ERIDANUS TRANSIT & SHIPPING CORPORATION
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Type: Industry: Founded: Headquarters: FCA ID: |
Privately Owned Corporation Passenger Transport; Cargo Shipment; Courier Service; Stardate 58974 (Dec 22, 2381) Altair VI UFP-58972-1101E |
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Home Ports: |
Acamar III Altair VI Betazed Casperia Prime Drozana Station (E Deck, S-19) Deep Space 13 (Deck 15, S-02) Pacifica Risa |
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Areas Served: |
Alpha/Beta, Quadrantwide |
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Active Fleet: |
36 Passenger Transports 48 Cargo Freighters 534 Small Craft |
Overview
Eridanus Transit is a large spacefaring corporation, registered in both the Federation and the Ferengi Alliance. With three dozen large passenger ships (including ten luxury cruise liners), nearly fifty long-range cargo freighters, and a fleet of over five hundred smaller vessels, Eridanus has become a household name for all things space-transportation in many star systems. Despite their growing quadrantwide services, the vast majority of the company's revenue still comes from the edges of Federation space and the neutral regions beyond, where it benefits greatly from Federation contracting. For individual patrons, Eridanus' primary selling-points are its expedited travel times for both passengers and cargo, their regular routes into Klingon and Romulan Republic space, and most importantly, their competitively low prices.History
Founded by a retired Starfleet Commander and his husband, the originally-titled Altair Express, began in 2381 with a single light transport, providing quick personnel transporation for Starfleet crews deployed near the Klingon border. Before long, the service expanded to ferrying crews to shore leave, which proved to be an instant hit due to the expanded list of locations the Express was able to offer. Within just a few months, there were more requests for transport than one ship could handle, and what followed was a period of rapid expansion for the company.
Full historical record available
By their second year in operation, Altair Express, now operating under the name Eta Eridani Transit, was still steadily expanding. With newly opened hubs on Drozana Station, Risa, and Betazed, business was better than ever. As is inevitable for an expanding service, however, the company quickly found itself in competition with a number of other corporations in addition to private starship operators. Despite the competition, the corporation continued to expand its travel services around the Federation's border regions, albeit more slowly.
In 2394, Eta Eridani Transit entered into a merger with Eridanus Colony Services, a company specializing in high-volume cargo shipping for the establishment and support of distant colonies. Together, the two formed The Eridanus Transit & Shipping Corporation, which would come to be more commonly known as Eridanus Transit. Post-merger, the corporation was able to leverage its combined resources to secure a number of extremely valuable long-term contracts with the Federation, propelling Eridanus Transit to a whole new level of success.
The early 2400s saw a number of setbacks for Eridanus, as the Federation-Klingon War disrupted normal traffic and business ground to a halt. The corporation lost three vessels to Klingon attacks, prompting four separate suspensions of services until more effective security could be provided in the area. As the war came to a close, however, Eridanus wasted no time in capitalizing. Contracts were negotiated with both the Klingon Empire and the fledgling Romulan Republic for supply deliveries and other services, in exchange for border passage privileges. As a result of these agreements, Eridanus was among the very first Federation civilian organizations to have safe access for both shipping and transportation to many areas of previously inaccessible space.
By the close of 2410, Eridanus had opened new transit hubs on Acamar III, Casperia Prime, and Pacifica. In 2414, as Herald attacks began on civilian trade routes, the corporation made the controversial decision to restrict its entire fleet to in-system services, rather than risk losses during unescorted transports. While the choice was extremely unpopular with colonies and outposts that relied upon Eridanus shipments, it did mean that at the war's conclusion, Eridanus was able to resume operations at full capacity.
By 2415, Eridanus Transit had announced their entry into the extravagance cruise market, with the unveiling of ten brand new Paradise Class Luxury Liners. Additionally, mid-2415 saw the establishment of a transit hub on the Federation Starbase Deep Space Thirteen.
Vessel Registry
Unless otherwise noted, all vessels are registered with both the United Federation of Planets and the Ferengi Commerce Authority.
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PARADISE CLASS LUXURY LINER SYDNEY CLASS TRANSPORT YORKSHIRE CLASS LIGHT TRANSPORT EREWHON CLASS LIGHT TRANSPORT WHORFIN CLASS LIGHT TRANSPORT DENEVA CLASS FREIGHTER |
JAVA CLASS HEAVY FREIGHTER NORKOVA CLASS FREIGHTER TUFFLI CLASS FREIGHTER BATRIS CLASS FREIGHTER TRIDENT CLASS LIGHT FREIGHTER |