A Starfleet starship on which Benjamin Sisko served as executive officer under Captain James Leyton.
The USS Okinawa was a Starfleet starship commanded by James Leyton, with Benjamin Sisko serving as his executive officer earlier in Sisko's career. The bond formed between the two officers aboard the ship lasted well beyond their time together, and Leyton remained an influential mentor.
The Okinawa is recalled in Homefront and Paradise Lost, when Leyton, by then an admiral at Starfleet Headquarters, brought Sisko in to help counter Changeling infiltration. Sisko's loyalty to his former captain made his discovery of Leyton's attempted military takeover all the more painful.