Constitution-B

This class was developed from the remains of non-recoverable mothballed Constitution class vessels as a rush job to meet a perceived cruiser shortage when the Cardassian Union was encountered. It is not a refit, but a new-built intended to meet the threat of Jaldun-class ships. While it might be possible to turn a Constitution-A in a -B, doing so will provide little benefit. There are no further refits for this class permitted.

Known in official literature as the Lexington subclass after the name of the lead vessel, the Constitution-B is as visually distinct from the preceding Achernar subclass as those ships were from the baseline Constitutions. The primary hull takes obvious cues from the Excelsior lineage, while the torpedo pods are more closely related to those used on the Centaur-A refit. Other changes include a larger internal shuttlebay and a radically different bridge module designed specifically for the subclass.

While better-armed than the Jaldun, Constitution-B tended to come off worse from one on one battles with them due to their slightly inferior durability. The class was replaced in production by the Renaissance. The last Constitution-B ever constructed was the VCS T'Plana Hath, which commissioned in 2316. The class was removed from active Starfleet service in 2324 as part of the Federalization initiative of the fleets of the original four members and Betazed. 8 of the ships were passed on to service with various other member and affiliate fleets, but 2 were mothballed. USS Valiant was added to the collection of the Starfleet Museum.