Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) took command of the USS Enterprise-A at the end of the fourth Star Trek movie, but Starfleet didn’t have another Starship Enterprise just lying around. Captain Kirk is synonymous with the USS Enterprise; Jim became one of the youngest starship Captains in history when he became Captain of the Enterprise in 2265. Kirk led the Enterprise on a historic five-year mission in Star Trek: The Original Series, Star Trek: The Animated Series. and in the first three Star Trek movies.
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home was a unique Star Trek movie where the USS Enterprise doesn’t appear until the very end, and it was a new starship bearing that name. In director Leonard Nimoy’s Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Admiral Kirk self-destructed the original Starship Enterprise to keep it from falling into Klingon hands. Kirk committed several crimes in Star Trek III to rescue Spock (Leonard Nimoy) from the Genesis Planet, including hijacking the Enterprise before he blew it up.
Admiral Kirk further disobeyed Starfleet’s orders in Star Trek IV and led a stolen Klingon Bird-of-Prey named the HMS Bounty back to 1986 San Francisco to retrieve two humpback whales. Kirk’s gambit saved Earth from destruction by the Whale Probe, which the Federation Council took into account when they demoted Admiral Kirk back to Captain. Kirk’s reward was his heart’s desire: once again becoming Captain of the Enterprise, and Jim was given the brand-new USS Enterprise-A.
Where Captain Kirk’s USS Enterprise-A Came From In Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
“My Friends, We’ve Come Home.”
Captain Kirk and his crew didn’t know until they saw it that Starfleet had ᴀssigned them the brand-new USS Enterprise NCC-1701-A. The Consтιтution II Class starship was almost identical to the USS Enterprise refit that Kirk commanded in the first three Star Trek movies. Although the Enterprise-A was already in Spacedock One, it wasn’t a previously used starship that was rechristened ‘Enterprise.’ USS Enterprise-A was actually a newly commissioned vessel.
USS Enterprise-A was built at the San Francisco Fleet Yards, and it was commissioned by the Federation Council specifically for Captain Kirk to replace the destroyed USS Enterprise. Although Enterprise-A was a new ship, it came with a slew of problems that were quickly discovered by Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott (James Doohan). Enterprise-A’s shakedown cruise revealed a working warp drive but several malfunctioning systems, including inoperable transporters.
Star Trek V contains a visual gaffe where the USS Enterprise-A somehow has 78 decks.
In Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, Captain Kirk, Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley) went on a camping trip at Yosemite National Park while Scotty worked to get the Enterprise-A functional. However, the Starship Enterprise was called into action on a mission to Nimbus III – “The Planet of Galactic Peace” – despite not being completely ready. Thankfully, USS Enterprise-A was functioning at peak performance in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
How Long Captain Kirk Commanded The USS Enterprise-A
USS Enterprise-A Went On A Pair Of Historic Missions
Captain James T. Kirk commanded the USS Enterprise-A for seven years, from the end of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home in 2286 to the end of Star Trek IV: The Undiscovered Country in 2293. While Enterprise-A only saw action in the final two movies starring the cast of Star Trek: The Original Series, both were historic missions, and the latter completely reshaped the balance of power in the Alpha Quadrant.
USS Enterprise-A became the first starship to cross the Great Barrier at the center of the galaxy.
The USS Enterprise-A became the first starship to cross the Great Barrier at the center of the galaxy in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Spock’s criminal brother, Sybok (Lawrence Luckinbill), hijacked the Enterprise-A on his quest to find God in the fabled world of Sha Ka Ree. The Enterprise-A easily breached the believed-to-be impenetrable Great Barrier, going where no one had gone before, as well as escaping Sha Ka Ree and returning safely to the Alpha Quadrant.
In Star Trek VI, the USS Enterprise-A hosted a Klingon delegation led by Chancellor Gorkon (David Warner). Enterprise-A was subsequently accused of firing pH๏τon torpedoes at the Klingon flagship, Kronos One, en route to Gorkon’s ᴀssᴀssination. However, Captain Spock’s investigation proved Enterprise-A did not fire the torpedoes. Enterprise-A and the USS Excelsior teamed up to destroy General Chang’s (Christopher Plummer) Klingon Bird-of-Prey and saved the Khitomer conference that ushered in peace between the Klingon Empire and the United Federation of Planets.
What Happened To Captain Kirk’s USS Enterprise-A After Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
USS Enterprise-A Survived Into The 25th Century
Despite only being in service for seven years, USS Enterprise-A was decommissioned by Starfleet in 2293 following the events of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Later that year, Starfleet launched the Federation’s new flagship, the USS Enterprise-B under the command of Captain John Harriman (Alan Ruck), as seen in the prologue of Star Trek Generations. USS Enterprise-A wasn’t seen again until it made a surprise appearance in Star Trek: Picard season 3, episode 6, “The Bounty.”
Star Trek: Picard season 3 revealed that the USS Enterprise-A lasted into the 25th century. Enterprise-A was one of the starships displayed at the Fleet Museum on Athan Prime, overseen by Commodore Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton). This also meant that the Enterprise-A was one of the few starships named Enterprise that weren’t destroyed. Enterprise-A was further admired by Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers), the son of Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart), who called himself “a Consтιтution Class man.”
USS Enterprise-A ably continued the Enterprise’s legacy.
Captain Kirk’s USS Enterprise-A isn’t as well regarded as his original Starship Enterprise, nor did Kirk sit in its Captain’s chair for as long. Yet the USS Enterprise-A ably continued the Enterprise’s legacy, and set the stage for the legendary starships that followed. USS Enterprise-A seemed like it was just waiting for Kirk in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, but it was a reward for Kirk saving Earth, and it was the vessel that helped Star Trek‘s original Enterprise crew make history in their final two cinematic voyages.
