World War II Ships

Battleships and Battlecruisers

These ships of the line were still considered the central components of the navies of all world powers at the start of the war, but by the war's end, these floating fortresses found their roles dramatically changed at the face of air power.
Carriers

At Taranto, Kuantuan, and Pearl Harbor, the world powers realized major naval combat was no longer restricted to surface engagements only. Aviation vessels of all different sizes turned from a novelty of the 1930s to the centerpieces of fleets.
Cruisers

Situated between the size of battleships and agility of destroyers, cruisers played a flexible role. They were equally well suited as task force flagships as anti-aircraft screens.
Destroyers

Though lightly armored and carried small guns compared to their larger cousins, destroyers were present in all theaters of WW2. Submarine hunter, forward torpedo attacker, anti-aircraft screen ship, search and rescue ship, and amphibious support were some of destroyers' capabilities.

Submarines

In WW1, submarines nearly strangled Britain into submission. In this new war, technology advances made these undersea predators even more ferocious and dangerous for all nations.
Other

These ships of other classifications, whether transports, minelayers, or landing ships were considered by many as "miscellaneous" ships, but their importance in the war could not be discounted.
List by Country


Use the dropdown menu above to list ship by country.
List by Name

A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   
N   O   P   Q   R   S   T   U   V   W   X   Y   Z   
#
List All Ships

Use the link above to see a list of all ships without filtering by category or country.
Search WW2DB
News

Random Photograph

Ki-32 aircraft at rest, circa 1930s


Current Site Statistics

Famous WW2 Quote
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us... they can't get away this time."

Lt. Gen. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, at Guadalcanal


Support Us

Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 a month will go a long way. Thank you!

Or, please support us by purchasing some WW2DB merchandise at TeeSpring, Thank you!