World's Largest Ships
1. Oil Tanker - Mont (Knock Nevis, Jahre Viking, Happy Giant, Seawise Giant) |
Mont, previously known as Knock Nevis, Jahre Viking, Happy Giant and Seawise Giant, was a ULCC supertanker. Before its decommission it was the longest ship ever built. After its final journey in 2009, it was intentionally beached in India for demolition.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 260,941 GT (214,793 NT) |
Length: | 458.45 m (1,504 ft) |
Beam: | 68.8 m (226 ft) |
Draught: | 24.611 m (81 ft) |
Capacity: | 564,763 DWT |
Speed: | 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) |
Built in 1979 by Sumitomo Heavy Industries,Ltd. at their shipyard in Japan. During the Iran-Iraq War it was damaged by an air force attack in the Strait of Hormuz on 14 May 1988. She was sank and was considered completely lost. However the wreckage was salvaged and repaired. After the repairs she was back in service as Happy Giant.

In 1991 she was bought by the Norwegian Jorgen Jahre and renamed into Jahre Viking.

It sailed under the Norwegian flag from 1991 to 2004 when she was purchased by First Olsen Tankers Pte. Ltd. and renamed Knock Nevis.
She was once again renamed into Mont for its final voyage to India for decommission.





Trivia: largest oil tankers still operating - TI class supertanker
The largest oil tankers currently operating are the TI Class supertankers built in 2002/3.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 234,006 GT (162,477 NT) |
Length: | 380 m (1,247 ft) |
Beam: | 68 m (223 ft) |
Draught: | 24.52 m (80.46 ft) |
Capacity: | 441,585 DWT, 3,166,353 barrels (503,409,900 l) |
Speed: | 16.5 knots laden, 17.5 knots in ballast |
The class comprises from the following ships: TI Africa, TI Asia, TI Europe and TI Oceania, where the "TI" refers to the VLCC Tanker Pool operator Tankers International L.L.C.

All four oil tankers were constructed by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering in Okpo, South Korea in 2002/3 for shipping company Hellespon. The ships were originally named the Hellespont Alhambra, Hellespont Fairfax, Hellespont Metropolis and Hellespont Tara.

In 2004 Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) bought Hellespont Fairfax and Hellespont Tara, renaming them TI Oceania and TI Africa respectively flagged for the Marshall Islands.

Euronav NV, a Belgian shipowner, purchased Hellespont Alhambra and Hellespont Metropolis and renamed them TI Asia and TI Europe respectively flagged Belgium.

In 2010, TI Asia and TI Africa met the same destiny as the former Knock Nevis and were converted into FSO oil storage vessels. TI Europe and TI Oceania are still operating as ULCC's.
2. Container Ship - CSCL Globe |
In May 2013 China Shipping Container Lines (CSCL) ordered the first of five 19,000 TEU containerships from Hyundai Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (HHI). The naming ceremony for the CSCL Globe was held in November 2014.
The world’s largest containership, measuring 400.0 m in length, 58.6 m in width and 30.5 m in depth, is as large as four soccer fields, and will be deployed on the Asia-Europe trade loop.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 186,000 GT |
Length: | 400 m (1,312 ft) |
Beam: | 58.6 m (192 ft) |
Draught: | 15.5 m (51 ft) |
Capacity: | 19,000 TEU |

The CSCL Globe will feature a 77,200 bhp electronically controlled main engine to enhance fuel efficiency by automatically controlling fuel consumption according to the ship’s speed and sea conditions. With the installation of the high efficiency engine, the containership will burn 20 percent less fuel per TEU in comparison with the 10,000 TEU containerships.
OTHER LARGE CONTAINER SHIPS:
Maersk Triple E Class
In February and June 2011, Maersk awarded Daewoo Shipbuilding two US$1.9 billion contracts ($3.8bn total) to build twenty of the ships.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 165,000 metric tons deadweight (DWT) |
Length: | 400 m (1,312 ft) |
Beam: | 59 m (194 ft) |
Draught: | 14.5 m (48 ft) |
Capacity: | 18,000 TEU |
Speed: | 23 knots |
The name "Triple E" is derived from the class's three design principles: "Economy of scale, Energy efficient and Environmentally improved". These ships are expected to be not only the world's largest ships in service, but also the most efficient containerships per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) of cargo.

