| abstract
| - The The Sullivans-class was a class of Federation starship that saw service during the 24th century. The Bradley class launched several specialized sub-models, such as the Bradley defensive cruiser and the Ki Rin Improved Strike Cruiser. A number of vessels were also converted to intelligence gathering and penetration roles and were involved in a number of operations under Project Gray Ghost. Starfleet has wanted to renew this capability, but no current starship platform has proven suitable for such modifications. The New Orleans are too small to carry the required equipment. Conversely, the Nebula class was too large, and modifications would be extensive and the cost prohibitive to build the suggested ten vessels. The Office of Research and Development ASDB was commissioned to begin development of a brand-new starship class, to be designated a "Tactical Frigate" (FT). Design parameters were to be roughly the length of the old Enterprise class heavy cruiser, though much wider. Emphasis was placed on hangar capacity and firepower, as these vessels are designed to act as bulwarks against invading vessels. A 100 man marine contingent was added to provide the ability to board enemy vessels and small outposts. A small fighter suite is carried to provide ground support and other tactical capabilities. Of the designs submitted, The Sullivans class best met the requirements. The Sullivans class bears a very rough similarity to the Miranda class vessel it replaces. It has the LN-43 warp nacelles providing an additional 20% in peak power than the Galaxy class engines. There is no secondary hull, the primary hull contains all ship's systems. Most importantly, hull integrity has greater stability and provides additional power to the ship's systems. The back end is a massive "superhanger", designed to launch the ship's small craft compliment quickly. The dual warp cores and anti-matter supply are ejectable as in all Federation designs. A large "roll bar" mounts two dual photon torpedo launchers. The torpedoes are loaded to the pods via the wings for rapid fire. Two MegaTurrets, one topside and one below, house the Type XIV Megaphasers. The Sullivans is easily the most heavily armed vessel of it's size. It mounts three magaphaser variable frequency cannons (two Federation, one klingon) which can be retracted, in addition to nine Type XII collimator phaser arrays and a total of eight Mk 95 photon torpedo launchers. The firing rate of each torpedo pod is 1 per second. The FSS incorporating a three shield layer system is more than adequate to defend a vessel of this size, though the CIDDS-3 (Close-In Deflector Shield System) supplement is added for additional protection. The Sullivans class carries a Combat Information Center (CIC) to control the myriad of sensors and weapon systems. The CIC is connected to the central computer core, the bridge, the CETIS/TACAR weapons systems, the SWAC (Spaceborne Warning and Control Shuttles) and the Aegis Fleet Fire-Control system. When in combat, the Commanding Officer and Tactical Officer reside in CIC while the Executive Officer controls the ship from the bridge. The electronics suite includes the CETIS MK III with Type 225 TACAR II (Target Acquisition Accelerated Response) fire-control system. The inclusion of the Aegis Fleet Fire-Control system allows the Sullivans class to command other Federation vessels at the Task Force level, providing a cohesive offensive and defensive response in combat situations. A Link 35 communications core is utilized in this system for secure communications. The 42/ADA Countermeasures support system has also been added. As penetration and intelligence-gathering duties will be a primary duty of these vessels, a Phase Cloak device is included. Part of the FSS system, it will effectively cloak the vessel from sensors. Unfortunately, shield effectiveness is reduced by 60%, weapons cannot be fired without disrupting the field. The class has a Dual Warp core for the power consumption needed to use all the weapons at its disposal simultaneously. The final and most important feature is the ability to land. This gives the design a true multi-role capability.
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