USS Melbourne: Difference between revisions

Latest revision as of 06:30, 12 August 2025

"She asks us for so little, and gives us the stars in return."

- Captain Maya Charpentier, USS Melbourne (NCC-62043), 2362.

USS Melbourne (NCC-71944) is a Nebula-class Federation starship currently assigned to the Fourth Fleet.

History

Construction and Commissioning

NCC-71944 was one of a batch of Nebula-class cruisers ordered from Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards in the mid-2360s. Originally to have been named Campania, she was laid down in mid-2366, but was only about 30% complete when the Battle of Wolf 359 in early 2367 rocked the Federation to its core. Construction on Campania was paused a few days later as Starfleet conducted their investigation of the battle and an analysis of the designs present- including the Nebula-class.

By the time the investigation was over and the class was deemed not irrevocably flawed, UPFY was already starting to crank out more tactically proficient vessels and overhauling existing ships, and thus the continued construction of Campania was of low priority. At just about 30% complete, she was in something of a grey area where scrapping the hulk wasn't necessarily easier than finishing the ship, but one way or another that slipway needed to be cleared.

In 2369, construction of NCC-71944 was resumed in full, and later that year she was given a new name- Melbourne, after the Excelsior-class NCC-62043 that had been lost at Wolf 359. She was launched in early 2372 and commissioned on August 8th that year, Stardate 49603.2.

Dominion War, 2373-2375

Melbourne was still on her shakedown cruise when the Borg attacked again in the Battle of Sector 001, but saw combat through the breadth of the Dominion War. She missed the Battle of Tyra, busy as she was with serving as a second-line patrol ship to back up scouts and frigates duelling with Dominion attack ships. However, she was engaged in Operation Return, surviving with only light damage and proving herself well.

Cardassian orbital platforms severed her starboard nacelle and weapons pod during the First Battle of Chin'toka later in 2374, forcing her to return home for repairs and likely saving her from being destroyed by the Breen when the Dominion retook the world. Repaired just in time to barely dodge their attack on Earth, Melbourne then rejoined the frontline for the Battle of Cardassia, and the end of the Dominion War.

Peacetime Operations, 2376-2385

After repairs from the battle over Cardassia were completed, Melbourne was mildly upgraded with a quick overhaul to her science labs. The cruiser undertook a three-year voyage of exploration from 2376 to 2379, surveying some of the vast unexplored space between the Alpha and Gamma Quadrants. When she returned, Melbourne underwent a significantly more comprehensive overhaul from 2380 to 2382 at the San Francisco Fleet Yards. She left later that year for her second voyage of exploration, and was meandering her way back home when news of the Attack on Mars and the destruction of her birthplace, Utopia Planitia, arrived.

Patrol Duty and a Return to Normalcy 2385-2402

As the Federation turned away from the wider galaxy, Melbourne found herself reassigned. Now serving as a patrol vessel, the now thirteen-year-old cruiser spent much of the next half of her life bouncing between border patrol and convoy escort duties, filling in the gaps where newer Inquiry-class ships weren't available. However, by the late 2390s, the ship was showing her age- new vessels were leaps and bounds ahead of her technologically, and plans were made to withdraw her from active service by 2405 as large amounts of newer, more powerful vessels hit the fleet.

Being an old and not particularly notable vessel, Melbourne was not present for the disaster at Frontier Day 2401, and this provided her a new lease on life. Plans to decommission the ship were effectively halted- with so many ships and crew lost in an increasingly dangerous galaxy, Melbourne was seen as still capable- and thus, still needed. In 2402, she was assigned to the Columbia Division, seeing action against the invading Vaadwaur during the Battle of Andoria.

