U.S. Military Aircraft Database
U.S. Navy and Coast Guard 1911-1962
The U.S. Navy began by using manufacturer’s designations. Early Navy serial numbers often functioned as both type and individual aircraft identification. A new system was placed in effect in 1922. It incorporated information on the aircraft mission and manufacturer. At first, the manufacturer’s letter preceded the mission symbol, but this was quickly reversed. This system, with amendments, continued in use until the adoption of the current tri-service system in 1963. In addition, from about 1950, designations such as T-28B/C and T-34B from the Air Force T-for-trainer series were used by Navy ordered aircraft. Other designations were set aside for Navy use in the C (C-136 and C-138) and H (H-36 and 38) series.
Type Letters 1922-1962
A |
Ambulance |
1943 |
Attack |
1946-1962 |
|
B |
Bomber |
1931-1945 |
BD |
Assault Drone |
1944 |
BF |
Bomber-Fighter |
1934-1937 |
BT |
Bomber-Torpedo |
1942-1945 |
DS |
Anti-Submarine Drone |
1959-1962 |
F |
Fighter |
1922-1962 |
G |
Light Transport |
1939-1945 |
Tanker |
1958-1962 |
|
H |
Ambulance |
1929-1931, 1942-1945 |
HC |
Helicopter, Crane |
1952-1955 |
HJ |
Helicopter, Utility |
1944-1949 |
HN |
Helicopter, Training |
1944-1948 |
HO |
Helicopter, Observation |
1944-1962 |
HR |
Helicopter, Transport |
1944-1962 |
HS |
Helicopter, Anti-Submarine |
1951-1962 |
HT |
Helicopter, Training |
1948-1962 |
HU |
Helicopter, Utility |
1950-1962 |
J |
Transport |
1926-1931 |
Utility |
1931-1955 |
|
JR |
Utility Transport |
1935-1962 |
KA |
Anti-Aircraft Missile |
1945-1947 |
KD |
Target Drone |
1946-1962 |
KG |
Ground-Attack Missile |
1945-1946 |
KS |
Anti-Ship Missile |
1945-1946 |
KU |
Test Missile |
1945-1962 |
LB |
Glider, Bomb-Carrying |
1941-1945 |
LN |
Training Glider |
1941-1945 |
LR |
Transport Glider |
1941-1945 |
M |
Marine Expeditionary |
1922-1923 |
Missle |
1947-1962 |
|
N |
Trainer |
1922-1962 |
O |
Observation |
1922-1962 |
OS |
Observation-Scout |
1935-1946 |
P |
Patrol |
1922-1962 |
PB |
Patrol Bomber |
1937-1948 |
R |
Racer |
1922-1931 |
Transport |
1931-1962 |
|
RO |
Rotocycle |
1954-1959 |
S |
Scout |
1922-1946 |
Anti-Submarine |
1946-1962 |
|
SB |
Scout Bomber |
1934-1946 |
SN |
Scout Trainer |
1939-1953 |
SO |
Scout-Observation |
1943-1946 |
T |
Torpedo Aircraft |
1922-1935 |
Transport |
1927-1930 |
|
Trainer |
1948-1962 |
|
TB |
Torpedo Bomber |
1935-1946 |
TD |
Target Drone |
1942-1946 |
TS |
Torpedo-Scout |
1943 |
U |
Unmanned Drone |
1946-1955 |
Utility |
1955-1962 |
|
W |
Electronic Search |
1952-1962 |
ZF |
Free balloon |
1922-1945? |
ZH |
Airship, Search & Rescue |
1945-1954 |
ZK |
Kite balloon |
1922-1945? |
ZN |
Airship, Training |
1941-1945 |
ZP |
Airship, Patrol |
1941-1962 |
ZR |
Airship, Rigid |
1922-1940 |
ZS |
Airship, Scout |
1941-1954 |
Airship, Anti-submarine |
1954-1962 |
|
ZT |
Airship, Training |
1948-1954 |
ZU |
Airship, Utility |
1948-1954 |
Navy manufacturer letters 1922-1962
A |
Aeromarine |
1922 |
|
Atlantic (Fokker) |
1927-1930 |
||
General Aviation |
1930-1932 |
Ex-Atlantic |
|
Brewster |
1935-1943 |
||
Allied |
1941-1943 |
||
Noorduyn |
1946 |
||
B |
Bee Line (Booth) |
1922 |
|
Boeing |
1923-1959 |
||
Beech |
1937-1962 |
||
Budd |
1942-1944 |
||
BS |
Blackburn |
1922 |
|
C |
Curtiss |
1922-1946 |
|
Cessna |
1943 |
||
Culver |
1943-1946 |
||
DeHavilland Canada |
1955-1956 |
||
CH |
Caspar-Werke |
1922 |
|
D |
Douglas |
1922-1962 |
|
McDonnell |
1942-1946 |
To H |
|
Radioplane |
1943 |
||
Frankfort |
1945-1946 |
||
DH |
DeHavilland |
1927-1931 |
|
DW |
Dayton-Wright |
1923 |
|
E |
Elias |
1922-1924 |
|
Detroit |
1928 |
||
Bellanca |
1931-1937 |
||
