United States Navy

The United States Navy (USN) is the branch of the United States United States armed forces responsible for navy operations. The U.S. Navy consists of slightly fewer than 300 ships and over 4,000 aircraft. It has over a half million men and women on active or ready reserve duty. The United States Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which the Continental Congress established during the American Revolutionary War. The United States Constitution, ratified in 1789, empowered Congress "to provide and maintain a navy." Acting on this authority, Congress ordered the construction and manning of six sailing frigates; one of the Six original United States frigates, USS Constitution, familiarly known as "Old Ironsides," survives to this day. The United States Department of War administered naval affairs from that year until Congress established the United States Department of the Navy on April 30, 1798. The Navy became part of the United States Department of Defense upon its establishment in 1947. ==History of the Navy== ''Main article:'' History of the United States Navy The Continental Navy was established by the Continental Congress on October 13, 1775, who authorized the procurement, fitting out, manning, and dispatch of two armed vessels to cruise in search of munitions ships supplying the British Army in America. The legislation also established a Naval Committee to supervise the work. All together, the Continental Navy numbered some fifty ships over the course of the American Revolutionary War, with approximately twenty warships active at its maximum strength. After the American War for Independence, Congress sold the surviving ships of the Continental Navy and released the seamen and officers. In accordance with the Constitution, Congress ordered the construction and manning of six frigates on March 27, 1794 and in 1797 the first three frigates, USS United States (1797), USS Constellation (1797) and USS Constitution went into service. The frigates became famous in the War of 1812, where they unexpectedly defeated the British Royal Navy on a number of occasions. During the American Civil War, the Navy was an innovator in the use of ironclad warships, but after the war slipped into obsolescence. A modernization program beginning in the 1880s brought the U.S. into the first rank of the world's navies by the beginning of the 20th century. USS_Nimitz_(CVN-68)_(back),_USS_Port_Royal_(CG-73)_(middle)_and_USS_Annapolis_(SSN-760)_(front)">Image:CVBG at Sea us navy web 971215-N-9785M-462.jpg|thumb|400px|USS Nimitz (CVN-68) (back), USS Port Royal (CG-73) (middle) and USS Annapolis (SSN-760) (front) The Navy saw relatively little action during World War I, but in the years before World War II, it grew into a formidable force, which Japan realized would be a threat to their strategic interests. Japan resolved to remedy the situation with a surprise attack in late 1941. The primary goal of this attack on Pearl Harbor was to cripple the Navy in the Pacific Ocean. The action was strategically ineffective, however, and during the next three years of hard fighting, the U.S. Navy grew into the largest and most powerful navy the world had ever seen. ==Organization== The Navy is administered by the United States Department of the Navy, led by the United States Secretary of the Navy. The senior naval officer, the Chief of Naval Operations, is the four-star admiral immediately under the Secretary of the Navy. The Secretary of the Navy and Chief of Naval Operations are responsible for organizing, recruiting, training, and equipping the Navy so the Navy is ready for operation under the command of the United States Unified Combatant Commanders. (Also see United States Armed Forces#Organization.) President | SECDEF | ------------------- | | SECNAV | | | CNO Unified Combatant Commanders | | -------------------- | | | | Shore establishment Operating Forces (including fleets) ===Fleets=== The two main fleets are the Pacific Fleet and the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. Under these two organizations fall the numbered fleets. * US 1st Fleet - no longer acitve * US 2nd Fleet – Atlantic Ocean — Flagship USS Mount Whitney, Norfolk, Virginia (Will be replaced in late February 2005 by USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7), which will also perform other duties.) * US 3rd Fleet – Eastern and Northern Pacific Ocean — Flagship USS Coronado (AGF-11), San Diego, California (In peacetime the Third Fleet has no ARG and the carriers in the area are on their way