Summary
- The Val Jean, a Maquis fighter, is crucial in setting the stage for Voyager's journey in the Delta Quadrant.
- The U.S.S. Equinox, also stranded in the Delta Quadrant, takes desperate measures in a bid to return to the Alpha Quadrant.
- Voyager, an Intrepid-class science vessel, boasts innovative technologies and a remarkable track record in the Delta Quadrant.
In addition to featuring the franchise's first female protagonist, Kate Mulgrew's Captain Janeway, Star Trek: Voyager also went where no one had gone before: the mysterious Delta Quadrant. A new adventure needed a new ship, and it wasn't just the USS Voyager's chance to show what the Intrepid class could do.
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Star Trek: The Original Series held plenty of impressively creative starships, used by a variety of different alien life, and enjoyed by fans.
Several other races turned up with their own unique forms of transportation, including some familiar faces along with some new, exotic aliens from the Delta Quadrant. The Starfleet ships are also impressive in the 23rd century, and the viewer is reminded of that when USS Voyager finally comes home.
Updated on October 10, 2024, by Kristy Ambrose: The Star Trek universe is as popular and active as ever, with several new shows available in addition to the classic series and movies on various streaming services. Designers are using modern technology to make more elaborate spacecraft to show off their creative powers, and some of the best-looking ships came from the Voyager era. There's some weird and dangerous stuff in the Delta quadrant, and that includes the wide variety of fascinating and intimidating ships.
10 The Val Jean
Named For A Famous Literary Figure
- Appeared In: "Caretaker" Season 1, Episodes 1 & 2
The Val Jean may be small, but in many ways, this Maquis fighter is responsible for everything that happens in Star Trek: Voyager. While fleeing from a Cardassian ship in the Badlands, Chakotay and his crew are dragged into the Delta Quadrant by the godlike Caretaker. Janeway's Voyager is assigned to locate the Val Jean, a mission that results in the Federation vessel's unexpected voyage through the Delta Quadrant.
The fact that the Val Jean is destroyed shortly after arriving in the Delta Quadrant has profound implications for the series. It forces the Maquis rebels to work with Voyager's Starfleet crew, although the show's writers seem determined to ignore the dramatic potential of this set-up. Nor does the little ship go out without a fight. Chakotay uses it to ram a Kazon warship, buying Voyager time to escape.
9 USS Al-Batani
The Evolution Of The Excelsior Class
- Appeared In: "Caretaker" Season 1, Episodes 1 & 2
Star Trek fans might remember the original Excelsior class vessel from Star Trek III: The Search For Spock as the ship that attempted to pursue the stolen Enterprise but fell victim to Scotti's clever sabotage. It was always noted for its trans-warp drive, making it one of the fastest ships in the fleet, which Captain Sulu put to the test in Star Trek V: The Undiscovered Country.
Later models would have a similar look and design, and by the era of Voyager an Excelsior-class ship, the USS Al-Batani, was one of Starfleet's most notable starships and appeared or was mentioned in several episodes, such as "Live Fast And Prosper" and "Shattered." The Captain during this period was Owen Paris, Tom Paris' father, and he was one of the first to contact Voyager when it reappeared in the Alpha Quadrant from the bridge of this ship.
8 The Baxial
A Personal Freighter With Speed And Agility
- Appeared In: " The Chute" Season 3, Episode 3
Neelix is one of Star Trek's most divisive characters, with many fans questioning the appropriateness of his romantic relationship with Kes, a three-year-old Ocampan from the Delta Quadrant. Less controversial, however, is the Baxial, Neelix's personal freighter. This small starship may not look elegant, but it demonstrates significant speed and agility on multiple occasions, making it a vital tool in Voyager's repertoire during the vessel's seven-year journey home.
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The Baxial's exterior isn't even seen until the show's third season, but despite only making a handful of appearances in Star Trek: Voyager, Neelix's ship enjoys an unexpected afterlife in another classic sci-fi series. It can be seen docked to a space station in "War Stories", an episode of Joss Whedon's short-lived Firefly; the freighter may be a footnote in Voyager itself, but its legacy casts a long shadow.
7 The Dreadnought
A Cardassian Missile Ship
- Appeared In: " Dreadnought" Season 2, Episode 17
The Delta Quadrant may be many light years away from the Federation, but that doesn't stop familiar ships and technology from making occasional appearances in Star Trek: Voyager. In "Dreadnought", Belanna Torres must confront her past when a Cardassian missile threatens a planet in the Delta Quadrant.
Torres had planned to use the missile ship, nicknamed Dreadnought against the Cardassian Union only for it to be pulled into the Delta Quadrant by the Caretaker. The ATR-4107 Dreadnought may only be an unmanned drone, but its advanced defensive capabilities make it more than a match for both Voyager and a fleet of alien ships.
It can also carry a maintenance crew, supports an advanced tactical computer, and is powerful enough to devastate whole planets. Luckily, Torres is able to destabilize the Dreadnought's warp core, destroying the ship before it obliterates the world of Rakosa.
