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THE SHIPS OF
COALITION OF PLANETS
FLEET
The Coalition of Planets fleet
Much has been written about the makeup and effectiveness of the allied ships that saw action in the Earth-Romulan War. Early in the conflict, it was clear that the Romulans' telecapture weapon was a major force to be reckoned with after the First Expeditionary Task Force's humiliating defeat at Algeron. Only the Andorians remained steadfast in helping Earth and even that was only because of the Romulan attack on the Andorians' home system. Domestic politics kept the Vulcans and the Tellarites out of the fighting for nearly the entire conflict, though the timely arrival of Coalition forces at the Battle of Cheron staved off complete disaster for Starfleet. The addition of civilian ships from Mars, Alpha Centauri and the Earth Cargo Service were also critically important in turning the conflict in Starfleet's favor at a key moment.
The following is a primer on Coalition forces deployed during the Earth-Romulan conflict of 2155-2160.
KUMARI class
The Kumari-class battlecruiser had a standard crew complement of 86 and was the primary ship-of-the line in the Andorian Imperial Guard. While the Kumaris were equipped with deflector shields, the hull was vulnerable when shields were down because it lacked polarized hull plating. Like other regional powers of the era, Kumari-class ships utilized stolen Vulcan technology in their computer operating systems, which made them susceptible to the Romulans' telecapture weaponry.
KROTUS class
The Weytahn Incident of 2152 prompted the Andorian Imperial Guard to construct the massive Krotus-class carrier ship as a symbol of Andorian power which could match the might of the emerging militarism of the Vulcans. Only two of the carriers were built and were used to service and reinforce Andorian colonies. In addition to serving as command ships for Andorian fleet movements, the Krotus-class carriers were equipped with fighter and recon spacecraft as well as dropships and other infantry equipment for planetside campaigns. The first ship of the class, AIG Krotus, was destroyed by the Romulans at the Battle of Andoria.
SEVAIJEN class
Sevaijen cruisers were the primary ships of the line in the Andorian Imperial Guard in the late 21st through the mid-22nd century and were the key to the Empire's expansion during that time. Increased incursions with the Vulcans, the Tellarites, and various Rigellian sects revealed the Sevaijen's vulnerabilities. While highly maneuverable and well-armed, the Sevajiens lacked both deflector screens and only partially effective armor. As the other powers in the region began to fortify their navies, so did the Andorians, culminating in the Kumari-class battlecruisers. As the new United Federation of Planets began to reorganize its fleet resources, the Andorians chose to keep the Sevaijen close to home before the class was officially retired at the dawn of the 23rd century.
D'KYR class
With the election of Administrator V'Las and the increasing tensions along the Andorian border, the Vulcan High Command commissioned the construction of a new fleet of D'Kyr-class heavy cruisers which ushered in a new age of militarism for the Vulcan Expeditionary Force. The D'Kyr was the pride of the Vulcan space fleet; they were heavily-armed, fast, and protected by state-of-the-art deflector shields. Despite their strength, the D'Kyr was vulnerable to the Romulans' advanced jamming technology though this vulnerability may have been intentional, considering the connections that V'Las was discovered to have had with the Romulans.
VAHKLAS class
The Vahklas class stands as a testament to the state of Vulcan foreign affairs during the reign of Administrator V'Las and the new militarism he'd ushered in at the Vulcan High Command. These century-old ships had originally been designed as test beds for deep-space science experiments and to transport goods to Vulcan colonies. With an increase in tensions with the Andorians, the Vahklas fleet was converted to house bigger reactors and weapons batteries, turning what were once ships of peace into ships of war. None of that mattered though as the Vahklas cruisers were among the first to succumb to the Romulans' telecapture weapon at the Battle of Algeron. The class was eventually phased out completely shortly after the Earth-Romulan War. They were an unpleasant reminder of Vulcan's experiment with aggression and violence.
PHINDA class
The Phinda-class heavy cruiser was the pride of the Tellarite Star Navy for decades and primarily served as picket defense for Tellarite colonies and to escort civilian traffic along their trade routes. In the conflict with the Romulans, the Phindas were mostly ineffective due to their vulnerability to the Romulans' remote hijacking device. The Phindas were highly maneuverable, fast, and a squadron of them managed to take on and destroy a Romulan carrier at the Battle of Cheron. As the new Federation designs became the norm for Starfleet vessels, the Phinda class made a return to its roots of picket and patrol duty for another half-century before the class was retired from service completely.
K class
By the 2150's, there were over 120 ships under contract by the Earth Cargo Service Authority roaming the stars along the Alpha/Beta Quadrant border. The ECS fleet supplied the human colonies, delivered private passengers, seeded the space lanes with communication relays, and traded with alien species like the Orions and the Rigellians. The "K-class" freighter could reach a top speed of warp 4.5, making the K's the fastest civilian Earth ship of its era. While designed as a lightly-armed civilian transport, several of the K-class freighters were modified with heavy phaser cannons and participated in military operations alongside Starfleet, including at the Battle of Cheron, where "the Fighting Fourth" destroyed a Romulan heavy cruiser.
ALPHA class
After the Kzinti crisis, it was clear to humanity that space was dangerous and that protection for civilian traffic and border security could not be ignored. As the newly-chartered Starfleet Command expanded its fleet of Delta-class corvettes, the Alpha Centauri Concordium offered to purchase surplus ships and parts from Earth rather than use its limited manufacturing resources on picket defense that might never be needed. A fleet of ten Starfleet Delta-class corvettes were delivered to the Proxima shipyards where they were re-flagged, re-named and re-crewed by Alphans. When half the Alpha fleet was destroyed in the Romulan raid on the Centauri colonies in 2156, the other half gladly joined Starfleet to get some payback against the Romulans at Cheron. With the chartering of the Federation, the remaining few Alpha-class ships were finally scrapped.
ELITE class
By 2155, the shipyards at Alpha and Proxima Centauri were the leading producer of civilian spacecraft in Sector 2. The Elite Observer, a popular civilian ship by Cochrane Industries, was a renowned pleasure craft used to ferry diplomats, scientists, and tourists across the human colonies. After a devastating Romulan assault on the Centauri cluster, the Elites were discontinued and eventually faded into obscurity, but not before being used as part of the salvage fleet at Cheron and during construction of the Neutral Zone outposts. One of the rare Elites was personally preserved by Hannah Cochrane and is on display at the Starfleet Museum's Proxima Annex.
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