to the Seventh Fleet or conduct training cruises after an overhaul for example.) * US 5th Fleet – Middle East — Headquartered at Manama, Bahrain * US 6th Fleet – Mediterranean Sea — Flagship USS La Salle (AGF-3), Gaeta, Italy (Will be replaced by USS Mount Whitney in late February 2005.) * US 7th Fleet – Western Pacific and Indian Ocean — Flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19), Yokosuka, Japan ===Shore Commands=== In addition to afloat fleets, the Navy maintains several "Naval Forces Commands" which operate naval shore facilities and serve as liaison units to local ground forces of the Air Force and Army. Such commands are answerable to a Fleet Commander as the shore component of the afloat command. During times of war, all Naval Forces Commands augment to become task forces of a primary fleet. Some of the larger Naval Forces Commands include: * Commander Naval Forces Korea (CNFK) * Commander Naval Forces Marianas (CNFM) * Command Naval Forces Japan (CNFJ) ===Staff Corps=== In addition to the regular line commands of the navy, several staff corps are also maintained which augment the line community and whos personnel are assigned to both line and staff commands. The current staff corps of the United States Navy are as follows: * Navy Supply Corps * Navy Medical Corps * Navy Medical Service Corps * Navy Nurse Corps * Navy Chaplains Corps * Naval Corps of Engineers (Seabees) * Navy Judge Advocate General (JAG) ==Weapons== ===Ships=== ''Main article: U.S. Navy ships'' See also List of ships of the United States Navy for a more complete listing of ships past and present. The names of commissioned ships of the U.S. Navy start with USS, meaning 'United States Ship'. Non-commissioned, civilian-manned vessels of the U.S. Navy have names that begin with USNS, standing for 'United States Naval Ship'. A letter-based hull classification symbol is used to designate a vessel's type. The names of ships are selected by the United States Secretary of the Navy. The names are usually those of U.S. states, cities, towns, important people, famous battles, fish, and ideals. The U.S. Navy pioneered the use of nuclear reactors aboard naval vessels; today, they power most U.S. aircraft carriers and submarines. See United States Naval reactor. As of January 2004, a relatively small number of ship classes accounted for the bulk of the U.S. naval fleet. These include: ====Aircraft carriers==== [[image:carrier.arp.500pix.jpg|thumb|250px|U.S. Navy supercarrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68) on November 3, 2003. Approximately fifty aircraft can be counted on deck.]] Aircraft carriers are the major strategic arm of the Navy. They put U.S. air power within reach of most land-based military power. The US Navy's carriers are much larger and more powerful than those of the rest of the world. See also: List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy and List of escort aircraft carriers of the United States Navy. * Kitty Hawk class aircraft carrier (1 ship) *USS Enterprise (CVN-65) — Norfolk, Virginia *USS John F. Kennedy (CV-67) — Mayport Naval Station, Florida * Nimitz class aircraft carrier (9 ships, 1 under construction) ====Amphibious assault ships==== The largest of all amphibious warfare ships Amphibious_assault_ship resemble small aircraft carriers; capable of V/STOL, STOVL, VTOL tiltrotor and rotary wing aircraft operations; contains a welldeck to support use of Landing craft and other watercraft. * Wasp class amphibious assault ship (7 ships) * Tarawa class amphibious assault ship (5 ships) ====Amphibious transport docks==== Amphibious_transport_dock are warships that embark, transport, and land elements of a landing force for a variety of expeditionary warfare missions. * San_Antonio_class_amphibious_transport_dock (3 ships, 6 under way) * Austin_class_amphibious_transport_dock (11 ships) ====Submarines==== :''Main article: Submarines in the United States Navy'' There are two major types of submarines, ballistic and attack. Ballistic subs have a single, strategic mission: carrying nuclear SLBMs. Attack submarines have several tactical missions, including sinking ships and subs, launching cruise missiles, and gathering intelligence. * Ohio class submarine (18 in commission) — ballistic submarines, 4 to be converted into guided missile submarines * Virginia class submarine (1 in commission, 3 under construction, 2 on order) — attack submarines * Seawolf class submarine (3 in commission) — attack submarines * Los Angeles class submarine (51 in commission) — attack