Post by magicmuggle01 on Jul 23, 2019 9:39:52 GMT
The Battle of Sector 001 was a confrontation between the United Federation of Planets and the Borg Collective in 2373, when a Borg cube attempted to assimilate Earth. The battle resulted in significant casualties for the Starfleet forces, as they were outgunned. The fleet ultimately managed to successfully destroy the cube, though, partially due to Captain Jean-Luc Picard having intimate tactical knowledge of the Borg. (Star Trek: First Contact).
Date: 2373
Location: Sector 001
Result: Decisive Federation victory
Belligerents
United Federation of Planets & Borg Collective
Notable commanders
Vice Admiral Hayes
Captain Jean-Luc Picard
Lieutenant Commander Worf
Borg Queen
Strength
Unknown: at least 30 ships & One Borg cube
Casualties and losses
At least 20 ships destroyed & Borg cube destroyed
Prelude
The Battle of Sector 001 was preceded by the Battle of Wolf 359, which took place six years before. In this infamous engagement, Starfleet proved to be less prepared to fight the Borg than in the future conflict, opposed by a single Borg cube in both incidents. The earlier battle represented a devastating defeat for Starfleet, orchestrated by Locutus of Borg, a personality forced upon Captain Jean-Luc Picard, while he endured assimilation into the Borg Collective. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II"; DS9: "Emissary") The cube he was aboard was able to come extremely close to Earth, but was eventually thwarted, due to efforts by the crew of Picard's command at the time, the USS Enterprise-D. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II")
The writers of Star Trek: First Contact assumed that, just prior to the Borg's arrival in Federation space preceding the Battle of Sector 001, they used a form of Borg transwarp conduit (a technology established in "Descent"), imagining also that the Borg had used the same technology before the Battle of Wolf 359. (AOL chat, 1997)
The second major Borg incursion into Federation space began one morning, shortly before stardate 50893.5, when a Federation colony on Ivor Prime was destroyed. News or evidence of the attack reached nearby Deep Space 5, and long-range sensors detected a single Borg vessel. Vice Admiral Hayes was immediately informed, when it was determined the cube was on a direct course for Earth.
Later the same day as the colony's annihilation, Hayes contacted Captain Picard aboard the USS Enterprise-E, who was already instinctively aware of the Borg presence in Federation space and felt he should be part of the response force. However, Hayes believed that Picard's previous experience with the Borg, in particular his time as Locutus, would add an "unstable element to a critical situation." Despite Picard's protests to Starfleet Command, the Enterprise was ordered to patrol the Romulan Neutral Zone, while a Federation fleet mobilized in the Typhon sector to intercept the Borg cube before it reached Earth. Following his ascertainment that the Borg were returning, Picard recorded a log entry in which he reported, "The moment I have dreaded for nearly six years has finally arrived. The Borg, our most lethal enemy, have begun an invasion of the Federation, and this time, there may be no stopping them."
Picard briefed his senior officers about the situation less than an hour before the cube was due to cross the Federation border. At this point, it would have taken the Enterprise, traveling at maximum warp, three hours and twenty-five minutes to rendezvous with the fleet. Though the crew strongly agreed with Picard's belief that they should join the Starfleet armada, the Enterprise adhered to Hayes' instructions, remaining separate from the group. (Star Trek: First Contact)
The Battle
The Borg cube approaches Earth
The cube engaged the fleet soon after. The conflict was broadcast on Starfleet frequency 1486, and was monitored by the Enterprise-E. Tactical orders regarding placements in the defense perimeter were issued to the USS Endeavour, USS Defiant, and USS Bozeman, with Hayes' flagship advising the Endeavour to prepare to engage the cube whereas the latter two vessels were given instructions to reverse to a particular defensive position. Approaching at speeds exceeding warp nine, the cube broadcast its familiar litany:
"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile."
