Franklin type The " Franklin " - type was a small starship design operated by Starfleet in the mid - 22nd century . After the formation of the in 2161 , the " Franklin " - type was in the . The class was presumably superseded by the , the first class capable of warp five , launched in 2151 . At least one " Franklin " - type vessel , the , was still in Starfleet service in 2164 . ( , ) Ship design . At the forefront of the design that later came to be emblematic of Starfleet ships , the " Franklin " - type featured a saucer - shaped living and command section that contained all necessary control for ship ' s functions , along with living quarters . The " Franklin " - type had two impulse drives positioned at the aft of the ship , facing aft , on either side of a large indent in the saucer . Positioned on two pylons , stretching back and a little outwards from the ship , were two nacelles housing the warp engines . The , launched in the late 2140s , was the first Human ship capable of warp 4 , making it incredibly advanced for its time . Unlike later classes of ship , the " Franklin " - type was built in space and never intended to land on or take off from a planet ' s surface . The only known way for one of these ships to launch from a planet was for it to be dropped off a cliff , causing it to reach terminal velocity , at which point the stabilizers could be initiated for liftoff . The " Franklin " - type contained transporter s , but they were intended for cargo use , not for living matter . However , they could be modified to work on living beings . The " Franklin " - type was also armed with pulsed phase cannon s and spatial torpedo s . ( ) Interior design . Command deck . The bridge was at the top center of the saucer dish , containing all essential command and control functions . The commanding officer of the ship sat in a chair at the center of the bridge , with the helmsman in front of them and communications , science , and engineering stations at consoles spread around the room . Directly in front of the helmsman was the main viewscreen , a transparent window onto which technical information could be displayed . Directly aft of the bridge was the transporter room , which consisted of an open semicircular transporter chamber facing the entrance door , which was next to the control panel for the transporter . Controversy over transporter use at the time meant that the transporter aboard the " Franklin " - type was only intended to be used with cargo . However , modifying the transporter aboard one " Franklin " - type ship , the " Franklin " , in order to transport Humans , was not a significantly difficult venture . ( ) Lower decks . The " Franklin " - type had a mess hall , a warp core directly next to the claustrophobic main engineering chamber , a cargo bay , and a set of officer ' s quarters . The cargo bay and engineering were located on deck 3 , the lowest deck . ( ) Appendices . Background information . The " Franklin " - type was designed by Sean Hargreaves , who described it as initially being " almost like a large shuttlecraft . " Regarding its resemblance to Doug Drexler ' s , Hargreaves stated that the " Franklin " - type was designed independent of that earlier - designed class , with the " Franklin " - type initially featuring nacelles in the down position before the script of " Star Trek Beyond " required them to be flipped above the saucer section for a launch sequence in the film . In one of the earliest " Franklin " concept images that Hargreaves produced , pennants depicting the Starfleet insignia were displayed on the side of the engines . ( " " , USS " Franklin " Special Issue , p . 11 ) In hindsight , he explained that these arrowhead - style pennants were originally only placeholders that were never changed . According to the designer , the " Franklin " was intended to resemble a freighter and was 450 feet long .