The original U.S.S. Enterprise was a Constitution Class star ship. Registry number NCC-1701. The Enterprise was the most famous starship ever in Federation history. The five-year mission under Kirk made the Enterprise legendary. The Enterprise was built at the San Francisco Fleet Yards. It was launched in 2245 from the San Francisco Yards orbiting Earth. The first to command the Enterprise was Captain Robert April, then by Christopher Pike, and lastly Captain James T. Kirk. It was superbly equipped for deep space research and exploration. It had 14 science labs. The ship achieved it's legendary status during it's five year mission from 2264-2269. The Enterprise was almost captured by Romulan forces in 2269 when Kirk and Commander Spock attempted to steal a cloaking device from the Romulan Empire. It was refitted seven times during it's lifetime! It had a major overhaul in 2270. Almost every major system was upgraded. A new bridge module and warp nacelles were installed. The Enterprise's overall length was 289 meters. Captain Decker was put in command of the Enterprise during its refit under Admiral Kirk's request, but Kirk later demoted Decker to executive officer and took command of the ship when the ship had to stop V-GER from destroying Earth.It was destroyed just prior to its scheduled retirement in 2285 by Captain Kirk over the Genesis Planet when he initiated a self-destruct sequence. His crew beamed down to the surface of the planet as a Klingon landing party beamed onto the Enterprise. The landing party was caught on the Enterprise as it exploded. Soon after, it burned up in the atmosphere of the Genesis Planet.