A Flagship is a term referring to the status conferred upon a starship. Typically, a Flagship is a starship commanded by a Flag Officer (an Admiral or similar rank). The term also properly applies to the ship of whatever Commanding Officer is in charge of a grouping of ships. A third, more colloquial usage of the term can mean that the ship in question is considered an "exemplar" of the best capabilities and virtues of the force it represents.
In Starfleet, It is common practice for a Flag Officer to designate a starship under his command as his/her personal Flagship, using that ship as his/her Fleet's Command vessel during Fleet Operations, Diplomatic Missions, and large scale battles.
A Flagship is the leading ship within a force it represents, whether a Flag Officer is present or not. The seniority of the Flagship typical supersedes that of other vessels, unless specificaly stated otherwise. A Flagship usualy has a sophisticated Combat Information Center (also known as CIC, Operations Room, or Action Information Center) or dedicated consoles for Flag Officer use during Fleet Operations, coordinating Fleet assests, and assessing intelligence information.
Typicaly, a Flagship contains all the same type of command crew a normal starship posesses, a Captain and First Officer, for smooth starship operation when the Flag Officer is not aboard or in direct control over the vessel.
Known Flagships[]
- U.S.S. Enterprise (NCC-1701-F) - Federation Flagship
- U.S.S. Endeavour (NCC-97004) - Flagship of the 22nd Mobile (2418 - 2420)
- U.S.S. Adagio (NCC-99691-B) - Flagship of the 22nd (2420 - 2428)
- U.S.S. Solbianca (NCC-91717) - personal flagship for Vice Admiral Meranda Kalavek (??? to January 2424)
- U.S.S. Ayanami (NCC-99777) - personal flagship for Vice Admiral Nyoko Honda (2414 to present)