"The Mk4 was an attempt to restart production using new
technologies in the shape of the FWH-1 warp drive. However only five new
build ships were completed before the shipyard went bust due to the high
costs of building the class compared to newer modular vessels, a further
hull was abandoned while 60% complete. These five ships were procured by
Mars shipping as part of the civilian reserve fleet program, which saw Star
Fleet underwrite a proportion of the cost of acquisition of the ships in
return for them being made available in times of emergency.
The performance of the Mk4 prompted Star Fleet to offer to
underwrite the conversion of Mk3 ships to the standard, again in return for
use of the ships in times of war. At the time the conversion of a such a
number of large elderly ships was though to pointless, but with hindsight it
can be seen that it was a perfectly timed program. 20 ships were modified to
this mark by 2247, and that was planned to be the end of the program.
Visually, the Mk4 could be easily distinguished from the
earlier versions as the short FFTL-3B nacelles were replaced with the much
longer dilithium energised FWH-1 nacelles. The more modern construction and
materials of the nacelles meant that despite their increased size they
massed substantially less, meaning the class reverted to Class IV mass (unladen)
and Class VI (Laden)."
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