Five years after the Dominion War, Starfleet is still recovering from the largest, most destructive conflict in Federation history. Though victorious, casualties were astronomical. Some 1600 starships and a million and a half Starfleet and allied personnel were lost in battle, leaving the fleet spread thin throughout Federation territory. Despite these losses, Starfleet remained the preeminent military power in the Alpha Quadrant with the greatest number of starships in service, though hard-pressed to provide security, defense and logistical support. To meet these demands, the fleet has fallen back on older, outdated vessels to fill the gap. Starships scheduled for decommissioning before the war remain in service, though the latest and most advanced classes serve in front line combat and exploration roles.

Frontline starships remaining in service are either veteran units which survived the war or new top-of-the-line vessels, giving Starfleet a slight tactical advantage in the Alpha and Beta Quadrants. Even after five years, most of the Federation's fleetyards are engaged in repair and refit of older and damaged starships, slowing the production of new vessels. The ASDB Integration Facility at Utopia Planitia Fleet Yards, Mars, the Atlas V Assembly Facility at Deneb V, and Antares Fleetyard are occupied in the production of the latest, most advanced starship classes.

Following is a list of Federation starship classes currently in service:

FIRST LINE VESSELS
Akira-class heavy cruiser
Bradbury-class transport
Centaur-class medium cruiser
Danube-class runabout
Defiant-class escort
Galaxy-class explorer
Intrepid-class explorer
     Elkins-type light cruiser
     Yeager-type light cruiser
Norway-class medium cruiser
Nova-class (refit) science/survey vessel
Olympic-class medical transport
Prometheus-class tactical cruiser
Saber-class light cruiser
Sovereign-class explorer
Steamrunner-class medium cruiser

SECOND LINE VESSELS
Ambassador-class heavy cruiser
Challenger-class medium cruiser
Curry-class medium cruiser/transport
Erewhon-class transport
Excelsior II-class (refit) explorer
Nebula-class explorer
New Orleans-class frigate
Niagra-class heavy cruiser
Peregrin-class courier

THIRD LINE VESSELS
Cheyenne-class medium cruiser
Korolev-class heavy cruiser
Merced-class frigate
Renaissance light cruiser
Springfield-class medium cruiser