List of minesweeper classes


This is a list of minesweeper and minehunter classes

Argentine Navy

*

Royal Australian Navy

  • – – active

Belgian Navy

*

Brazilian Navy

*

Bulgarian Navy

*

Royal Canadian Navy

  • ''''''

People's Liberation Army Navy

Danish Navy

  • s
  • Holm-class multirole boats
  • MSF-class drone minehunters
  • MRD-class drone minehunters

Egyptian Navy

*

Estonian Navy

*

Finnish Navy

*

French Navy

  • , 12 built, 1918
  • , 40 built, 1977–1995

German Navy

Kriegsmarine

*

Volksmarine

Bundesmarine

*

Greek Navy

*

Indian Navy

*

Indonesian Navy

Italian Navy

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force

Latvian Navy

*

Lithuanian Navy

*

Malaysian Navy

*

Netherlands Navy

*

Nigerian Navy

*

Norwegian Navy

*

Pakistan Navy

*

Polish Navy

*

Russian Navy / Soviet Navy

*

Royal Saudi Navy

*

South African Navy

*

Spanish Navy

*

Singapore Navy

*

Swedish Navy

*

Turkish Navy

*

Royal Navy (United Kingdom)

United States Navy

World War II

United States Navy minesweepers in World War II can be put into 4 groups. First there were the 49 WW1-era s. Most of them were reclassified to serve as tugs, seaplane tenders and rescue ships.
The second group comprised the steel hull 2, 71 s and 123 s that were conceptually similar to submarine chasers. They were ocean-going, but their primary area of operation was coastal waters. They carried substantial anti-submarine warfare equipment: depth charges, depth charge throwers and hedgehogs and with this they could fulfill merchant escort duties. The 18 s were PCE-842 boats built as minesweepers, but considered unsatisfactory for their purpose and converted to regular patrol craft. Several Auks were given to the Royal Navy, numerous Admirables to the Soviet Union. The Ravens were the first new minesweepers after a gap of almost 2 decades and they were the first to use diesel propulsion. The Auks used diesel-electric propulsion, because the availability of electrical energy removed the need for additional service generators. At over 3000shp they were also quite powerful and thus relatively fast. The Admirables again used geared diesels, they were considerably shorter than the Auks and only had half the power, but they came with lower cost. The Auk and Admirable classes were produced in parallel and their hull numbers overlap.
The third group was formed by the 481 wooden hull s, similar in size and construction to the wooden hull s. Wooden hulls were especially useful for minesweepers for it virtually eliminated the magnetic signature of the boat. These boats were smaller than their steel hull counterparts, were not going to cross the ocean under their own power and seakeeping fortunes and had no hedgehogs and only 2 depth charge throwers.
The fourth group consisted of 24 s that were converted relatively late in the war, but which were much faster and also better armed than any of the other minesweepers, even after the reduction in armament that came with the conversion.
The 3 were converted fishing boats and they are pretty much irrelevant because of the small quantity and lack of impact on design.
In alphabetical order.
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Vietnam People's Navy

*