New Orleans Class

New Orleans-class
Accommodation:	290 Officers and Crew-{Evacuation Limit 4,200}
Classification:	Frigate [Defensive/Explorer/Diplomatic]
Development Project Started:	2334
Production Start Date:	2339
Production End Date:	2359
Length:	345 meters
Width:	246 meters
Height:	75 meters
Weight:	1,100,000 metric tons
Cargo Capacity:	Dependant upon mission type
Hull Composition:	Duranium/Tritanium Hull
Number of Decks:	18 Total.

Locations of New Orleans Class Construction:

San Francisco Fleet Yards, Earth, Copernicus Fleet Yards, Luna, Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards, Mars, 40 Eridani-A Starfleet Construction Yards, Starbase 134 Integration Facility, Rigel VI and Beta Antares Fleet Yard, Antares B.

New Orleans Class Mission Profile

The New Orleans Class design was intended to incorporate and improve upon propulsion technologies created for the Springfield Class Development Project. Incorporate latest advancements in Isolinear computer core and sub processor technologies. Serve as a platform for ongoing testing of new technologies for projected Starfleet interests. Provide a mobile platform for a wide range of ongoing scientific and defensive research projects. Replace aging Excelsior, Renaissance and Miranda-class starships as the primary instrument of Starfleet's defensive programs. Supplement Constellation and Ambassador-class starships in medium-sized multi-mission applications. Provide autonomous capability for full execution of Federation policy options in outlying border areas, Federation territories, and shipping lines.

GENERAL INFORMATION:

The New Orleans Class Development Project began in 2334 with the intent of expanding upon the successful Springfield-class design and ushering in a new era of warp propulsion originally conceived for the Transwarp project. While falling far short of the expected speeds that the Transwarp project promised, new advances in warp geometry allowed computer simulations to postulate that speeds in excess of Warp 9.2 were possible, greatly improving over the Warp 8.9 limit that the Springfield suffered. While retaining the familiar saucer section of the Springfield, the most noticeable addition to the New Orleans spaceframe is the engineering section and redesigned warp nacelles. Coupled with a revolutionary isolinear computer system and the unique ability to be equipped with mission-specific pods, the New Orleans quickly became a favorite during the mid-24th Century.

Taking the Springfield design to the next level, an engineering hull was attached to the lower saucer and, unlike the Ambassador and later Galaxy-class, the absence of a connecting "neck" between the primary and secondary hull produced a smaller profile that was more difficult to hit. This design would see further development with the Nebula and Intrepid-class designs, which also lack the vulnerable connecting segment that was blamed for the loss of several Galaxy-class starships during the Dominion War. With the launch of a hull capable of separating and then reattaching some 20 years away, as well the New Orleans's relatively small size, it was deemed unnecessary to develop the ability to separate the ship in a manner similar to the Excelsior and Ambassador classes.

As projected the class is currently being retired, twenty years short of its original design lifetime. This early retirement is the result of current predictions in overall fleet production. Several hulls that were originally decommissioned or only partially completed prior to the end of the class's production run in 2359 were brought back to full operational status during and after the Dominion War in an effort to reinforce the falling numbers in the Federation fleet.

With most of the New Orleans-class's original mission objectives taken over by starships developed in the past half-century, it is not surprising to see that the ship has been tailored for more mission-specific applications. The use of the design's pods has allowed for the starship to easily be reassigned for multi-mission applications, making it one of the smallest designs capable of handling an endless amount of customized applications in the medium-sized starship range.

PHASER ARRAY

The New Orleans class is currently equipped with six Type-X Phaser arrays at key locations throughout the ship's hull, although early versions made use of the older Type-IX Phaser array. This upgrade was rather relatively simple to do, since the design of the New Orleans Phaser system took into account the anticipated completion of the then experimental Type-X emitter.

