Light warship assigned to the defense of low priority targets, the Solar Patrol Cutter is a design woefully lacking in appreciable firepower. The Solar cutter is unable to threaten even an enemy destroyer and, with a tenuous shielding system, it cannot count on its own systems to keep it safe from enemy fire.

Like many older designs in the late 23rd Century, the Solar Patrol Cutters were phased out by the proliferation of larger, more able cruisers with longer effective cruise duration and heavier firepower.