The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) use a hull classification symbol to identify their ships by type and by individual ship within a type. The system is analogous to the pennant number system that the Royal Navy and other European and Commonwealth navies use.
A warship or combatant ship is a naval ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare. Usually they belong to the armed forces of a state. As well as being armed, warships are designed to withstand damage and are typically faster and more maneuverable than merchant ships. Unlike a merchant ship, which carries cargo, a warship typically carries only weapons, ammunition and supplies for its crew. Warships usually belong to a navy, though they have also been operated by individuals, cooperatives and corporations.
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
A patrol boat is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and they generally range in size. They may be operated by a nation's navy, coast guard, police, or customs, and may be intended for marine, estuarine, or river environments.
The term 'brown-water navy' or 'riverine navy' refers in its broadest sense to any naval force capable of military operations in littoral zone waters. The term originated in the United States Navy during the American Civil War, when it referred to Union forces patrolling the muddy Mississippi River, and has since been used to describe the small gunboats and patrol boats commonly used in rivers, along with the larger "mother ships" that supported them. These mother ships include converted World War II-era mechanized landing craft and tank landing ships, among other vessels.
A river gunboat is a type of gunboat adapted for river operations. River gunboats required shallow draft for river navigation. They would be armed with relatively small caliber cannons, or a mix of cannons and machine guns. If they carried more than one cannon, one might be a howitzer, for shore bombardment. They were usually not armoured. The fictional USS San Pablo described in Richard McKenna's The Sand Pebbles is an example of this class of vessel, serving on the US Navy's Yangtze Patrol. Stronger river warships with larger guns were river monitors.
The Coast Guard of the Border Service of the FSB, previously known as the Maritime Units of the KGB Border Troops, is the coast guard of Russia.
The BRP Simeon Castro (PC-374) is the fourth ship of the Jose Andrada class coastal patrol boats of the Philippine Navy. It is part of the first batch of its class ordered through US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) in 1989, and was commissioned with the Philippine Navy on 24 June 1991. It was initially designated as Fast Patrol Craft, and was numbered "DF-374", but later on was re-designated as a Patrol Gunboat, and was re-numbered as "PG-374", until another round of reclassification changed its designation as a Patrol Craft with hull number "PC-374" from April 2016.
The BRP Carlos Albert (PC-375) is the fifth ship of the Jose Andrada class coastal patrol boats of the Philippine Navy. It is part of the first batch of its class ordered through US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) in 1990, and was commissioned with the Philippine Navy in January 1992. It was initially designated as Fast Patrol Craft, and was numbered "DF-375", but later on was re-designated as a Patrol Gunboat, and was re-numbered as "PG-375", until another round of reclassification changed its designation as a Patrol Craft with hull number "PC-375" from April 2016.
BRP Heracleo Alano (PC-376) is the sixth ship of the Jose Andrada-class coastal patrol boats of the Philippine Navy. It is part of the first batch of its class ordered through U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) in 1990, and was commissioned with the Philippine Navy in January 1992. It was initially designated as Fast Patrol Craft, and was numbered "DF-376", but later on was re-designated as a Patrol Gunboat, and was finally re-numbered as "PG-376". Another round of reclassification was made in April 2016, which redesignated the patrol gunboat as the coastal patrol craft BRP Heracleo Alano (PC-376)
BRP Liberato Picar (PC-377) is the seventh ship of the Jose Andrada class coastal patrol boats of the Philippine Navy. It is part of the first batch of its class ordered through US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) in 1990, and was commissioned with the Philippine Navy in January 1992. It was initially designated as Fast Patrol Craft, and was numbered "DF-377", but later on was re-designated as Patrol Gunboat "PG-377". Another round of reclassification was made in April 2016, which redesignated the patrol gunboat as the coastal patrol craft PC-377.
The BRP Hilario Ruiz (PC-378) is the eighth ship of the Jose Andrada class coastal patrol boats of the Philippine Navy. It is part of the first batch of its class ordered through US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) in 1990, and was commissioned with the Philippine Navy on 1 June 1995. It was initially designated as Fast Patrol Craft, and was numbered "DF-378", but later on was re-designated as Patrol Gunboat "PG-378". Another round of reclassification was made in April 2016, which redesignated the patrol gunboat as the coastal patrol craft BRP Hilario Ruiz (PC-377).
The Sobol-class patrol boat, also known as Project 12200, is a Russian Coast Guard vessel. The patrol craft is designed to operate in coastal areas, ports, and other littoral areas, to perform missions like protection of territorial maritime borders, law enforcement, other defense missions, search and rescue, and protection of fisheries.
The Mangust-class patrol boat, also known as Project 12150, is a Russian Coast Guard vessel. The patrol craft is designed to operate in coastal areas, ports, and other littoral areas, to perform missions like protection of territorial maritime borders, law enforcement, other defense missions, search and rescue, protection of fisheries, and enforcing rules of navigation.
The Vosh-class river patrol craft, also known in Soviet designation as Project 1248 Moskit, which has the Project 12481 variant. Both are Russian Coast Guard vessels. The patrol craft is designed to operate in rivers and protect/secure Russian maritime borders, enforce navigational rules and other laws, search and rescue. They work alongside other patrol craft of the Russian Coast Guard and Navy, such as the Piyavka-class and the Ogonek-class river patrol craft.
The Piyavka-class river patrol boat, also known as Project 1249, is a Russian Coast Guard vessel. The patrol craft is designed to operate in rivers to secure and protect Russian maritime borders, enforce navigational laws and other law enforcement duties, and search and rescue. The patrol craft work alongside other Russian Coast Guard and Navy vessels, such as the Moskit-class and the Ogoniok-class river patrol craft. Its hull is not capable of breaking through heavy ice during the winter season.
The Ogonek-class river patrol craft, also known as Project 12130 Ogoniok river gunboat, is a Russian Coast Guard vessel. The patrol craft is designed to operate in rivers and perform various missions of the Russian Coast Guard like protecting Russian maritime borders, law enforcement, enforcement of navigation rules, search and rescue, and fisheries protection. These vessels work alongside other classes of Russian Coast Guard vessels, such as the Vosh-class and the Piyavka-class river patrol craft.
The Sokzhoy-class fast patrol boat, also known as Project 14230, is a Russian Coast Guard vessel. The patrol craft is designed to operate on the coast, rivers, lakes, ports and other littoral areas. It will perform standard Russian Coast Guard missions such as protection of Russian maritime borders, law enforcement, enforcement of navigational rules, search and rescue, and fisheries protection. Both boats, PSKR-500 and PSKR-501, are currently part of the Black Sea Fleet.
This glossary defines the various types of ships and accessory watercraft that have been used in service of the United States. Such service is mainly defined as military vessels used in the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard, as well as the defunct, incorporated, or renamed institutions such as the United States Revenue Cutter Service. Service of the United States can also be defined in this context as special government missions in the form of expeditions, such as the Wilkes Expedition or the North Pacific Exploring and Surveying Expedition. The scope of the glossary encompasses both the "Old Navy" of the United States, from its beginnings as the "Continental Navy", through the "New Navy" and up to modern day. The watercraft included in the glossary are derived from United States ships with logbooks published by the National Archives and Records Administration.
Russian Coast Guard 
Russian Navy 
