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| United States Navy ships | |
|---|---|
| Name | United States Navy ships |
| Country | United States |
| Service | United States Navy |
| Type | Naval vessels |
United States Navy ships are the commissioned surface combatants, submarines, aircraft carriers, amphibious ships, mine warfare vessels, auxiliary ships, and support craft operated by the United States Navy to project power, defend United States maritime interests, and support allied operations. These vessels have evolved through conflicts such as the American Revolutionary War, War of 1812, American Civil War, Spanish–American War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Cold War, the Gulf War, and post-9/11 operations including Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.
The development of United States Navy ships traces from the frigates authorized by the Naval Act of 1794 like USS Constitution through ironclads of the American Civil War such as USS Monitor, to the dreadnought-era battleships exemplified by USS Arizona (BB-39) and USS Missouri (BB-63), and into modern nuclear-powered vessels like USS Enterprise (CVN-65) and USS Nimitz (CVN-68). Expansion under the Two-Ocean Navy Act and programs during World War II produced fleets of Liberty ship-era auxiliaries, Essex-class aircraft carriers, Iowa-class battleships, Fletcher-class destroyers, and Gato-class submarines that engaged in battles such as Battle of Midway, Battle of Leyte Gulf, and Mariana and Palau Islands campaign. Cold War imperatives led to the rise of nuclear propulsion in USS Nautilus (SSN-571), the development of Los Angeles-class submarines, Ohio-class submarines, and the fielding of guided-missile destroyers like Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, driven by doctrines shaped at institutions including Naval War College.
Modern fleets field diverse types: aircraft carriers including Nimitz-class aircraft carriers and Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers, guided missile cruisers such as Ticonderoga-class cruiser, destroyers like Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, frigate designs historically including Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate, littoral combat ship classes exemplified by Freedom-class littoral combat ship and Independence-class littoral combat ship, amphibious assault ships of the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship and America-class amphibious assault ship, dock landing ships such as Whidbey Island-class dock landing ship, ammunition ships, oilers, replenishment oilers like Henry J. Kaiser-class oiler, submarine types including Virginia-class submarine, Seawolf-class submarine, and Ohio-class submarine, as well as smaller mine countermeasure vessels and patrol crafts used for coastal and forward presence operations.
Design and construction occur at yards and programs such as Newport News Shipbuilding, Bath Iron Works, Ingalls Shipbuilding, and General Dynamics Electric Boat, following procurement frameworks like the Defense Acquisition System and statutes including the Shipbuilding and Conversion, Navy (SCN) appropriation. Hull architecture leverages standards from American Bureau of Shipping classification, integrates propulsion options from gas turbines like General Electric LM2500 to nuclear reactors such as those based on Westinghouse designs, and undergoes sea trials under oversight from Naval Sea Systems Command and Military Sealift Command. Programs employ modular construction, computer-aided design informed by Naval Research Laboratory testing, and survivability analyses referencing Joint Chiefs of Staff doctrine; major milestones include keel laying, christening, commissioning, and deployments coordinated with United States Fleet Forces Command.
Armament suites range from strike systems like Tomahawk (missile) and Harpoon (missile) to point defense systems such as Phalanx CIWS and surface-to-air missiles like the RIM-66 Standard and RIM-174 Standard ERAM. Anti-submarine warfare employs torpedoes including the Mark 48 torpedo and sensors like towed arrays developed from AN/BQH-7 concepts, while anti-surface and strike capabilities integrate vertical launch systems using the Mk 41 Vertical Launching System. Aviation elements include embarked squadrons operating F/A-18 Hornet, F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, F-35B Lightning II, and MH-60R Seahawk aircraft under Navy Air Systems Command procurement. Combat management and sensor networks use platforms like Aegis Combat System, SPY-1 radar, and integrated communications for linkages with Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air and data links such as Link 16.
US Navy ships operate in numbered fleets—Third Fleet, Fourth Fleet, Fifth Fleet, Sixth Fleet, Seventh Fleet—and task forces such as Carrier Strike Groups and Amphibious Ready Groups conducting power projection, maritime security, freedom of navigation operations informed by rulings like those from the International Court of Justice and treaties including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. They support coalition operations with partners like NATO, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, Royal Navy, and Royal Australian Navy in exercises such as RIMPAC, Malabar Exercise, and BALTOPS, and have been central to responses during incidents such as the 2011 Libyan civil war and Gulf of Aden anti-piracy operations.
Sustainment relies on auxiliary fleets operated by Military Sealift Command with vessels such as Lewis and Clark-class dry cargo ships and Henry J. Kaiser-class oilers, forward logistics supported by bases like Naval Station Norfolk, Naval Base San Diego, Naval Station Pearl Harbor, Yokosuka Naval Base, and Bahrain Naval Support Activity. Maintenance cycles occur at facilities like Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Norfolk Naval Shipyard under lifecycle management guided by Office of Naval Research technologies, and contracting with industry primes including Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, and Huntington Ingalls Industries.
Historic and notable units include USS Constitution, USS Monitor, USS Enterprise (CV-6), USS Arizona (BB-39), USS Missouri (BB-63), USS Indianapolis (CA-35), USS Cole (DDG-67), USS Liberty (AGTR-5) incident, USS Stark (FFG-31) incident, and modern tragedies involving USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62) and USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) collisions. Engagements of consequence span Battle of Midway, Battle of Leyte Gulf, Operation Praying Mantis, the Tonkin Gulf Incident, and rescues during Operation Tomodachi. Awards and recognitions tied to ships include Presidential Unit Citation and Navy Unit Commendation citations for actions in conflicts such as World War II and Operation Enduring Freedom.