two of which extended from the aft curvature along the length of the saucer . The aft firing arc was covered by two smaller arrays , angled on the rear of the saucer section . The relative bottom of the ship was protected by two similar arrays as on the dorsal saucer section , extending to the rear of the saucer and following the curve towards the bow . ( ) Docked to the underside of the " Intrepid " - class ' primary hull was the vessel ' s aeroshuttle . Further aft , the main navigational deflector dish was found at the fore - side of the " Intrepid " - class ' secondary hull . Located right above the deflector were the forward photon torpedo launchers . On the underside of the secondary hull were located three sets of plates that supported the warp propulsion system . The forward plate covered the reserve intermix chamber ; the middle plate contained the antimatter loading port , a large magnetic valve that kept the antimatter from coming in contact with matter during the transfer to the storage pods ; ( ) and the aft cover plate contained the operational intermix chamber hatch , for ejecting the warp core in case of emergency . ( ) One of the few Starfleet starship classes capable of atmospheric entry and planetary landing , the " Intrepid " - class starship was equipped with antigravity generators as well as impulse and lifters strategically placed at the mass and stress points on the bottom portion of the secondary hull . Prior to and during landing or takeoff procedures , the vessel typically went to blue alert , indicating to the crew they were to assume their code - blue stations . ( ) Decks . With fifteen decks and a mass of 700 , 000 metric tons , there were 257 rooms on an " Intrepid " - class vessel . ( ) Entire deck sections could be jettisoned in case of emergency . ( ) Command and control systems . The main bridge of the " Intrepid " - class starship was ovoid and served as the nerve center of the vessel . At the bridge ' s rear was a large bank of consoles and data readout screens . Center of that area was the master systems display ; control consoles flanked it on both sides . ( ) Starboard of the information center , past the starboard side turbolift , was the station of the chief tactical officer . This area was maintained mostly for internal security and combat situations . Other systems that could be commanded by tactical included long - and short - range sensor array s , sensor probes , message buoy s , and tractor beam s . An identical station was found on the other side of the bridge , where the operations station was found . This panel presented the operations officer with a continually updated list of current major shipboard activities . This list permitted Ops to set priorities and allocate resources among current operations . This was especially critical when two or more requests required the use of the same equipment , entailed mutually exclusive mission profiles , or involved some unusual safety or tactical considerations . ( ) Forward of the upper ship operations areas were doorways to the briefing room at one side and the captain ' s ready room at the other . There , the commanding officer could engage in administrative work with all relevant office equipment at hand without interfering with bridge operations , while still being close to the bridge in case of emergency . Also , this room was usually the preferred place where the captain could hold private discussions or receive classified communications . Aboard the " Intrepid " - class starship , the work desk was the focal point of the ready room , located ahead of the main entrance door . A raised level in the forward section of the room featured a small table , a curved couch , and a replicator . The wall behind the couch featured three windows looking toward the bow of the vessel . Compared with the much larger starship , the " Intrepid " - class had a more spacious , luxurious ready room . ( ; ) The " Intrepid " - class could not execute an auto - destruct sequence if the secondary command processor s were damaged . ( ) In the center of the " Intrepid " - class ' bridge was the command area . Here , seating was provided for the vessel ' s commanding officer and his or her first officer , seated to the captain ' s left . Between these chairs was a miniaturized status display . Using keyboard or vocal commands , the commanding officer could use these controls to override the basic operation of the starship . Directly aft of this area , integrated in the handrail encircling the aft section of the central command area , was another command console that could be operated to perform more bridge duties . ( ) Directly forward of and two steps lower than the central command area was the conn station . From here , the flight control