submarines ====Cruisers==== Guided missile cruisers can conduct air warfare, surface warfare and undersea warfare. * Ticonderoga class cruiser (25 in commission) — first ships to carry the Aegis combat system ====Destroyers==== * Arleigh Burke class destroyer (41 in commission) — first ship class with comprehensive design for stealth technology. * Spruance class destroyer (7 in commission) — this class is slowly being phased out. ====Frigates==== Modern frigates mainly perform anti-submarine warfare and escort other ships. The U.S. Navy is gradually retiring its frigates; some of their jobs will be performed by the nascent littoral combat ship. [http://peoships.crane.navy.mil/lcs/] *Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate (30 ships in commission) ====Battleships==== All U.S. battleships have been retired, although two Tomahawk-capable ships remain in "Inactive" Reserve. * Iowa class battleship ====Early vessels==== *USS Constitution — "Old Ironsides," oldest commissioned warship afloat *USS Monitor — first US ironclad warship, also first rotating turret *USS Merrimack (1855) — a wooden warship rebuilt by the Confederate States of America as the ironclad CSS Virginia *USS Alligator (1862) the first submarine of the American Civil War, but sunk while being towed in a storm *CSS Hunley — First submarine to sink a ship in a combat engagement, though it sunk in the aftermath as well. Built by the Confederate States of America near the end of the American Civil War. Sank USS Housatonic with a spar-mounted torpedo. ===Naval aircraft=== [[image:navy.hornet.arp.500pix.jpg|thumb|250px|Four F/A-18E/F Super Hornets assigned to the "Black Aces" of Strike Fighter Squadron Forty One (VFA-41) fly over the Western Pacific Ocean in a stack formation. Taken October 25, 2003]] * A-4 Skyhawk * AV-8 Harrier II * C-2 Greyhound * E-2 Hawkeye * E-6 Mercury * EA-6 Prowler * ES-3 Shadow * FH-1 Phantom * F-14 Tomcat * F/A-18 Hornet * F/A-18E/F Super Hornet * EA-18 Growler * F-35 Joint Strike Fighter * H-3 Sea King * CH-46 Sea Knight * CH-53 Sea Stallion * SH-2 Seasprite * SH-60 Sea Hawk * P-3C Orion ''see also Multimission Maritime Aircraft'' * S-3 Viking * V-22 Osprey * T-6A Texan II * T-45 Goshawk * Lockheed Martin Aerial Common Sensor (no designation yet) ===Harbor Defense=== The United States Navy has, in the last few years, greatly expanded its harbor defense forces in response to the war on terrorism. The main components of Naval harboer Defnese include: * Inshore Boat Units (IBUs) * Mobile Inshore Undersea Warfare Units (MIUWUs) * Special Boat Units (SBUs) ===Special Warfare=== The Navy Seals are the U.S. Navy's primary special warfare units whose purpose is to engage in "special activities other than war". The Navy also maintains an EOD Corps (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) as well as a small corps of Surface Warfare personel known by the designator "Special Operations Underway". ===Missiles, Guns, Equipment=== * Trident missile * Poseidon missile * Tomahawk missile * Polaris missile * Naval Space Surveillance System * CIWS ==Submarine warfare and nuclear deterrence== The submarine has a long history in the USN. It began in the late 19th century, with the building of the SS-1, USS Holland (SS-1). The boat was in service for 10 years and was a developmental and trials vessel for many systems on other early submarines. The submarine really came of age in World War I. The USN did not have a large part in this war, with its action mainly being confined to escorting convoys later in the war and sending a division of battleships to reinforce the British Grand Fleet. However, there were those in the USN submarine service who saw what the Germans had done with their U-boats and took careful note. Doctrine in the inter-war years emphasised the submarine as a scout for the battle fleet, and also extreme caution in command. Both these axioms were shown to be wrong very quickly after the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. The submarine skippers of the fleet boats of World War II waged a very effective campaign against Japanese merchant vessels, doing to Japan what Germany failed to do to the United Kingdom. They were aggressive in their prosecution of their task, and operated far from the fleet. In addition to their commerce raiding role, submarines also proved valuable in air-sea rescue. There was many an American aircraft carrier pilot who owed his life to the valour of USN submarine crews, including then-President of the United States-to-be, George H. W. Bush. ===Navy