U.S.S. Excelsior NCC-2000 (2293)
The U.S.S. Excelsior NCC-2000 was an Excelsior-class starship in operation by Starfleet from 2285 to 2320. It was the prototype of its class, originally serving as a testbed for the Transwarp Development Project with the experimental class registry of NX-2000 and under the command of Captain Lawrence H. Styles. Although the Transwarp Development Project was ultimately a failure, the ship was later recommissioned and served under the command of Captain Hikaru Sulu on a three-year mission to catalog gaseous planetary anomalies in the Beta Quadrant. In 2293, it participated in a battle at the site of the Khitomer Peace Conference, helping the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise thwart an assassination attempt on the Federation President.
U.S.S. Excelsior NCC-2000 Bridge | Deck 1 (2293)
Located on Deck 1 atop the primary hull, the Excelsior’s main bridge supervised all primary mission operations and coordinated all departmental activities. Prior to her recommissioning, the Excelsior was refitted with a new bridge module, which contained a large engineering master systems display monitor, showing a cutaway of the ship and status information. The bridge featured similar design elements and a similar general layout to other bridges of the era, such as a large main forward viewscreen, two turbolift entryways, a sunken command pit containing the captain’s chair and the helm and navigation consoles, with consoles for sciences, communications, engineering, propulsion systems, auxiliary systems, mission operations, and tactical operations lining the outer perimeter of the bridge. The bridge featured a chronometer above its main viewing screen.
Production Notes:
Ship Model (Physical)
As portrayed in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Film, 1991)
The Excelsior-class model was one of six new space vessels introduced in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. It was designed by David Carson and Nilo Rodis of Industrial Light & Magic and built by model makers Steve Gawley and Bill George, also of ILM. The design was meant to represent a step-forward from the Constitution-class U.S.S. Enterprise, being both a more streamlined and larger design. The model went on to be heavily used in future Star Trek productions, including four other Star Trek films, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager. The model was notably modified for its depiction of the Enterprise-B in Star Trek Generations.
Bridge Set (Physical)
As portrayed in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (Film, 1991)
The bridge of the U.S.S. Excelsior as it appeared in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country was a redress of the new U.S.S. Enterprise bridge set which debuted in the previous film, Star Trek V: The Final Frontier. Under the direction of Nicholas Meyer, the bridge was redressed with more militaristic tones, such as metal-plate flooring and battleship-gray walls. The conn and ops consoles were borrowed from the set of the Enterprise-D bridge to serve as the helm and navigation consoles, giving the Excelsior bridge a more distinct and advanced look compared to that of the Enterprise bridge, which also appeared heavily in this film. The padding on the lower portions of the perimeter consoles was given a navy blue color to contrast with the Enterprise’s maroon padding.