Ship size. The size of a ship usually is given in terms ofits displacement in long tons. Displacement meansthe weight of the volume of water that the shipdisplaces when afloat; in other words, the weight ofa ship by itself. The Navy uses standarddisplacement, which is the weight of a ship whenready for sea. All weights given in this chapter arestandard displacements, except where otherwisenoted. Cargo ships usually are measured in lightdisplacement (no cargo aboard) because of the widedifference in the weights of cargo carried.Ship armament. Armament describes the offensiveweapons a ship carries—guns, rockets, guidedmissiles, and planes.Ship armor. Armor means protective armor—specialsteel installed along the sides of the ship, on a deck,and on some gun mounts and turrets.Ship speed. The speed of a ship is stated in knots. A knotis 1 nautical mile per hour (mph) or about 1 1/8statute miles per hour. When a ship goes 20 nauticalmiles an hour, its speed is said to be 20 knots (butnever 20 knots per hour). A land (or statute) mile is5,280 feet. A nautical mile is about 6,080 feet, orroughly 2,000 yards. A ship traveling at 20 knots is,therefore, traveling at the rate of about 23 mph.Ship class. Ships are said to be of a particular class. Donot confuse this characteristic with type, which isshown by a ship’s designation. The Forrestal, forexample, was the first of several aircraft carriers ofthe same general advanced type and configurationto be completed. The next three carriers completedafter the Forrestal are of the Forrestal class;however, later CVs or CVNs (nuclear-poweredcarriers) of other types are different classes (such asthe Kitty Hawk class, Nimitz class, and so forth).Ship categories. Ships of the U.S. Navy are divided intofour categories that include combatant ships,auxiliary ships, combatant craft, and support craft.REVIEW 3 QUESTIONSQ1. How is the size of a ship usually given?Q2. What is meant by a ship’s armor?Q3. What term is used to indicate the speed of a ship?SHIPS CATEGORIESShips of the U.S. Navy are divided into fourcategories:Combatant shipsAuxiliary shipsCombatant craftSupport craft.Combatant ShipsDepending on size and type, combatant ships mayhave missions other than simply “slugging it out” witha n e n e m y s h i p . C o m b a t a n t s h i p s a r e o f t wotypes—warships and other combatants.WARSHIPS.—Most warships are built primarilyto attack an enemy with gunfire, missiles, or otherweapons. There are exceptions, however, that you willsee as we go along. The following types of ships areincluded in the warship category:Aircraft carriersBattleshipsCruisersDestroyersFrigatesSubmarines8-14Student Notes:
Integrated Publishing, Inc. - A (SDVOSB) Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business