revolutions=== After WWII, things continued along much the same path until the early 1950s. Then a revolution, that was to forever change the nature of the submarine arm occurred. That revolution was USS Nautilus (SSN-571). The ''Nautilus'' was the first nuclear-powered submarine. Up until that point, submarines had really been, at their most basic level, torpedo boats that happened to be able to go underwater. They had been tied to the surface by the need to charge their batteries using diesel engines relatively often. The nuclear power plant of the ''Nautilus'' meant that the boat could stay underwater for literally months at a time, the only limit in the end being the amount of food that the boat could carry. Another revolution in submarine warfare came with USS George Washington (SSBN-598). Nuclear powered, like ''Nautilus'', ''George Washington'' added strategic ballistic missiles to the mix. Earlier submarines had carried strategic missiles, but the boats had been diesel powered, and the missiles required the boat to surface in order to fire. The missiles were also cruise missiles, which were vulnerable to the defences of the day in a way that ballistic missiles were not. ''George Washington's'' missiles could be fired whilst the boat was submerged, meaning that it was far less likely to be detected before firing. The nuclear power of the boat also meant that, like ''Nautilus'', ''George Washington's'' patrol length was only limited by the amount of food the boat could carry. Ballistic missile submarines, carrying Polaris missiles, eventually superseded all other strategic nuclear systems in the USN. Deterrent patrols continue to this day, although now with the Ohio class submarines and Trident missiles. Los_Angeles_class_submarine_submarine,_USS_San_Juan_(SSN-751)">image:submarine.arp.750pix.jpg|thumb|right|250px|U.S. Navy Los Angeles class submarine submarine, USS San Juan (SSN-751) Given the lack of large scale conventional naval warfare since 1945, with the USN's role being primarily that of power projection, the submarine service did not fire weapons in anger for very many years. The development of a new generation of cruise missiles changed that. The BGM-109 Tomahawk missile was developed to give naval vessels a long range land attack capability. Other than direct shore bombardment, and strikes by aircraft flying off carriers, the ability of naval vessels to influence warfare on land was limited. Now, instead of being limited to firing shells less than 20 miles inland from guns, any naval vessel fitted with the Tomahawk could hit targets up to 1,000 miles inland. The mainstay of the Tomahawk equipped vessels in the early days of the missile's deployment were the Iowa class battleship, and the submarine fleet. The Tomahawk was first used in combat on 17 January 1991, on the opening night of Operation Desert Storm. On that day, for the first time since the surrender of Japan in 1945, an American submarine fired in anger when Tomahawks were launched by US boats in the eastern Mediterranean. Since then, the Tomahawk has become a staple of American campaigns. It has seen use in no less than three separate wars. It has also been exported to the United Kingdom, which has also fitted it to submarines. The Tomahawk has seen a change in the design of attack submarines. At first it was fired through torpedo tubes, but more recent US boats have been fitted with Vertical Launching Systems to enable them to carry more of the weapons. In the early 21st century, the USN submarine fleet is made up entirely of nuclear powered vessels. It is the most powerful of its type in the world. However, there are those who worry that there are not enough boats in the fleet. As with other branches of the US military the budget cuts of the late 1980s and the early 1990s, as the Cold War ended, followed up by the War on Terrorism, have left little or no slack in the system. This point is illustrated by the fact that in 2003, for the first time since 1945, a US submarine made two back-to-back war patrols. ==Major naval bases== * List_of_United_States_Navy_bases * Naval Station Norfolk — The largest Naval base in the world, situated in southeastern Virginia. This is the main port on the Eastern Seaboard. * Pearl Harbor, Hawaii — A deep water naval base and headquarters of the Pacific Fleet * Naval Station San Diego, California — A large complex of Navy bases, and the primary port for ships on the West Coast of the United States * Naval Base Kitsap, Washington — Home base for Ohio_class_submarines in the