Trekipedia

Daedalus class

The Daedalus class came into service in the 22nd century.^[3] They were one of the first types of starships commissioned and operated under the auspices of the United Federation of Planets and were also among the first to demonstrate the primary/secondary hull design that would become characteristic of Starfleet vessels.^[6] Unlike most starships, the Daedalus had a spherical main hull.^[4] The last ships of this class were taken out of service by the year 2196.^[3]

The Daedalus class was already an older design at the onset of the Romulan War, but was easily refitted with newer technologies introduced on the NX class, notably including the newer Warp-5 engines, photonic torpedoes, and phase cannons, though these were replaced with advanced Magnusson-class laser cannons, which delivered more force for less power usage.^[7] Designed for function before form, the Daedalus class ships weren’t as sleek or elegant as their NX class sister ships, but they could be constructed far faster, making them a mainstay of Starfleet forces during the war.^[11]

The more spartan fittings of Earth ships built for the Romulan War also affected the Daedalus‘ feel; it began a century of minimal, utilitarian ship design that became the hallmark of 23rd century Starfleet vessels. The Daedalus class did not necessarily have the full technological capabilities to match its mission profile of deep space exploration and independent counterpiracy operations against the Orions and Nausicaans.^[7] Although outfitted with subspace radios,^[11] the Daedalus class had an operating range well beyond the limit of Starfleet’s subspace beacon system, so the furthest travelers still found themselves out of contact. This could explain why so many Daedalus class vessels vanished on these first missions.^[7]