Star Trek: 10 Starships That Went Missing

7. USS Cairo

The USS Cairo was an Excelsior-class ship that made its debut in Chain Of Command. Captain Jellico transferred from the Cairo to the Enterprise-D, bringing his signature four-shift rotation with him. It is unclear if Jellico returned to commanding the Cairo once his assignment to the Enterprise ended, as it was under Captain Leslie Wong that the ship was lost with all hands.

In The Pale Moonlight's lists of the dead, wounded, and missing are the final catalysts for Sisko's plans regarding the Romulans. Through Jadzia Dax, the audience was given an emotional connection to this ship as, for Jellico, positive sentiments towards him were thin on the ground at that stage.

The ship was officially declared missing during the Dominion War and was assumed destroyed by the Jem'hadar. That may be partially true, though its remains travelled across the galaxy, coming to a stop in the Delta Quadrant. It was discovered by Zero. An AI program may have been responsible for the ship's destruction, and it was definitely responsible for its location. This AI had used a nearby Borg transwarp conduit to pull ships, Caretaker-style, closer to its planet.

Though a sad ending for the ship, it would finally give closure on its story, helping to solve another mystery of the Dominion War.