Pacific Ocean * Naval Station Mayport, Florida * Naval Air Station Fallon, Nevada * Guantanamo Bay — A small section on the south coast of Cuba is leased by the United States and used as a navy base. * U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan. Largest overseas Naval facility. ==Personnel== ===Commissioned Officer=== Commissioned officers in the Navy have paygrades from O-1 to O-10. Officers with superior performance may be ''promoted''. Officers between O-1 and O-3 are called junior officers, O-4 to O-6 are called senior officers, and O-7 to O-10 are called flag officers. See U.S. Navy officer rank insignia for a complete list of paygrades and corresponding ranks. Commissioned officers belong to one of the following ''communities'': * Unrestricted line: Surface Warfare, Aviation Warfare, Submarine Warfare, Special Warfare, Special Operations * Restricted line: Engineering Duty, Meteorology and Oceanography, Aerospace Engineering Duty, Aerospace Maintenance Duty, Public Affairs, Cryptology, Intelligence, Information Professional, Human Resource * Staff Corps: Navy Supply Corps, Navy Medical Corps, Navy Medical Service Corps, Navy Dental Corps, Navy Nurse Corps, Navy Chaplain Corps, Seabee, Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Navy The term "line" officer means someone who may command a warship or an aviation unit. It is a carryover from the 18th-century British tactic of employing warships in a "line" to take advantage of cannons on each side of the ship. The captains of such vessels commanded "ships of the line." Today, all Navy line officers wear a star on the sleeves of uniforms near the cuff braid that denotes rank. Staff officers wear different insignias. Note: Marine Corps officers, also part of the Department of the Navy, are all considered "line" officers because they are qualified as troop commanders in addition to their specialties. Commissioned officers originate from the United States Naval Academy, Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps, Officer Candidate School, direct commission, and other commissioning programs. ===Enlisted=== Enlisted members of the Navy have paygrades from E-1 to E-9. Enlisted members with superior performance may be ''advanced'' in paygrade. Two notably significant advancements are Seaman to Petty Officer Third Class (E-3 to E-4) and Petty Officer First Class to Chief Petty Officer (E-6 to E-7). Advancement to Chief Petty Officer is especially significant, marked by a special initiation ceremony. See U.S. Navy enlisted rate insignia for a complete list of the paygrades. All new active-duty enlisted members receive basic training ("boot camp") at the Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes, Illinois. Those who have a contract for a specific rating continue onto "A" schools for training in the rating. Those who don't have a specific rating go into the fleet to learn on the job and later ''strike'' for a rating. Some members may go to additonal training in a "C" school either before a tour of duty, or after a tour of duty. A "C" school assigns a member a Navy Enlisted Classification code, or NEC, which shows that a sailor is able to perform a specific task requiring that NEC, such as NEC 2780 - Network Security Vulnerablity Technician. Enlisted members of paygrades E-4 and above are said to be "rated" and have a ''rating'': an occupational specialty. As of June 2005, there are more than 50 ratings, including Boatswain's Mate, Quartermaster, Engineman, Damage Controlman, Electronics Technician, Information Systems Technician, Air Traffic Controller, Fire Control Technician, Gunner's Mate, Sonar Technician, Construction Mechanic, Hospital Corpsman, Yeoman, Disbursing Clerk, Culinary Specialist, Photographer's Mate, Musician, Master-at-Arms, Aviation Electronics Technician, and Cryptologic Technician. Some ratings have subspecialties acquired either through an initial "A" school for training (such as Cryptologic Technician Technical and Cryptologic Technician Collection) or through a separate "C" school (such as Aviation Electronics Technician Organizational and Aviation Electronics Technician Intermediate.) ===Qualifications=== Sailors prove they have mastered skills and deserve responsibilities by completing Personal Qualification Standards (PQS) tasks and examinations. Among the most important is the "warfare qualification," which denotes a journeyman level of capability in Aviation Warfare, Special Warfare, Surface Warfare, or Submarine Warfare. Many qualifications are denoted on a sailor's