Piper |
1941-1945 |
||
Gould |
1942-1945 |
||
Pratt-Read |
1942-1945 |
||
Edo |
1943-1946 |
||
Hiller |
1948-1962 |
||
Cessna |
1951 |
||
F |
Fokker |
1922 |
|
Grumman |
1931-1962 |
||
Fairchild Canada |
1942-1945 |
||
G |
Gallaudet |
1922 |
|
Eberhart |
1927-1928 |
||
Great Lakes |
1929-1935 |
||
AGA Aviation |
1942 |
||
Goodyear |
1942-1962 |
||
Globe |
1946-1959 |
||
H |
Huff-Daland |
1922-1927 |
|
Hall |
1928-1940 |
||
Stearman-Hammond |
1937-1938 |
||
Howard |
1941-1944 |
||
Snead |
1942 |
||
McDonnell |
1946-1962 |
||
HP |
Handley-Page |
1922 |
|
J |
Berliner-Joyce |
1929-1935 |
|
General Aviation |
1935 |
||
North American |
1937 |
||
JL |
Junkers-Larsen |
1922 |
|
K |
J.V. Martin |
1922-1924 |
|
Keystone |
1927-1930 |
||
Krieder-Reisner |
1935-1936 |
||
Kinner |
1935-1936 |
||
Fairchild |
1937-1942 |
||
Nash-Kelvinator |
1942 |
||
Kaiser-Fleetwings |
1943-1945 |
||
Kaman |
1950-1962 |
||
L |
LWF |
1922 |
|
Loening |
1924-1933 |
||
Bell |
1939-1962 |
||
Langley |
1942-1943 |
||
Columbia |
1945 |
||
M |
Martin |
1922-1962 |
|
General Motors Eastern Aircraft |
1942-1945 |
||
McCulloch |
1953-1954 |
||
N |
Naval Aircraft Factory |
1922-1962 |
|
Gyrodyne |
1960 |
||
O |
Viking |
1929-1936 |
|
Lockheed |
1931-1950 |
||
Piper |
1960 |
||
P |
Pitcarn |
1931-1932 |
|
Spartan |
1940-1941 |
||
Piper (gliders) |
1942-1943 |
||
Piasecki (Vertol) |
1946-1962 |
||
PL |
Parnall |
1922 |
|
Q |
Ward Hall |
1926 |
|
Stinson |
1934-1936 |
||
Fairchild |
1928-1962 |
||
Bristol Aeronautical |
1941-1943 |
||
R |
Ford |
1927-1932 |
|
Maxson-Brewster |
1939-1940 |
||
Ryan |
1941-1946 |
||
Aeronca |
1942 |
||
American |
1942 |
||
Brunswick |
1942-1943 |
||
Interstate |
1942-1943 |
||
Radioplane |
1943-1962 |
||
RO |
Romeo (Italy) |
1928-? |
|
S |
Stout |
1922 |
|
Sikorsky |
1928-1962 |
||
Stearman |
1934-1945 |
||
Schweizer |
1941 |
||
Supermarine |
1943 |
||
Sperry |
1950 |
||
T |
Thomas-Morse |
1922 |
|
New Standard |
1930-1934 |
||
Northrup |
1933-1944 |
||
Timm |
1941-1943 |
||
Taylorcraft |
1942 |
||
Temco |
1956 |
||
U |
Vought |
1922-1962 |
|
V |
Vultee |
1941 |
|
Lockheed-Vega |
1942-1962 |
||
Vickers Canada |
1943-1945 |
||
VK |
Vickers |
1922 |
|
W |
Wright |
1922-1926 |
|
Waco |
1934-1945 |
||
Canadian Car & Foundry |
1942-1945 |
||
Willys-Overland |
1945-1947 |
||
X |
Cox-Kleimen |
1922-1924 |
|
Y |
Consolidated (Convair) |
1926-1962 |
|
Vultee-Stinson |
1942-1945 |
||
Z |
Pennsylvania Aircraft Syndicate |
1933-1934 |
Modification Suffix Letters
A |
Armed model |
Arrester gear |
|
Amphibian |
|
Land-based |
|
Army contract |
|
Miscellaneous modification |
|
B |
British contract |
Special armament |
|
Miscellaneous modification |
|
C |
Catapult gear |
Carrier-based |
|
Cannon-armed |
|
Equivalent to Army C model |
|
Miscellaneous modification |
|
D |
Drone director |
Drop tanks |
|
Equivalent to Army D model |
|
Miscellaneous modification |
|
E |
Electronic Equipment |
F |
Flagship |
Special Powerplant |
|
G |
USCG model |
Search and rescue |
|
Armed model |
|
Equivalent to Army G model |
|
H |
Ambulance |
Equivalent to Army H model |
|
Surface-search radar |
|
J |
Cold-weather equipment |
Equivalent to Army J model |
|
K |
Drone |
L |
Cold-weather equipment |
Searchlight equipped |
|
M |
Missle carrier |
N |
Night version |
NA |
Night attack |
P |
Photographic |
Q |
Electronic countermeasures |
R |
Transport |
Staff transport |
|
S |
Seaplane version |
Anti-Submarine |
|
T |
Trainer |
U |
Utility |
W |
Search radar equipped |
Z |
Staff transport |
Status Prefix Letters
N |
Naval Reserve |
1945-c.1950 |
X |
Experimental |
1927-1954 |
Y |
Experimental |
1954-1962 |
Navy and Coast Guard 1911-1962
10/30/08