officer served as helmsman and navigator for the starship . Despite many of these functions being heavily automated , their critical nature demanded a humanoid officer to oversee these operations at all times . During spaceflight at impulse , conn monitored relativistic effects as well as inertial damping system status . When the ship was traveling at warp speed , conn monitored the subspace field geometry in parallel with the engineering department . During warp flight , the conn console continually updated long - range sensor data and made automatic course corrections to adjust for minor variations in the density of the interstellar medium . ( ) To the right of conn sat the chief engineer . Though the position was far better served in main engineering , situations arose where the engineer ' s presence was needed on the bridge . The console allowed complete control over all engineering systems . Directly opposite sat the chief science officer at a similar console . From this console , LN2 exhaust conduit s were vented to expel exhaust from the " Intrepid " - class . ( ) Propulsion systems . Main engineering aboard an " Intrepid " - class starship was located on deck 11 . The room was constructed around the matter - antimatter reaction assembly warp core , a class 9 warp drive with a tricyclic input manifold . ( ) The core provided a maximum output of four thousand teradynes per second . ( ) The warp drive was designed to operate for up to three years before refueling . The reaction chamber was equipped with a compositor , which allowed recrystallization of dilithium . ( ) The warp drive allowed the ship a top sustainable cruise velocity of warp factor 9 . 975 . It also allowed the ship to travel at warp 9 . 75 for 12 hours . ( ) The " Intrepid " - class also featured a secondary warp assembly . ( ) The main engineering room featured two levels . In front of the warp core was a large monitoring area on the lower engineering level . Also located on this level was the chief engineer ' s office and an open work area for special projects or situational analysis . A second tier ringed the upper level of main engineering . A small , single - person elevator , as well as a ladder on the opposite side , provided access to this catwalk . ( ) The main impulse engine s on an " Intrepid " - class starship were located on the aft end of the pylons leading to the warp nacelle s . " Intrepid " - class starships were also equipped with auxiliary impulse reactors . ( ) Warp core ejection . In the event of a warp core breach , the " Intrepid " - class starship could eject the warp core . This procedure required the authorization code of the chief engineer or a member of the senior staff . The core was ejected through the ejection port on the underside of the secondary hull . Magnetic rails inside the channel accelerated the core once disengaged from the vessel and fired it away from the ship . Under normal circumstances , the vessel then moved away from the core as fast as possible under impulse power . ( ) Should the core not go critical , the vessel could recover it with tractor beam s and careful manipulation . ( ) Tactical systems . Phaser systems . The " Intrepid " - class utilized a ship - mounted phaser array system . The dorsal saucer section was covered by four phaser arrays , two of which extended from the aft curvature , along the length of the saucer and stop short of the auxiliary deflector incision . One smaller phaser array extended behind the bridge . ( ) The aft firing arc was covered by two smaller arrays , angled on the rear of the saucer section . The relative bottom of the ship was protected by two similar arrays as on the dorsal saucer section , extending to the rear of the saucer and following the curve to the auxiliary deflector incision . More protection was provided by an array that extended across the ventral engineering hull just fore of the warp core ejection port . Far - aft strips were provided on the underside of the variable - geometry nacelle pylons and under the shuttlebay landing deck on the underside of the ship for a total ship ' s complement of fourteen phaser arrays . ( ) Additional phaser bank s included at least four separate phaser emitter s , two in the aft torpedo launcher , ( ) one aft phaser bank located behind the second tractor beam emitter , in the aft section of deck 14 , ( ) and an embedded emitter on the ventral surface of the ship ' s right nacelle . ( ) Torpedo systems . The " Intrepid " - class housed five standard torpedo launcher s ( two fore and two aft , and one on the ventral side of the ship ) . The USS " Voyager " was loaded with Type 6 photon torpedo es in 2371 . The ship also had class - 9 and at least four class - 10 photon torpedoes and two tricobalt device s in her