The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest navy in the world, with a battle fleet tonnage that is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S. Navy also has the world's largest carrier fleet, with 11 in service, one under construction (two planned), and one in reserve. The service has 318,406 personnel on active duty and 108,718 in the Navy Reserve. It operates 288 ships in active service and more than 3,700 aircraft.
The Navy traces its origins to the Continental Navy, which was established during the American Revolutionary War and was essentially disbanded as a separate entity shortly thereafter. The United States Constitution provided the legal basis for a military force by giving Congress the power "to provide and maintain a navy".
Depredations against U.S. shipping by Barbary Coast pirates in the Mediterranean Sea spurred Congress to employ this power by passing the Naval Act of 1794 ordering the construction and manning of six frigates. These ships were used to end most pirate activity off the Barbary Coast. In the 20th century, American blue-water navy capability was demonstrated by the 1907–1909 world tour of the Great White Fleet.
The 21st century United States Navy maintains a sizable global presence, deploying in such areas as East Asia, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East. It is a blue-water navy with the ability to project force onto the littoral regions of the world, engage in forward areas during peacetime, and rapidly respond to regional crises, making it an active player in U.S. foreign and defense policy.
The Navy is administratively managed by the Department of the Navy, which is headed by the civilian Secretary of the Navy. The Department of the Navy is itself a division of the Department of Defense, which is headed by the Secretary of Defense. The Chief of Naval Operations is currently held by Admiral Jonathan Greenert. This position is traditionally the highest ranking naval officer (O-10 on the pay chart), but the current highest ranking naval officer is the Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral James Winnefeld.
Read more about United States Navy: Mission, Organization, Bases, Equipment, Naval Jack, Notable Sailors
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23 January – A United States Navy Beechcraft T-34C Turbo-Mentor, an upgraded version of the T-34 Mentor, crash-landed in Lake Pontchartrain near New Orleans. 26 January – A Nigerian Navy AgustaWestland AW109E helicopter crashed in south Nigeria ... – A Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter of the United States Army crashed in Germany about 1800 hrs ...
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... Main article List of United States Navy people Many past and present United States historical figures have served in the Navy ... Notable officers include John Paul Jones, John Barry (Continental Navy officer and first flag officer of the United States Navy), James Lawrence (whose last words "don't give up the ship" are ... A number of presidents served in the Navy before or early in their political careers, including John F ...
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... launched in 1923 Country Builder Location Ship Class Notes 15 January United Kingdom Harland Wolff Ltd Belfast Mooltan Ocean liner For Peninsular ... September USA Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation Quincy, Massachusetts S-46 S-class submarine For United States Navy 12 September Norway Trondhjems ...
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“In the United States, though power corrupts, the expectation of power paralyzes.”
—John Kenneth Galbraith (b. 1908)
“People run away from the name subsidy. It is a subsidy. I am not afraid to call it so. It is paid for the purpose of giving a merchant marine to the whole country so that the trade of the whole country will be benefitted thereby, and the men running the ships will of course make a reasonable profit.... Unless we have a merchant marine, our navy if called upon for offensive or defensive work is going to be most defective.”
—William Howard Taft (1857–1930)
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—Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)