From the FASA Star Trek FEDERATION SHIP RECOGNITION MANUAL, circa 1985
Baker Class IX Destroyer
Notes:  The Baker Class destroyer has a unique development history.  When the original contracts were let out, they called for a research vessel with limited combat capabilities.  The designs for the ship were accepted by Star Fleet Procurement, and, on Stardate 2/1403, the actual construction of the Baker Class research cruiser began.
        As the main hull neared completion, Star Fleet decided that a destroyer was needed to supplement the Larson Class.  At this same time, the Admiralty was of the opinion that fewer research cruisers would be needed on the frontiers.  The Baker class was then dropped as a research cruiser and re-designated a destroyer.
        In order to accomplish its mission as a destroyer, the Baker's design underwent several changes.  The laboratory facilities were removed and crew quarters and recreation areas were expanded.  The Baker class vessels are well known for these spacious quarters and crew comforts.  Another change came in the weaponry.  The original design had only four phasers, and as can be seen, the finished design, known as the Mk II, was fitted with six phasers and two torpedoes.
        On Stardate 2/1606 the Baker Class destroyer was brought into service with the commissioning of the USS Baker, USS Stafford, and USS Peterson.  Since that time, 224 ships of this class have been commissioned.  As was intended, these vessels are being used to replace the aging Larson Class destroyers in more hostile areas, the latter being used more and more along trailing and rimward frontiers.
        The Baker Class has a compartmented dual-wall internal structure to give additional protection from explosive decompression during battle.  Earlier designs with single-wall protection often ruptured when one compartment decompressed, victims of a domino effect that would eventually render the entire vessel incapable of sustaining itself.  Although compartmentalization is not new in ship design, double walls separated by a pressurized dead space was.  Such a dead space counteracts the forces on the outer wall surfaces by means of sensors that detect any changes in pressure and trigger units that regulate the pressure inside the dead space.  This system has become a standard feature on all Federation warships.  The Baker Class destroyer is the first vessel in Star Fleet to be designed with the newer style nacelle; previous uses were all refits.  The FWE-2 warp drive system was installed to give a cruising speed of Warp 7 and temporary speeds of Warp 8, as well as great maneuverability, making it more efficient in battle, than many of its counterparts.  The weapons arrangement of the Baker Class is unusual by Star Fleet standards.  Two of the phaser banks are capable of firing in all quadrants except directly to the rear, unlike most other Federation vessels on which they are usually positioned to fire in only two quadrants.
        The Baker Class remained unchanged until an experimental model, the USS Knutson, completed its testing of an impulse drive system that would increase the total power output of the vessel by 25%.  The Mk III went into production on Stardate 2/1804, but was quickly replaced by the Mk IV with upgraded FP-1 photon torpedoes.  All Mk Ill's have been refitted to this design.

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