Two large Phaser arrays located on the dorsal and ventral surfaces of the saucer section provide the largest firing arcs, and are thus equipped to handle the most energy through EPS taps that supply the one hundred plus emitter segments with the power needed to generate a sustained beam. Two additional arrays are located on the ventral surface of the engineering hull, although both are slightly blocked by the lower mission-specific pod - an oversight from the rushed production designs. Two final arrays are mounted on the nacelle pylons, just below the ejection assemblies for the warp nacelles and provide sweeping coverage of targets laterally.

Individually, each type X-emitter can only discharge approximately 5.1 MW (megawatts). However, several emitters (usually two) fire at once in the array during standard firing procedures, resulting in a discharge of approximately 10.2 megawatts. The maximum effective range on the Type X emitter is 300,000 kilometers.

TORPEDO LAUNCHERS

Even without torpedo pods mounted to the ship's exterior, the New Orleans is equipped by default with both a forward and aft launcher. Originally, these tubes were upgraded versions of launchers designed for the Ambassador and Niagra-class. During the class's first refit, these launchers were replaced with custom assemblies designed specifically for the New Orleans, with the added benefit of being able to fire weapons and probe packages that differ from the traditional photon torpedo casing. Like more recent ships in the Federation fleet, this allows for the New Orleans to handle quantum torpedoes and tri-cobalt devices - although it should be stressed that the class is only equipped with such devices for select special operations due to supply limits.

The forward torpedo launcher, like the aft, is a fixed-focus system consisting of a standard gas pressure chamber, elevator assembly, torpedo magazine and launcher, capable of holding eight torpedoes for simultaneous launch. It is located just above the main deflector on Deck 12, but due to the relatively short connecting neck between the hulls, its firing arc during launch is limited with the primary hull only a few decks up. Nonetheless, already-launched torpedoes have internal guidance systems that can maneuver the weapon towards targets not directly in the launcher's arc. The aft launcher is the only defensive weapon aboard the ship capable of firing directly to the aft of the starship, and is located on Deck 15.

Torpedo Pods: New Orleans-class vessels benefit by the ability to be equipped with specialized mission-specific torpedo pods, allowing for greater tactical flexibility in combat operations. These pods are equipped with both a forward and aft launcher that are both capable of tilting 12-degrees in all directions, allowing for the launchers to better line up with targets not directly along the vehicle centerline.

All New Orleans-class vessels are currently equipped with a total of 85 Mark XXV photon torpedoes. Individual torpedo pods are capable of containing an additional 45 photon torpedoes each.

DEFLECTOR SHIELDS

Well defended for a ship of its size, the New Orleans-class makes use of a total of seven symmetrical subspace graviton generators feeding several strategically located deflector grids embedded into the ship's hull. Upgraded since the class's initial launch, these graviton field generators consist of a cluster of twelve 32 MW graviton polarity sources feeding a pair of 625 millicochrane subspace field distortion amplifiers. Three generators are located within the primary hull, two are located in the engineering hull and there is one generator located on each of the nacelle pylons, just below the nacelles themselves.

Near full-spectrum shielding prevents onboard sensors from gathering scientific and tactical information, so the operation of shields at full output is deemed undesirable and unrealistic if a ship is to make full use of its onboard sensors. Instead, Cruise Mode operating procedures dictate that the system always operate at 5% output at specific frequency bands necessary to protect the spacecraft's habitable volume to SFRA-standard 347.3(a) levels for EM and nuclear radiation.

Shields operate at two basic ranges when fully activated. The first is a large bubble field that has a common center within the ship and expands outward in the rough shape of the starship, allowing for objects close to the hull, such as smaller vessels, to be protected. The other is a mode that operates at a uniform distance from the hull, averaging ten to twelve meters. Both modes make use of relatively new design modifications that protect the spacecraft from new energy weapons, such as the Breen dampening device.

COMPUTER CORE

Number of computer cores: Two; Two twin computer cores rest near the center of the primary hull, each spreading across a total of three decks. While a single core is capable of operating all computer functions aboard the ship, a second core not only offers redundancy should the first core fail, but gives the added benefits of increased storage capacity and processing speeds. The upper third of each core is capable of faster-then-light (FTL) processing speeds accomplished through the usage of subspace fields. Additionally, a network of 160 quadritronic optical sub processors throughout the ship augment these processing abilities. These sub processors also operate as a redundant backup system in the event that both cores are inoperable.

