# Your favorite version of the USS Enterprise **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 31, 2019, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814 "2019-05-31T09:00:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/21 "2019-05-31T20:37:37Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > The original was a beautiful, clean design that looked as though it could fly. Never looked practical to me. The force of the engines would tear them right off those silly struts they were placed on. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/22 "2019-05-31T20:45:02Z")
I never liked the look of the Enterprise B, the main one from the Next Generation. It looks way too curved and tapered to be practical for making flat decks on the inside, especially the connection between the primary and secondary hulls. And it reminds me of a mad goose. > [@Chimera](#): > > Never looked practical to me. The force of the engines would tear them right off those silly struts they were placed on. It’s a fictional world that has faster-than-light speed that doesn’t create relativity-based anomalies, like changes in perception of time. It has spacecraft with earth-like gravity. I don’t think the laws of physics apply as we know it. I’m not even sure that warp drive is supposed to work like force-propulsion (the “impulse” engines are attached to the back of the saucer section). ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/23 "2019-05-31T21:12:04Z")
D. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/24 "2019-05-31T21:30:29Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > AMT had exclusive marketing rights to _ **Star Trek** _ back then. I had the model too, along with one of the Klingon battle cruiser. I had to guess on that. I built a few other plastic models, that’s the one I really liked. ---
**Author:** ![ekedolphin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ekedolphin/32/10003_2.png) [@ekedolphin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ekedolphin)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/25 "2019-05-31T21:31:33Z")
I’d rather live on the D than any of the others, but I think the A is prettier. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/26 "2019-05-31T22:33:01Z")
I liked this one, because it actually worked. > **[Space Shuttle Enterprise](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Enterprise)** > > Space Shuttle Enterprise (Orbiter Vehicle Designation: OV-101) was the first orbiter of the Space Shuttle system. Rolled out on September 17, 1976, it was built for NASA as part of the Space Shuttle program to perform atmospheric test flights after being launched from a modified Boeing 747. It was constructed without engines or a functional heat shield. As a result, it was not capable of spaceflight. > Originally, Enterprise had been intended to be refitted for orbital flight to become the seco... ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2019, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/27 "2019-05-31T22:57:27Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I don’t think the laws of physics apply as we know it. Ye canna change the laws of physics! ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/28 "2019-06-01T00:06:50Z")
CV-6 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/29 "2019-06-01T02:09:44Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Never looked practical to me. The force of the engines would tear them right off those silly struts they were placed on. As noted elsewhere, the warp engines do not provide thrust. They create a warp field that propels the ship through space like a fly trapped in amber. The only criticism I have about the impulse engines is that they wouldn’t be of much help out in deep space, since they provide sublight propulsion only. One of the \*\*dumbest \*\*things about \*\*\*TNG \*\*\* was having the saucer act as a lifeboat for all the nonessential personnel (i.e., children) in the event of a battle. Unless there’s another allied vessel _very close by_ to come to their aid, they’re either gonna be sitting ducks for the hostile spacecraft, or they’re going to spend one helluva long time trying to get back to safety. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/30 "2019-06-01T02:13:54Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Ye canna change the laws of physics! Aw, come on Scotty! You can do it for _me_! ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/31 "2019-06-01T02:15:25Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > I never liked the look of the Enterprise B, the main one from the Next Generation. That was the -D, and it was indeed an ugly design. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/32 "2019-06-01T03:06:19Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > One of the \*\*dumbest \*\*things about \*\*\*TNG \*\*\* was having the saucer act as a lifeboat for all the nonessential personnel (i.e., children) in the event of a battle. Unless there’s another allied vessel _very close by_ to come to their aid, they’re either gonna be sitting ducks for the hostile spacecraft, or they’re going to spend one helluva long time trying to get back to safety. Which arguably is a better option than having them all automatically go down with the ship in case of a battle or non-combat disaster. Supposedly though, one of the advantages of the saucer separation was that by relieving the stardrive section of the mass of the saucer, you could greatly improve it’s tactical effectiveness. If that was true though then while Starfleet had huge fleets set up for the Dominion War, why did they often show whole Galaxy class vessels with saucer intact as part of the fleet? That would seem to be the perfect time to ditch the saucer, leave it at the starbase, and just send the warp capable stardrive section into the fray. TV writers, who can figure them? ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/33 "2019-06-01T03:39:14Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > Which arguably is a better option than having them all automatically go down with the ship in case of a battle or non-combat disaster. Better to not have them on board AT ALL. I can see using the saucer as a lifeboat in a non-combat emergency, but if there are hostiles around, they’re gonna go for the saucer first and either blow it to smithereens or capture and enslave everyone on board. If the standard configuration of a starship is so ineffectual in battle, why have they been building them that way for more than a century? Kirk never had any problems fighting hostiles—except, of course, circuits would blow and the shields would go down after three or four phaser/disruptor hits. (I suspect all of Starfleet’s vessels were built by the lowest bidder.) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/34 "2019-06-01T03:54:38Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > (I suspect all of Starfleet’s vessels were built by the lowest bidder.) With all of the problems it has, I call _Voyager_ ‘United Federation Starship _Rickety Raft_’. . ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/35 "2019-06-01T04:51:04Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > I liked this one, because it actually worked. > [Space Shuttle Enterprise - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Shuttle_Enterprise) but [this one](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enterprise_(balloon)) flew first. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/36 "2019-06-01T13:58:57Z")
The whole “saucer separation” thing was a cute idea that grew out of one line of dialogue in the original series (“The Apple”: " Discard the warp drive nacelles if you have to, and crack out of there with the main section, but get that ship out of there!").\* There are, as noted, issues with the idea (basically, it just becomes a huge floating target), but if it were truly to result in increased maneuverability of the remaining portion of the ship, it might have value. What I objected to was that episodes after the pilot actually had the saucer section fly at warp speeds, which made absolutely zero sense, given that the warp nacelles were no longer anywhere around it. I think the fact that the separated saucer section never became a real focus of any episode after the pilot showed that later writers understood the inherent limitations in the concept. - Yes, I know similar dialogue exists in “The Savage Curtain”. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/37 "2019-06-01T14:36:10Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Aw, come on Scotty! You can do it for _me_! But, I’ve got to have thirty minutes! ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/38 "2019-06-01T14:37:37Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > But, I’ve got to have thirty minutes! Try shoving a weenie up my warp drive! . ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/39 "2019-06-01T15:33:13Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > The original is the only one for me. This. I still have my original blueprints. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2019, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814/40 "2019-06-01T19:56:27Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Better to not have them on board AT ALL The Enterprise is not primarily a military vessel. It is primarily a scientific, research, diplomatic, and cultural vessel. Removing the civilians would make it useless for the purpose they built it for 99 percent of the time. So certain compromises have to be made for that last 1 percent. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-favorite-version-of-the-uss-enterprise/834814.md?page=3)