Gagarin class

The Gagarin class was a type of Federation starship that was in operation with Starfleet in the early 25th century.
== History ==
The Gagarin class is a distant successor to the older of the early 23rd century. Both classes shared the same design layout.
In 2401, several ships of this class were present in the fleet assembled to confront the Borg vessel , and in conjunction with the Borg vessel, were able to defend against a large burst of energy that had threatened the sector. Later that same year, twenty-four ships were assembled for the Frontier Day celebrations over Earth, and were hijacked by their younger crews after they came under the direct control of the Borg Collective. ()
== Interior design ==
=== Command and control systems===
By 2401, the computer systems on board the class had been built to include the Fleet formation mode, also known as Starfleet emergency protocol NX12.11, designed to place all Federation starships within a fleet under the automated control of the Starfleet mainframe. ()
== Ships commissioned ==
;Named
* (NCC-97936)
* (NCC-97949)
* (NCC-97930)
* (NCC-97951)
* (NCC-97955)
* (NCC-97945)
;Uncertain
* (NCC-97944)
;Unnamed
* Unnamed Gagarin-class starships
== Appendices ==
=== Appearances ===
* 
** 
** 
** 
** 
** 
=== Background information ===
The class was presumably named for Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first Human in space.
The total number of Gagarin-class vessels present at Frontier Day was established by Picard Research Assistant Jörg Hillebrand. 
==== Studio model ====
 	
Promotional image of the Gagarin-class Gagarin 	Promotional image of the Gagarin-class Gagarin
 	
Promotional image from Star Trek: Picard featuring Gagarin-class USS Christopher	On the cover of its Online Starships Collection magazine issue
This ship class was first seen in in the apocryphal Star Trek Online game, designed by Hector Ortiz and modeled by Donny Versiga, where it was identified as a 25th century variation of the 23rd century and named for the Shepard-class which appeared in . 
In a unique collaboration between Cryptic Studios, the game's developer, and the creative minds behind , the CGI model of this ship class was introduced to the canonical world of Star Trek by way of the . It was done as a cost-saving measure, while meeting the demands of different parties to add some much needed variety to the ranks of Starfleet, in the wake of the "copy & paste" fleet debacle in the Picard season one finale episode with its single model. 
Though subsequently turned over to the franchise's own visual effects (VFX) department of Picard, where the additional necessary changes were made under the auspices of VFX department heads Jason Zimmerman (Supervisor), Shawn Ewashko (Production Manager), and Brian Tatosky (Associate Supervisor) to make the model ready for its onscreen use, it was decided to keep the in-game livery the model came with as a courtesy to the game developer.
The class vessel USS Gagarin had purely by chance become the June 2020 debut entry of the non-canon Star Trek Online Starships Collection display model/magazine combo partwork publication from Eaglemoss Collections, long before it was even considered for elevation into canon. Had Eaglemoss managed to continue its existence, it is fair to assume that the design would have eventually seen an additional entry in Eaglemoss' sister (canon) partwork publication Star Trek Universe: The Official Starships Collection. Eaglemoss' mainstay Fabio Passaro converted Versiga's CGI model into the files necessary for display model manufacturing, as well as making it suitable for print publication in its accompanying magazine.
===Apocrypha===
In the Star Trek Online universe, there actually is an in-universe rationale why the Gagarin-class resembles its 23rd century Shepard-class predecessor so much, as the class vessels are in effect upgrades of the actual predecessors, which in Online-lore are survivors or salvaged hulls left over from the of 2256-2257. As Starfleet was in dire need of replacement starships to compensate for the heavy losses incurred during the war, over a hundred hulls of several ship classes were gathered for refitting and restoration in located in system in Sector 007 of the Alpha Quadrant. In 2259, though, the shipyard had to be abandoned in a hurry due to an environmental catastrophe when its unstable star flooded the entire system with baryon radiation, rendering it completely unsuitable for any kind of life for the next 150 years. Over the decades, the yard, along with its docked ships became ultimately forgotten about.
In 2410 however, it was by chance discovered that the radiation had abated and that the yard was accessible again and its hoard of ancient starship hulls was found having weathered the decades in pristine condition. For Starfleet in particular, this turned out to be a fortuitous Godsend as it had suffered tremendous losses in the very recent and devastating , which had left the entire Alpha Quadrant in shambles. Starfleet found that many of the salvaged hulls, while old, were still suitable for modernization to 25th century standards, and immediately proceeded to do so under the auspices of its starship design department, the . In the end, it were not only the Shepard-class vessels that became modernized into the Gagarin-class, but also vessels of the,
* which became the 
* which became the – likewise becoming canon with its Picard third season appearances.
* which became the Shran-class
* which became the 
(Star Trek Online Starships Collection, issue 1, pp. 14-17)
===Further Reading===
*Star Trek Online Starships Collection, issue 1, June 2020
===External links===
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*
Category:Federation starship classes
Category:Memory Alpha articles named from supplementary resources