WARP PROPULSION SYSTEM

The New Orleans Class is equipped with Theoretical Propulsion Group [TPG] Class-6 Matter/Anti-Matter Reaction Drive feeding two warp nacelles. Limited access to information about this drive is currently available on Starfleet Omnipedia Databases.

Normal Cruising Speed: Warp 6

Maximum Speed: Warp 9.98 for twelve hours

Note: Vessels equipped with the TPG M/ARA Drive System no longer have the maximum cruising speed limit of Warp 5, thanks to innovations discovered and utilized in the development of the Intrepid- and Sovereign-class starships. Pursuant to Starfleet Command Directive 12856.A, all starships have received upgrades to their WPS to prevent further pollution of subspace.

IMPULSE PROPULSION SYSTEM

Like the Ambassador-class, the New Orleans utilizes space-time driver coils within its impulse engines to create a non-propulsive symmetrical subspace field that effectively lowers the ship's mass, making it capable of pushing the entire spacecraft using less fuel. There are three impulse engines on the ship, two at the aft section of the saucer, and one along the main structural spine of the secondary hull. While all three engines are capable of propelling the entire vehicle up to .25c, or full impulse, alone, the main impulse engine in the secondary hull is typically used to provide all impulse propulsion in cruise mode. During combat situations, the saucer engines supplement the main impulse engine and, together with the main impulse engine, allow the ship to reach speeds approaching .75c, or maximum impulse. Due to time displacement concerns, speeds greater then .25c are avoided except during emergency circumstances. The saucer impulse units also provide additional thrust should the ship be equipped with a tractor towing pod, allowing it to ferry ships much larger then the New Orleans.

NAVIGATION DEFLECTOR

Vessels of the New Orleans class make use of two scaled down deflectors systems of what was later developed to become the standard deflector systems aboard Nebula and Galaxy-class starships. The main navigation deflector is located at the forward-most part of the engineering hull and spreads across Decks 14-18, with the dual subspace field distortion amplifiers located on Deck 15.

Composed of molybdenum/duranium mesh panels over a duranium framework, the dish can be manually moved 7.2 degrees in any direction off the ship's Z-axis. The main deflector dish's subspace field and sensor power comes from three graviton polarity generators located on Decks 14 and 17, each capable of generating one hundred twenty-eight megawatts which feed into the two 550 millicochrane subspace field distortion amplifiers.

A backup deflector is located on the ventral side of the primary hull, and in addition to its role as a backup, the secondary deflector serves to reinforce the ship's warp field at speeds exceeding Warp 8.5. Originally seen as a means to augment the warp field due to technological limitations in graviton field generation during the development of the pathfinder vehicle, the saucer deflector is actually identical to the primary deflector of the Springfield-class and is more or less a carry-over in the design process.

TRACTOR BEAM

The New Orleans Class is equipped with a multiphase subspace graviton beam, used for direct manipulation of objects from a submicron to a macroscopic level at any relative bearing. Each emitter is directly mounted to the primary members of the ship's framework, to lessen the effects of isopiestic subspace shearing, inertial potential imbalance, and mechanical stress. Large steerable tractor emitters are located on the underside of the engineering hull at both the front and aft, allowing for easy towing or pushing of objects. Smaller mooring tractor emitters are located on each RCS thruster quad, which are located throughout the ship. A series of emitters, located around the Main Shuttlebay, allow for automated guiding of shuttles and small vessels into the ship's bay.

Each tractor beam emitter is built around two variable phase sixteen megawatt graviton polarity sources, each feeding two 475 millicochrane subspace field amplifiers. Phase accuracy is within 2.7 arc-seconds per microsecond. Each emitter can gain extra power from the Structural Integrity Field by means of molybdenum-jacketed waveguides. The subspace fields generated around the beam (when the beam is used) can envelop objects up to one thousand meters, lowering the local gravitational constant of the universe for the region inside the field and making the object much easier to manipulate.

