Blue-water navy

A blue-water navy is a maritime force that can travel and work all around the world, far out on the deep waters of the oceans. This means the navy can move and stay in the open seas, not just close to land. Having a blue-water navy helps a country control big areas of the sea from far away.

The word "blue-water navy" comes from talking about where ships can go. It is different from a "brown-water navy" which works very close to shore, and a "green-water navy" which works a little farther out but still near land. A blue-water navy can stay out on the wide, open ocean for a long time.

The Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency of the United States says a blue-water navy is a group of ships that can keep working far out on the deep ocean. This lets a country show its strength in places very far from home. A blue-water navy usually has one or more aircraft carriers. Even smaller blue-water navies can send some ships far away for short visits.

Attributes

A blue-water navy is a type of navy that can travel and work far out at sea, away from its home country. This includes big ships like battleships, aircraft carriers, and nuclear submarines. For example, in the 1970s, some people thought Australia needed a new aircraft carrier to keep its navy as a blue-water navy. Even without a new carrier, others still said Australia had a strong blue-water navy.

A true blue-water navy can protect itself from dangers under the water, on the surface, and in the air. It can also keep going for long trips far from home. One important skill is how to get supplies while traveling at sea. Even with these abilities, blue-water navies can still face risks from smaller, clever attacks. Keeping everything working far away is expensive and can be hard.

The term 'blue-water navy' talks about the whole navy, not just one ship. Some navies can travel far out for short times but cannot stay there long. Other countries have many ships but cannot keep them far away for long.

Definitions

A blue-water navy can travel far out to sea, away from its home country. Some can work all around the world.

In 2012, two teachers talked about what makes a navy brown-, green-, or blue-water. They said a brown-water navy protects its coastline, a green-water navy works in nearby seas, and a blue-water navy can travel far out across deep waters. But they also said it can be hard to say exactly what makes a navy blue-water. Even big countries like France and the United States have different abilities.

Another way to explain it is that brown-water is very close to the coast, green-water is a bit farther out, and blue-water means being able to work at least 1,500 nautical miles from the coast. The United States Navy uses the term green-water instead of brown-water now. But there is still no one agree definition of what a blue-water navy is.

Classification and naval hierarchy

People who study navies have tried to sort them by how strong they are. They look at things like how many ships there are, how modern the weapons are, how far the navy can travel, and how skilled the sailors are.

Overseas basing

See also: Unsinkable aircraft carrier

In the past and today, blue-water navies often set up bases in other countries. These bases help them get supplies, fix their ships, and be stronger far from home. For example, after World War II, the Royal Navy and the United States Navy kept forces in Bahrain to help with work in the Persian Gulf. Where these bases are placed matters a lot. Bases near narrow seas or close to where fights might happen can be very important. Places like Naval Station Pearl Harbor help the US Navy work better in the Pacific Ocean.

Examples

These are examples of navies that have been called blue-water navies by experts. Some have used these skills to control the open seas and reach other nations’ coastal waters. However, experts do not all agree on what makes a blue-water navy.

China

Main article: People's Liberation Army Navy

The People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) has faced many different assessments of its abilities. China’s goal to grow from a green-water navy to a blue-water navy has gotten a lot of attention, especially from the United States Congress and Department of Defense. Both have noted that China’s main aim is to project power in the First and Second island chains.

Since 2008, the PLAN has carried out anti-piracy missions in the Gulf of Aden regularly. In a 2013 report to Congress, defense experts said that over the next few decades, China would gain the ability to project power around the world—similar to Britain’s actions in the 1982 Falklands War. In 2015, Todd and Lindberg’s classification put the PLAN at rank four as a “regional power projection navy.”

In 2020, assessments by the United States Naval Institute indirectly considered the Chinese Navy a blue-water navy, noting that “in terms of modern warships and submarines, China far outstrips any erstwhile naval competitors, except for the United States.” In 2025, China held naval exercises in the Tasman Sea, which analysts see as a sign of their blue-water navy abilities.

France

Main article: French Navy

The French Navy is recognized as a blue-water navy by various experts and academics.^[A] According to professors Daniel Todd and Michael Lindberg, the French Navy ranks as a two “limited global-reach power projection navy.”

