The travel pod design is simplicity itself; essentially a large box with an entry hatch at the rear, simple flight controls at the forward end and an artificial gravity generator under the floor. There is a large transparent aluminium viewport in the front, and navigation is handled by a simple laser radar unit. Propulsion is provided by microthrusters, with a delta vee of only 10 kms^-1 at the maximum acceleration of 5 ms^-2.

The travel pod was extremely easy to construct - six could be built for the resources of one orbital shuttle - and even easier to maintain. Minor systems refit was required only once every three years, with a standard refit every fifteen years; major refits where not required at all within the 30 year lifespan of the hull. It was inevitable that this design would be constructed in great numbers, and during the fifteen year construction run almost two thousand where completed - at its peak, construction stood at forty units a month. Many of these where sold to foreign governments - the simplicity of the technology minimized Prime Directive considerations and made the travel pod an attractive design for those who wanted a low capability, minimum cost design.

By 2285 Starfleet had the 1,200 travel pods it needed and announced that it would make no new orders. Some thought was given to continuing production on an export only basis, but without Starfleets support production would become much less profitable, and it was decided to terminate all production later in the year. The last travel pod was launched in a small ceremony in July 2285 and assigned to Earths Spacedock facility.

In service these little craft proved exceptionally popular, with the lack of computer assisted control and other such frills leading crew to regard them as a 'real pilot's craft'. Many did complain bitterly about the lack of seating, but Starfleet refused to give in to the demand for a modification program, pointing out that the average journey length for a travel pod trip was less than ten minutes.

The travel pod began its retirement in 2300; the last of the Starfleet craft retired in 2315, and although many of the export models where pressed on past their due retirement dates, the last of these was out of service by 2325.