Effective tractor beam range varies with payload mass and desired delta-v (change in relative velocity). Assuming a nominal five m/sec-squared delta-v, the primary tractor emitters can be used with a payload approaching 7,500,000 metric tons at less than one thousand meters. Conversely, the same delta-v can be imparted to an object massing about one metric ton at ranges approaching twenty thousand kilometers.

TRANSPORTER SYSTEMS

The New Orleans Class is equipped with a total of four personnel transporters capable of a maximum payload mass of 700kg at a maximum range: 40,000 km. The maximum beam Up/Out Rate is approximately eighty persons per hour per Transporter

The New Orleans Class also has a total of four cargo transporters capable of a maximum payload Mass of 400 metric tons.

Finally a total of five emergency transporters which are capable of a maximum range of only 15,000 km (send only) [range depends on available power] with a maximum beam out rate of one hundred persons per hour.

COMMUNICATIONS

Standard Communications Range: 42,000 - 80,000 kilometers with a Standard Data Transmission Speed: 18.5 kiloquads per second. The Subspace Communications Speed: Warp 9.9997

SENSOR SYSTEMS

Long-range and navigational sensors are located behind the main deflector dish to avoid sensor "ghosts" and other detrimental effects consistent with the millicochrane static graviton field output of the deflector system. Lateral sensor pallets are located around the rim of the entire starship, providing full coverage in all standard scientific fields, but with emphasis in the following areas: Astronomical phenomena, planetary analysis, remote life-form analysis, EM scanning, passive neutrino scanning, parametric subspace field stress, thermal variances and quasi-stellar material.

Each sensor pallet, one hundred sixty in all, can be interchanged and recalibrated with any other pallet on the ship, including those in storage. In addition, the New Orleans class can be equipped with mission-specific sensor pods of various types to increase range and power.

TACTICAL SENSORS

There are twelve independent tactical sensors on the New Orleans Class. Each sensor automatically tracks and locks onto incoming hostile vessels or hazardous objects and reports bearing, aspect, distance, and vulnerability percentages to the tactical station on the main bridge. Each tactical sensor is approximately seventy-nine percent efficient against Electronic Counter Measures (ECMs).

STELLAR CARTOGRAPHY

The entrance to the main stellar cartography bay is located on Deck 9, within the Stellar Sciences Division. This dedicated bay has been recently upgraded with new holographic systems that are capable of rendering stellar locations in three dimensions. Comparable in ability to other medium-sized Federation vessels, the bay is only as good as the information it is capable of receiving. When equipped with dedicated sensor pods, the abilities of the bay are increased substantially thanks to the additional sensor power.

SCIENCE LABS

There are typically some thirty-five scientific research labs aboard a New Orleans-class vessel, though like almost all medium to large-sized starships developed in the last century, the internal volume of the ship can be rearranged to accommodate more labs for surveys, or fewer labs for other mission types. Only a handful of labs will remain under the same discipline of science during the ship's lifetime, and are typically in areas of basic sciences vital to Starfleet's mandates of knowledge and exploration.

Most labs share the same basic design due to their modular nature, and can actually be compacted to fit into storage if space is at a premium. This modular design also creates a standard, which makes it relatively easy for mission specialists with specialized equipment to quickly come aboard and setup. All scientific experiments fall under the direct authority of the Chief Science Officer, as well as the Chief Medical Officer depending on the nature of said experiment or study. Sensor allocation time is still approved by the Operations Manager.

MEDICAL SYSTEMS

Protected within the inner-hull on Deck 8, the medical facilities actually consist of several separate areas surrounding the main sickbay. The primary sickbay facility houses some of the finest crew support technology available in Starfleet. A biobed at the center of the room is located directly beneath an overhead sensor cluster, which feeds a wall mounted display capable of showing vital statistics of a person or other life form. Four other biobeds line one of the walls, providing for care several individuals at one time. Attached to this area is the Chief Medical Officer's office.

