Zelenskyy Class XII Heavy Cruiser

design by Morgan Donovan

NOTES:
The sheer brutality of the Four Years War left scars on the psychology of the Federation and Starfleet. One such perception was the possible capture of the Constitution-class heavy cruiser during front line combat operation. This perception resulted in that class being kept well out of the bulk of the war as it was felt that capture of any of these ships would provide the Klingon Empire a significant increase in non-combat technology and be a blow to Federation morale.

To fill the role that the Constitutions would have served, the Corps of Engineers was commissioned to construct a new class of ship that would serve as the anchors of Federation task forces during the conflict with the Empire, a role currently filled by the Federation Dreadnought. The basic hull was reworked to theoretically improve defensive survivability and correct perceived design flaws that made the Constitution and other designs vulnerable. What emerged was a shorter, squatter ship with a thicker connection between the primary and secondary hulls and heavily reinforced pylons that held the warp nacelles closer to the main body of the ship. Not coincidentally, this configuration would allow for a tighter shield envelope. The radiation risks associated with changes were mitigated by heavily reinforcing the ship’s outer hull.

Offensively, the new class was armed with a combination of six FL-6, and four FL-5 lasers as well as four FAC-2 accelerator canons. Defensively, the newly developed FSN shield generator offered excellent protection. An extension to the primary hull gave the ship additional cargo space, as well as facilities for a company of Federation ground forces at need. The prototype, commissioned as the USS Zelenskyy, named after Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Sol’s nation-state called Ukraine during the Russo-Ukrainian War that was one of several armed conflicts that led to World War III. Starfleet rushed production of these heavy cruisers with 8 being finished before the end of the war. All 8 participated in combat operations before the signing of the Treaty of Axanar, which would see and end to the war and the massive reduction in starship construction. Fear that the Klingons would not abide by the treaty proved unfounded as the Treaty would hold (mostly), and the fifteen Zelenskyy-class ships that were eventually built would spend the next decade relegated to reserve and training duty with the Military Operations Command.

With the uncertainty of possible future conflict still in the minds of many Federation members, Starfleet was authorized to upgrade the Zelenskyy class, and in 2259, the first of four cruisers were relaunched. Now armed with the newer phaser and photon torpedo systems, the Mk II was still heavily influenced by the pacifist block within the Federation. Many in Starfleet felt the vessel could easily have been more heavily armed, but feared that funding would be completely cut before further improvements could be made, as had been the case with a number of designs used during the war.

2265 would see the first major refit to the class with the Mk III. The troop barracks were re-purposed into additional passenger and lab space, appeasing many in the pacifist block. The tactical systems were reworked, and more powerful impulse engines were fitted.

The last upgrade occurred in 2276 with the Mk III. Virtually every major system was updated, including the main warp drive, primary computer and primary and secondary weapon systems. However, the changes proved to be more difficult to implement and weren’t as effective as anticipated. As a result, no further upgrades would be authorized.

Although some in Procurement had hoped to continue upgrading the Zelenskyy class, many of the primary hull components and support bulkheads were over 30 years old. While the Zelenskyy class was scheduled for the Starship Life Extension Program, the decision was made to retire the class, with the basic designs was re-engineered into the Challenger (I) class.

The Zelenskyy was produced at Sol-IIIa and Sol IV shipyards. A total of 15 hulls were built. 11 Zelenskyys were converted to Challenger (I)s. 1 Mk I and 1 Mk III have been destroyed. 1 Mk I was scrapped after significant combat damage.