List of ships of the United States Army

Brooklyn Army Base, New York, between the wars.
Aerial photograph of piers at headquarters and at U.S. Naval Repair Base during loading operations showing nine Army transport ships docked at the commercial wharfs at San Diego, California. (National Archives and Records Administration)

Section 3062, Title 10, U.S. Code, states that the Army includes "land combat and service forces and such aviation and water transport as may be organic therein."

Army water transport capabilities include operation of fixed port facilities, construction and emplacement of temporary ports, operation of a variety of logistics watercraft (including transport vessels, lighterage, harbor and ocean-capable tug boats), plus port clearance capabilities.

During World War II, the U.S. Army operated about 127,800 watercraft of various types.[1] Those included large troop and cargo transport ships that were Army-owned hulls, vessels allocated by the War Shipping Administration, bareboat charters, and time charters. In addition to the transports, the Army fleet included specialized types. Those included vessels not related to transport such as mine warfare vessels, waterway or port maintenance ships, and other service craft.

For example:[1]

  • Troop and cargo ships over 1,000 gross tons that often carried the U.S. Army Transport ship prefix "USAT" with their name if they were Army owned or bareboat chartered: 1,557 ships
  • Other ships over 1,000 gross tons, including hospital ships (prefix "USAHS"), cable ships, aircraft repair ships, port repair ships and others without any title other than "U.S. Army" and a number or name: 108 ships
  • Vessels under 1,000 gross tons of numerous types that include the 511 FS ("Freight and Supply") small nonstandard coastal freighters of numerous designs, 361 minecraft with the large Mine Planters carrying U.S. Army Mine Planter (prefix "USAMP") with a number above a name, 4,343 tugs of all types and a varied array of 4,697 launches and small service craft just designated U.S. Army with a number or name: 12,379
  • Barges and non-propelled watercraft that included 16,787 pontoons: 25,383
  • Amphibious assault craft: 88,366

Limiting the number to only the named and numbered vessels, discounting the various simple barges and amphibious assault craft, the remaining number is 14,044 vessels.

  1. ^ a b Grover, David (1987). U.S. Army Ships and Watercraft of World War II. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-766-6.)