This ship, commissioned in the 2350s decade, was named for Thomas Paine, a Human patriot from the history of Earth's United States of America nation. This vessel was a successor in its name after a previous vessel, the Thomas Paine-class prototype USS Thomas Paine. (FASA RPG module: Star Trek: The Next Generation Officer's Manual) In 2371, Rixx was still in command. That year, he was contacted by Picard looking for information on one of his junior engineers, Lieutenant Farrell, who had served on the Thomas Paine under Rixx the previous year. (TNG comic: "Suspect")