USS Gander

From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference.

USS Gander
Class:	Danube-class
Affiliation:	Federation/Starfleet
Status:	Destroyed (2375)

The USS Gander was a Danube-class Federation runabout stationed at Deep Space 9, in service in 2375.

It was taken by Lieutenant Ezri Dax to search for Worf, who had been reported missing in action from the IKS Koraga near the Badlands. She piloted the ship to where his escape pods last known position likely was, and shut off engines to allow the plasma storms to drift the Gander to the same place the escape pod was. Her plan worked, although the ship took minor damage from the plasma field. She was able to lock a tractor beam on to the escape pod and transport Worf aboard.

On the return trip to Deep Space 9, the Gander was attacked by two Jem'Hadar attack ships near the Goralis system. Their engines damaged, they entered Goralis III's atmosphere, beaming down shortly before the Gander exploded in the night sky above them. (DS9: "Penumbra")

[edit] Background

The original name of the runabout was actually Ganges, until the writers remembered that the USS Ganges had been destroyed back in "Armageddon Game". The line was dubbed in post-production, but still appears as Ganges in close-captioning. Even then, on the DVD subtitles, it is mistakenly spelled Ganda.

This ship was named after a river (Gander River) near the town of Gander, Newfoundland, Canada. Gander was a major aviation waypoint before the jet age, as the island is the closest point in North America to Europe.

Danube-class runabouts
USS Gander • USS Ganges • USS Mekong • USS Orinoco • USS Rio Grande • USS Rubicon • USS Shenandoah • USS Volga • USS Yangtzee Kiang • USS Yukon • NCC-73918 • Unnamed