USS Saratoga (NCC-31911)

The USS Saratoga (NCC-31911) was a Federation starship operated by Starfleet during the mid-24th century under the command of a Vulcan captain.
==Service history==
In early 2367, the Saratoga was part of the fleet of forty starships massed at Wolf 359 in defense of Sector 001 during an incursion by a Borg cube. During the battle, the cube locked the Saratoga in a tractor beam, draining her shields until they eventually failed. The Borg then fired a cutting beam at the Saratoga, scoring a direct hit on decks 1 through 4, as well as causing devastating damage. Most notably, the warp core suffered heavy damage that would lead to antimatter containment failure. Many died, including the captain. The first officer, Lieutenant Commander Benjamin Sisko, ordered the crew and civilians to escape pods. Commander Sisko escaped with his son Jake, but his wife Jennifer perished during the attack. The ship was ultimately destroyed by a Borg cutting beam in combination with a warp core breach. ()
File:USS Saratoga 2367 attacked.jpg|Saratoga locked in a Borg tractor beam, 2367
File:Sisko leaves the Saratoga.jpg|The view from the escape pod seconds before the Saratoga explodes, 2367
File:Saratoga explodes.jpg|The Saratoga explodes
== Legacy ==
Following its destruction a model of this ship was on display in the school aboard Deep Space 9 in early 2369. ()
As well, Sisko kept a model of this vessel in his office aboard Deep Space 9. ()
Three decades later, a replica of this Saratoga was placed on display at the Fleet Museum orbiting Athan Prime. ()
== Personnel ==
* USS Saratoga (NCC-31911) personnel
== Appendices ==
=== Background information ===
The Saratoga was a reuse of the studio model built for , relabeled with a new registry. This time around, however, the model was filmed without a "roll bar" like the and two large outboard modules (ostensibly referred to by production sources as sensor pods) were installed. The ship fired phasers from an area usually identified as the lower sensor dome, rather than from any of the phaser emplacements built into the model. It was also mentioned in "Emissary" that the Saratoga was equipped with photon torpedoes, but the ship was never seen firing any at all, and the location of the torpedo launchers was never made clear.
The Saratoga destruction sequence, along with the other Wolf 359 visual effects sequences, was one of the first scenes filmed for "Emissary", during pre-production on the pilot episode. The sequence was shot on a Paramount sound stage, rather than at Image G due to safety reasons over the use of explosives. Three takes were required to achieve the desired detonation – using all three breakaway models built for the sequence. ( – "Space Effects: The Space Race")
The ship's dedication plaque is visible, albeit briefly, on the bridge during the battle scene in "Emissary", though the text is not legible.
The appearance of the older Saratoga in "The Bounty" was confirmed by Dave Blass. According to production art, the Saratoga on display in the museum was built from the older Saratoga (NCC-1887) to resemble the ship destroyed at Wolf 359, and incorporates sections from both vessels. 
=== Apocrypha ===
In the Star Trek Online mission "State of Q" (prior to its being removed), the Iconians send a number of Borg drones back in time to the Saratoga during the Battle of Wolf 359, with the intention of killing Benjamin Sisko and changing history. sends the player back to stop them. The Borg also invade the Saratoga in the game Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - Crossroads of Time. The features survivors of the vessel.
=== External link ===
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Saratoga, USS 31911