The Defiant fights the Borg
The fleet opened fire, but to minimal effect. The defense perimeter was quickly shattered. The cube thereafter made a minute alteration in its course, all the while unrelentingly continuing towards Earth. Just after the Defiant was given an order to persist with its attack, the flagship requested reinforcements from Starfleet Command. Casualty reports began to be submitted, including many dead and wounded aboard the USS Lexington. Realizing that the battle was not progressing well, Picard ordered the Enterprise-E back to Earth, in violation of his orders but with the full support of his bridge crew. Several of the other ships, including the Defiant and Bozeman, assaulted the cube all the way to the Sol system.
By the time the Enterprise arrived in Earth orbit, a large portion of the fleet had already been lost, including Hayes' flagship. However, by this point in the battle, the fleet had succeeded in dealing heavy damage to the cube's outer hull, causing fluctuations in the cube's power grid. The Defiant, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Worf, had been heavily damaged and was preparing to ram the cube when the Enterprise arrived, distracting the Borg long enough to transport the Defiant crew off their stricken ship, as her life support was failing.
Enterprise targets the weak spot
A Borg sphere emerges from the
Borg cube, as the latter vessel
explodes
The immediate aftermath of the
cube's destruction
Picard, taking advantage of his residual link to the Collective, took command of the fleet and ordered all weapons to be targeted on a seemingly non-critical point on the cube. As it was destroyed, the cube launched a smaller spherical craft from its interior – a type of Borg vessel not seen before, a tactical move that may have been the Borg's plan all along. The barrage from the fleet's weaponry destroyed the cube, though the explosion also claimed several nearby Starfleet ships. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Ronald D. Moore once jokingly purported that the vulnerable area which Starfleet targeted to win the battle was actually waste extraction. (AOL chat, 1998)
Aftermath
After heading straight for Earth, with the Enterprise in pursuit, the sphere, launched from the Borg cube, began generating chronometric particles, forming a temporal vortex. The sphere disappeared inside the vortex, near the boundary of Earth's atmosphere, traveling back in time to 2063 and disrupting First Contact. As the Enterprise was caught in the temporal wake of the vortex, its crew saw an assimilated Earth with a drone population of approximately nine billion. The Enterprise followed the sphere into the past, and was able to restore the normal version of history, before safely returning to the 24th century. (Star Trek: First Contact) This time travel event was described by Seven of Nine, as an example of the pogo paradox. (VOY: "Relativity")
The USS Defiant was deemed "adrift, but salvageable" and was soon returned to service at Deep Space 9. (Star Trek: First Contact; DS9: "The Darkness and the Light") Starfleet's losses in the battle were comparable to the earlier fleet action at Wolf 359, despite the fact that the organization was much more thoroughly prepared since its last encounter with the Borg, the duration of the battle being a testament to this fact. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II"; Star Trek: First Contact) The destruction of so many ships left the remaining fleet stretched thin across the quadrant. This was later rued by Captain Benjamin Sisko, shortly before Dominion forces passed through the Bajoran wormhole into Cardassia, and went on to prove of even greater significance following a later outbreak of hostilities with the Dominion. (DS9: "In Purgatory's Shadow", "By Inferno's Light")
In addition to the losses inflicted by the Dominion, the casualties due to the Borg also caused a policy change within the Federation Council. The admission of new members was accelerated, as with the Evora, whose homeworld was declared a Protectorate in 2375, one year after they achieved warp drive. First and foremost, however, the Council tended to act more questionably regarding ethics, even compromising, during the Ba'ku incident – the principles upon which the Federation had been founded. (Star Trek: Insurrection)
Starships at the Battle of Sector 001
The following is a partial list of Federation starships that fought in the battle.
