USS Britannia
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- "Dare to be honest and fear no labor."
- —Robert Burns.
USS Britannia NCC-81544 is a Sovereign-class Federation starship currently assigned to Fourth Fleet reserves.
Service History
Britannia is one of the second wave of Sovereign-class vessels laid down by Starfleet in the early 2380s. Originally scheduled for launch in 2385, the events of the Attack on Mars necessitated the ship's transfer to the Antares Fleet Yards in Bajor sector for final fitting and launch later in the year. Despite being mostly fitted by the time of the incident, the vessel was crewed mainly by yard engineers who were unable to take advantage of the ship's combat capabilities and she remained relatively undamaged as a result. Finally, in December of 2385, Britannia left the fleet yards under the command of Captain Thomas Juricks to begin its service with Starfleet's Fourth Fleet.
For the first few years of her service, Britannia spent long periods of time serving in the largely unexplored southern region of Federation Territory, her myriad of capabilities allowing her to spend long periods away from base patrolling the Tholian and Talarian borders lest the powers take advantage of a weakened Federation. During this time, she provided deep space provisioning and mission operations oversight functions for a number of older vessels that had been quickly scrambled back into service from mothballs.
2396 saw a change in command following the retirement of Juricks and a change in mission profile with the installation of Captain Anyanka Harrison, an experienced pirate hunter and criminal investigator. With a rise of civilian outposts and expeditions in the Thomar Expanse, Britannia was redeployed to the zone to undertake security and detached policing operations in the region in support of the new colonies and expeditions. When Task Force 47 was formed in 2399, Britannia was a natural addition to its operational assets due to its familiarity and experience with the region.
Early in 2402, Britannia found itself stranded in the Risa system as a result of the quadrant wide blackout that limited subspace communications and faster than light travel. Alongside a number of other fourth fleet ships Britannia began exploring the phenomena at the edge of they system, with a focus on deploying communcations relays and beacons at the edge of the system, in an attempt to reach Fourth Fleet Command. Whilst their efforts were unsuccessful during one experiment the ships special operations group, Hart Squad, discovered unusual activity from civilian ships that had been tasked as comm and logistics relays throughout the system. Following this trail back to Risa orbit they discovered a number of hidden vessels hiding in a large manufactured storm system in low orbit. Before they could uncover the reason for their clandestine operations, the Vaadwaur assault of the planet began, and Britannia found itself to hold the line alongside USS Aldrin and USS Sirona.
Britannia's martial capability allowed the ship to mount a robust defense of the system, drawing attention away from the vulnerable outdated orbital control, until a Vaadwaur Battleship exited the Underspace aperture. Unable to engage with the ship from range due to the significant escort picket, and with the enemy preparing to make artillery strikes against the orbital facilities and planetary surface, Britannia opted to run the escort blockade and engage the ship in close quarters. Sheltering Aldrin between it's nacelles and reinforcing its defences with their own shields, Britannia piloted directly through the escort ring and delivered the smaller craft into engagement range, taking massive damage in the process. Unfotunately the target had extensive defenses and when it became clear they wouldn't be able to stop the ship before it was in a position to fire, Captain Harrison made the decision to ram the vessel.
Due to the robust design of both Britannia and the enemy vessel the two ships then became lodged within one another and when the Vaadwuar ship began cycling its weapons once again the crew of Britannia decided to seperate the vessel and self destruct the saucer section in an attempt to destroy the target. Thei gambit was successful and broke the attacking fleet's command and control abilities.
The Vaadwuar abandoned their assault of the system shortly after as a reuslt of their general tactical retreat across the quadrant, leaving Britannia heavily damaged and generally immobile due to the loss of its saucer section. The ship was towed back to Avalon Fleet Yards for repair and much of the crew reassigned.
Configuration
The Radio Room- Strategic Operations
Based in the centre of deck 15, in close proximity to engineering, the secondary computer core and shuttle bay 2, is Britannia's strategic operations centre. Originally fitted in 2385 to provide command and control facilities, communications support and flag offices as part of the ship's extended deployment to the distant border, the Radio Room has found renewed usage following Britannia's assignment to the frontiers of Task Force 47. Featuring a number of offices, labs and intelligence suites, the strategic operations centre makes use of the ship's normally redundant secondary computer core to facilitate division management and dedicated intelligence gathering and processing as part of Britannia's ongoing operations.
Regents Park
Featuring stunning views into space through the massive panoramic skylights on decks 10 & 11, Britannia's arboretum is a popular location for many of the ship's crew to spend their off-duty hours. With a circuitous winding, tree-lined path around the picturesque ornamental lake, Regent's Park is a welcome open space to a crew that rarely gets the chance to take shoreleave. The park is named in honour of the prestigious royal park in London, Earth and the airy and relaxing space features flora from across the Federation, with space for new plant life discovered on the ship's explorations. A popular feature amongst the crew and visitors are Liz and Phil, the pair of live swans that gently glide around the park's small lake, having become unofficial mascots for the ship's company.
In addition to its leisure purposes, Regents Park also serves a practical function for the ship's Science department who utilise the space to undertake a variety of studies in the Biological Sciences departments. The Medical team also make use of the space to cultivate several species of medicinal plants and herbs for use in holisitic treatments. Attached to the park are a number of meeting and conference spaces to allow onboard diplomatic events to utilise the park as either a backdrop or venue as needed.