Prometheus

The Prometheus was the first deep-space battleship built by Earth. The ship was operated by the U.S. Air Force, and its crew consisted of Air Force personnel. Operationally, Prometheus fell under the purview of the Office of Homeworld Security.

The Prometheus used Asgard technology in its hyperdrive engine and in its weapons and shields (There may be other uses of Asgard technology installed). This technology was fitted by the Asgard in return for Earth's help in fighting the Replicators. It also relied on some Goa'uld technology, most notably the ring transporter.

History
"Prometheus" was originally the code name for the experimental X-303, which was developed and constructed in Nevada by Area 51 R&D, with a great deal of work subcontracted to civilian companies without revealing the true nature of the project. The X-303 was hijacked while still incomplete by rogue NID agents demanding the release of Colonel Frank Simmons and the Goa'uld infested Adrian Conrad. SG-1 managed to reclaim control of the ship, and were promptly enlisted by the Asgard to help them trap the Replicators within a time dilation field. The Asgard later outfitted the ship with advanced shields and weapons as a show of gratitude.

As the ship had not yet been commissioned at the time of this mission, it had no name. Prometheus was first suggested by then-Major Samantha Carter, but then-Colonel Jack O'Neill, who commanded the mission, rejected it as a "Greek tragedy." (He preferred the name Enterprise.) Nonetheless, the ship was officially named Prometheus by the time of its shakedown cruise under Colonel William Ronson.

During the shakedown cruise, a problem with the hyperdrive engines forced the crew to eject the Prometheus' reactor into space, stranding the ship on an alien world until a replacement could be procured.

The ship did not make it home until the following year, using a hyperdrive taken from a captured Al'kesh bomber. This meant that the ship was underpowered, since the Al'kesh reactor was designed for a vessel one-tenth the Prometheus' size. En route back to Earth, the ship was attacked by an unknown alien ship and was forced to hide inside a corrosive nebula.

When Anubis launched a full-scale attack against Earth, General George Hammond assumed direct command of the Prometheus at the request of President Henry Hayes. The ship engaged Anubis' in Antarctica to protect SG-1 as they sought to activate the Ancient weapons platform in the Antarctic Outpost. During the course of the battle, the Prometheus made a direct run at Anubis' mothership, and would have rammed the larger craft had the activation of the Ancient weapons made the step unnecessary.

Colonel Lionel Pendergast assumed command of the Prometheus later that year; as the ship lacked a reliable hyperdrive, he was tasked with orbital patrols, guarding Earth from potential Goa'uld attack. On one such mission, the ship made contact with the Asgard vessel Daniel Jackson, which was bringing Teal'c back from a mission to the Ida Galaxy.

Following the theft of Earth's Stargate by the Trust, the Prometheus was deployed to locate Osiris' former Al'kesh, which the Trust was using as a base of operations. They were able to recover the Stargate and SG-1, which had infiltrated the ship, though the Trust members themselves escaped with the Al'kesh. In a rematch in 2005, after the Trust had been infiltrated by the Goa'uld and was working to precipitate a nuclear exchange between the United States and Russia, the Prometheus finally managed to destroy the Al'kesh.

Late in 2004, the Prometheus finally received a working intergalactic hyperdrive, courtesy of the Asgard. General Hammond then took the ship on a mission to check on the Atlantis Expedition, which had departed earlier that year and not been heard from since. The ship never made it out of the Milky Way, however, as it was hijacked by Vala Mal Doran who attempted to trade it for a supply of refined naquadah. The deal fell through and the ship was recovered, but not before sustaining too much damage to continue with the mission.

The Prometheus played a small role in discovering the subterranean complex left by Merlin underneath Glastonbury Tor in late 2005, which was accessed via the ship's transport rings. When the Ori made an apparent attempt to create a foothold on the Milky Way, the ship was dispatched to destroy the Stargate being used; these efforts inadvertently facilitated the near completion of a Supergate, which was only barely destroyed before it could become operational.

2006 saw the Prometheus hijacked once again, this time by an SG-1 from a parallel universe, who intended to use the ship to steal the Zero Point Module from Atlantis. In this instance, the plot was foiled and the ship reclaimed without suffering any major damage.

The Prometheus was destroyed in early 2006 in orbit over the planet Tegalus. Tegalus had recently come under the influence of Ori Priors. The Prometheus traveled to Tegalus to retrieve Dr. Daniel Jackson and disable an Ori satellite weapon, but was unable to penetrate the satellite's shields. The satellite, however, quickly overwhelmed Prometheus' defenses and crippled the craft. Colonel Pendergast ordered the evacuation of his crew using the Asgard transporter, remaining behind to ensure their departure.

After taking multiple shots, the Prometheus finally split at the neck and exploded. More than 39 of its 115-plus officers and crew died with her.

Commanding Officers

 * Colonel William Ronson (until 2004)
 * Major General George Hammond (March 2004 in the Anubis incident and December 2004 during its mission to Atlantis)
 * Colonel Lionel Pendergast (from 2004)

Other Crew

 * Colonel Kirtland - Executive Officer (March 2004)
 * Major Erin Gant - Senior Officer (through March 2004)
 * Major Peter DeLouise - Pilot (2003)
 * Captain Womack - Technician (from 2004)
 * Captain Marks - Pilot/Technician (from 2005)
 * Master Sergeant Walter Harriman - Technician (Antarctic battle, Atlantis mission)

Major Campaigns

 * Battle of Antarctica
 * Battle of Tegalus

Locations

 * BRIDGE
 * The Prometheus command center was laid out in a manner more reminiscent of the bridges of naval vessels than the cockpit of an aircraft. It was a fairly large room, with banks of consoles were arrayed along the walls; the commanding officer occupied a chair towards the center, flanked by two additional forward-facing consoles. Generally the station to the commander's left was staffed by the ship's pilot, while a senior technician sat to the right. The weapons officer occupied a station farther forward and off to the side; a cluster of windows covered much of the front wall, with a set of small display screens set above them. A large map and plotting table was located toward the back of the room.
 * ENGINEERING
 * FLIGHT DECK
 * CARGO MESS
 * BRIG
 * The brig on Prometheus was a small, unadorned room not dissimilar to the ship's storage compartments; it contained a surveillance camera through which the prisoners could be observed. Though apparently designed for only a single occupant, it has been used to hold up to four people, indicating there may be only one such room on the ship.

Trivia

 * In Greek mythology, Prometheus was a Titan who stole fire from the gods and gave it to the human race. It's fitting that humanity's first deep-space vessel, incorporating new technology, would be named after him.


 * In the anime series Macross (adapted in the U.S. as part of Robotech), one of the super carriers attached to the SDF-1 Macross was named the Prometheus. Perhaps not coincidentally, the other carrier was called Daedalus.