Notable Crews

Commanding Officers

@@ Line 2: / Line 2: @@
 | name = Melbourne
 | prefix = USS
-| image = [[File:Nebulaclass.png]]
+| image = [[File:Melbourne.png]]
 | registry = NCC-71944
 | class = Nebula
-| type = Heavy Cruiser
+| type = exploratory cruiser
 | affiliation = United Federation of Planets
 Starfleet
 | status = Active
-| commission =
+| commission =August 8th, 2372
 | decommission =
 | destroyed =
 | unit =
-| taskforce = Task Force 17
+| taskforce = Task Force 86
-| taskgroup = Task Group 9
+| taskgroup = Task Group 64
 | squadron =
-| division = Columbia Division
+| division =
 | mothership =
 | homeport =
 | role =
-| co = [[bfms char:120323|Captain Elara Quinn]]
+| co = [[bfms char:57228|Captain Fabien Oteng]]
-| xo = [[bfms char:120329|Commander Kael Draven]]
+| xo = [[bfms char:58696|Commander Siobhan Pearse]]
-| dedication =
+| dedication = [[File:Melbourne-plaque.png]]
 | seal =
 }}
-<!--insert quote here if you have one, using the quote template-->
+<!--insert quote here if you have one, using the quote template-->''"She asks us for so little, and gives us the stars in return."''
+'''- Captain Maya Charpentier, USS ''Melbourne'' (NCC-62043), 2362.'''
 <!--opening preamble. Good to remove this comment before saving.-->
-'''USS ''Melbourne'' NCC-71944''' is a {{class|Nebula}} [[United Federation of Planets|Federation]] starship currently assigned to the [[Fourth Fleet|Fourth Fleet's]] [[Task Force 17]] under the command of [[bfms char:120323|Captain Elara Quinn]].
-''Melbourne'' has become something of a workhorse in recent years as she takes on a variety of mission profiles across Federation space and beyond. Even as the {{class|Nebula}} ceases production after forty-years of reliable service, the ship's versatile mission pod adds to her impressive mission capabilities, making her an integral asset in Task Force 17’s mission of deep space operations.
+'''USS ''Melbourne'' (NCC-71944)''' is a {{class|Nebula}} [[United Federation of Planets|Federation]] starship currently assigned to the [[Fourth Fleet]].
-Only the second vessel to proudly bear the name throughout Starfleet’s illustrious history, ''Melbourne'' was launched in late 2372, a successor to her Excelsior-class predecessor. With decommissioning looming at the end of 2402, Captain Elara Quinn and her crew set forth on their final mission to push the boundaries of scientific understanding and to explore strange new frontiers.
+== History ==
+'''Construction and Commissioning'''
-==Design and Layout==
+NCC-71944 was one of a batch of ''Nebula''-class cruisers ordered from Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards in the mid-2360s. Originally to have been named ''Campania'', she was laid down in mid-2366, but was only about 30% complete when the Battle of Wolf 359 in early 2367 rocked the Federation to its core. Construction on ''Campania'' was paused a few days later as Starfleet conducted their investigation of the battle and an analysis of the designs present- including the ''Nebula''-class.
-Modelled on the successful layout of older, larger vessels such as the ''Sovereign''-class, the ''Melbourne'' bridge has a slightly altered colour scheme and a much-changed console layout across the bridge. Making the most of a variety of technological advancements, such as holoprojectors, holographic communications, in-built weapons lockers and three-dimensional computer displays in places. Perhaps one of its most charming features is the emblem of the United Federation of Planets emblazoned on the carpeting as a constant reminder of all the ship stands for.
-[[file:TemeraireBridge.png|thumb|left|300px|Bridge module, USS ''Melbourne'']]
+By the time the investigation was over and the class was deemed ''not'' irrevocably flawed, UPFY was already starting to crank out more tactically proficient vessels and overhauling existing ships, and thus the continued construction of ''Campania'' was of low priority. At just about 30% complete, she was in something of a grey area where scrapping the hulk wasn't necessarily easier than finishing the ship, but one way or another that slipway needed to be cleared.
-In a move away from more recent styles, and harking back to the traditional layouts of yesteryear, ''Melbourne'' has a single center command seat for the commanding officer allowing the occupant full view of all stations. Directly ahead of them, down a few steps and between the commanding officer and the holographic viewscreen, two angled consoles serve as duty stations for Operations (port) and Flight Operations (starboard). Next, and facing into the heart of the bridge to allow maximum participation with the rest of the bridge crew are duty stations for science (port) and tactical operations (starboard). Directly behind the commanding officer, and in a further break from tradition, a combined duty station serves as positioning for the two most senior advisors and assistants to the ship's commander; the