A wooden model of Starship Enterprise 1701 from the iconic TV show 'Star Trek' has been authenticated. [Credit: Willrow Hood/Shutterstock]
Key Takeaways:
The original Starship USS Enterprise model, personally owned by *Star Trek* creator Gene Roddenberry and missing for over 45 years, has been positively identified.
It resurfaced on eBay in 2023 but was withdrawn due to concerns of potential theft, leading to its return to Gene Roddenberry's son, Rod.
Rod Roddenberry, with expert validation, confirmed the authenticity of the 1964 pilot publicity model, which disappeared around 1978 after being loaned out.
The family plans to preserve the model and eventually display it publicly, potentially in a museum.
The first model of Star Trek‘s Starship USS Enterprise that was the personal property of franchise creator Gene Roddenberry and has been missing for more than 45 years has been positively identified as the real deal.
The model showed up on eBay in 2023, but the auction was quickly taken down when the seller learned the model might have been stolen.
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Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.
![A wooden model of Starship Enterprise 1701 from the iconic TV show 'Star Trek' has been authenticated. [Credit: Willrow Hood / Shutterstock]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/shutterstock_2246864759-scaled-e1698961374375.jpg)
