VICKERS-ARMSTRONGS: A POTTED HISTORYThe name and brand "Vickers-Armstrongs" had been bought from the defunct business in the mid 21st century by it's workers, and had survived the third world war as a manufacturer of solar aircraft engines. It had contributed to the D,E and G class freighters commissioned by the Earth Cargo Service. Vickers-Armstrongs returned to military hardware during the Romulan war, when it was contracted to build parts for Daedalus and later Yorktown class vessels. Post-War it rapidly expanded its civilian construction yards to support the massive growth in traffic in the new UFP. In 2188 it merged with the ailing Tellarite Mechanist Grouping, ensuring it's technically expertise would be retained in one place; the Rolls-Royce brand - long limited to antique cars and hobby engines - returned as a mark of pedigree on next generation fusion engines. By the 2240s Vickers had eight facilities across four worlds; three on earth, two on Tellar prime and one on Mars, Vulcan and Antares respectively. In 2249 Vickers would take over construction of the Hermes "Achilles" sub-variant, resolving issues with the torpedo roll bar. Minor contracts were soon replaced by major contracts for the construction of Marvick-Type vessels, which were too large and complicated for most of the Sol system's other civilian yards. With Starfleet's San Francisco and Tranquility Base full up with Constitution class starships and their Saladin, Hermes, Kirov and Plotemy class cousins, the construction of secondary vessels like the Larson, Nelson and Pioneer vessels was beginning to lag behind. From 2252 onwards Vickers would pick up the slack by taking the full contract for the 4th block of Larson class destroyers, as well as finishing construction of the first 12 Pioneer class ships that had stalled at Tranquilty Base. With Starfleet's main shipyards focusing during and after the Federation-Klingon War in the reconstruction of the fleet's cruiser force, Vickers was one of the many civilian conglomerates commissioned to help rebuild - and later upgrade the destroyer and scout roster of Starfleet Command. By 2271 Vickers had the largest share of Starfleet ship contracts in the Sol system, and third in the Federation to Boeing-Shirkahr and The Andorian Imperial Shipwrighting Conglomerate - but not by much. Vickers would only increase their renown as Starfleet shipbuilders during the '70s and '80s, leading the way by managing the Belknap construction project from the keel up, while also contributing alongside Boeing-Shirkahr to the Georgiou Class Battlecruiser. USS MALCOLM REED AND GOODWOOD: FRONTIER WORKSHORSES
Art is by @ISSAventine on Twitter. Block writing and design is by the author.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |