What do the ship prefixes tell us? Ship prefixes used on merchant vessels mainly point out the propulsion technique employed in the ship, such as the abbreviation “SS”, which means “steamship”, indicating that the ship runs on steam propulsion.
Usage. Historically, prefixes for civilian vessels often identified the vessel's mode of propulsion, such as "MV" (motor vessel), "SS" (screw steamer; often cited as "steam ship"), or "PS" (paddle steamer).
Common prefixes are MV (for Motor Vessel), MS (for Motor Ship), MT (Motor Tanker), SY (for Sailing Yacht) or MY (for Motor Yacht), while prefixes from older times were SS (for Steam Ship) and RMS (for Royal Mail Ship) or ever older HMS (for His/Her Majesty's Ship).
They are... RMS - Royal Mail Ship HMS - Her Majesty's Ship SS - Steam Ship USS - United States Ship.
TITANIC was also referred to as an SS ship which stands for 'steamship', indicating that the propulsion was steam powered, but 'SS' had less prestige than 'RMS', so it was used less.
SS often stood for "steamship," as steam what made these vessels operate. It was also a clear indicator that a boat differed from the slower performing means of propulsion, such as sailing and rowing power.
In the Navy hull classification “SSBN,” the letters “SS” stand for submersible ship, B denotes ballistic missiles, and the N indicates it is nuclear powered.
His Majesty the King has been graciously pleased to approve of the Permanent Naval Forces of the Commonwealth being designated the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) and of the ships of that Navy being designated His Majesty's Australian Ships. So begins Commonwealth Forces Navy Order number 77 of 1911, dated 5 October 1911.
The prefix “USS,” meaning “United States Ship,” is used in official documents to identify a commissioned ship of the Navy. It applies to a ship while she is in commission.
MS is short for “merchant ship,” or sometimes for “motor ship.” It's identical to the MV prefix. FV translates to “fishing vessel.” While fishing vessels can legitimately carry the MS or MV prefix, FV is more specific and is beginning to see wider use.
Not many people know that RMS stands for Royal Mail Ship – at the time though it stood for 'Royal Mail Steamer' – indicating that the Titanic was contracted to carry mail.
Most often, "SS" stands for "steamship." This designation serves to define that a steam engine powers a vessel. However, SS can, in some very rare cases, refer to "single-screw ship" as well. The prefix "SS" on a ship often stands for "steamship" or sometimes "single-screw ship".
HMS Queen Elizabeth is the largest and most powerful vessel ever constructed for the Royal Navy. This awe-inspiring warship is capable of carrying up to 40 aircraft.
USS Constitution is the oldest commissioned ship in the United States Navy. Naval officers and crew still serve aboard the ship today. The USS Constitution is operated by the United States Navy, a partner to the National Parks of Boston.
France was later purchased by Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) in 1979, renamed SS Norway and underwent significant modifications to refit her for cruising duties. She was renamed SS Blue Lady and sold to be scrapped in 2005, and scrapping was completed in late 2008.
Brunel was already a successful rail magnate, but in 1835, he formed the Great Western Steamship Company. Brunel's first giant steamship, the SS Great Western (SS denotes it as a steamship), was completed in 1838, but this vessel was made of wood.
During the late 17th century, following the Restoration, the name Royal Navy was officially adopted, as well as the prefix His Majesty's Ship, and later, Her Majesty's Ship. The first recorded use of the abbreviated form HMS was in 1789, in respect of HMS Phoenix.
Interestingly, Captain Ernst Lindemann of the German battleship Bismarck referred to his ship as 'he', in view of its awesome power. In popular parlance, the tradition of naming ships 'she' has now become less common.
The reason the titanic is often referred to as 'RMS Titanic' is because the RMS stands for Royal Mail Ship.
Aircraft carrier type
Contrary to popular belief, the "CV" hull classification symbol does not stand for "carrier vessel". "CV" derives from the cruiser designation, with one popular theory that the V comes from French voler, "to fly", but this has never been definitively proven.
HMS is used before the names of ships in the British Royal Navy. HMS is an abbreviation for 'Her Majesty's Ship' or 'His Majesty's Ship'.
The First Fleet's 11 ships comprised two Royal Navy escort ships, the HMS Sirius and HMS Supply, six convict transports, the Alexander, Charlotte, Friendship, Lady Penrhyn, Prince of Wales and the Scarborough, and three store ships, the Borrowdale, Fishburn and Golden Grove.
U-boat, German U-boot, abbreviation of Unterseeboot, (“undersea boat”), a German submarine.
Germany has commissioned over 1,500 U-boats (German: Unterseeboot) into its various navies from 1906 to the present day. The submarines have usually been designated with a U followed by a number, although World War I coastal submarines and coastal minelaying submarines used the UB and UC prefixes, respectively.