United States Naval Ship (USNS) is the prefix designation given to non-commissioned ships that are property of the United States Navy (USN).^[1]

Definition

United States Naval Ships are unarmed auxiliary support vessels owned by the U.S. Navy and operated in non-commissioned service by Military Sealift Command with a civilian crew. Some ships include a small military complement to carry out communication and special mission functions, or for force protection.^[2]

In comparison, U.S. Navy ships commissioned into service have the designation "USS" and are armed, crewed by U.S. Navy personnel, and held in property by the United States Government.^[3] Additionally, the United States Naval Ships hull classification symbol begins with "T-" to denote its civilian crew. The USNS prefix can be assigned only while the ship is owned by the U.S. Navy. If, after being taken out of service, the ship is transferred to the Maritime Administration the prefix reverts to a civilian ship prefix such as the case of SS Comet.

References

^ "Joint Publication 1-02 Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms". Defense Technical Information Center. 8 November 2010. Archived from the original on March 29, 1997. Retrieved 4 July 2012.
^ "Military Sealift Command: People". Military Sealift Command. 2014. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
^ "USN Ship Naming". Naval History & Heritage Command. 29 September 1997. Retrieved 12 March 2009.

United States Navy

Category

Leadership

Structure

Operating forces	Fleet Forces Command Commander Pacific Fleet Commander Naval Forces Europe – Naval Forces Africa Naval Forces Central Command Naval Forces Southern Command Naval Special Warfare Command Naval Reserve Forces Operational Test and Evaluation Force Naval Network Warfare Command Military Sealift Command
Shore	Naval Sea Systems Command Naval Air Systems Command Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Naval Supply Systems Command Naval Information Warfare Systems Command Fleet Cyber Command Naval Academy Naval Education and Training Command Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command Office of Naval Intelligence Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center Naval Legal Service Command Naval Observatory Naval Safety Center Bureau of Naval Personnel Chief of Naval Personnel Bureau of Medicine and Surgery Navy Installations Command Navy Working Capital Fund
Fleets	Second Fleet Third Fleet Fourth Fleet Fifth Fleet Sixth Fleet Seventh Fleet Tenth Fleet
Ships	A–B C D–F G–H I–K L M N–O P Q–R S T–V W–Z Aircraft carriers Airships Amphibious warfare ships Auxiliaries Battleships Cruisers Destroyers Destroyer escorts Escort carriers Frigates Mine warfare vessels Monitors Patrol vessels Registered civilian vessels Sailing frigates Steam frigates Steam gunboats Ships of the line Sloops of war Submarines Torpedo boats Torpedo retrievers Unclassified miscellaneous vessels Yard and district craft