torpedo arsenal . ( ) In addition , the ship also carried spatial charge s , that could also be used as subspatial charges to cause subspace disturbance . There were also photon charge s and photon burst s . The ship also had gravimetric charge s , that could be installed into photon torpedoes , turning them into extremely destructive gravimetric torpedo es . Cardassian quantum torpedo es were also compatible with " Intrepid " - class launchers , with some modification . ( , " et al " . ) Deflector shields . There were a total of fourteen external shield grids on an " Intrepid " - class starship . ( ) The shields of " Intrepid " - class vessels were superior to earlier designs . They included multiphasic and multi - spectrum shielding . ( ) The shields allowed the ship to survive near a binary pulsar for a few minutes and even a planetary explosion at short range . ( ) Tractor beam . Each " Intrepid " - class tractor beam emitter was directly mounted to the primary members of the vessel ' s framework . The forward emitter was located on the underside of the secondary hull under the main deflector dish . The second emitter was located at the aft end of the secondary hull in the aft section of deck 14 . ( ) Crew support systems . Medical facilities . There was one large sickbay facility located on deck 5 , equipped with an intensive - care unit ( ICU ) , bio - hazard support , critical care , a morgue , the chief medical officer ' s office , a load - out of three standard biobed s and one surgical bed in the main ward , and a small medical laboratory . It is the same design as seen in " Sovereign " - class starships . ( ) The standard medical staff consisted of a doctor and a nurse , supplemented by the Emergency Medical Hologram , the " Intrepid " - class being one of the first to be equipped with this medical technology . ( ) Three biobeds lined the walls of sickbay ' s ICU ; these were for patients receiving medical care and were equipped with biofunction monitor s . Located in the corner of the main ward was a surgical bed , where major surgeries were performed and critical patients were treated . A large , sophisticated sensor cluster was installed in the ceiling directly above this bed . Working with a medical tricorder , the sensor suite could give detailed information about a patient ' s condition . The bed was also designed to use a surgical support frame . The small area that the surgical bed was located in could be isolated by a force field . If necessary , surgery could be conducted in the intensive care ward if there was an overflow of patients or if another patient was present to donate blood . ( ) Located in the center of the sickbay facility was the chief medical officer ' s office . Here , the CMO was provided with an area to work in privacy or conduct meetings with patients , staff , and others . Its proximity allowed the CMO to be present in sickbay almost immediately . Located behind this office was a small medical laboratory facility . The medical staff or other associated personnel could monitor experiments or run tests here during their duty shifts . Just off the medical lab was located a tiny area for storage of the deceased . ( ) Recreational facilities . There were two holodeck s aboard the ship . Located on deck 6 , these holodecks were proprietary Federation technology and could comfortably support fifteen people at a time . The " Intrepid " - class ' holodecks were of a next generation of holographic technology , even further advanced than those applied on board Starfleet vessels during the 2360s , being able to impersonate matter even at the molecular level . ( ) The holodecks of an " Intrepid " - class used a more efficient implementation of replicator technology to reduce power consumption when operational . This was achieved by using replicator technology to create static objects , which required no additional energy to maintain . Standard holo - emitter technology was used for dynamic objects . This allowed for continued use even when energy supplies were low , differing from those installed on earlier vessels , including the , on which holodecks were automatically shut down when ships ' energy dropped below safe levels . ( ) On the " Intrepid " - class vessels , the mess hall was on deck 2 , section 13 . Some ships were equipped with four food replicator s , with a private captain ' s dining room just behind the mess hall . This dining room could be reconfigured to serve as a kitchen , as done by Neelix aboard " Voyager " . The ' s mess hall was also fitted in this manner . ( ; ) The mess hall was typically host to many social gatherings , including diplomatic affairs , birthday parties , memorial services , weddings , and holiday celebrations . The mess hall could also serve as