Star Trek: 10 Secrets Of The USS Shenzhou You Need To Know

A huge aviation history buff, designer John Eaves took inspiration not just from vessels from Star Trek's past, but aircraft from US history too.

According to Eaves, production designer Todd Cherianowski suggested the configuration of the Shenzhou incorporate elements of the double winged B-plane, hence the starship's unique secondary hull. Also, according to Eaves:

I thought about something that Tony Moore at Edwards Air Force Base told me about, which was a "blended body" aircraft, where everything smoothly transitions into itself, so the hull blends into the wings and so forth. I thought I'd try to the same thing, so my hull blended with the saucer, and that ended up being a nice idea that the producers really responded to.

The design of the Shenzhou also mimicked vintage aircraft through the use of numerous aerodynamic fins located on the top of the primary hull and warp nacelles, directly inspired by the 1950s Cold War-era Lockheed F-104 Starfighter.

A bank of lights used to illuminate the ship's registry was also pulled directly from 1940s aircraft carriers, a "primitive" characteristic incorporated into all of Star Trek: Discovery's pre-TOS starships, including the Shenzhou and the Discovery herself.