uniform with Badges of the United States Navy. ===Sea Warrior=== Launched in 2003 as part of the Navy's [http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/cno/proceedings.html Sea Power 21] transformation plan, Sea Warrior is intended to link the fleet's personnel processes (recruiting, training, and assigning) with acquisition processes (buying ships, aircraft, etc.) in a way that also improves each individual sailor's ability to guide his or her own career in a satisfying direction. The aim is to more efficiently muster the right number of sailors with the right skills and seniority at each ship, squadron, and duty station. Sea Warrior is led by the Chief of Naval Personnel[http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/people/flags/biographies/hoewinggl.html], and the commander of the [https://www.cnet.navy.mil/netc/netc.html Naval Education and Training Command]. ==Naval culture== Navy sailors are trained in the core values of Honor, Courage, Commitment. Sailors cope with boredom on long cruises of six months to a year, and cherish their time in their home ports, as well as vacations at ports abroad. ===Naval jack===

[[image:Naval jack hoisted.jpg|200px|thumb|The First U.S. Naval Jack hoisted aboard the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63) on December 23, 2001]]

The naval jack of the United States is the First Navy Jack, first used during the American Revolutionary War. On May 31, 2002, Secretary of the Navy Gordon England directed all U.S. naval ships to fly the First Navy Jack for the duration of the War on Terrorism. Many ships chose to shift colors on September 11, 2002. The jack is flown from the bow of the ship and the ensign from the stern when the ship is moored or anchored. When underway, the ensign is flown from the main mast. The former naval jack was a blue field with 50 white stars, identical to the canton of the ensign, both in appearance and size. A jack of similar design was first used in 1794, though with 13 stars arranged in a 3–2–3–2–3 pattern. ===Naval jargon=== Main article: Military slang A distinct jargon has developed among sailors over the course of the last four centuries. Naval jargon is spoken by American sailors as a normal part of their daily speech. There are three distinct components of Naval jargon: *Words that are unique to sailing and have no use in standard English, such as yardarm, bow, and stern. *Archaic English that remains common in naval jargon, such as "aye" (the common English word for "Yes" until the 16th century), "Fo'c'sle" (from Fore Castle), and Bo'sun (from "Boat Swain", swain being Middle English for a young man or a servant). *Modern jargon, such as "Bird" to refer to missiles, or 1MC. ''See U.S. Navy slang for more information. ===Notable members of the U.S. Navy=== * Neil Armstrong — astronaut, first man on the moon * George H. W. Bush — former President of the United States, youngest Naval Aviator in World War II, former director of the Central Intelligence Agency * Jimmy Carter — former President of the United States, Cold War submariner and Nobel Peace Prize laureate * Vern Clark — current Chief of Naval Operations * Robert Dennison - retired admiral, presidential aide * George Dewey — Hero of the Battle of Manila Bay in Spanish-American War * David Farragut — American Civil War Admiral, first officer to become an Admiral in the U.S. Navy. * Wilson Flagg — retired Admiral, killed in September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack * Gerald Ford — former President of the United States served aboard carrier during World War II * William Halsey, Jr. — Third Fleet Commander, won battles off Guadalcanal and The Solomons. Attained rank of Fleet Admiral (5 stars). * Grace Hopper — early computing pioneer, attained the rank of Rear Admiral in the Navy Reserve. * Lyndon B. Johnson — President of the United States worked as a bomb observer with the Army during World War II. * John Paul Jones — commander during the American Revolutionary War, considered to be the founder of the American Naval tradition. * John F. Kennedy — former President of the United States, decorated PT Boat commander in World War II * John Kerry — current junior United States Senate from Massachusetts and 2004 United States Democratic Party President of the United States candidate, decorated swift boat commander during the Vietnam War * Richard Marcinko, author, founder and commander of SEAL Team Six * John McCain, Senior Senator from Arizona and Republican Presidential primary candidate in 2000; former naval aviator