Directly attached to sickbay is a secondary ward and the primary medical laboratory. Nearby also rests an intensive-care ward, a nursery, two dedicated surgical suites, and a physical therapy facility. All of these areas have recently been upgraded with holographic emitters that allow for the latest version of the Emergency Medical Holographic System to be used.

Counselor's Office: Located near the Arboretum on Deck 9, this office is a medium sized room created with comfort in mind to provide a relaxing environment for the ship's Counselor to perform his or her duty. Away from the busy medical centers on Deck 8, the Counselor's quarters are usually not far from the office.

CREW QUARTERS

All crew and junior officers' quarters are located on decks 8, 10, 11, 13, 14 and 16.

Standard Living Quarters are provided for both Starfleet Non-Commissioned Officers, attached civilian personnel and officers holding the rank of Ensign. These persons are expected to share their room with another crewmate due to space restrictions aboard the starship, and after serving aboard the ship for six months, are eligible to bring family aboard and be relocated to Family Quarters.

Two NCO's or two Ensigns are assigned to a suite. A large living area spreads across two bays at the center of the dwelling. Furnished for comfort, it typically holds a personal holographic viewer, couch, two chairs and a work station as well as a standard replicator. This room is flanked on both sides with identical bedrooms, which each take up one bay in length and house room for a double-sized bed and room for personal belongings. A half-bathroom is located on the opposite side from the bedroom's entrance, and has a sonic shower, wash basin, mirror and several drawers. Provisions for small pets can be made available.

Enlisted crewmembers share quarters with up to four other people of the same gender. A large living area spreads across two bays at the center of the dwelling. Furnished for comfort, it typically holds a personal holographic viewer, couch, two chairs and a work station as well as a standard replicator. This room is flanked on both sides with identical bedrooms, which each take up one bay in length and houses a bunk for two occupants, as well as space for their belongings. A half-bathroom is located on the opposite side from the bedroom's entrance, and has a sonic shower, wash basin, mirror and several drawers. Pets are not allowed for enlisted crewmen.

Crewmen can request that their living quarters be combined to create a single.

Starfleet personnel from the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade up to Commander are given one set of quarters to themselves. In addition, department heads and their first assistant are granted such privileges as well, in an effort to provide a private environment to perform off-duty work. After six months, officers are permitted to bring family aboard the ship and a slightly larger room is allocated to them. Members of the Captain's Senior Staff can have these restrictions waved with the Captain's permission.

These accommodations typically include a two-bay living area at the center of the dwelling, which usually holds a personal holographic viewer, personal workstation, couch, replicator and a small dining area. Connected to this is a bedroom that occupies one bay and features a double-sized bed and room for personal belongings. Normally, the bedroom is connected by a half-bathroom with wash basin, mirror, several drawers and a sonic shower. This can be upgraded to a full-sized bathroom with a bathtub with permission from the Operations officer. Provisions can also be made available for pets.

Officers may request that their living quarters be combined to form one larger dwelling.

Executive quarters are specially designed to give both the Commanding Officer and Executive Officer added comfort and privacy to perform their duties.

The accommodations are similar to that of the Officer's Quarters; however, they feature a longer three-bay living area and a full bathroom by default. Slightly more luxurious furniture is also provided, since the Captain often uses this room as an informal meeting area for both private conferencing and reception of guests.

VIP/Diplomatic Guest Quarters are Located on Deck 2 near the conference lounges, diplomatic quarters are the same as Executive Quarters, but feature private communications terminals for secure conferencing and an additional living area(s) for diplomatic aides. Such facilities on Deck 2 are limited, and in cases involving transport of large numbers of diplomats, VIPs and ambassadors, several areas on Deck 7 can be converted to these quarters. In addition, these quarters can be immediately converted to class H, K, L, N, and N2 environments within a few hours notice.

RECREATIONAL

Serving the Federation's needs on extended border patrol and scientific missions, the New Orleans class is equipped with a total of three standard holodeck facilities on the New Orleans class located on Deck 7.