The ships are 400 metres (1,312 ft) long and 59 metres (194 ft) wide. While only 3 metres (9.8 ft) longer and 4 metres (13 ft) wider than E-class ships, the Triple E ships are able to carry 2,500 more containers. With a draft of 14.5 metres (48 ft), they are too deep to cross the Panama Canal, but can transit the Suez Canal when sailing between Europe and Asia.
One of the class's main design features is its dual 32-megawatt (43,000 hp) ultra-long stroke two-stroke diesel engines, driving two propellers at a design speed of 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph). Slower than its predecessors, this class uses a strategy known as slow steaming, which is expected to lower fuel consumption by 37% and carbon dioxide emissions per container by 50%. The Triple E design helped Maersk win a "Sustainable Ship Operator of the Year" award in July 2011.
Maersk plans to use the ships to service routes between Europe and Asia, projecting that Chinese exports will continue to grow. The Europe-Asia trade represents the company's largest market; it already has 100 ships serving this route. Maersk hopes to consolidate its share of the Europe-Asia trade with the addition of the Triple-E class ships.
Majestic Mærsk
CMA CGM Explorer Class
The Explorer class is a series of large containerships built for CMA CGM. They are named after explorers. The first five ships are 365 m long with a nominal capacity of 13,300 TEU; the last three are larger, at 396 m and 16,020 TEU, making them the world's largest containerships until the delivery of the CSCL Globe in November 2014.
Advanced simulators were built, to help crews learn how to handle the new ships.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 175,343 GT (85,361 NT) |
Length: | 396 m (1,299 ft) |
Beam: | 53.6 m (176 ft) |
Draught: | 16 m (52 ft) |
Capacity: | 16,020 TEU |
Speed: | 25,1 knots (46.5 km/h; 28.9 mph) |
CMA CGM Marco Polo was built by Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering in South Korea and it is the first in the series of three vessels. Her maiden voyage started on November 7th 2012 in Ningbo, China.
Maersk E Class
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 170,974 GT (55,396 NT) |
Length: | 397 m (1,303 ft) |
Beam: | 56 m (184 ft) |
Draught: | 15.5 m (51 ft) |
Capacity: | 156,907 DWT, 11,000TEU |
Speed: | 25.5 knots (47.2 km/h; 29.3 mph) |
Emma Maersk was built in 2006 at the Odense Steel Shipyard in Denmark. During its construction, a fire broke out within the superstructure which caused the delay of six weeks in the completion of the ship.
The ship was named on 12 August 2006 after Emma Maersk, Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller's late wife.

The original maximum capacity reported by Maersk was 11,000 TEU. However, by normal calculations, the maximum capacity is much greater - somewhere between 13,500 and 15,200 TEU. The difference between reported and estimated numbers is because of the difference in calculations between Maersk and other companies. Maersk calculates the capacity by the weight that can be carried on a vessel. Other companies calculate the capacity by the maximum number of containers the ship can take regardless of the actual weight of the containers. This way the estimated capacity is greater than the number reported by Maersk.





3. Platform installation/decommissioning and pipelay vessel Pieter Schelte |
In June 2010 Allseas awarded the contract for building Pieter Schelte, its 382 m long, 124 m wide dynamically positioned (DP) platform installation / decommissioning and pipelay vessel, to the South Korean shipyard Daewoo.
General Characteristics | |
Length: | 382 m (1,253 ft) |
Beam: | 124 m (407 ft) |
Operating Draught: | 10-25 m (32-82 ft) |
Capacity: | 564,763 DWT |
Speed: | 14 knots |
Total installed power: | 95,000 kW |
Topsides lift capacity: | 48,000 t (105,820 kips) |
The Pieter Schelte left South Korea on 19th November 2014 and is due to arrive at the port for completion in December.
The vessel is 124m (407ft) wide and 382m (1,253ft) long - as long as the Empire State Building is high.
In partnership with the Port of Rotterdam, the ship will be taken to Maasvlakte 2, an extension of the port, where a special pit has been drained to house the vessel.
After its completion, it will sail to the South Stream project in the Black Sea to lay pipelines there.
The ship will be used to install and remove offshore oil and gas rigs as well as to lay pipes.
Allseas says the Pieter Schelte, which was built by Daewoo Heavy Industries in South Korea, will be able to lift loads of 48,000 tonnes.
4. Bulk Carrier - MS Vale Brasil |
MS Vale Brasil is the largest bulk carrier ever built and among the longest ships currently in service. She is a "member" of Valemax fleet chartered by the Brazilian ore giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (VALE) to carry iron ore from Brazil to European and Asian ports.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 198,980 GT (67,993 NT) |
Length: | 362 m (1,188 ft) |
Beam: | 65 m (213 ft) |
Draught: | 23 m (75 ft) |
Capacity: | 402,347 DWT |
Speed: | 15.4 knots (28.5 km/h; 17.7 mph) |
MS Vale Brasil is the first of seven 400,000-ton very large ore carriers (VLOC) ordered by Vale and she was launched in December 2010.

In 2008 Vale placed orders for twelve 400,000-ton Valemax ships to be constructed by Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries (RSHI) in China and ordered seven more ships from South Korean Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) in 2009. Additionaly sixteen more ships of similar size will be built in China and South Korea for other shipping companies, and chartered to Vale under long-term contracts.

MS Vale Brasil is significantly larger than the previous world's largest bulk carrier Berge Stahl in every aspect. Both her gross tonnage and deadweight tonnage are larger than those of the Norwegian ship, 175,720 and 364,767 tons, respectively. While the draught of both ships is the same, Vale Brasil is also 20 metres (65.6 ft) longer and 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) wider than Berge Stahl. Additionaly Vale Brasil is larger and slightly longer than the four new 388,000-ton, 361-metre (1,184 ft) Chinamax bulk carriers Berge Bulk has ordered from China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation.

MS Vale Brasil is also the second largest ship currently in service by deadweight tonnage, second only to the TI class supertankers that have a deadweight tonnage of over 440,000 tons.

5. Cruiser - Oasis Class Cruise Ships |
The world's largest cruise ships(and passenger ships in general) are Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. These ships belong to Royal Caribbean's Oasis class formerly known as Project Genesis.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 225,282 GT |
Length: | 360 m (1,181 ft) |
Beam: | 47 m (154 ft) waterline; 60.5 m (198 ft) extreme |
Draught: | 9.3 m (31 ft) |
Capacity: | 5,400 passengers at double occupancy; 6,296 maximum (+ 2,394 crew members) |
Speed: | 22.6 knots (41.9 km/h; 26.0 mph) |
Both ships were ordered in February 2006 at STX Europe shipyard in Turku, Finland.

First in a series, Oasis of the Seas, was completed and turned over to Royal Caribbean on 28 October 2009. Her sistership, Allure of the Seas, left the Turku shipyard on 29 October 2010.

Althought those two ships have identical superstructures, the Allure is 50 millimetres (2.0 in) longer than the Oasis, which is making her technically the largest cruise ship in the world.

Allegedly, with the building costs of € 900 million (US$1.24 billion), the Oasis of the Seas is the most expensive commercial ship ever built.

The Oasis class have surpassed the earlier Freedom class as the world's largest passenger ships. At 360 m (1,181 feet) in length Oasis is 21 metres (69 ft) longer than the prior largest passenger ship, the Independence of the Seas and classmates. Oasis also is 8.5 metres (28 ft) wider, and with a gross tonnage of 225,282, is almost 45% larger.

6. LNG Carrier - Q-Max Ships |
Q-Max ships are the world's largest membrane type liquefied natural gas carriers.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 162,400 GT |
Length: | 345 m (1,132 ft) |
Beam: | 53.80 m (177 ft) |
Draught: | 12 m (39 ft) |
Capacity: | 266,000 m3 (9,393,701 ft3) |
Speed: | 19.5 knots |
Fourteen Q-Max ships have been built: Mozah, Al Mayeda, Mekaines, Al Mafyar, Umm Slal, Bu Samra, Al-Ghuwairiya, Lijmiliya, Al Samriya, Al Dafna, Shagra, Zarga, Aamira and Rasheeda. They are all operated by Nakilat (Qatar Gas Transport Company) and they were built by three different builders: Samsung Heavy Industries, Hyundai Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering.

In their name Q-Max, "Q" stands for Qatar and "Max" for the maximum size of ship able to dock at the LNG terminals in Qatar.

The first Q-Max LNG carrier, Mozah, was built in November 2007. The naming ceremony was held on 11 July 2008 at Samsung Heavy Industries' shipyard in South Korea.

The first trip by a Q-Max tanker was completed by Mozah itself on 11 January 2009, when the tanker delivered 266,000 cubic metres of LNG to the Port of Bilbao BBG Terminal. Days before, the vessel had transited the Suez Canal for the first time.

7. Ocean Liner - RMS Queen Mary 2 |
RMS Queen Mary 2 is a largest transatlantic ocean liner in the world. She is a successor of Cunard Line's Queen Elizabeth 2 and she is the first major ocean liner built since Queen Elizabeth 2 in 1969.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 148,528 GT |
Length: | 345 m (1,132 ft) |
Beam: | 41 m (135 ft) |
Draught: | 10.10 m (33 ft) |
Capacity: | 2,620 passengers (+ 1,253 crew members) |
Speed: | 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph) |
The ship was named the Queen Mary 2 by Queen Elizabeth II in 2004 after the first RMS Queen Mary, completed in 1936. The Queen Mary was in turn named after Mary of Teck, consort of King George V. With the retirement of Queen Elizabeth 2 from active duty in 2008, the Queen Mary 2 is currently the only transatlantic ocean liner in service running between Southampton and New York, although the ship is often used for cruising, including an annual world cruise.

The Queen Mary 2 was intended primarily to cross the Atlantic Ocean, and was therefore designed differently from many other passenger ships.

In 2003, at the time of her construction, the Queen Mary 2 was the longest, widest, and tallest passenger ship ever built, and with her gross tonnage of 148,528 also the largest. She no longer holds this distinction after the construction of Royal Caribbean International's 225,282 GT MS Oasis of the Seas in October 2009.

Although newer cruise ships are larger, the Queen Mary 2 remains the largest ocean liner (as opposed to cruise ship) ever built.

8. Warship - USS Enterprise (CVN-65) |
World's largest warship is nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN-65) (formerly CVA(N)-65), she is also world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and the eighth United States naval vessel to bear the name.
General Characteristics | |
Displacement: | 93,284 long tons (94,781 t) Full Load |
Length: | 342 m (1,122 ft) |
Beam: | 40.5 m (133 ft) (waterline); 78.4 m (257 ft) (extreme) |
Draught: | 12 m (39 ft) |
Speed: | 33.6 kn (38.7 mph; 62.2 km/h) |
USS Enterprise has been built by Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company and she is in commission since 25 November 1961. Like her predecessor of World War II fame, she is nicknamed the "Big E". At 342 m (1,123 ft), she is the longest naval vessel in the world. Her 93,284 long tons (94,781 t) displacement ranks her as the 11th-heaviest supercarrier, after the 10 carriers of the Nimitz class. Enterprise has a crew of some 4,600 people.

The only ship of her class, Enterprise is the second-oldest vessel in commission in the United States Navy, after the wooden-hulled, three-masted frigate USS Constitution. Enterprise is also the only aircraft carrier to house more than two nuclear reactors. This was due to the ready availability of a field-proven production design developed for nuclear submarines. She is the only carrier with four rudders, two more than other classes, and features a more cruiser-like hull.

Enterprise was meant to be the first of a class of six, but construction costs ballooned and the remaining vessels were never laid down.

She was originally scheduled for decommissioning in 2014 or 2015, depending on the life of her reactors and completion of her replacement, USS Gerald R. Ford. But the National Defence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010 slated the ship's retirement for 2013, when she will have served for 51 consecutive years, longer than any other U.S. aircraft carrier.

9. Sailing Vessel - SS Great Eastern |
The world's largest sailing vessel was SS Great Eastern designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and built in 1858 on the Thames River, England. Iron sailing steam ship was intended for the passenger and cargo trade between England and Ceylon.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 18,915 GT |
Length: | 211 m (692 ft) |
Beam: | 25 m (82 ft) |
Capacity: | 4,000 passengers |
Speed: | 14 knots (26 km/h) |
SS Great Eastern was by far the largest ship ever built at the time of her 1858 launch, and had the capacity to carry 4,000 passengers around the world without refuelling. She was so far ahead of contemporary commercial requirements, and industrial capabilities, that her length (nearly 700 feet) and tonnage would remain unmatched for four more decades.

She was christened Leviathan during a initial launching attempt in early November 1857, she was thereafter always known as Great Eastern. Nearly three months costly struggle to get her afloat, and more problems while she was completing, left her original company bankrupt. New owners decided to employ her on the route between Britain and North America. The ship financial difficulties continued, compounded by a series of accidents.
In September 1859 Great Eastern's first voyage was cut short by a boiler explosion. Her second company collapsed under the expense of repairs and a new firm took her on. Finally reaching New York in June 1860, for the next two months she was exhibited to the public and made voyages along the U.S. coast. Nearly a year passed before Great Eastern's next westbound trip in May 1861, by which time the American Civil War had begun. During June and July she transported troops to Quebec to reinforce Canada's defences. In September Great Eastern began another trip to New York, but was disabled by a severe storm. In mid-1862 she made three voyages, but improving commercial prospects abruptly ceased when she struck an uncharted rock entering New York harbour, necessitating more expensive repairs. She did not resume service until mid-1863, making two more trips and bankrupting yet another company.
Sold at auction, Great Eastern was chartered for laying a trans-Atlantic telegraph cable. The ship finally found her niche. In 1866 Great Eastern brought a cable to North America, establishing nearly instantaneous communication between the Old World and the New that has remained unbroken ever since. Following a unfruitful effort by French interests to put her back into passenger service in 1867, Great Eastern returned to cable work. Between 1869 and 1874 she strung six more cables from Europe to America, repaired two earlier ones, and laid another across the Indian Ocean.

Great Eastern was laid up at Milford Haven, Wales in 1874. In 1886 she steamed to Liverpool to become an exhibition ship. This prosaic, but profitable employment continued during visits to London and Scotland later in the year. Sold late in 1887, Great Eastern went back to Liverpool, where she was stripped and slowly broken up during 1888 and 1889.

Trivia: largest sailing vessel still operating - Club Med 2
The Club Med 2 is a five-masted computer-controlled sailing ship owned and operated by Club Med and operated as a cruise ship.
General Characteristics | |
Tonnage: | 14,983 Tons |
Length: | 194 m (636 ft) |
Beam: | 20 m (66 ft) |
Draught: | 5.09 m (17 ft) |
Capacity: | 386 passengers ( + 214 crew members) |
Speed: | 10–15 knots (19–28 km/h) |
She combines the power of seven computer-operated sails with more traditional diesel-electric power, having four diesel generators that power two electric motors.

The Club Med 2 was launched in 1992 in Le Havre, France. Its sister ship the Club Med 1 was sold to Windstar Cruises and renamed msy Wind Surf in 1998.

The ship, one of the largest sailing cruise ships in the world, carrying up to 386 passengers with a crew of 214, sails the waters of the Mediterranean and Adriatic Sea in the summertime, and the Caribbean in the winter, finding its way into anchorages larger cruise ships cannot reach.

The ship provides ballroom dancing, bridge and music, and sails at night making a stop each morning. A water sports deck can be deployed from the stern. The Club Med 2's European destinations include ports in the Mediterranean, Adriatic, and Aegean Sea. Transatlantic voyages are offered in the spring (eastbound) and fall (westbound).

Source: en.wikipedia.org; www.youtube.com; www.maersktechnology.com; www.history.navy.mil