Five-year mission

The term five-year mission was a term used in the 23rd century by Starfleet, used to describe an assignment of deep space exploration into uncharted space.

One of the most famous five-year missions was the one of Captain James T. Kirk and the USS Enterprise, from 2265 to 2270.

• Captain Robert April had one five-year mission, and Captain Christopher Pike had two five-year missions with the Enterprise before Kirk assumed command.

They were usually conducted by larger Federation starships, such as the Constitution-class and Excelsior-class.