ISS Columbia (NX-02)

The ISS Columbia (NX-02) was a NX-class battlecruiser starship in Imperial Starfleet service during the mid-22nd century. Columbia was launched in November 2154 as the second ship of the NX-class, with several technological upgrades compared to her predecessor. The Columbia was commanded by Captain Erika Hernandez.

Following the successful launch of the ISS Enterprise in 2151, Starfleet quickly ordered an additional three NX-class starships that were to enter service in the near future. As a result, the Columbia was the second ship of the class to begin construction, however, at that point the vessel was only designated NX-02. By mid-2153, the Columbia was still in the early stages of construction and was unable to fight against the Xindi attack on Earth.

However, by mid-2154 construction had been completed on the Columbia and she was ready to be launched. The commanding officer that Starfleet ultimately chose was Captain Erika Hernandez, a much respected Imperial Starfleet officer. While the launch of the Columbia was scheduled for June 2154, it later had to be pushed back to November when the starship developed trouble with her engines. Because of these set-backs, the Columbia was unable to assist the Enterprise during her encounter with a Romulan telepresence drone ship. Despite several problems with the Columbia’s systems, the addition of Commander Charles Tucker III as Chief Engineer, made sure that the Columbia was able to launch in November 2154.

Her first assignment after being launched was to rescue Enterprise after she had fallen victim to Klingon sabotage. In order to help the Enterprise, Columbia had to merge warp fields with Enterprise so that Commander Tucker could be transferred aboard to fix the problem. After solving the problems with Enterprise, the Columbia then assisted her sister-ship in recovering Dr. Phlox from the Qu'Vat colony, and engaged several Klingon warships in combat.

In 2155, the Columbia was part of an assault fleet that was almost totally destroyed in a battle with rebels. Fortunately, the USS Defiant commanded by Jonathan Archer arrived and drove the rebels off with its advanced weaponry. However, Archer planned to become Emperor and killed Black taking command of Avenger. The aliens on board lead by Soval attacked the Defiant while it was sabotaged by Phlox, however the crew was able to restore its systems and Avenger was destroyed. The Columbia was one of seven ships that attempted to defend Earth from an attack by Empress Hoshi Sato aboard the Defiant in 2155. The Columbia was one of six ships in the task force charged with finding the rebel stronghold where Empress Hoshi Sato was being held captive and restoring Empress Hoshi Sato to power.