a makeshift sickbay whenever that facility was disabled or otherwise overwhelmed . ( , , , , ) A crew ' s lounge was located in the far aft section of the vessel ' s secondary hull , providing a view of space aft of the " Intrepid " - class starship . ( , etc . ) The " Intrepid " - class also had a gymnasium . ( ) Crew accommodations . All crew and officers ' quarters ( except the captain ' s quarters on deck 3 ) were located on decks 2 , 4 , 8 , 9 , and 13 , with special variable environment quarters on deck 11 for crew with special comforts . Although the " Intrepid " - class was highly advanced , the quarters in general were smaller than those of other vessel classes because of its smaller dimensions . ( ) There were several types of crew quarters aboard : Scientific department . The " Intrepid " - class starship housed multiple scientific research labs , which included biology , medical , stellar cartography , and holographic research . Transporter systems . The " Intrepid " - class featured three transporter facilities that were located on deck 4 . In case of emergencies , injured personnel could be directly transported to sickbay from anywhere in transporter range , including inside the ship . ( ) Like many Federation starships , the " Intrepid " - class ' transporters had six standard pads located in front of a control console . Here the transporter controls were located in an elevated booth , and two officers could operate them in conjunction with a wall panel for more complicated transports . Like most systems aboard the " Intrepid " - class , the transporters utilized bio - neural gel packs in their processor systems . ( ) Auxiliary spacecraft systems . Located on deck 10 , in the aft dorsal portion of the secondary hull , shuttlebay 1 was the primary port for entrance and egress for auxiliary craft and shuttle s . Shuttlebay 1 was a large L - shaped room . ( ) Behind the main shuttlebay was an even larger hangar , known as shuttlebay 2 , where the construction , repair and maintenance of auxiliary craft was performed . Shuttlebay 2 could also be depressurized and spacecraft could be launched from there . ( ) The " Intrepid " - class starship was typically equipped with the following types of shuttlecraft : the Class 2 shuttle , the Type 6 shuttlecraft , and the Type 8 shuttlecraft . The crew of the , stranded in the Delta Quadrant , constructed the " Delta Flyer " for more complex auxiliary spacecraft operations . The craft was in operation since early 2375 . The " Intrepid " - class was also equipped with a runabout - size aeroshuttle , that was visible on the underside of the ship when it was docked to the hull . ( , " et al . " ; ) Appendices . Background information . Some of the information in this article is adapted from Rick Sternbach ' s guide to the development of the class from , under the Starfleet Technical Database banner . Development . The process of developing the " Intrepid " - class began in mid - , during secretive development meetings that served as the starting point for . With the meetings having begun in July of that year , Executive Producer Jeri Taylor , on , noted in a summary of the discussions thus far , " " The ship is a sleek , nifty , new - generation vessel , with some improvements , though smaller than the " Enterprise . " ( " " , p . 175 ) Rick Sternbach and Michael Okuda were brought into the development proceedings in early September 1993 and , in late September , Sternbach started sending memos to Executive Producer Rick Berman , concerning the ship class . ( " " , pp . 198 & 208 ) One of these memos , dated 25 September , was a four - page document in which Sternbach commented on the class ' size , saying that a ship half the size of the " Enterprise " - D would still be " an impressive vessel " and that – if it was instead about three quarters of the " Enterprise " s size – it would still be in good company , being roughly the same size as the or ships . Sternbach also updated Berman by saying he was about to begin sketching " some rough doodles " for the class ' physical configuration . Somewhat concerned about how to differentiate the class from past vessels while simultaneously keeping a sense of lineage , Okuda wrote a memo to Berman , two days later , expressing this concern . ( " " , p . 207 ) In the first draft script of ( dated ) , the " Intrepid " - class was referred to as " a sleek bullet of a ship , built for action , capable of holding a crew compliment of one hundred and twenty - five . " Warp drive capabilities . According to " " and the " " , warp factor 6 is the actual cruising speed for the " Intrepid " - class . would support this , as the episode begins with " Voyager " cruising at warp 6 , as does , in which the average speed of warp 6 . 