Waverider class

## SPACECRAFT CLASS

VAR-1 dorsal view

A Waverider berthed in a Nova-class

*VAR-2:*

* Impulse 0.25c
* Mach-12 (atmosphere)
* Warp 5 (cruising)
* Warp 7.2 (maximum)

*VAR-2:*

* 2 type-V phasers
* micro-launch tube

The ***Waverider*-class** was a type of atmospheric craft developed by Starfleet as an integrated support craft for *Nova*-class starships where it berthed in a special docking port on the ventral side of the primary hull. The craft entered service with the *Nova*-class in the late 2360s and received a significant redesign after the Dominion War.

## History

The *Waverider* was designed to extend the mission profile of the *Nova*-class by facilitating close quarters examination and survey of planetary bodies.

Due to its lack of versatility, the original *Waverider* design proved disappointing. Since it was limited to impulse speeds, it had to be deployed near stellar bodies and in practice it proved more effective to simply use the *Nova* vessel itself to perform the surveys. Those missions requiring warp drive could also be fulfilled by shuttlecraft with slight modification. All these factors were taken into consideration when the *Nova*-class was evaluated after the Dominion War and played a part in a significant rework of the *Waverider*.

Launching with the new *Rhode Island*-class in 2376, the VAR-2 *Waverider* was a major refit of the original design. Several systems were updated and it was fit with a warp propulsion system.

## Technical information

At just over 20 meters in length, the craft was small enough to be carried by the *Nova* class, but large enough to be useful as a support craft for planetary missions. The *Waverider* was equipped with a small general scientific laboratory, a foldaway biobed, and basic medical equipment. Intended to work primarily in atmosphere, the small craft was highly fuel efficient at Mach-5 and above, making use of conventional propulsion with backup impulse and RCS thrusters for maneuvering in space.

Unlike ordinary shuttlecraft, the *Waverider* did not enter the shuttle bay, but instead inserted itself into a recessed docking port in the ventral side of the *Nova*-class primary hull, just forward of the planetary sensor dome.

The *Nova*-class was designed to operate safely without the *Waverider* in place, since its structural integrity field and inertial damping fields produced slightly modified fields in those areas to compensate for the concavity of the *Waverider* docking structure.

### Command systems

The control center of the *Waverider*-class was the cockpit. The foremost consoles were a dedicated flight control station to starboard and an operations station to port, both placed before a large viewport. Four additional consoles were located aft, and though they were configurable depending on mission need, standard arrangement was tactical at the forward starboard console, with auxiliary behind, mirrored by science and engineering stations to port.

Though hardware and systrems were updated, the layout remained the same in the VAR-2 *Waverider's* cockpit.

### Propulsion systems

Flight regulations in the vicinity of the parent starship were generally the same as those for other auxiliary spacecraft, with the one exception being that the *Waverider*, during emergency undockings, could be safely deployed at velocities as high as Warp 7. The shuttle's systems were designed to afford the craft a smooth fallout from a warp field.

The VAR-2 introduced a warp propulsion system to the *Waverider*. The engines took design cues from the *Defiant*-class and the Type 10 shuttlecraft.

During emergency separation, the VAR-2 *Waverider'*s velocity would smoothly transition to its own warp drive, which had a cruising speed of Warp 5.

As Starfleet engineers designed derivatives of the *Nova*, they also made additional changes to its support craft. The *Rhode Island*-class carried the second variant of the *Waverider*.

## Ships commissioned

As with most auxiliary craft aboard starships, the names of specific *Waverider* hulls were chosen by a *Nova's* commanding officer at time of craft assignment.

 *Waverider II* | USS *Nova* | 2377-
 *Sundial* | USS *Equinox* | 2370-2376
 *Providence* | USS *Rhode Island* | 2376-
 *Mistdiver* | USS *Ithmel Zhek* | 2377-

## Appendices

### Connections

**Project groups:** **Union Station** (*Geneva* • *Concorde* • *Presidio*) • **Century Cruiser** (*Springfield* • *New Orleans* • *Challenger* • *Niagara* • *Freedom II* • *Galaxy* • *Nebula* • *Cheyenne*) • **Multi-Mission explorers** (*Brigid* • *Esquiline* • *Palatine*) • **Deep Shadow** (*Eclipse* • *Phantom* • *Scryer*) • **Miracle Worker** (*Scott* • *Daystrom* • *Tucker* • *Gagarin*) • **Aeronaut** (*Mercury* • *Ajax* • *Icarus* • *Shran*)

**Other named classes:** *Aegian* • *Aerie* • *Akula* • *Atlas* • *California* • *Centaur* • *Challenger* • *Cheyenne* • *Constellation* • *Constitution III* • *Crossfield* • *Curry* • *Daedalus* • *Dauntless* • *Excelsior II* • *Freedom II* • *Gemini* • *Glenn* • *Guardian* • *Inquiry* • *Iwo Jima* • *Jupiter* • *Lexington* • *Niagara* • *Obena* • *Okinawa* • *Parliament* • *Perseus* • *Pioneer* • *Ranger* • *Sagan* • *Solanae* • *Springfield* • *Turing* • *Ulysses*

**Auxiliary craft:** *Aero* • Class C • Class F • *Danube* • *Flyer* • *Gondola* • *Kodai* • *Mollard* • *Peregrine* • *Selenic* • Type 4 • Type 5 • Type 6 (Type 6A • Type 6S) • Type 7 • Type 8 • Type 9 (Type 9A) • Type 10 • Type 11 • Type 14 • Type 17 • Type 19 • *Valkyrie* • *Venture* • ***Waverider*** • *Yellowstone*

**Leadership:** Commander-in-chief • Joint Chiefs • Chief of Starfleet External Affairs • Chief of Starfleet Operations • Chief of Starfleet Research and Exploration • Chief of Starfleet Tactical

**Agencies:** Operations (Engineering • Judicial • Materiel Supply • Mission Operations • Personnel Management • Records Service • Shipyards Operations • Starbase Operations) • Research & Exploration (Science • Medical) • External Affairs • Tactical (Intelligence • Security • MACO)

**Notable units:** Ktarn Fleet • Task Force 77

**Facilities:** Deep Space K-7 • Deep Space K-13 • Deep Space 9 • Masamichi Array • Starbase 45-Keepsake • Starbase 82-Maat • Starbase 234-Beskerm • Starbase 247-Vershina

**Agencies:** Starfleet • Diplomatic Corps • Department of Temporal Investigations • Federation Security Agency

**Facilities:** 40 Eridani A Starfleet Construction Yards • Antares Ship Yards • Beta Antares Ship Yards • Copernicus Ship Yards • Laikan Starfleet Shipyards • McKinley Station • Memory Project • New Aberdeen Shipyards • Proxima Maintenance Yards • Salazaar Shipyards • San Francisco Fleet Yards • TL-9139 Starfleet Maintenance Yards • Tranquility Base • Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards

### Sources consulted

* Waverider article at *Memory Alpha*.
* Waverider article at *Memory Beta*.
* Nova-class Specs article at the *Star Trek: A Call to Duty* website.
* WaveRider Technical Manual by Ray9012 on Deviantart.

### Footnotes

1. ↑ Derived from WaveRider - Cockpit cutaway by Falke2009.