THE ANDROMEDA CLASS' PRIMARY MISSION IS TO FUNCTION AS A COMMAND AND CONTROL PLATFORM FOR MAJOR FLEET OPERATIONS. HOWEVER, WITH IT'S DUAL ORGANIC WARP CORES AND MASSIVE WEAPON ARRAYS, ANY ANDROMEDA CLASS VESSEL IS MORE THAN CAPABLE OF OPERATING ALONE. TO ADD IN COMMAND AND CONTROL MISSIONS, ITS DESIGNERS INTEGRATED BIO-NEURAL CIRCUITRY INTO THE ANDROMEDA CLASS COMPUTER SYSTEMS, ALLOWING INSTANTANEOUS COMPUTER RESPONSE TIME. 
 

THE ANDROMEDA CLASS STARSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROJECT WAS STARTED IN EARLY 2372, WHEN THE THREAT POSED BY THE DOMINION WAS REALIZED, AND WITH THE REALIZATION THAT THE CURRENT SHIPS IN THE STARFLEET WERE SIMPLY NOT POWERFUL ENOUGH TO COMBAT THIS POWERFUL NEW ENEMY. THE PROJECT WAS BROUGHT BEFORE THE FEDERATION PRESIDENT BY ADMIRALS ALANA NECHEYEV, EDWARD JELLICO AND ALEXANDER PIERCE. THE PRESIDENT RELUCTANTLY APPROVED THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE NEW STARSHIP CLASS WITH THE STIPULATION THAT ONLY TWO SHIPS WOULD BE BUILT, DUE TO THE RESOURCES INVOLVED AND BECAUSE OF THE DESTRUCTIVE MISSION OF THE NEW CLASS. SOON AFTER, CONSTRUCTION ON THE ANDROMEDA CLASS STARSHIP BEGAN AT THE NEWLY BUILT, SECRET CONSTRUCTION SITE AT THE UTOPIA PLANITIA SHIPYARDS ON MARS. TWO SHIPS, THE ANDROMEDA AND THE LIBERATOR WERE BUILT SIMULTANEOUSLY IN ORDER TO SPEED UP THEIR CONSTRUCTION AND TO PREVENT POSSIBLE SABOTAGE IF ONLY ONE SHIP WERE BUILT AND THEN ITS EXISTENCE BECAME COMMON KNOWLEDGE. UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF ADMIRALS JELLICO AND PIERCE, THE ANDROMEDA PROJECT PROCEEDED QUICKLY AND THE SPACE FRAMES WERE ALMOST COMPLETELY FINISHED AND THE DUAL WARP CORES ALREADY INSTALLED BY THE END OF 2372. 
 

THE FEDERATION COUNCIL LEARNED OF THE ANDROMEDA PROJECT IN FEBRUARY OF 2373 WHEN AN INVESTIGATION WAS LAUNCHED INTO THE VAST BUDGET EXPENDITURES OF THE UTOPIA SHIPYARDS, AND THE FEW NUMBER OF SHIPS PRODUCED. CONSTRUCTION OF BOTH SHIPS WAS TEMPORARILY HALTED WHEN THE COUNCIL MET TO ARGUE WHETHER OR NOT TO CONTINUE CONSTRUCTION. MOST COUNCIL MEMBERS WERE APPALLED BY THE THOUGHT OF THE EXISTENCE OF A WARSHIP IN THE STARFLEET, WHILE A FEW OF THEM BELIEVED THE TIME FOR A SHIP CLASS OF THIS TYPE HAD COME. OPPONENTS TO THE ANDROMEDA PROJECT CALLED THE SHIPS ABOMINATIONS TO THE IDEALS THAT THE UNITED FEDERATION OF PLANETS STOOD FOR, WHILE ITS SUPPORTERS SAID THE ANDROMEDA CLASS STARSHIP WOULD PRESERVE THOSE IDEALS. IN THE END, THE ANDROMEDA PROJECT WAS ALLOWED TO CONTINUE, MAINLY DUE TO THE COMPLETION OF THE SPACE FRAMES AND WARP CORES. THE FEDERATION COUNCIL ALSO QUIETLY CENSORED THE PRESIDENT FOR KEEPING THE PROJECT SECRET.
 