2 was estimated as the speed " Voyager " was traveling towards the Alpha Quadrant . According to the text of the " Technical Manual " , warp 9 . 2 is supposed to be the maximum sustainable speed , while warp 9 . 6 is the rated top speed and warp 9 . 9 is a speed that can be sustained for only a few minutes . In a speed chart , the " Manual " contradicts itself by giving instead warp 9 . 975 as the top rated speed , that can be maintained for 12 hours . According to the chart , the 9 . 975 speed corresponds to a velocity of 3 , 056 times the speed of light . This would be much slower than what warp 9 . 9 was canonically established to be in , well over twenty - one thousand times the speed of light . Canonically , in , , and , " Voyager " is specifically stated having the maximum " cruising " speed of warp 9 . 975 . In the episode , when accelerating to and attempting to match warp 9 . 97 , the computer warned of imminent structural collapse . In the episode , it is only possible to maintain warp 9 . 75 for twelve hours . It is also stated in the episode by Chakotay , that " Voyager " is not able to sustain its maximum warp at that time . The maximum warp is however used in several episodes before and after " The Swarm " for extended periods . Finally the maximum warp is given a canonical speed estimate in two episodes . In , the ship is capable of crossing 132 light years in one month at maximum warp . This turns out to be only about 1 , 554 - 1 , 721 times the speed of light . In , the ship is capable of crossing 40 light years in 5 days at maximum warp . This in turn is 2 , 922 times the speed of light . The later estimate is closer to the 3 , 056 times the speed of light mentioned in the " Manual " . The reasons for " Voyager " s lack of ability to maintain optimal warp speeds are given in the " Star Trek : Voyager Technical Manual " . There were very limited refueling and overhaul assets available during the journey , and the crew had to allow the engines down time for cooling . Furthermore according to the " Manual " , the 75 year travel time figure established in " Caretaker " was never meant to be a realistic estimate . It was based on the assumption that " Voyager " would maintain warp 9 . 6 or warp 9 . 99 and travel uninterruptedly directly to Earth . A more realistic figure of two to four hundred years to cross the Delta Quadrant and into the Beta Quadrant was the more realistic predicament at the beginning of the series . Designing the bridge . After six years as production designer on " The Next Generation " , Richard James was no stranger to the legacy of " Star Trek " and the production requirements of episodic television . When given the assignment to create a new starship from the inside out , he had to start up from scratch . Nothing had yet been established , and thus for his first meeting with s creators and producers , James decided to push the boundaries of everything that had gone before . ( " The Art of Star Trek " ) The first draft script for described the " Intrepid " - class bridge as " the most advanced , impressive Bridge facility in the history of " Star Trek . " " Early concept sketches show bridge designs without the large viewscreen in the front of the bridge and command functions decentralized , obviously breaking the traditional bridge mold . However , by exhaustively re - examining the dramatic requirements and technological underpinnings of the " Star Trek " bridge without preconceptions , Richard James rediscovered the strengths of the basic template laid out by Matt Jefferies almost thirty years earlier . With the broad strokes of the bridge ' s layout firmly embedded in " Star Trek " s past , James and his team went on to bring a new interpretation to the bridge . ( " The Art of Star Trek " ) The " Intrepid " - class bridge included eleven monitors , all of which were fed composite video from the bridge ' s video control unit . This consisted of a wheeled cart with five 3 / 4 - inch video decks and a couple of computers . Usage of the computers was only occasional and varied between either a single computer or both of them . ( " " issue 144 , pp . 29 & 30 ) Apocrypha . The " Intrepid " - class starship was featured in Activision ' s " " and " " , while the USS " Voyager " appeared in " " and " " . In Bethesda Softworks ' " " , the " Intrepid " - class is a playable ship , with the USS " Voyager " as one of the possible names of this class of ship . " Star Trek Online " also features it as a playable ship for players ranked Captain or above , wherein it is referred to as a " long range science vessel " . Star Trek Online also features , in addition to the standard Intrepid - class , two additional variants based upon the and one equipped with an ablative generator are available .