USS Ahwahnee

There have been two Federation starships known to bear the name USS Ahwahnee.

USS Ahwahnee (NCC-2048)

The USS Ahwahnee NCC-2048 was a Federation starship in the late 23rd century. In 2293, Ahwahnee was slated to be part of Colonel West's task force for the Operation Retrieve, a military extraction intended to rescue James T. Kirk and Leonard McCoy from the Klingon penal colony Rura Penthe. The mission was not mobilized, as the Federation president strictly forbade any such intervention for diplomatic reasons. (Signage created for Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

This vessel's existence and registry is not from dialogue, it was seen only on background artwork. No design was established for Ahwahnee, it was probably graphically represented by the outline of a movie era refit Constitution-class vessel, but this does not seem to be evidence that is of that design, since that icon was used in every starship listed in the graphics. From the registry number, one could suppose this was an Excelsior, Constellation or possibly some unknown starship design.

USS Ahwahnee (NCC-73620)

File:Fed cheyenne.jpg

The USS Ahwahnee in 2367

The USS Ahwahnee NCC-73620 was a Cheyenne-class Federation starship in the mid-24th century, left adrift and decimated by the Borg at the Battle of Wolf 359 on stardate 44002. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II")

The Ahwahnee joined Captain Picard's task force which blockaded the Klingon-Romulan border during the Klingon Civil War in early 2368. (TNG: "Redemption, Part II")

The Ahwahnee registry number seen on a computer display in "Redemption" was actually NCC-71620. Although some fans believe that there were really two different starships Ahwahnee, most assume that the discrepancy is simply an error. This is considered more likely because the second number was actually lower than the first, something that does not fit with the general starship registry scheme. It seems more likely that the ship was recovered and refurbished to be serviceable by the second appearance.

The Ahwahnee registry could be clearly read off photos of the filming model, a four nacelled starship built from two scaled-down Galaxy-class Enterprise-D model kit saucers, with marker pens glued on as engine nacelles. The model was then painted and damaged before being filmed for "The Best of Both Worlds." Footage of the model was probably also reused at the surplus depot on Qualor II in TNG: "Unification."