The Arboretum is located on Deck 9 is housed within the interior of the deck and is unique to each starship. Artificial sunlight simulates both day and night to the many different plant types that grow here.

THE LOUNGE (Seven Forward)

This large lounge is located at the forward-most portion of Deck 7, and serves as a place of social gathering for all members of the crew and their guests. Serving as the social center of the ship, it has a number of tables that line the six windows that grant a spectacular view of what lies ahead of the ship. A bar lines the length of the aft-facing wall of the room and is serviced by an on-duty bartender. Two replicators provide the crew with beverages and food, while a limited stock of alcoholic beverages is available beneath the counter. Most crews decide to give the lounge a nickname that in someway relates to the ship's name or history.

SHUTTLEBAYS

One Main Shuttlebay serves all the necessary auxiliary flight needs of the starship. Spreading across Decks 3 and 4, the bay is also supported by machine shop and maintenance facilities below it on Deck 5. Approximately 35% of bay storage compartments is reserved for mission-specific craft of various types, as well as leaving space for craft from other vessels or stations to dock for the duration of their stay.

Due to the nature of the ship's ability to be customized for mission-specific applications, Cargo Bays 7-9 are equipped with fuel transfer lines and necessary equipment to convert them into limited launch and recovery facilities for shuttle operations. This practice normally comes into use when the vessel is used for colonization activities, where the need for transfers of large amount of materials and people is hampered by local phenomena that prevent safe transport, such as some worlds undergoing terraforming activity that may interfere with transporter beams.

A landing on Deck 3 houses a sealed space/air-traffic control room known as "Flight Ops," which handles all flight operations locally. Flight Ops works in conjunction with the duty Operations Officer on the bridge by taking much of the burden of coordination involving scheduling, launch and recovering of shuttles and other auxiliary craft.

SHUTTLECRAFT

The New Orleans Class is equipped with a total of two shuttlepods, four Medium-size Personnel Shuttles, three Large-size Personnel Shuttles and two work bees.

OPERATIONS

Defensive Operations: With the ability to be equipped with increased firepower, the New Orleans class is capable of being deployed alone on border patrols or supplement larger taskforces in large operations.

Ongoing Scientific Investigation: Even without the benefit of sensor pods, the New Orleans-class starship is equipped with a versatile array of scientific equipment to aide in increasing the knowledge bank of the Federation and her allies.

Federation Policy and Diplomacy: A New Orleans-class starship may also serve a role in diplomatic operations on behalf of Starfleet and the United Federation of Planets. These missions may include transport of delegates, hosting of negotiations or conferences, courier for important people and/or items, and first contact scenarios.

Contact with Alien Life forms: Pursuant to Starfleet policy regarding the discovery of new life, facilities onboard include a variety of exobiology and xenobiological suites, and a small cultural anthropology staff, allowing for limited deep-space life form study and interaction.

Emergency/Search and Rescue: Typical missions include answering standard Federation emergency beacons, extraction of Federation or Non-Federation citizens in distress, retrieval of Federation or Non-Federation spacecraft in distress, and small-scale planetary evacuations - medium or large scale planetary evacuation is not feasible.

Deep-space Exploration: The New Orleans is an ideal platform for deep-space exploration and long-term missions. Several vessels have already returned from three-year deep-space missions with great success. The ability given to the New Orleans-class by the mission-specific pods allows for the ship to perform many different mission types required by Starfleet Command.

LIFEBOATS

The very nature of a starship's duties often require the vessel and crew to be taken into less then ideal circumstances that can vary well lead to the destruction of the entire vehicle spaceframe. As such, the New Orleans class has been equipped with a 3 x 3 x 3 m escape pod designated as an ASRV, or autonomous survival and recovery vehicle. With their successful testing aboard the last of the Renaissance-class starships, the U.S.S. Hokkaido, the standard ASRV is capable of supporting life for eighty-six person days, as well as being able to enter a planet's atmosphere and land on the surface. In addition, survivability while in space can be increased through use of a "gaggle" mode that connects various lifeboats together, sharing their resources amongst the larger group. All lifeboats are equipped with navigational sensors, microthrusters, and emergency subspace communication equipment.

