Current United States Navy ships
Encyclopedia
This is a list of current ships of the United States Navy. There are more than 400 ships believed to be in active service with the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

, on reserve, or under construction, based on public reports compiled in this list. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. This list includes both U.S. Navy owned and leased ships; both ships that are formally commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...

 and other ships that are used by the U.S. Navy without the ceremony of commissioning. In addition, some planned ships are listed further below.

Current ships

There are currently 11 aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...

s, 22 cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...

s, 59 destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...

s, 29 frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...

s, 2 littoral combat ship
Littoral combat ship
A Littoral Combat Ship is a type of relatively small surface vessel intended for operations in the littoral zone . It is "envisioned to be a networked, agile, stealthy surface combatant capable of defeating anti-access and asymmetric threats in the littorals." Two ship classes are the first...

s, 9 amphibious assault ship
Amphibious assault ship
An amphibious assault ship is a type of amphibious warfare ship employed to land and support ground forces on enemy territory by an amphibious assault...

s, 2 amphibious command ship
Amphibious Command Ship
Amphibious Command Ships in the United States Navy are large, special purpose ships, originally designed to command large amphibious invasions, however, as amphibious invasions have become unlikely, they are now used as general command ships, and serve as floating headquarters for the various...

s, 9 amphibious transport dock
Amphibious transport dock
An amphibious transport dock, also called a landing platform/dock , is an amphibious warfare ship, a warship that embarks, transports, and lands elements of a landing force for expeditionary warfare missions. Several navies currently operate this kind of ship...

s, 12 dock landing ship
Dock landing ship
A Dock landing ship or Landing ship is a form of amphibious warship designed to support amphibious operations. These amphibious assault ships transport and launch amphibious craft and vehicles with their crews and embarked personnel...

s, 53 attack submarines, 14 ballistic missile submarine
Ballistic missile submarine
A ballistic missile submarine is a submarine equipped to launch ballistic missiles .-Description:Ballistic missile submarines are larger than any other type of submarine, in order to accommodate SLBMs such as the Russian R-29 or the American Trident...

s, 4 guided missile submarines, 14 mine countermeasures ships, 11 patrol boat
Patrol boat
A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defense duties.There have been many designs for patrol boats. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, or police force, and may be intended for marine and/or estuarine or river environments...

s, and 1 technical research ship
Technical research ship
Technical research ships were used by the United States Navy during the 1960s to gather intelligence by monitoring the electronic communications of nations in various parts of the world. At the time these ships were active, the mission of the ships was covert and discussion of the true mission was...

 (military intelligence
Military intelligence
Military intelligence is a military discipline that exploits a number of information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to commanders in support of their decisions....

 ship, the , which is currently held by North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...

).

Support ships include two hospital ship
Hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital; most are operated by the military forces of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones....

s, four salvage ships, two submarine tender
Submarine tender
A submarine tender is a type of ship that supplies and supports submarines.Submarines are small compared to most oceangoing vessels, and generally do not have the ability to carry large amounts of food, fuel, torpedoes, and other supplies, nor to carry a full array of maintenance equipment and...

s, one ammunition ship
Ammunition ship
An ammunition ship is a warship specially configured to carry ammunition, usually for Navy ships and aircraft. Their cargo handling systems, designed with extreme safety in mind, include ammunition hoists with airlocks between decks, and mechanisms for flooding entire compartments with sea water in...

, five combat stores ship
Combat stores ship
Combat stores ships, or Storeships were originally a designation given to captured ships in the Age of Sail and immediately afterward, used to stow supplies and other goods for naval purposes. Modern combat store ships are operated by the United States Navy...

s, four fast combat support ships, nine dry cargo ships, 15 replenishment oiler
Replenishment Oiler
A replenishment oiler or fleet tanker is a naval auxiliary ship with fuel tanks and dry cargo holds, which can replenish other ships while underway in the high seas. Such ships are used by several countries around the world....

s, four Fleet Ocean Tugs, fifteen large district harbor tugs,four ocean surveillance ships, four container ship
Container ship
Container ships are cargo ships that carry all of their load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. They form a common means of commercial intermodal freight transport.-History:...

s, 16 cargo ship
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...

s (used for pre-positioning of Marine and Army materiel
Materiel
Materiel is a term used in English to refer to the equipment and supplies in military and commercial supply chain management....

), and seven vehicle cargo ship
Vehicle cargo ship
Vehicle cargo ship is a kind of United States Navy ship used for prepositioning of Army vehicles. An example is USNS Bob Hope , the lead ship of her class....

s (also used for prepositioning).

Ships denoted with the prefix USS are commissioned ships or are nearing completion for commissioning. US Navy support ships are often non-commissioned ships operated by and organized within Military Sealift Command
Military Sealift Command
The Military Sealift Command is a United States Navy organization that controls most of the replenishment and military transport ships of the Navy. It first came into existence on 9 July 1949 when the Military Sea Transportation Service became solely responsible for the Department of Defense's...

. Those denoted USNS are owned by the US Navy; those denoted by MV are chartered.

There exist a number of former US Navy ships which are museum ships, some of which may be US government owned. One of these, the , a three-masted tall ship
Tall ship
A tall ship is a large, traditionally-rigged sailing vessel. Popular modern tall ship rigs include topsail schooners, brigantines, brigs and barques. "Tall Ship" can also be defined more specifically by an organization, such as for a race or festival....

, is kept as a commissioned ship of the US Navy (and hence is listed here), as a special commemoration for that ship alone.

Current ships include commissioned warships that are in active service and also warships that are in the later stages of construction or that are undergoing sea trials but which have not yet gone through the ceremony of ship commissioning
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...

. Ships in early stages of construction (keel not yet laid down) are not included. Also included as current ships are support ships (usually denoted USNS) and leased ships (usually denoted MV) that are never commissioned but which are part of the effective force of the U.S. Navy.

There are about 436 ships listed here (238 USS ships, 198 USNS, MV, SS and other ships) that meet this definition of current ships.

Commissioned


Non-commissioned


Ready Reserve Force ships

Ready Reserve Force ships are maintained by the United States Maritime Administration and are part of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 ship inventory. If activated, these ships would be operated by Military Sealift Command
Military Sealift Command
The Military Sealift Command is a United States Navy organization that controls most of the replenishment and military transport ships of the Navy. It first came into existence on 9 July 1949 when the Military Sea Transportation Service became solely responsible for the Department of Defense's...

.

Under construction


Planned ships

The following ships have been planned but are believed not to have keels laid down, hence have not reached current ship status.

See also


External links

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