Chapter 55 - The Old-Ass Excelsior Class (Patreon)

“I’m sorry, but even if the Cairo had been minutes away from the planet, instead of a full day away at maximum warp, I think the outcome would have been exactly the same for your people.”

My audience looked visibly shocked at my answer, so I continued.

“The Cairo has a fine crew. It’s commanding officer, Captain Jellico, is a highly decorated Starfleet captain who actually has quite a bit of combat experience from the Cardassian war, unlike most Starfleet officers,” I answered. “But like so many ships in the Federation’s fleet, it is an old ship, of an even older design. The Cairo is an Excelsior-class ship, a design that is over 80 years old by this point. One that has gone through five separate major refits. It should have been retired ages ago. There is simply no reason it should still be in service given the newer designs that are available and the excess shipbuilding capacity the Federation has. Against three Hur’q carrier ships, with all the fighters those carriers could bring to bear, which the current design philosophy doesn’t really account for, I just don’t think it would have survived long enough to make much of a difference, despite their best efforts.”