Starfleet has announced a search of the region of space near the demilitarised zone known as the Badlands after a new starship, the U.S.S. Voyager, vanished with all 141 crewmembers onboard.

Starfleet Command said in a statement that the U.S.S. Voyager had disappeared around Stardate 48306 shortly after departing Deep Space Nine to conduct a two week survey of weather patterns within the region. The ship was expected to return to Deep Space Nine to await further orders on Stardate 48343.

Starfleet Command has said that no wreckage has been reported.

“We have dispatched the U.S.S. Lakota to the Badlands to locate and rescue the Voyager” Admiral James Leyton told reporters outside Starfleet Headquarters.

“The Voyager is a new class of starship with a number of newly approved technologies onboard. Our lead investigators believe that the ship’s disappearance is a result of a malfunction, rather than destruction. The Lakota has strict orders to travel straight to the sector where Voyager last made contact to begin rescue operations. We hope that the friends and family of the Voyager crew will understand the need for patience at this time. We will update them directly as soon as we have any verified information to provide.”

Admiral Jeremiah Hayes at Starfleet Communications said that 74% of families have been contacted at this time, with efforts being made to contact the remaining 26%. Starfleet would like any family members or friends of the Voyager crew to be aware that counselling services will be made available for Starfleet and civilians through Starfleet Medical.

Recent reports of Maquis activity in the Badlands has led to speculation that they could be involved with the disappearance. With theories circulating that they could have destroyed or perhaps worse, captured the ship.

“Rumours that the Maquis have anything to do with the disappearance of the Voyager are completely unfounded,” said Admiral Thomas Henry, chief of Starfleet Security. “The Maquis are an ongoing threat in the region, but their resources are limited to small attack craft. Starfleet has been able to successfully engage them with Danube class runabouts. The idea that they could successfully overwhelm a brand new starship with systems de- signed to maneuver effectively in regions like the Badlands is simply absurd.”

In South Carolina, Mary Kim, a school teacher, said that her son had been assigned to the Voyager for his first assignment after leaving Starfleet Academy.

“This is the longest that we’ve gone without speaking to our son since his Academy survival training. Starfleet should have told us that the ship had gone missing earlier”.

When the Voyager last made contact with the Federation communication relay system, there were not any reports of malfunctions onboard.