Ship Name Registry Class
USS Appalachia NCC-52136 Steamrunner-class
USS Bozeman NCC-1941 Soyuz-class
USS Budapest NCC-64923 Norway-class
USS Defiant NX-74205 Defiant-class
USS Endeavour NCC-71805 Nebula-class
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E Sovereign-class
USS Lexington NCC-30405 Nebula-class
USS Madison Unknown Unknown
USS Thunderchild NCC-63549 Akira-class
USS Yeager NCC-61947 Saber-class
And at least:
3 unidentified Oberth-class starships
2 unidentified Miranda-class starships
4 additional unidentified Saber-class starships
2 additional unidentified Akira-class starships
2 additional unidentified Norway-class starships
5 additional unidentified Steamrunner-class starships
1 unidentified Nebula-class starship
1 other unidentified starship
Date: 2373
Location: Sector 001
Result: Decisive Federation victory
Belligerents
United Federation of Planets & Borg Collective
Notable commanders
Vice Admiral Hayes
Captain Jean-Luc Picard
Lieutenant Commander Worf
Borg Queen
Strength
Unknown: at least 30 ships & One Borg cube
Casualties and losses
At least 20 ships destroyed & Borg cube destroyed
Prelude
The Battle of Sector 001 was preceded by the Battle of Wolf 359, which took place six years before. In this infamous engagement, Starfleet proved to be less prepared to fight the Borg than in the future conflict, opposed by a single Borg cube in both incidents. The earlier battle represented a devastating defeat for Starfleet, orchestrated by Locutus of Borg, a personality forced upon Captain Jean-Luc Picard, while he endured assimilation into the Borg Collective. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II"; DS9: "Emissary") The cube he was aboard was able to come extremely close to Earth, but was eventually thwarted, due to efforts by the crew of Picard's command at the time, the USS Enterprise-D. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II")
The writers of Star Trek: First Contact assumed that, just prior to the Borg's arrival in Federation space preceding the Battle of Sector 001, they used a form of Borg transwarp conduit (a technology established in "Descent"), imagining also that the Borg had used the same technology before the Battle of Wolf 359. (AOL chat, 1997)
The second major Borg incursion into Federation space began one morning, shortly before stardate 50893.5, when a Federation colony on Ivor Prime was destroyed. News or evidence of the attack reached nearby Deep Space 5, and long-range sensors detected a single Borg vessel. Vice Admiral Hayes was immediately informed, when it was determined the cube was on a direct course for Earth.
Later the same day as the colony's annihilation, Hayes contacted Captain Picard aboard the USS Enterprise-E, who was already instinctively aware of the Borg presence in Federation space and felt he should be part of the response force. However, Hayes believed that Picard's previous experience with the Borg, in particular his time as Locutus, would add an "unstable element to a critical situation." Despite Picard's protests to Starfleet Command, the Enterprise was ordered to patrol the Romulan Neutral Zone, while a Federation fleet mobilized in the Typhon sector to intercept the Borg cube before it reached Earth. Following his ascertainment that the Borg were returning, Picard recorded a log entry in which he reported, "The moment I have dreaded for nearly six years has finally arrived. The Borg, our most lethal enemy, have begun an invasion of the Federation, and this time, there may be no stopping them."
Picard briefed his senior officers about the situation less than an hour before the cube was due to cross the Federation border. At this point, it would have taken the Enterprise, traveling at maximum warp, three hours and twenty-five minutes to rendezvous with the fleet. Though the crew strongly agreed with Picard's belief that they should join the Starfleet armada, the Enterprise adhered to Hayes' instructions, remaining separate from the group. (Star Trek: First Contact)
The Battle
The Borg cube approaches Earth
The cube engaged the fleet soon after. The conflict was broadcast on Starfleet frequency 1486, and was monitored by the Enterprise-E. Tactical orders regarding placements in the defense perimeter were issued to the USS Endeavour, USS Defiant, and USS Bozeman, with Hayes' flagship advising the Endeavour to prepare to engage the cube whereas the latter two vessels were given instructions to reverse to a particular defensive position. Approaching at speeds exceeding warp nine, the cube broadcast its familiar litany:
"We are the Borg. Lower your shields and surrender your ships. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Your culture will adapt to service us. Resistance is futile."
The Defiant fights the Borg
The fleet opened fire, but to minimal effect. The defense perimeter was quickly shattered. The cube thereafter made a minute alteration in its course, all the while unrelentingly continuing towards Earth. Just after the Defiant was given an order to persist with its attack, the flagship requested reinforcements from Starfleet Command. Casualty reports began to be submitted, including many dead and wounded aboard the USS Lexington. Realizing that the battle was not progressing well, Picard ordered the Enterprise-E back to Earth, in violation of his orders but with the full support of his bridge crew. Several of the other ships, including the Defiant and Bozeman, assaulted the cube all the way to the Sol system.