The navy operates a single nuclear-powered aircraft carrier (Charles de Gaulle), which is the center of the Navy’s main expeditionary task group (called the Aeronaval Group). In addition, the navy has a secondary Amphibious Group (called Le Groupe Amphibie) based around the Mistral-class amphibious assault ships. Both these groups are part of the Force d'action navale (or Naval Action Force). The 'Forces sous-marines' operates four nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines and six nuclear-powered fleet submarines. France has a network of overseas naval bases around the world; from Fort de France in the Caribbean, to Le Port, Réunion in the Indian Ocean, Papeete in the Pacific and several other places, including the Gulf, South Atlantic and the Western Pacific.

The navy’s duties include protecting French interests abroad and securing the nation’s many overseas departments and territories. Because of this, the Navy has many standing commitments around the world.

India

Main article: Indian Navy

The Indian Navy stands out among Asian navies because of its long experience with carrier power projection since 1961. This, according to Dr. George J. Gilboy and political scientist Eric Heginbotham, gives the Indian Navy the “leading power projection capability in the region.” The Indian Navy is also the only Asian navy considered a rank three “multi-regional power projection navy” by Todd and Lindberg’s classification system. In a discussion paper for Consultancy Africa Intelligence, Greg Ryan says that in recent years, the Indian Navy has emerged as a “global power in the blue water sense.”

India first shared its plans to develop blue-water capabilities in the 2007 Maritime Capabilities Perspective Plan, with the navy’s priority being to project “power in India’s area of strategic interest,” the Indian Ocean Region. Since 2007 the navy has increased its presence in the Persian Gulf and the Horn of Africa to the Strait of Malacca, and regularly carries out anti-piracy operations and builds partnerships with other navies in the region. It also does regular two to three month-long deployments in the South and East China seas as well as the western Mediterranean at the same time. The navy has a listening post in Madagascar.

India brought its first aircraft carrier into service in 1961, and the navy has since operated two independent carrier task forces. After INS Viraat and INS Vikrant were retired, the country’s attack force now centers on two carrier battle groups: INS Vikramaditya, and a new home-built aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant put into service in September 2022, bringing back India’s two-carrier ability. The Indian Navy also has an amphibious transport dock, INS Jalashwa, and currently runs 3 Arihant-class home-built nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines with one more being built, plus it leases one Akula-class nuclear-powered attack submarine and has many more ships of different types planned or under construction.

Italy

Main article: Italian Navy

The Italian Navy was called a “regional blue-water navy” in Liu Huaqing’s Memoirs (1994), and a rank three “multi regional power projection navy” by Professors Daniel Todd and Michael Lindberg in 1996. In the 1989 book "The Atlantic Alliance and the Middle East", Joseph I. Coffey said that Italy’s blue-water abilities did not go beyond the Mediterranean sea. Today the navy has two aircraft carriers (Cavour and Trieste, with Giuseppe Garibaldi retired in 2024).

The Marina Militare regularly sails to the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf as part of international anti-piracy missions such as Operation Ocean Shield and Operation Atalanta, and can send a carrier battle group to support NATO or EU operations such as during Operation Enduring Freedom (2001) and EU Navfor Med (European migrant crisis). In 2015 scholar Sarah Kirchberger named Italy a blue-water navy able to operate on the open seas far from its home.

As of June 2024 the Italian Navy has sent a Carrier Strike Group, using the Cavour (CVH 550) STOVL aircraft carrier (with F-35B planes on board), for a five-month deployment to the Indo-Pacific region, visiting Singapore, Australia, Japan and the Philippines. The Italian Navy will also take part in the Exercise RIMPAC, the world’s biggest international maritime warfare exercise.

Russia

Main articles: Russian Navy and Soviet Navy

The Soviet Navy had naval forces that could match those of the United States; however, after the end of the Cold War and the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, the Russian Navy suffered a big drop because of lack of money. By the late 1990s, there was little proof of Russian blue-water ability. It was not until 2007, under President Vladimir Putin, that “naval goals grew in size and aimed at re-building a large blue-water navy.” Today, the Russian Navy is seen as a rank 3 “multi-regional power projection navy” by Todd and Lindberg’s classification system. The Russian Navy has also been called a blue-water navy by British naval historian Professor Geoffrey Till.

