List of support ships of the Royal Navy

This is a list of support ships of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. There are currently no active ships. In World War I, obsolete hulks and cruisers were generally used for maintenance and support. Many commercial vessels were taken up from trade during both wars to act as depot ships. The first ship built specifically for the role was the Medway of 1928. Converted ships below are given with dates of conversion.

RN Ensign
Ships of the Royal Navy
  • Ships by name:
  • A
  • B
  • C
  • D–F
  • G–H
  • I–L
  • M–N
  • O–Q
  • R–T
  • U–Z
  • fleet aircraft carriers
  • escort carriers
  • seaplane carriers
  • amphibious assault shipping
  • battlecruisers
  • dreadnought battleships
  • pre-dreadnought battleships
  • ironclads
  • bomb vessels
  • breastwork monitors
  • corvettes and sloops
  • cruisers
  • destroyers
  • torpedo boats
  • fireships
  • frigates
  • gun-brigs
  • gunboats and gunvessels
  • mine countermeasure vessels
  • monitors
  • patrol and attack craft
  • royal yachts
  • ships of the line
  • submarines
  • support ships
  • survey vessels
  • shore establishments
  • hospitals and hospital ships
  • air stations
  • aircraft wings
  • fleets and major commands
  • squadrons and flotillas
    		•
    • v
    • t
    • e

    Ships

    • HMS Hazard (1894) – converted in 1901 into the world's first submarine depot ship
    • HMS Sandhurst (1915) – converted from Brocklebank Line steamship Manipur (1906). Variously described as destroyer depot ship and fleet repair ship
    • HMS Medway (1928) – submarine depot ship
    • HMS Resource (1928) – fleet repair ship
    • HMS Woolwich (1934) – destroyer depot ship
    • HMS Argenta (1922) – prison ship
    • Maidstone-class submarine depot ships
      • HMS Maidstone (1937)
      • HMS Forth (1938)
    • Tyne-class destroyer depot ships
      • HMS Tyne (1940)
      • HMS Hecla (1940)
    • HMS Adamant (1940) – submarine depot ship
    • HMS Vindictive (1940) – ex-training cruiser, destroyer depot ship
    • Unicorn (1943) – fleet aircraft maintenance carrier
    • HMS Adventure (1944) – ex-minelayer, landing craft repair ship
    • UK merchant ship conversions
      • Hull repair type
        • Beauly Firth (1945)
        • Dullisk Cove (1944)
        • Mullion Sound (1945)
        • Solway Firth (1944)
      • Aircraft component repair type
        • Cuillin Sound (1945)
        • Holm Sound (1944)
        • Moray Firth (1945)
    • Canadian merchant ship conversions
      • Escort repair type (Beachy Head class)
        • HMS Beachy Head (1945)
        • Berry Head (1945)
        • Duncansby Head (1945)
        • HMS Flamborough Head (1945)
        • Mull of Galloway (1945)
        • Rame Head (1945)
      • Landing craft repair type (Beachy Head class)
        • Buchan Ness (1945)
        • Dungeness (1945)
        • Fife Ness (1945)
        • HMS Girdle Ness (1945) – Sea Slug missile trials ship 1956
        • Dodman Point (1945)
        • Hartland Point (1945)
        • Spurn Point (1945)
      • Coastal forces repair type
        • Cape Wrath (1946)
      • Armaments repair type
        • Portland Bill (1945)
    • Colossus-class ex-light fleet carriers
      • HMS Perseus (1944) – fleet aircraft maintenance ship
      • HMS Pioneer (1944) – fleet aircraft maintenance ship
      • HMS Triumph (1964) – fleet repair ship
    • HMS Challenger (1984) – seabed operations ship

    See also