By the time the Enterprise arrived in Earth orbit, a large portion of the fleet had already been lost, including Hayes' flagship. However, by this point in the battle, the fleet had succeeded in dealing heavy damage to the cube's outer hull, causing fluctuations in the cube's power grid. The Defiant, commanded by Lieutenant Commander Worf, had been heavily damaged and was preparing to ram the cube when the Enterprise arrived, distracting the Borg long enough to transport the Defiant crew off their stricken ship, as her life support was failing.
Enterprise targets the weak spot
A Borg sphere emerges from the
Borg cube, as the latter vessel
explodes
The immediate aftermath of the
cube's destruction
Picard, taking advantage of his residual link to the Collective, took command of the fleet and ordered all weapons to be targeted on a seemingly non-critical point on the cube. As it was destroyed, the cube launched a smaller spherical craft from its interior – a type of Borg vessel not seen before, a tactical move that may have been the Borg's plan all along. The barrage from the fleet's weaponry destroyed the cube, though the explosion also claimed several nearby Starfleet ships. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Ronald D. Moore once jokingly purported that the vulnerable area which Starfleet targeted to win the battle was actually waste extraction. (AOL chat, 1998)
Aftermath
After heading straight for Earth, with the Enterprise in pursuit, the sphere, launched from the Borg cube, began generating chronometric particles, forming a temporal vortex. The sphere disappeared inside the vortex, near the boundary of Earth's atmosphere, traveling back in time to 2063 and disrupting First Contact. As the Enterprise was caught in the temporal wake of the vortex, its crew saw an assimilated Earth with a drone population of approximately nine billion. The Enterprise followed the sphere into the past, and was able to restore the normal version of history, before safely returning to the 24th century. (Star Trek: First Contact) This time travel event was described by Seven of Nine, as an example of the pogo paradox. (VOY: "Relativity")
The USS Defiant was deemed "adrift, but salvageable" and was soon returned to service at Deep Space 9. (Star Trek: First Contact; DS9: "The Darkness and the Light") Starfleet's losses in the battle were comparable to the earlier fleet action at Wolf 359, despite the fact that the organization was much more thoroughly prepared since its last encounter with the Borg, the duration of the battle being a testament to this fact. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II"; Star Trek: First Contact) The destruction of so many ships left the remaining fleet stretched thin across the quadrant. This was later rued by Captain Benjamin Sisko, shortly before Dominion forces passed through the Bajoran wormhole into Cardassia, and went on to prove of even greater significance following a later outbreak of hostilities with the Dominion. (DS9: "In Purgatory's Shadow", "By Inferno's Light")
In addition to the losses inflicted by the Dominion, the casualties due to the Borg also caused a policy change within the Federation Council. The admission of new members was accelerated, as with the Evora, whose homeworld was declared a Protectorate in 2375, one year after they achieved warp drive. First and foremost, however, the Council tended to act more questionably regarding ethics, even compromising, during the Ba'ku incident – the principles upon which the Federation had been founded. (Star Trek: Insurrection)
Starships at the Battle of Sector 001
The following is a partial list of Federation starships that fought in the battle.
Ship Name Registry Class
USS Appalachia NCC-52136 Steamrunner-class
USS Bozeman NCC-1941 Soyuz-class
USS Budapest NCC-64923 Norway-class
USS Defiant NX-74205 Defiant-class
USS Endeavour NCC-71805 Nebula-class
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E Sovereign-class
USS Lexington NCC-30405 Nebula-class
USS Madison Unknown Unknown
USS Thunderchild NCC-63549 Akira-class
USS Yeager NCC-61947 Saber-class
And at least:
3 unidentified Oberth-class starships
2 unidentified Miranda-class starships
4 additional unidentified Saber-class starships
2 additional unidentified Akira-class starships
2 additional unidentified Norway-class starships
5 additional unidentified Steamrunner-class starships
1 unidentified Nebula-class starship
1 other unidentified starship
