Guide:Burke

Burke
Class Overview
Category	frigate
Operational	2221-2267
Constructed	66 total: Burke (nearspace frigate): 43 (built 2221-26) Aldrin (deep space frigate): 24 (built 2222-25) Magellan (scout cruiser): 6 (refitted Aldrins 2244-45)
Dimensions
Length	183.0 m (original) 179.0 m (refit 2244)
Beam	122.0 m
Height	35.5 m (original) 38.8 m (original w/ weapons pod) 32.2 m (refit 2244, nearspace configuration) 34.0 m (refit 2244, deep space configuration)
Mass	320,000 tons (original) 360,700 tons (refit 2244, nearspace configuration) 361,200 tons (refit 2244, deep space configuration)
Performance
Cruise Speed	w 4 (original) w 5 (refit 2244)
Max Speed	w 6.5 (original) w 8.0 (refit 2244)
Endurance	2 years (nearspace configuration) 3 years (deep space configuration)
Complement
Officers	25
Enlisted	214
Tactical Systems
Beam Weapons	Original 2x laser emitters (1.0 GW) (dorsal primary hull) 1x laser emitter (1.0 GW) (ventral primary hull) 6x plasma cannons (2.0 GW) (dorsal primary hull) 2235-37 refit 4x Type L phased particle cannons (1.2 TW) (2 twin banks, dorsal primary hull) 2x Type L phased particle cannon (1.2 TW) (twin bank, ventral primary hull) 6x plasma cannon (2.0 GW) (dorsal primary hull) 2252-54 refit 4x phaser VI emitters (2 twin banks, dorsal primary hull) 2x phaser VI emitters (twin bank, ventral primary hull)
Missile Weapons	2235-37 refit 2x-4x fwd medium torpedo tubes (w/40 photorps) (various dorsal modules, optional) 2252-54 refit 4x fwd medium torpedo tubes (w/40 photorps) (dorsal module, optional)
Shields	2-layer conformal forcefields Navigational deflectors (nacelle bows) (original) Navigational deflector dish under hull (refit 2244, nearspace configuration) 3x auxiliary navigational deflectors (bow)
Transporters	Original 2x GP (6-pad), Mk II 2 emergency evacuation (22-pad), Mk II 2257-59 refit 2x GP (6-pad), Mk III 2 emergency evacuation (22-pad), Mk III
Auxiliary Craft	None
Historical
Ships of Note	USS Aldrin USS Burke USS Magellan (NCC-1462) USS Mayflower (NCC-1621)
Canonicity
Design	STXI; SFB, ST:Axanar/Tobias Richter
Name	SFB, LUG
History	SFB, ST:Axanar

The nearspace patrol frigate. The arch mount for torpedoes did exist in stock and simply was never applied on this ship type; it is the lack of a dorsal centerline booster package that actually visually separates the nearspace patrollers from their deep space sisters. The original PB-21 engines were installed without aft field visors, as opposed to most other applications of the engine.

The successes of the Mann generation of capital combatants had not only increased the Federation’s chances of survival in a war against the Klingons – they had provided Chiokis Corporation with an excellent commercial reputation as an independent spacecraft designer. Yet the Manns and Rangers were a dead end for an ambitious company: saucerlike hulls of refined warp dynamics were the future of starflight. In 2219, Chiokis still remained but a junior partner in such projects, and the contract for the Burke class patrol ship went to Geering. While the nascent Andorian enterprise was asked to modernize the Rangers for a slimmer hull structure, the competing Earth company in turn launched its inaugural saucer hull, taking advantage of the fact that the specifications did not dictate a bulky total conversion powerplant.

Despite the seeming modesty of the patrol ship project, this was a major coup for Geering, and a decisive loss for Chiokis. The Burke class frigate (a bold new definition for the time-honored mission class) would have been the best possible way to make an entry to the market as an independent contractor: a spaceship already conceptualized, visualized and all but designed. This was what the Ranger would look like, once a more compact powerplant could be found for her. Yet without a number of the light cruiser’s mission-specific complications, the new design could be a clean slate for future expansion and eventual greatness. The significance was not lost to Geering’s designing team, which began drafting the shape of a ship far larger than her physical dimensions.

The saucer hull in all its simplicity held the crew accommodation, weapons systems, computing gear, sensors, fuel and impulse propulsion systems, all neatly modularized and sectored. The SAA impulse drive took up the aft centerline, its structures extending somewhat above the level of the widest deck of 122 m diameter. To both sides were main fuel tanks, then crew and support system spaces. On two dorsal positions and a single forward ventral one were the single laser cannon that formed the main armament of the class; six dorsal berths held standard defensive plasma cannon underneath their trapdoors. Even in the modern and ambitious definition of ‘frigate’, there was no mention of torpedo armament. Still, Geering was thinking ahead and introduced dorsal structural hardpoints for possible future installation of weapons modules.

