Skip to main content
Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

The Navy Department Library

Related Content
Topic
Document Type
Wars & Conflicts
File Formats
Location of Archival Materials

Glossary of Naval Abbreviations

History of US Naval Operations: Korea

Contents:

   1. Ships
   2. Aircraft
   3. Miscellaneous

1. Ships

          The designations of the various types of U.S. naval vessels are derived by compounding an initial letter indicative of general category (thus A, auxiliary; C, cruiser; D, destroyer; L, landing; P, patrol) with one or more modifiers descriptive of the particular species (thus C, command or craft; D, destroyer or dock; E, explosive or escort; H, hospital or helicopter; O, oiler or ocean; P, transport (i.e., personnel); T, tracked, tank, or torpedo; V, aviation). Type designators employed in this book are as follows:

AD Destroyer tender
AE Ammunition ship
AF Refrigerated stores ship
AGC Amphibious force flagship
AH Hospital ship
AK Cargo ship
AKA Attack cargo ship
AKL Light cargo ship
AM Fleet minesweeper
AMS Motor minesweeper (formerly YMS)
AN Net tender
AO Oiler
AOG Gasoline tanker
AP Transport
APA Attack transport
APD Fast transport (destroyer escort conversion)
ARG Internal combustion engine repair ship
ARH Heavy hull repair ship
ARL Landing craft repair ship
ARS Salvage vessel
ASR Submarine rescue vessel
ATF Fleet tug
AV Seaplane tender
AVP Small seaplane tender
BB Battleship
CA Heavy cruiser
CL Light cruiser
CLAA Antiaircraft light cruiser
CV Aircraft carrier
CVE Escort aircraft carrier (merchant ship hull)
CVL Light aircraft carrier (cruiser hull)
DD Destroyer
DE Destroyer escort
DMS Fast minesweeper (destroyer conversion)
DUKW Amphibious truck (manufacturer’s designation)
JMS Japanese minesweeper (YMS type)
LCVP Vehicle and personnel landing craft
LPH Helicopter amphibious assault ship
LSD Dock landing ship
LSMR Rocket ship (medium landing ship conversion)
LST Tank landing ship
LSU Utility landing ship
LVT Tracked landing vehicle
LVTA Armored tracked landing vehicle
MSC Coastal minesweeper (non-magnetic)
MSI Inshore minesweeper (non-magnetic)
MSO Ocean minesweeper (non-magnetic)
PC Submarine chaser
PCEC Amphibious control vessel (patrol escort modification)
PF Frigate (patrol gunboat or corvette)
PT Motor torpedo boat
T—AP Transport assigned to MSTS
T—APc Small coastal transport assigned to MSTS
YMS Motor minesweeper (World War II designation)

2. Aircraft

          Aircraft of the U.S. Navy are designated by a first letter indicative of functional category and by a second which identifies the manufacturer; to distinguish second and subsequent designs in the same category by the same company an intervening number is employed. Suffixed numbers and letters indicate changes to the basic model and special uses and configurations. Important categories of aircraft are:

A attack
F fighter
H helicopter
U utility
P patrol
PB patrol bomber
R transport

Relevant manufacturer’s designators are:

D Douglas
F Grumman
H McDonnell
M Martin
O Lockheed (former)
S Sikorsky
U Chance Vought
V Lockheed (current)
Y Consolidated

          To illustrate, the AD is the first naval attack plane produced by Douglas after the Attack designation was set up by the Navy in September 1946; the F9F is the ninth Grumman-designed shipboard fighter; the F4U—5N is the night-configurated version of the fifth modification of the fourth naval fighter plane designed by Chance Vought.

          In the Air Force a different series of letter prefixes is used to indicate function (B, bomber; C, cargo and transport; F, fighter; L, liaison; R, reconnaissance, and so on); these letters are followed by numbers running consecutively in each category, and in the event of model changes by a letter suffix. Thus, for example, the F—86A Sabre is the first modification of the basic design of the eighty-sixth in the sequence of Air Force fighters.