POD MODULES

Unique to only a few starship classes in the Federation fleet, mission-specific pods are outboard equipment vessels that are attached to the ship's exterior.

Torpedo Pod: Equipped with both a forward and aft launcher, the torpedo pod was one of the two pod types originally designed for the New Orleans and was the default type equipped to newly launched vessels. Its internal stores are capable of holding 45 photon torpedoes in each pod, and service to the pod can be made by use of a maintenance walkway that allows access to the torpedo stores, elevator and conveyor assembly, as well as manual launch controls. Torpedo pods are normally deployed either as a set of three or as a pair on the saucer in conjunction with another pod, such as a towing pod when on police patrols of Federation shipping lanes and borders.

Towing Pod: This pod type is equipped with two fusion reactors that power both a forward and aft tractor emitter. In environments that interfere with graviton fields, the tow pod is also equipped with an aft-mounted grappler that has a range of ten kilometers. When having all three pods equipped with towing pods, New Orleans-class vessels have aided in the towing of prefabricated starbase and space station facility components from fleet yard to construction area. In addition, ships equipped with a lower-mounted tractor pod have aided in patrol activities along trade lanes and borders where impounding of vessels most commonly takes place.

Science Pod: The science pod group is actually a suite consisting of two different pod types. The lower-mounted pod consists of specialized planetary survey sensors which can perform geological, biological and meteorological scans of high resolution at faster rates that most Federation starships. The two upper pod emplacements are occupied by long-range sensor systems and lateral scanners designed primarily to assist in investigations of astronomical phenomena, greatly aiding in stellar cartography-related scans. Due to the complexities involved with establishing a stable warp field, usage of the long-range sensors on the pods is only permitted during select situations while the ship is at warp. Should such a situation arise, computer algorithms reshape the warp field surrounding the ship to create two additional holes in the field, allowing only little subspace interference. This process is similar to that of reconfiguring the warp field to allow for use of the bussard collectors.

Cargo Pod: The cargo pod is basically an enlarged storage facility that accomplishes the same task as shipboard cargo bays. The added advantage of having it detachable is that the cargo pod can easily be loaded on a starbase or station facility. Attachment to a ship, provided that there is an unoccupied pod bay, can be done in as little as two hours, allowing for the craft to depart for its cargo destination in rapid order. A single one-person turbolift allows for maintenance of the pod, which contains onboard backup batteries to power atmospheric processors and coolant for perishable cargo types.

Colony Pod: Two twin upper pods provide supplemental housing for colonists, allowing for the entire ship to carry some 500 colonists in decent comfort. Obviously, the ship is capable of transporting even larger numbers, into the thousands though accommodations throughout the ship will be severely taxed. The lower pod is actually a quick-deploy command center for the new colony and has enough fuel for a controlled automated landing from standard orbit. This command center also contains sufficient supplies for the new colony, though the starship's cargo bays do contain more which is transported down to the surface separately, along with the colonists. Once a permanent colony command hub is constructed, the colony landing pod is usually used for storage and lacks the necessary propulsion systems to reach orbit for another use.

Hospital Pod: Rarely seen outside of major disaster areas, the hospital pod group consists of two large elongated bubble-shaped pressure vessels which house medical facilities for use in emergency operations. Transporter pads are located near the center of the pod where they can easily be reached by medical personnel moving injured into the various triage centers. In addition, the pod is also equipped with stasis chambers to stabilize patients for later care and a morgue facility. Spare living quarters aboard the starship are often used to house treated patients, and emergency medical operations apply during this time. The lower pod is a converted cargo pod filled with various medical supplies for use in emergencies, as well as two large transporter emitters that serve to increase the speed with which injured may be transported aboard. This pod type is designed to be attached to a waiting starship in less than two hours, though calibration of the transporter systems must be performed in route and warp travel is restricted to 8.5 due to the energy requirements of projecting a larger warp field to accommodate the larger pods.

