United States Navy

United States Navy
Emblem of the United States Navy
Founded	27 March 1794 (230 years, 7 months) (in current form) 13 October 1775 (249 years) (as the Continental Navy)[1][2]
Country	United States
Type	Navy
Size	334,896 active duty personnel[3] 54,741 Navy Reserve personnel[4] 387,637 total uniformed personnel (official data as of July 31, 2023) 279,471 civilian employees (As of 2018[update])[5] 480 ships total, of which 300 are deployable (As of 2019[update])[5] 2,623 aircraft (As of 2018[update])[6]
Part of	United States Armed Forces Department of the Navy
Headquarters	The Pentagon Arlington County, Virginia, U.S.
Motto(s)	Semper Fortis ('Always Courageous'), (unofficial). Non sibi sed patriae ('Not for self but for country') (unofficial)
Colors	Blue and gold[7][8]
March	"Anchors Aweigh" Playⓘ
Anniversaries	13 October
Equipment	List of equipment of the United States Navy
Engagements	See list American Revolutionary War Quasi-War First Barbary War War of 1812 Second Barbary War West Indies Anti-Piracy Operations Seminole Wars African Anti-Slavery Operations Aegean Sea Anti-Piracy Operations First Sumatran expedition United States exploration expedition Patriot War Second Sumatran expedition Ivory Coast Expedition Capture of Monterey Mexican–American War Bombardment of Greytown Battle of Ty-ho Bay First Fiji Expedition Filibuster War Second Opium War Second Fiji Expedition Reform War Paraguay expedition American Civil War Bombardment of Qui Nhon Shimonoseki Campaign Formosa Expedition United States expedition to Korea Egyptian Expedition (1882) Bering Sea Anti-Poaching Operations Kingdom of Hawaii overthrowal Second Samoan Civil War Banana Wars Spanish–American War Negro Rebellion Occupation of Nicaragua Occupation of Haiti Occupation of the Dominican Republic (1916) Philippine–American War Boxer Rebellion World War I Bombardment of Samsun World War II Korean War First Taiwan Strait Crisis 1958 Lebanon crisis 1958 Taiwan Strait Crisis Vietnam War Occupation of the Dominican Republic (1965) Iranian Hostage Rescue Gulf of Sidra incident (1981) Multinational Force in Lebanon Invasion of Grenada Action in the Gulf of Sidra (1986) Bombing of Libya (1986) Tanker War Earnest Will Prime Chance Eager Glacier Nimble Archer Praying Mantis 1989 air battle near Tobruk Invasion of Panama Gulf War Iraqi no-fly zones Somali Civil War Bosnian War Third Taiwan Strait Crisis Kosovo War International Force for East Timor Operation Enduring Freedom Afghanistan (2001–2014) Philippines Horn of Africa Pankisi Gorge Trans Sahara Caribbean and Central America Iraq War Operation Burnt Frost Operation Ocean Shield Operation Odyssey Dawn 2014 Intervention against ISIL Operation Inherent Resolve War in Afghanistan (2015–2021) 2017 Shayrat missile strike Operation Prosperity Guardian 2024 missile strikes in Yemen
Website	navy.mil navy.com
Commanders
Commander-in-Chief	President Joe Biden
Secretary of Defense	Lloyd Austin
Secretary of the Navy	Carlos Del Toro
Chief of Naval Operations	ADM Lisa Franchetti
Vice Chief of Naval Operations	ADM James W. Kilby
Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy	MCPON James Honea
Insignia
Flag
Ensign
Jack
Pennant
Logo

United States Armed Forces
Executive departments
Department of Defense Department of Homeland Security
Staff
Office of the Secretary of Defense Joint Chiefs of Staff
Military departments
Department of the Army Department of the Navy Department of the Air Force
Military services
United States Army United States Marine Corps United States Navy United States Air Force United States Space Force United States Coast Guard
Command structure
Unified combatant commands Africa Command Central Command European Command Indo-Pacific Command Northern Command Southern Command Cyber Command Space Command Special Operations Command Strategic Command Transportation Command
Combat support agencies Defense Contract Management Agency Defense Health Agency Defense Information Systems Agency Defense Intelligence Agency Defense Logistics Agency Defense Threat Reduction Agency National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency National Security Agency Central Security Service
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Ships of the United States Navy
Ships in current service
Current ships
Ships grouped alphabetically
A–B C D–F G–H I–K L M N–O P Q–R S T–V W–Z
Ships grouped by type
Aircraft carriers Airships Amphibious warfare ships Auxiliaries Battlecruisers Battleships Cruisers Destroyers Destroyer escorts Destroyer leaders Escort carriers Frigates Hospital ships Littoral combat ships Mine warfare vessels Monitors Oilers 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 Yard and district craft
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The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the world's most powerful navy and the largest by tonnage, at 4.5 million tons in 2021^[9] and in 2009 an estimated battle fleet tonnage that exceeded the next 13 navies combined.^[10] It has the world's largest aircraft carrier fleet, with 11 in service, one undergoing trials, two new carriers under construction, and six other carriers planned as of 2024. With 336,978 personnel on active duty and 101,583 in the Ready Reserve, the U.S. Navy is the third largest of the United States military service branches in terms of personnel. It has 299 deployable combat vessels and about 4,012 operational aircraft as of July 18, 2023.^[11][12]

The United States Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which was established during the American Revolutionary War and was effectively disbanded as a separate entity shortly thereafter. After suffering significant loss of goods and personnel at the hands of the Barbary pirates from Algiers, the United States Congress passed the Naval Act of 1794 for the construction of six heavy frigates, the first ships of the Navy. The United States Navy played a major role in the American Civil War by blockading the Confederacy and seizing control of its rivers. It played the central role in the World War II defeat of Imperial Japan. The United States Navy emerged from World War II as the most powerful navy in the world. The modern United States Navy maintains a sizable global presence, deploying in strength in such areas as the Western Pacific, the Mediterranean, and the Indian Ocean. It is a blue-water navy with the ability to project force onto the littoral regions of the world, engage in forward deployments during peacetime and rapidly respond to regional crises, making it a frequent actor in American foreign and military policy.

The United States Navy is part of the Department of the Navy, alongside the United States Marine Corps, which is its coequal sister service. The Department of the Navy is headed by the civilian secretary of the Navy. The Department of the Navy is itself a military department of the Department of Defense, which is headed by the secretary of defense. The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the most senior Navy officer serving in the Department of the Navy.^[13]