Delta Flyer (2377)

The second Delta Flyer was a reconstruction of the original that was in service aboard the from 2375. Its predecessor was destroyed during a mission to infiltrate the Borg tactical cube 138 in early 2377. ()
This version of the Delta Flyer sported pop-out impulse thrusters, which gave the ship greater sublight speeds. The interior was slightly redesigned with an emphasis on comfort, and the dark tones of the original Delta Flyer were replaced with a more colorful environment. Additionally, the main flight controls were redesigned more like a cross-over between a 20th century aircraft control column (yoke) and a control stick giving the pilot a more hands-on feeling as opposed to conventional touch panels.
The Delta Flyer was equipped with pulse phased weapons and a duranium-reinforced hull. ()
== Missions ==
One of the Delta Flyers first missions was to take part in the first Trans-Stellar Rally, where it was rigged by another competitor to explode after the ship was modified to use enriched deuterium fuel to qualify for the conditions of the race. Its destruction was averted after the warp core was ejected into a class J nebula, containing the antimatter explosion. It was also on this flight that Tom Paris proposed to B'Elanna Torres, and they subsequently went away on the Flyer for their honeymoon. ()
The Delta Flyer saw action when Seven of Nine's cortical implant began to malfunction, infiltrating a damaged Borg ship to steal an implant from one of the many Borg corpses. Although the attempt itself proved pointless, since Seven needed a "transplant" from a living Borg, the endeavor was still an impressive demonstration. ()
On a later mission, while crewed by Harry Kim, Seven of Nine, and The Doctor, the Delta Flyer was captured by a race at war with their holograms, or "photonics", who nearly destabilized The Doctor's holographic matrix. To save him, Seven transferred The Doctor into her Borg implants to keep him safe until they were able to send a message to Voyager, allowing him to control her body and experience real sensations for the first time. ()
It was on a mission in the Delta Flyer that Harry Kim, Seven of Nine, and Neelix encountered a damaged ship that requested Kim become its captain until they reached their destination. The experience did not go as well as Kim had hoped (mainly because the crew turned out to be lying about the contents of their cargo), but it still taught him some valuable lessons about command. ()
The Delta Flyer was used by Chakotay, Tuvok, and Paris to pursue a vessel crewed by Hirogen-created holograms into the atmosphere of a class Y planet. They disabled the vessel's shields to beam B'Elanna Torres to safety, then rescued The Doctor and surviving Hirogen Hunters. ()
The Delta Flyer also proved useful, albeit indirectly, as a means of rescuing the crew after they were nearly all abducted and brainwashed by a group of aliens called the . At the time of the abduction, Chakotay, Harry Kim, and Neelix were using the Delta Flyer on a diplomatic mission to another planet and were thus spared the attack. Following the mission, they were able to recover Voyager and The Doctor, who had remained behind with the newly-created Emergency Command Hologram protocols activated to repair the ship while hiding in a nebula. With this minuscule crew, Voyager tracked down its missing crewmen and was eventually able to effect a rescue. ()
A mission in the Delta Flyer also proved vital in another regard: teaching Q's son, , how to take responsibility for his actions. When Q Junior stole the Delta Flyer and tried to run away from Voyager to escape his father, accompanied by Icheb, it was Icheb becoming injured that convinced Q Junior to make up for what he had done. As a result, Q Junior was able to return to the Q Continuum. ()
The Flyer also saw use on Voyagers first official Starfleet mission for seven years: finding the lost Friendship 1 probe, launched centuries prior as a means of telling other civilizations about Earth's culture and technology in order to announce Humanity's future exploration of the galaxy. While Friendship 1 was built with the intention of spreading a message of peace, it was an excellent example of why Starfleet later established the Prime Directive. The inhabitants of the planet where Friendship 1 was discovered used the information it conveyed to rapidly advance their technology. This rapid advancement, specifically in anti-matter technology, caused a nuclear winter and irradiated the entire surface of their planet. The inhabitants blamed Humanity for the disaster, convinced that the probe had been used as a pre-emptive strike against them. Their fears were reinforced when Voyager appeared to recover the probe. Tom Paris, Neelix, and Joe Carey were taken hostage by the inhabitants in an effort to force Captain Janeway to relocate them to a new home to atone for the destruction caused by Friendship 1. After providing medical care for a sick infant, the away team was able to convince the inhabitants that no harm had been intended, although Joseph Carey was shot and killed before matters could be straightened out. ()
One of the more humorous occasions where the Delta Flyer saw use was when Paris, much to his chagrin, was forced to take piloting lessons after violating a local rule of a planet the crew were visiting for shore leave, essentially getting a speeding ticket. The instructor, Mr. Kleg, noted a number of flaws in the Delta Flyers design that he was unhappy with due to the safety violations that they caused. However, due to the need to provide aid for a people with a unique way of life, Paris was forced to leave before the lesson was finished, and consequently received an automatic fail. Paris beamed out the Ledosian expedition team and then, after the ship's transporters were knocked off-line, used the Delta Flyers phasers to destroy the deflector that was taking down the energy barrier protecting the Ventu, flying back into space before the barrier could close again. ()
Fighting alongside Neelix's ship, the Baxial, the Delta Flyer proved pivotal in the defense of a Talaxian asteroid colony against the miners who wished to force the colonists out, buying Neelix enough time to plant force field emitters to protect the colonists. Although this was technically in violation of the Prime Directive, Janeway justified it by the crew coming to the aid of a friend in distress rather than the Talaxians directly. ()
The Delta Flyers last use prior to Voyagers return to the Alpha Quadrant occurred when The Doctor was forced to steal the Flyer and the warp core to bargain for Captain Janeway's life after she was abducted by an alien race. With the aid of Paris and Tuvok in a shuttlecraft, The Doctor and Janeway were able to escape with the warp core. ()
When Ensign Sam Rutherford was contending with a younger personality for control of his body within his subconscious, they agreed to race each other in a simulated Devron 500. Ensign Rutherford chose to recreate this version of the Delta Flyer (and the flight suit used in the Trans-Stellar Rally) as his racer, having always wanted to have one. Rutherford also manifested Brad Boimler, Beckett Mariner, and D'Vana Tendi -- his closest friends -- to serve as the Delta Flyers crew as opposed to the younger Rutherford who chose to fly alone. The Delta Flyer was able to avoid an attack by a Romulan warbird and win the race, beaming aboard the younger Rutherford when the warbird destroyed his ship. ()
==Appendices==
=== Appearances ===
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=== Background information ===
The shuttlecraft is the first recurring starship in Star Trek which was never built as a real model for effects. The succeeding series Enterprise would be the first Star Trek series not featuring any physical models for spaceships.
From the , "In the script [for "Imperfection"], it was referred to as the Delta Flyer II, although in dialog it was called simply the Delta Flyer in all its appearances. The interior set's upholstery was colored differently."
=== Apocrypha ===
In the Star Trek: Voyager - Spirit Walk duology, set after Voyager returned to the Alpha Quadrant, the Flyer remained the property of Tom Paris, who used it to travel to Voyager and assume command after their first mission resulted in Chakotay being captured by Crell Moset and a renegade Changeling that he had been working with.
In the 25th century timeline of Star Trek Online, Starfleet has officially adopted the Delta Flyers design as the Delta-class shuttlecraft. The Delta-class shuttles are equipped with phaser beam arrays, transphasic torpedo technology, and tachyon beams to damage enemy shields.
===External links===
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de:Delta Flyer II
ja:デルタ・フライヤー2
Category:Federation shuttles