Executive Officer (starboard) and, when appropriate, the mission advisor or specialist (port). Around the outside of the bridge, there are countless other additional stations. Behind the main science station on the port bulkhead, additional science and medical consoles are available for mission operations, as well as access to life support and environmental controls. Adjacent to them on the starboard bulkhead, mission operations and security stations ensure the continued safety of the ship and crew on a day-to-day, mission-by-mission basis. On the aft bulkhead, engineering is the focus. With a large, entirely interactive and customizable master systems display (MSD) and other engineering controls, the representative from engineering has full access to the ship's systems.
-Around the command center, four doors provide access to and from the bridge. On the forward port bulkhead, access is available to the observation lounge, whilst the starboard door grants access to the commanding officer's private ready room (available for use by any officer in command of the ship). At the aft of the bridge, both doors provide access to turbo lifts which enable the crew to access the command center from the rest of the bridge. The starboard turbo lift grants express, overridden access to key locations such as engineering, shuttlebay 1, sickbay, tactical astrometrics and transporter rooms 1 and 2.
+In 2369, construction of NCC-71944 was resumed in full, and later that year she was given a new name- ''Melbourne'', after the ''Excelsior''-class NCC-62043 that had been lost at Wolf 359. She was launched in early 2372 and commissioned on August 8th that year, Stardate 49603.2.
+'''Dominion War, 2373-2375'''
-<!--Do not delete the Notable Crew section. It is used by the Intel Office for command history tracking. Leave at the bottom of the page.-->
+''Melbourne'' was still on her shakedown cruise when the Borg attacked again in the Battle of Sector 001, but saw combat through the breadth of the Dominion War. She missed the Battle of Tyra, busy as she was with serving as a second-line patrol ship to back up scouts and frigates duelling with Dominion attack ships. However, she was engaged in Operation Return, surviving with only light damage and proving herself well.
-==Notable Crew==
+Cardassian orbital platforms severed her starboard nacelle and weapons pod during the First Battle of Chin'toka later in 2374, forcing her to return home for repairs and likely saving her from being destroyed by the Breen when the Dominion retook the world. Repaired just in time to barely dodge their attack on Earth, ''Melbourne'' then rejoined the frontline for the Battle of Cardassia, and the end of the Dominion War.
+'''Peacetime Operations, 2376-2385'''
+After repairs from the battle over Cardassia were completed, ''Melbourne'' was mildly upgraded with a quick overhaul to her science labs. The cruiser undertook a three-year voyage of exploration from 2376 to 2379, surveying some of the vast unexplored space between the Alpha and Gamma Quadrants. When she returned, ''Melbourne'' underwent a significantly more comprehensive overhaul from 2380 to 2382 at the San Francisco Fleet Yards. She left later that year for her second voyage of exploration, and was meandering her way back home when news of the Attack on Mars and the destruction of her birthplace, Utopia Planitia, arrived.
+'''Patrol Duty and a Return to Normalcy 2385-2402'''
+As the Federation turned away from the wider galaxy, ''Melbourne'' found herself reassigned. Now serving as a patrol vessel, the now thirteen-year-old cruiser spent much of the next half of her life bouncing between border patrol and convoy escort duties, filling in the gaps where newer ''Inquiry''-class ships weren't available. However, by the late 2390s, the ship was showing her age- new vessels were leaps and bounds ahead of her technologically, and plans were made to withdraw her from active service by 2405 as large amounts of newer, more powerful vessels hit the fleet.
+Being an old and not particularly notable vessel, ''Melbourne'' was not present for the disaster at Frontier Day 2401, and this provided her a new lease on life. Plans to decommission the ship were effectively halted- with so many ships and crew lost in an increasingly dangerous galaxy, ''Melbourne'' was seen as still capable- and thus, still needed. In 2402, she was assigned to the [[Columbia Division]], seeing action against the invading Vaadwaur during the Battle of Andoria.
+==Notable Crews==
 ===Commanding Officers===
-*[https://bravofleet.com/command/141309/ 2402 - Present]: [[bfms char:120323|Captain Elara Quinn]]
+*[https://bravofleet.com/command/141309/ 2402 - 2402]: [[bfms char:120323|Captain Elara Quinn]]
+*[https://bravofleet.com/command/156185/ 2402 - 2402]: [[bfms char:104322|Captain Charlotte MacColgan]]
+*[https://bravofleet.com/command/162192/ 2402 - Present]: [[bfms char:57228|Captain Fabien Oteng]]
 {{clear}}