ALTHOUGH ORIGINALLY PLANNED AS A REFIT FOR THE GALAXY CLASS STARSHIP, THE ADDITION OF THE THIRD WARP NACELLE WAS SEEN AS A NEAR IMPOSSIBILITY BY MOST MEMBERS OF THE THEORETICAL PROPULSION TEAM STATIONED AT THE FLEET YARDS. IT WAS NOT UNTIL ADMIRAL MONTGOMERY SCOTT TOOK OVER ALL FLEET YARD OPERATIONS IN 2373 THAT THE PROBLEMS INHERENT WITH A SHIP TRAVELING INSIDE A THIRD WARP FIELD WERE SOLVED. TEAMING WITH DR. LEAH BRAHMS OF STARFLEET'S ADVANCED TECHNOLOGIES DIVISION, ADMIRAL SCOTT NOT ONLY MADE THE THIRD WARP FIELD WORK, BUT MADE IT OPERATE OVER FORTY PERCENT MORE EFFICIENTLY THAN ANY OTHER FEDERATION SHIP. THESE ADVANCES AND THE ADDITION OF THE SECOND WARP CORE MAKE THE ANDROMEDA CLASS THE FASTEST STARSHIPS IN THE FLEET. THE ANDROMEDA CLASS IS CAPABLE OF SUSTAINED WARP TRAVEL AT WARP 9.989 AND CAN ATTAIN THIS WITHOUT WARP-FIELD DAMAGE TO THE SURROUNDING SPACE.
 

THE POWER OUTPUT FROM THE DUAL WARP CORES CAN BE UTILIZED FOR THE OFFENSIVE AND DEFENSIVE SYSTEMS OF THE ANDROMEDA CLASS SHIPS. POSSESSING THREE TIMES AS MANY STANDARD PHASER EMITTER ARRAYS AS THE SOVEREIGN CLASS STARSHIP, GIVING THE ANDROMEDA CLASS STARSHIP MORE STANDARD PHASER ARRAYS THAN ANY OTHER STARSHIP CLASS IN THE STARFLEET ARSENAL. IN ADDITION, THE ANDROMEDA CLASS STARSHIP HAS TWENTY PULSE PHASER CANNONS MOUNTED AT VARIOUS LOCATIONS THROUGHOUT THE SHIP. THESE WEAPONS HAVE BEEN PROVEN A VERY RELIABLE AND LETHAL ADDITION TO THE CLASS.

ANOTHER UNIQUE PROPERTY OF THE ANDROMEDA CLASS ARE THE LARGE HANGER BAYS LOCATED IN THE PRIMARY AND SECONDARY HULLS. THESE FLIGHT BAYS WERE DESIGNED TO ACCOMMODATE SMALL, TWO MAN WARP-CAPABLE FIGHTERS CONSTRUCTED SPECIFICALLY TO COMBAT THE THREAT POSED BY THE DOMINION FIGHTERS TO LARGER FEDERATION SHIPS. HOWEVER, THESE FIGHTERS ARE STILL IN THE TESTING STAGES AT THIS TIME AND IT IS UNCLEAR WHEN THEY WILL BE PLACED INTO SERVICE.

IN ADDITION TO THE NORMAL COMPLEMENT OF OVER TWELVE-HUNDRED STARFLEET PERSONNEL, THE ANDROMEDA CLASS ALSO SERVES AS THE BASE OF OPERATIONS FOR FIVE-THOUSAND FEDERATION SPACE MARINES, SPECIALLY TRAINED FOR COMBAT AGAINST THE JEM'HADAR SOLDIERS OF THE DOMINION. THESE MARINES, ALONG WITH OTHERS RECENTLY ASSIGNED TO OTHER STARSHIPS, WILL DETER THE JEM'HADAR FROM BEAMING ONTO THESE SHIPS DURING BATTLE.

THE MOST DRAMATIC ATTRIBUTE TO THE ANDROMEDA CLASS STARSHIP IS THE FUNCTIONAL "CAPTAIN'S YACHT". LOCATED IN THE CENTER OF THE LOWER THE SAUCER SECTION, A DEFIANT CLASS STARSHIP CAN BE DOCKED AND LAUNCHED FROM THE MAIN SHIP. THIS SHIP SERVES AS AN ESCORT FOR THE ANDROMEDA CLASS AND CAN BE UTILIZED FOR VARIOUS MISSIONS. THE DOCKING CLAMPS THAT SECURE THE DEFIANT CLASS SHIP TO THE ANDROMEDA CAN ACCOMMODATE ANY DEFIANT CLASS SHIP IN THE EVENT THAT THE NORMAL SHIP ASSIGNED IS DESTROYED.

IN EARLY 2375, THE U.S.S. ANDROMEDA  WAS LAUNCHED FROM UTOPIA PLANITIA, SLIGHTLY AHEAD OF ITS SISTER SHIP, THE U.S.S. LIBERATOR. HOWEVER,THE ANDROMEDA  DISAPPEARED ONE DAY AFTER ITS LAUNCH WITH CAPTAIN ORFIL QUINTEROS, HEAD OF THE ORBITAL OPERATIONS DIVISION, AND MOST OF THE SENIOR ENGINEERING STAFFS THAT HAD WORKED ON THE ANDROMEDA CLASS. A SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED FOR THE ANDROMEDA  BUT NO TRACE OF THE SHIP WAS EVER FOUND.AFTER A SHORT DELAY, THE U.S.S. LIBERATOR  WAS LAUNCHED ON STARDATE 51652, AFTER EXTENSIVE TESTING AND WAS ASSIGNED AS THE COMMAND SHIP OF THE 7TH FEDERATION STARFLEET.