          Soviet aircraft, regardless of type, are referred to by the designer’s model number: thus MIG for products of the establishment presided over by Artem Mikoyan and Mikhail Gurevich; Yak for Aleksandir Sergeivich Yakovlev.

3. Miscellaneous

ACB Amphibious Construction Battalion (Navy)
ADCOM Advance Command and Liaison Group (Army)
Anglico Air and Naval Gunfire Liaison Company (Navy-Marine)
AP Armor-piercing
BLT Battalion Landing Team
CAP Combat air patrol
Cardiv Carrier Division
CAS Close air support
CCF Chinese Communist Forces
CincFE Commander in Chief, Far East Command
CincLantFleet Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet
CincPac Commander in Chief, Pacific
CincPacFleet Commander in Chief, Pacific Fleet
CincUNC Commander in Chief, United Nations Command
CNO Chief of Naval Operations
Com Commander (in compounds), as
ComNavFE Commander Naval Forces Far East
Crudiv Cruiser Division
CTF Commander Task Force
CTG Commander Task Group
CW Continuous wave
Desdiv Destroyer Division
ECA Economic Cooperation Administration
ESB Engineer Special Brigade (Army)
EUSAK Eighth U .S Army in Korea
FAFIK Fifth Air Force in Korea
FEAF Far East Air Forces
FEC Far East Command
FLAW Fleet Logistic Air Wing
FMF Fleet Marine Force
FOSICFES Flag Officer Second in Command, Far Eastern Station (British)
F /S Fire Support
GCA Ground control approach
GHQ General Headquarters
HC High capacity
IFF Electronic identification device
JapLogCom Japan Logistical Command
JCS Joint Chiefs of Staff
JOC Joint Operations Center
JTF Joint Task Forcc
KMAG Korean Military Advisory Group (U.S. Army)
KMC Korean Marine Corps
Lant Atlantic (In compounds)
MAG Marine Aircraft Group
MATS Military Air Transport Service
MAW Marine Aircraft Wing
MDA (P ) Mutual Defense Assistance (Program)
Mindiv Minecraft Division
MLR Main line of resistance
MSR Main supply route
MSTS Military Sea Transportation Service
MTACS Marinc Tactical Air Control Squadron
NAF Naval Air Facility
NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization
NavFE Naval Forces Far Fast
NCO Non-commissioned officer
NKPA North Korean People's Army
NMJ Naval Member, Joint Operations Center
OCMH Office of the Chief of Military History (Army)
OpAr ea Operating Area
OPLR Outpost line of resistance
OpNav Officc of Naval Operations
OpPlan Operation plan
OTC Officer in tactical command
Pac Pacific (in compounds)
PhibGru Amphibious Group
POL Petroleum, oil, lubricants
POW Prisoner of war
RAF Royal Air Force
RAN Royal Australian Navy
RCN Royal Canadian Navy
RCT Regimental Combat Team
RN Royal Navy (Gt . Britain)
RNZN Royal New Zealand Navy
ROK Republic of Korea
ROKN Republic of Korea Navy
Scajap Shipping Control Administration, Japan
SEATO Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
ServPac Service Force, Pacific Fleet
SHAPE Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers Europe
SPB Shore Party Battalion (Marine)
TAC Tactical Air Command
TACP Tactical air control party
Tacron Tactical Air Control Squadron (Navy)
TADC Tactical air direction center
TE Task Element
TF Task Force
TG Task Group
UDT Underwater Demoltion Team
UNC United Nations Command
USNS U .S Naval Ship ("in Service, " i.e., non-commissioned vessel of MSTS nucleus fleet
VHF Very high frequency
VT Variable time (radar-controlled) fuse
VMF Marine Fighter Squadron
VMFN Marine Night Fighter Squadron
VMO Marine Observation Squadron
VMR Marine Transport Squadron
VP Patrol Squadron

[End of Glossary]

Published: Thu May 28 12:26:05 EDT 2015