View source for Defiant class/Design History & Achievements

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<span style="text-transform:uppercase;font-size:x-small">Class Profile by [[ASDB]]</span>
===Cloaking Device===
With the threat of the Dominion, Starfleet was loaned a cloaking device by the [[Romulan Star Empire]]. As part of the agreement, a Romulan officer was to be stationed aboard the Defiant to operate it; it was only to be used in the Gamma quadrant, and Starfleet was to provide all intelligence reports to the Romulans. This cloaking device was not present on production models of the Defiant class.

===Defiant Class Warhead===
Seen by some as the last resort of the desperate, some Defiant class vessels are equipped with a massive tri-cobalt warhead designed to cripple all but the largest enemy vessels.  Its use, however, is considered a ‘last resort’ as it disables several key systems, including life support and main engines, meaning the crew of the vessel is left helpless should the warhead be used.

The warhead has been used once, with devastating effect, against an Orion shipyard and attacking vessels. The {{USS|Avenger}} was severely damaged but was able to be salvaged.

The maximum yield of the warhead is classified but also has the capacity to be even further enhanced. Such enhancements, however, could lead to the complete loss of the vessel.

===Pulse Phasers===
The Defiant Class pulse phasers can trace their direct lineage to {{c|Miranda}} starships, which gave the smaller Miranda class cousins considerably more firepower than the {{c|Constitution}} possessed. Powered directly by the warp engines, the pulse phasers provide tremendous punching power against shielded targets and armored vessels.

===Type 10 Shuttle===
Originally equipped with smaller Type 18 shuttle pods, solo field use of the USS Defiant in the Bajoran sector soon demanded the need for larger auxiliary craft capability. The Defiant was retrofitted with an expanded shuttlebay at the bottom of the hull, and a new shuttle type, designated the Type 10, was created using a modified Type 6 hull as a base. The [[Type 10]] like its mothership is built with an emphasis on combat durability. More heavily armed than previous shuttles, the Type 10 has since seen deployment on other Starfleet ship classes and installations such as the Defiant’s larger cousin, the {{c|Veritas}} medium cruiser.
[[File:Type-10.jpg|thumb|left|Type 10 Shuttlecraft]]