Galaxy Class

 

General description
The Galaxy class is the result of an ambitious development program at Utopia Planitia Fleetyards. It is the largest and most complex starship type ever built. The Galaxy class is primarily designed to replace the aged Ambassador and Oberth class in research missions. Galaxy class starships feature a detachable and independently operational saucer section, three shuttlebays and a "Captain's Yacht" at the bottom of the saucer.
Known ships
USS Challenger NCC-71099
USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D
USS Galaxy NCC-70637
USS Magellan
USS Odyssey NCC-71832
USS Venture NCC-71854
USS Yamato NCC-71807
Annotations
1) Apart from the three nacelle version in TNG "All Good Things", three variants of the Galaxy class in the real world are known. Compared to the Enterprise-D, the warp drives of the Venture have additional top pieces, probably phaser strips. Two Galaxy class ships shown in DS9: "Favor the Bold" seem to have a darker neck instead.
2) The erroneous registry NCC-1305-E of the Yamato in TNG: "Where Silence Has Lease" can simply be explained by the fact that the ship was only an illusion created by Nagilum (Star Trek Fact Files). Actually, this was not intended, but the production designer just was not aware of the 24th century numbering scheme. The number was corrected some episodes later, when the Yamato exploded (TNG: "Contagion", one of the horrible episodes for Galaxy class fans).
3) According to the STTNG Technical Manual, six Galaxy class starships have been completed, and six additional spaceframes prepared. Actually, twelve Galaxy starships altogether are the minimum possible number, taking into account that at least three have already been destroyed, and several others are involved in the Dominion War.
Class specifications
Explorer
Length: 641m
Deck count: 42
Max. speed: Warp 9.2 (cruise)
Crew complement: 1000
First commissioned in 2357

Information source:
Bernd Schneider's Star Trek Website