Two stubby pylons underneath would house the PB-21 engines, complete with their built-in power systems. Each also held an integrated navigational deflector, although the saucer bow section was already provided with three auxiliary deflector beam emitters. The performance, or lack thereof, of the engines was no concern of Geering, and the company could deliver the first of the planned fifty hulls on schedule, for trials starting in 2221. Registries were allocated in Ranger fashion, starting out a whole new ‘century’; the 1600s would be a local patrol combatant range for the time being.

A deep space Burke riding shotgun to a Proxima, a rare 2250s action shot from just before warp entry. The dissimilar warp performances of the two types made combined operations uncommon; even when carrying the endurance booster package, the Burke was predominantly a patrol vessel of limited spatial reach, not a hunter like the battle cruisers. Note the aft-facing field windows of the PB-21 engines, matching the equally archaic PB-28 pair on the Proxima.

Satisfied with the results so far, Starfleet also gave the go-ahead for a Mk II version of improved endurance. The main difference was to be found at the aft dorsal hull: a spinal protrusion housed extended fuel tanks, consumables storage, and a workshop and hangarette for repair pods. Adding a year to total patrol time was a largely theoretical exercise, as engine performance was unchanged and did not allow the vessels to deploy particularly far. Minor improvements in sensors, targeting systems and computers nevertheless contributed to Starfleet assigning registries in line with contemporary deep space cruisers, in the 1400 ‘century’, right after the Baton Rouge and the (much delayed and eventually re-registered) Ares.

The Burkes proved sturdy and dependable in most respects. Unfortunately, propulsion was not one of them. Through the latter half of the 2220s, Starfleet struggled to find a suitable replacement for the PB-21, the failure rate of which kept the 42 plus 24 completed Burkes from efficiently contributing to Federation defense. It was only in 2244 that the PB-45 rose as a credible contender, bringing the Burkes to the solid state era and increasing their military potential. At that point, the baton had been passed; it would be Chiokis’ turn to give shape to Starfleet’s future. Select ships received a modern phased beam arsenal with twin emitters, their impulse engines were brought to SAD standard, and a wholly internal warp core was installed. The nearspace units were also equipped with a destroyer-type underbelly sensor dish plus boosted shields. Chiokis crafted a ventral bulge to mount the former; the latter called for the customary downward extension of the saucer rim and removed the last traces of the original Geering shape.

The high endurance vessels remained truer to the origins externally. Eight of them received improved C3I facilities and had a host of new sensors bolted onto the spine. They were dedicated to deep space reconnaissance tasks and in theory were considered Magellan class scout cruisers, as per the lowest-registry conversion (NCC-1462). In this role, they saw sterling service in the Four Years War.

An upgraded Burke fires her ventral phasers. Lack of a ventral aft emitter, combined with limitations in fire control sensor arcs and agility, made the frigates vulnerable from their six, a problem never quite addressed. The SAD impulse engine was said to live down to its name, and saw no other applications. The two major structural changes visible here, the shield emitter rim and the sensor dish bottom bulge, were exclusive to the patrol ship modification.

Timing wasn’t on the side of the dependable little ships, however. The Great Awakening brought up the possibility of much more capable frigates in this size range, and directed the attentions of Chiokis elsewhere. Further extension of the Burke hull to house a multilinear dilithium-focus powerplant was considered futile, especially considering the very recent investments that would keep these frigates a useful force until full transition could be made to Loknar and Miranda types. In practice, even these investments were cut, leaving almost a third of the Burke force unmodernized (save for a 2250s phaser upgrade) and stationed near the core worlds. Retirements began with laying off a dozen vessels immediately, then followed apace with Loknar and Miranda commissionings. Hulls from both the modernized blocks persisted until the mid-2260s, and the last such unit was stricken from records as late as in 2267.

Up-engined for deep space action, the Vasco da Gama (NCC-1482) boasts the full booster package at the dorsal module station. Little else has changed since her 2223 launch; little would change before her 2250 loss to the Klingons.

Despite falling a tad short of longevity, the Burke class was elemental in ushering in the era of the saucer-hulled combatant. The tentative steps taken with Ranger light cruisers would soon be followed by the decisive on-march of Baton Rouge and Proxima cruisers, Detroyat and Saladin destroyers and Ptolemy armed transports, projects directly benefiting from work done on the Burke program. There would be no turning back now; no further lifting-body ships would be procured, and even the results of major modernization programs on such designs would be sent directly to second-rate assignments. Ever since the introduction of the Burke, the archetypal image of Starfleet has been the silhouette of the saucer-hulled starship.

Gallery

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