Akira Class - Specs

Universe :	Prime Timeline
Affiliation :	Federation
Class Name :	Akira Class
Type :	Heavy Cruiser
Unit Run :	USS Spector [1] - Active NCC 62497 [1] USS Akira [2] - Active NCC 63284 USS Helios [3] - Active [4] NCC 63293 USS Rabin [1] - Active [4] NCC 63549 USS Thunderchild [5] - Active [4] NCC 63887 [3] USS Avalon - Active [4] plus 185 others built in total. 57 have been lost in all.
Commissioned :	2363 - present
Dimensions :	Length : 464.43 m [6] Beam : 316.67 m [7] Height : 87.43 m [7] Decks : 19 [8]
Mass :	3,055,000 [7] metric tons
Crew :	500 [7], evacuation limit 4500 [7]
Armament :	3 [9] x Type X [7] phaser arrays [9], total output 17,500 TeraWatts 15 [10] x Pulse fire photon torpedo tube [2] with 300 rounds
Defence Systems :	Standard shield system, total capacity 1,876,500 TeraJoules Standard Duranium / Tritanium Double hull plus 5.4 cm High density armour. Standard level Structural Integrity Field
Warp Speeds (TNG scale) :	Normal Cruise : 6 Maximum Cruise : 9.3 Maximum Rated : 9.8 [7] for 12 [7] hours.
Strength Indices : (Galaxy class = 1,000)	Beam Firepower : 350 Torpedo Firepower : 3,750 Weapon Range and Accuracy : 910 Shield Strength : 695 Hull Armour : 640 Speed : 1,203 Combat Manoeuvrability : 1,880
Overall Strength Index :	1,493
Diplomatic Capability :	3
Expected Hull Life :	80
Refit Cycle :	Minor : 1 year Standard : 1 years Major : 20 years

Notes

The USS Akira is one of the very few Starfleet vessels which is heavily biased toward the combat role. The ships carry an extremely heavy torpedo armament of no less than 15 photon torpedo tubes. Seven of these are mounted in the large roll bar pod, all facing forwards; the remaining eight are located in the saucer section, two of which face directly out to port and starboard - an unusual feature in a Starfleet vessel. [10]

Another unusual feature of the Akira class is the hangar bay arrangements. There are two large shuttle bays in the saucer section, one at the forward edge of the saucer section and one at the rear. [11] These are linked together through the centre of the ship, allowing large numbers of launch and landing operations to be handled simultaneously. During peacetime this allows the Akira to evacuate large numbers of small survey craft, or ferry evacuees on board at a high rate. During the Dominion war the ships often serve as fighter carriers; in this role they can carry up to one hundred attack fighters, although a load of thirty six fighters and a dozen utility craft is more usual.

The USS Akira entered service in 2363, and a rapid production run put nearly a hundred others into the fleet over the next twelve years. Most were assigned to units on the outer Federation territories, performing patrol and presence missions as well as the normal mapping and exploration duties which any Starfleet vessel is expected to handle.

More recently the escalation of tensions at the Federations core over the last few years has led to almost all of the Akiras being recalled to operate nearer to Earth; thirty five where assigned to the Typhon Sector Fleet in 2370, the remainder being assigned to the areas adjacent to the Cardassian, Klingon and Romulan borders. Akira class vessels featured prominently in the 2373 Borg attack on Earth [2]; the Typhon Fleet, together with several reinforcement squadrons, fought a running battle with the Borg vessel from the Typhon sector to Earth. Many of the ships were destroyed during this battle. A notable participant was the USS Thunderchild, NCC 63549, which participated in the final assault which destroyed the Borg cube. [2]

The Akiras had been due to cease production in 2373, but with the disastrous contact with the Dominion Starfleet decided to continue production at an increased rate. When the Dominion war began, production of the Akira was boosted to eighteen per year as the Federation converted its economy to a war footing. The Akiras have now become a common sight on the front lines, participating in most of the major battles.

In 2401 the Akira class USS Avalon was on patrol when it encountered the formation of a spatial anomaly, which it reported to Starfleet Command. The anomaly would later turn out to have been caused by the Borg. [4]

Colour key

References

#	Series	Season	Source	Comment
1			Star Trek Fact Files
2			Star Trek : First Contact
3			A Twitter thread from Dave Blass, Star Trek: Picard Production Designer.
4	STP	2	The Star Gazer
5			Star Trek Encyclopedia
6			Star Trek Deep Space Nine Technical Manual	Stated on page 153
7			Star Trek Deep Space Nine Technical Manual	Stated on page 153
8			Production drawing
9			Visible on the shooting model
10			Star Trek : The Magazine
11			Generic official information

Comments

The Akira class was one of the four new ship classes seen for the first time in the movie Star Trek : First Contact. We see several Akiras during the initial battle with the Borg; at least two of these are destroyed. The best image of an Akira is seen when the Starfleet ships begin firing on the weak point on the Borg cube. A steamrunner and Akira both open fire, the Akira firing several photons from underneath the leading edge of the saucer section. Another good shot is to be had when the Borg cube explodes; an Akira swoops past the screen just before the scene cuts.

I must confess, I was one of those who argued against the Akira being some sort of super-warship, but it seems that I was totally in the wrong on that one. Since it first appeared, everything we learn about this ship just makes it better and better! The recent Star Trek Magazine article on the ship stated that she had no less than fifteen torpedo tubes, and confirmed the speculation that she was indeed intended to carry and handle large numbers of shuttles with hangar doors both forward and aft on the saucer.

The location of the tubes was given in the article, and is as follows :

Pod: 7 total, 4 in upper section of pod, 3 in lower section, all face forward
Saucer: 7 total, 3 forward below the front shuttle bay doors, 4 in dorsal surface, 2 port, 2 starboard. The latter four face out to port and starboard, respectively - so far as I know these are the only torpedo tubes we've ever seen which don't fire parallel to the direction of motion. Finally there is 1 in the lower hull section, just below the deflector dish.

There are only three phaser arrays visible on the model, one long one on the dorsal saucer and two on the ventral saucer. The DS9 TM calls them type 10, and much of the data on the specs page comes from here.

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Last updated : 5 Jan 2005

Series :	STP Season 2
Episode :	The Star Gazer

Book :	Star Trek Deep Space Nine Technical Manual
Comment :	Stated on page 153