and POW. * Richard M. Nixon — former President of the United States, supply officer in World War II * Matthew Perry (naval officer) — Commodore who forced the opening of Japan * Hyman G. Rickover — Admiral, "Father of the Nuclear Navy" * David Robinson (basketball player) — former National Basketball Association star (San Antonio Spurs), commonly nicknamed "The Admiral" * Bill Sharman — basketball Hall of Famer * Roger Staubach — football hall of Famer * Jesse Ventura — actor, professional wrestler, Governor of Minnesota * John W. Young — Naval Aviator and Gemini, Apollo, and Space Shuttle astronaut * Bill Cosby — actor, comedian and educational philanthropist. ==Navy Jobs== Enlisted Jobs Officer Jobs ==Related articles== *Continental Navy *Electronics Technician rating *Information Systems Technician rating *Seabees, US Navy Construction Battalions, hence CBs *Navy SEAL, special forces *BUPERS *Fleet Week *WAVES *Ship-Submarine recycling program *U.S. Navy officer rank insignia *U.S. Navy enlisted rate insignia *Awards and decorations of the United States military *Military badges of the United States *United States armed forces *United States Secretary of the Navy *Comparative military ranks *List of United States Navy bases *List of ships of the United States Navy *List of active Navy ships, sorted by homeport *List of units of the United States Navy *U.S. Navy munitions *Service bands#Navy Band *Eternal Father Strong to Save (the U.S. Navy hymn) ==External links== * [http://www.navy.mil Official U.S. Navy Website] * [http://www.hq.navy.mil/ Department of the Navy Website] * [https://wwwa.nko.navy.mil Navy Knowledge Online] * [http://www.seawarrior.navy.mil Sea Warrior] * [http://www.nosi.org Naval Open Source Intelligence (NOSI)] — a digital library of world naval operational news, curated from open source intelligence, and intended to serve as a source of continuing education on naval and military affairs * [http://www.microworks.net/pacific/ U.S. Navy in WW II] — a web site devoted to the U.S. navy in the Pacific theater during World War II *[http://www.navsource.org NavSource Naval History - Photographic History Of The U.S. Navy ] — a source of thousands of photographs of US Navy ships. United States Navy Navies

United States Navy

__FORCETOC__ == Various topics == Moved Ships section to new page U.S. Navy ships to get U.S. Navy page under 35K. Left skeleton summaries and links to classes of carriers, cruisers, subs, destroyers, frigates. Moved weapons section up, culture and personnel down, reasoning that most visitors are going to be more interested in ships and gear than personnel. User:Bbpen 20:15, 16 Nov 2004 (UTC) ''An event in this article is a MediaWiki:March 27 selected anniversaries (may be in HTML comment)'' ---- This looks sad indeed by comparison with :Royal Navy entry ---- Yes, indeed, nothing of the history of the navy, growth of US sea power, current strength, role in the current global conflicts. And what is here is poorly organized. lots of good stuff on individual vessels and types, but nothing to tie it all together. I know this is weak, but I really don't know enough to fix it. It's a job for a gob. user:Ortolan88 May 02. ---- Looking at it with an eye to the 3/27 featuring, it seems that the submarine warfare is disproportionately detailed and technical, should be replaced with a 2-paragraph summary and the full details go elsewhere (not sure of good article title tho). To some extent, this article is itself a "Main Page" for things watery, so its emphasis should be more on leading readers to in-depth articles of most interest, rather than being the repository of all in-depth material. User:Stan Shebs 07:25, 26 Mar 2004 (UTC) ---- Um, the picture of the Monitor ''vs.'' the Virginia was supposed to illustrate "During the American Civil War, the Navy was an innovator in the use of ironclad warships,...". That seems like a reasonable subject for a picture, though maybe a bigger one, say 300 px, would be better. --User:Wwoods 21:53, 13 Apr 2004 (UTC) : A bigger sized pic wouldn't help me because I still wouldn't know what the painting was all about. A descriptive caption linking the pic to something in the text would do the trick.
:User:Arpingstone 06:30, 14 Apr 2004 (UTC) ::Okay, how about During the American Civil War, the Navy was an innovator in the use of ironclad warships, but after the war slipped into obsolescence. A modernization program beginning in the 1880s brought the US into the first rank of the world's navies by the beginning of the 20th century.