United Kingdom

Main articles: Royal Navy and UK Carrier Strike Group

The Royal Navy is seen as a blue-water navy by naval experts and academics. This view has been strengthened with the addition of two new Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carriers, eighteen new frigates (8 Type 26, 5 Type 31, and 5 Type 32), and other warships being built.^[A][B] One term used often in the United Kingdom is that the Royal Navy keeps a maritime expeditionary ability. According to Todd and Lindberg’s classification system, the Royal Navy ranks as a two “limited global-reach power projection navy.”

The Royal Navy supports many standing commitments around the world all the time and keeps an expeditionary task force called the Joint Expeditionary Force (Maritime) (JEF (M)). The Royal Navy Submarine Service runs four Vanguard-class nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines and seven nuclear-powered Astute and Trafalgar class fleet submarines that work worldwide. The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) keeps many ships that support Royal Navy operations around the world by giving them supplies of people, food, water, weapons and fuel. The RFA also helps the Royal Navy’s amphibious landing abilities by using the Bay class. The United Kingdom keeps five overseas naval bases, including a naval support base, called the British Defence Singapore Support Unit, in Sembawang, Singapore in the Far East.

The U.S. Naval War College says the Royal Navy’s jobs are to fight wars, carry out far-off missions, keep order at sea and prevent and stop fights. As such, the Navy thinks keeping its “world-class” top skills in anti-air and anti-submarine warfare is very important. The Royal Navy has shown many examples of its expeditionary skills^[C] since World War II, such as the Korean War, the 1982 Falklands War, the 1990–91 Gulf War, Sierra Leone, the War in Afghanistan, the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and during the 2011 military intervention in Libya.

United States

Main article: United States Navy

The United States Navy is seen as a blue-water navy by experts and academics. It stands out from other power projection navies because it is considered a global blue-water navy, able to work in the deep waters of every ocean at the same time. According to Todd and Lindberg’s classification system, the United States Navy is a rank one “global-reach power projection navy”, and the only navy to hold this rank.

The USN keeps eleven carrier strike groups (centered on the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier and Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers), six of which are deployed or ready to deploy within 30 days, and two ready within 90 days under the Fleet Response Plan (FRP). The USN also keeps nine expeditionary strike groups moving constantly that carry a Marine Expeditionary Unit with an Aviation Combat Element on amphibious warfare ships. The US Military Sealift Command is the biggest of its kind in the world and is in charge of moving military transport and giving ship supplies around the globe.

The US Navy has shown many examples of its blue-water fighting skills and has the ability to project force onto the littoral regions of the world, work in far areas during peace time, and quickly answer regional crises. Some examples of this are World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Persian Gulf War, the War in Afghanistan and the Iraq War.

The United States Coast Guard, while not technically a navy, is also a blue-water naval force able to send crews to waters all over the world.

From green-water to blue-water

Some navies that usually work closer to shore are trying to grow and operate far out at sea.

The Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force is moving toward operating far from shore. It started in 1981 when Prime Minister Zenkō Suzuki wanted the navy to protect important water paths 1,000 miles away. Japan has built strong ships, including large helicopter ships like the Hyūga-class helicopter carrier and destroyers with advanced technology like Aegis. Japan also set up its first overseas air base near Djibouti-Ambouli International Airport and plans to use special fighters on its Izumo-class ships.

The Republic of Korea Navy also wants to operate far from shore. In 2001, the South Korean President, Kim Dae-jung, shared plans to build a special fleet. This includes making up to three Dokdo-class amphibious assault ships, with plans for a special area to launch special kinds of jet fighters. In December 2021, the government approved money for a new aircraft carrier named CVX-class aircraft carrier that could start working as early as 2033.

The Brazilian Navy is also changing its focus to operate far from shore. While it can already work in the wider South Atlantic Ocean, Brazil wants to be known as a strong maritime power in the Southern Hemisphere and is working to build modern ships.