What Happened to the Enterprise-E?
In Star Trek Online, the Enterprise-E—then-captained by Data in its version of events—was destroyed during a mission against the forces of Species 8472 (known in Online as the Undine) in 2409. The majority of the Enterprise’s crew escaped the E’s destruction, but Data declined to helm its replacement, instead retiring from Starfleet to teach on Earth.
From what we know of the TV canon already though, it’s probably going to be a bit different. The Enterprise-E is shown as still being in service during the events of Star Trek: Prodigy’s first season finale late last year. Part of the fleet of Starfleet vessels that confronted the USS Protostar—infected by a living weapon that caused its foes to go haywire and turn on each other—it’s last seen heavily damaged after a barrage of not-so-friendly fire. Prodigy’s finale takes place in 2384, so it’s been approximately 20-ish years by the time of Picard season three. Picard showrunner Terry Matalas has implied on social media that the F has been around for a long period of time before the events of the season, so making its Prodigy appearance the E’s final outing makes sense.