6 Alice
A Sentient Alien Shuttlecraft
- Appeared In: "Alice" Season 6, Episode 5
Star Trek may be a science fiction series, but it occasionally dabbles in the supernatural. In "Alice", Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeil) enters into a twisted relationship with the eponymous Alice, an alien shuttlecraft with a mind of its own and a sinister side.
Alice uses an advanced neurogenic interface to interact with its pilot, allowing for unprecedented navigational input. However, this interface has a drawback: when the rogue ship is attacked by Voyager, the neurogenic technology causes Paris to feel pain when Alice is damaged.
The ship is also home to a ghost in the machine. Taking the form of a beautiful woman, Alice's computer seduces Paris and uses him to pilot the ship towards a dangerous anomaly. Indeed, despite Alice's sentience, the shuttle is entirely dependent on an organic pilot and is destroyed following Voyager's rescue of Paris.
5 USS Relativity
A Time-Travelling Vessel
- Appeared In: "Relativity" Season 5, Episode 24
While Kirk's Enterprise makes frequent trips back and forth through history, time travel is something of a rarity in the wider franchise. In "Relativity", the crew of Voyager finds themselves contending with some time travel shenanigans when a version of the Relativity's captain travels back through time in a misguided attempt to change history.
In addition to being able to travel through time and space, the Wells-class starship possesses advanced systems appropriate to its 29th-century origins. Many of the starships seen in the franchise have transporters, but Relativity outdoes them. It can transport crew members anywhere in history thanks to its temporal transporters. However, overuse of this technology can have negative side effects for the traveler.
4 USS Equinox
A Unique Nova Class Design
- Appeared In: "Equinox" Season 5, Episode 25
The short-range survey vessel Equinox finds itself out of its depth when, like Voyager, it is accidentally pulled into the Delta Quadrant. Things go from bad to worse when most of the crew are immediately killed, an event that drives the ship's Captain Ransom towards a desperate course of action. Ransom plans to use an alien lifeform as fuel to expedite his return to the Alpha Quadrant much to Janeway's disgust.
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The design of the Nova-class starship is interesting, as it combines Voyager's aesthetics with those seen in The Next Generation movies. The Equinox may be one of Starfleet's more immoral vessels, but it still makes a memorable contribution to Star Trek history.
3 USS Challenger
Captained By Geordi La Forge
- Appeared In: "Endgame" Season 7 Episodes 25 & 26
It resembles the Constitution class ships of the Original Series, but the USS Challenger is actually a Galaxy-class ship, a contemporary version of that vintage class. Its most notable appearance is in the final two-part episode of the show, when it is one of several Starfleet vessels that's present at the Borg trans-warp conduit Voyager uses as a shortcut to the Alpha Quadrant.
The ship makes one other notable appearance in the episode "Timeless" in which the Challenger is pursuing the Delta Flyer, a much smaller ship that's been stolen by Harry Kim and Chakotay. Geordi La Forge is the Captain in both timelines, and he also takes command of the ship in Star Trek Online, which often includes an animation of the Challenger orbiting spacedock.
2 Species 8472 Bio-Ship
Can Regenerate Any Damage In Combat
- Appeared In: "Scorpion," Season 3, Episode 26.
The Borg may represent one of the greatest threats to the Federation, but the cybernetic race isn't actually at the top of the Delta Quadrant's pecking order. In "Scorpion", Voyager discovers a war between the Borg and the mysterious Species 8472, and it's a war that the Borg are losing.
To secure safe passage through the region, Janeway must ally with the Borg. However, even the combined might of the Federation and its greatest foe may not be enough to overcome the bio-ships of Species 8472.
Constructed from the same biological matter as their creators, these ships are capable of regenerating any combat damage. Offensively, just as one can destroy a usually impregnable Borg cuble several bio-ships could work together to destroy whole planets. Voyager's crew develops innovative new weapons based on Borg technology to counter the vessels, forcing them back into Species 8472's native fluidic space.
1 USS Voyager
Designed To Explore Deep Space
- Appeared In: "Caretaker," Season 1, Episodes 1 & 2
The titular USS Voyager is an Intrepid-class science vessel designed for long-term exploration. While far smaller than many Starfleet vessels, Voyager possesses many innovative technologies, including super-efficient variable geometry warp nacelles and bio-neural circuitry which allows for faster and more efficient computational work than was possible on previous starships.
However, the latter technology can be a curse and a blessing: in "Learning Curve", cheese made by Neelix nearly destroys Voyager after its bacterial cultures infect the ship's bio-neural gel packs. Voyager has one of Starfleet's most impressive track records, as it makes contact with numerous species in the Delta Quadrant.
Some fans have their doubts about the ethics of Voyager's captain, but this does nothing to detract from the vessel's incredible legacy. It's no surprise that several other vessels also bear the Voyager name, as seen in Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Discovery. It may not be as iconic as the Enterprise-D or as punchy as the Defiant, but the USS Voyager is still one of Star Trek's coolest ships.
Star Trek: Voyager
Display card tags widget Display card community and brand rating widget Display card main info widget- Release Date
- January 16, 1995
- Network
- UPN
- Seasons
- 7
- Creator
- Rick Berman, Michael Piller, Jeri Taylor
- Number of Episodes
- 172
- Streaming Service(s)
- Paramount Plus