Experimental Pod: Usually custom builds, the experimental pod is a generic label used to describe a large number of pod types used in various experiments. These range from testing upgraded torpedo launchers and weapons packages to dedicated scientific research pods and beyond. Some contain internal support systems that allow the pod to act as a free-floating craft, and all typically involve some sort of special starship operating mode.

DECK CONFIGURATION

Deck 1: Bridge, Captain's Ready Room, Observation Lounge

Deck 2: VIP Guest Quarters, Conference Lounges

Deck 3: Upper Main Shuttle Bay, Escape Pods (4), Ship?s Museum/Forward Observation Lounge

Deck 4: Lower Main Shuttle Bay, Shuttlebay Support and Maintenance, Science Labs, Maintenance

Deck 5: Shuttlebay Support and Maintenance, Machine Shop, Transporter Rooms 1-2, Armory, Security Office, Phaser Targeting Range, Holding Cells, Main Science Labs, Escape Pods (10)

Deck 6: Residential Apartments, Captain's Quarters, Holodecks 1-3 (Upper Bay), Captain?s Personal Mess, Officer's Mess (S), Crew Mess (P), Main Galley, Upper Pod Maintenance Access, Plasma Injector Control Room (Upper Level), Escape Pods (32)

Deck 7: Upper Computer Cores 1-2, Executive Officer's Quarters, Fusion Reactor 1-2, Residential Apartments, Holodecks 1-3 (Main Entrance), Recreation Rooms 1-6, Seven-Forward Lounge, Plasma Injector Control Room (Lower Level)

Deck 8: Mid Computer Cores 1-2, Living Quarters, Transporter Rooms 3-4, Sickbay, Medical Laboratories, Gymnasium, Swimming Pool, Saucer Impulse Engines (P/S), IPS Maintenance, Saucer RCS Thruster Quads (4), Docking Ports 1-3, Escape Pods (50)

Deck 9: Lower Computer Cores 1-2, Residential Apartments, Arboretum, Counselor's Office and Quarters, Stellar Cartography, Stellar Sciences, Hydroponics Bays 1-4, Biological Laboratories

Deck 10: Living Quarters, Environmental Support, Secondary Graviton Generators 1-2, Secondary Deflector Dish, Upper Cargo Bays 1-4, Escape Pods (14)

Deck 11: Main Impulse Engines, IPS Maintenance, Phaser Control, Living Quarters, Lower Cargo Bays 1-4

Deck 12: Main Impulse Engines, Deuterium Storage Tanks and Injection Assembly, Forward Torpedo Launcher, Docking Ports 4-5

Deck 13: Deuterium Storage Tanks and Fill Ports, Living Quarters, Science Labs

Deck 14: Living Quarters, Umbilical Connect Hardpoints, Emergency Batteries

Deck 15: Main Engineering, M/A Reaction Chamber, Aft Torpedo Launcher, Graviton Polarity Generators 1-2

Deck 16: Main Deflector Dish, Living Quarters, Environmental Support, Long-Range Sensors

Deck 17: Antimatter Storage Pods and Injection Assembly, Upper Cargo Bays 5-9, Brig, Graviton Polarity Generator 3

Deck 18: Antimatter Storage Pods, Antimatter Generator, Lower Cargo Bays 5-9, Secondary Graviton Polarity Generator 3, Main Forward and Aft Tractor Emitters, Lower Pod Maintenance Access, Escape Pods (12), M/ARA Exterior Hull Plate, Antimatter Loading Port.

Notes

The vessel shares several design elements with the Galaxy-class. At least one ship of this class, the USS Kyushu, was present at the Battle of Wolf 359 in 2367.

The New Orleans class includes the U.S.S. Kyushu NCC-65491, U.S.S. Renegade NCC-63102, U.S.S. Rutledge NCC-57295 and U.S.S. Thomas Paine NCC-65530.