. ::It'd be nice if the length of the text matched the length of the pic. Cropping out the top third would do no great harm either. --User:Wwoods 06:59, 14 Apr 2004 (UTC) == Relationship to USMC == United States Marine Corps says : The Marine Corps is part of the Department of the Navy. It is not part of the United States Navy, although the two services work closely together. and, much later, : The commandant is a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and reports to the secretary of the Navy, but not to the chief of naval operations. which must explain why so many people say "The Marines are part of the Navy" even tho they are not. This needs treatment in United States Navy(and better treatment there). Would this language help?: : Thus, while they are two separate military services, with completely separate military chains of command, they do have the same common ''civilian'' command structure above their military ones, while no other two among the services have in common exactly the same civilian command structure. (Or something more ''comprehensible'' that means the same thing!) --User:JerzyUser talk:Jerzy 19:59, 2004 Dec 8 (UTC) ==Reorganise== I think all of the pages - US armed forces, US Department of Defense, and all the services (US Army etc.) need to be reorganised, First so that there is not uneeded overlap, and Second so that Army, Navy etc. are all set out the same way (eg. similar headings and article structure, just with different content.) *United States armed forces *United States Department of Defense *United States Army *United States Navy *United States Air Force *United States Marine Corps *United States Coast Guard and maybe Joint Chiefs of Staff etc. ==---== This page contains only three red links. Can somebody made pages to red links. == Update == I made a template along the lines of the Royal Navy page. We do need to clean out the main US Navy, perhaps move the ships, aircraft, etc. to other lists. This I think would keep the main one smaller and more concise. More links with pages coming... ==Style reference== Looking for a reference on the proper usage and style for referring to naval ships I found this page: :''ships: Identify the ship's type in the first reference in the article and specify if it is nuclear-powered: "The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman returned to her home port yesterday following a six-month deployment to the Persian Gulf." Hull numbers are generally not used in the text of an article. U.S. Navy ships are not identified as "USS" until they are commissioned into active service: "The nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan will be commissioned in 2002." Place "the" before the ship's name and delete the ship's type in subsequent references: "The ceremony took place the day after the USS Harry S. Truman returned to port." Italicize the ship's name only (not USS) in text of article: "Members of the Pensacola Council met the USS Harry S. Truman on her arrival."'' [http://www.navyleague.org/sea_power/style_guide.php Sea Power Editorial Guidelines for Prospective Authors] I found that information helpful. There is additional information on details of usage in naval matters. Cheers, -User:Willmcw 02:36, May 13, 2005 (UTC) : Thanks for the pointer. If you're interested participating in the discussion about style, you may want to see Wikipedia:Naming_conventions_%28ships%29#Referring_to_ships and the accompanying Talk page. User:Jinian 02:42, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::That's even better. I'd looked for something like that, but hadn't found it. Thanks, -User:Willmcw 03:06, May 13, 2005 (UTC) ==LCS vs. lcs== Littoral Combat Ship is capitalized; see [http://peoships.crane.navy.mil/lcs/]. User:Bbpen 15:46, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :I don't see anything on that page saying "Wikipedia must make an exception to their naming standards for this specific ship type." We don't capitalize "guided-missile frigate" or "air-cushion landing craft" or "aircraft carrier".... User:The Epopt 16:21, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::Fair point. On the other hand, nothing on the page says "Wikipedians should look silly by being the only ones not to capitalize LCS." Perhaps a distinction might be drawn between the Littoral Combat Ship program and its products, the littoral combat ships -- though this would still leave Wikipedia standing alone. User:Bbpen 17:20, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :::I must admit that the .mil sites seem to very consistantly capitalize the name, which I think looks silly. The PEO Ships site capitalizes almost everything, creating a goofy-looking effect — "Learn more about Destroyers, ''Spruance Class'' (DD)," "...location and custody responsibilities of Service Craft and Boats" — I really hope we're not going to start capitalizing "Boat".... User:The Epopt 17:42, 13 May 2005 (UTC) :::The Navy loves to capitalize Sailor as well, which is another odd convention. But here's the thing -- it's not just the .mil sites that call it "LCS"; it's everybody. [http://www.google.com/search?as_q=&num=100&hl=en&c2coff=1&client=safari&rls=en-us&btnG=Google+Search&as_epq=littoral+combat+ship&as_oq=&as_eq=&lr=&as_ft=i&as_filetype=&as_qdr=all&as_occt=any&as_dt=i&as_sitesearch=&safe=off] Or am I missing something? User:Bbpen 18:04, 13 May 2005 (UTC) ::I agree with Bbpen here, since "Littoral Combat Ship" in this case is a proper noun officially used to refer to a specific military program. Unless put in a descriptive context (i.e. USS ''Someship'', a ''littoral combat ship''...), it should be capitalized. Furthermore, LCS (referring to the aforementioned program) is an acronym and therefore enjoys the right of being capitalized for clarity if nothing else. FAS.org and GlobalSecurity.org, among others, use this convention with a great degree of consistency.

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