Flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships , reflecting the custom of its commander , characteristically a flag officer , flying a distinguishing flag . Used more loosely , it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels , typically the first , largest , fastest , most heavily armed , or best known . Over the years , the term " flagship " has been borrowed in metaphoric form by industries such as broadcasting , automobiles , cell phones , education , and retailing to refer to their highest profile or most expensive products and outlets . Naval use . In common naval use , the term " flagship " is fundamentally a temporary designation ; the flagship is wherever the admiral ' s flag is being flown . However , admirals have always needed additional facilities ; a meeting room large enough to hold all the captains of the fleet , and a place for the admiral ' s staff to make plans and draw up orders . In the age of sailing ships , the flagship was typically a first - rate ; the aft of one of the three decks would become the admiral ' s quarters and staff offices . This can be seen today on HMS " Victory " , the flagship of Admiral Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar , now at Portsmouth , England . HMS " Victory " still serves the Royal Navy today as the ceremonial flagship of the Commander - in - Chief Naval Home Command , making her the oldest commissioned warship in service . The USS " Constitution " , which also served as flagship of the United States Navy in her day , is 34 years younger , but is the oldest commissioned warship still afloat . In the 20th century , ships became large enough that most types could accommodate a commander and staff , and during World War II admirals would often prefer a faster ship over the largest one . Some larger ships may have a separate flag bridge for use by the admiral and his staff while the captain commanded from the main navigation bridge . Because its primary function is to coordinate a fleet , a flagship is not necessarily more heavily armed or fortified than other ships . For the modern , purpose built flagship designed primarily for command and control rather than as a fighting ship see command ship . Flagship as metaphor . As with many other naval terms , " flagship " has crossed over into common parlance , where it means the most important or leading member of a group . It has also come to be an adjective describing the most prominent or highly touted product , brand , location , or service among those offered by a company . It now has common derivations such as the " flagship brand " or " flagship product " of a manufacturing company or " flagship store " of a retail chain . Auto companies usually have a flagship in the form of their leading , highest - priced car . Education . Each state in the United States provides public university education through one or more university system s . The phrase flagship institution or flagship university may be applied to an individual school or campus within each state system . The College Board , for example , defines flagship universities as the best - known institutions in the state , noting that they were generally the first to be established and are frequently the largest and most selective , as well as the most research - intensive public universities . These schools are often land - grant , sea - grant , or space - grant research universities . According to Robert M . Berdahl , interim President of the University of Oregon , the phrase " flagship " came into existence in the 1950s when the Morrill Act schools were joined by newer institutions built in a wave of post - war expansion of state university systems . Berdahl notes further that because flagships are generally the oldest schools within a system , they are often the largest and best financed and are perceived as elite relative to non - flagship state schools . He comments that " Those of us in ' systems ' of higher education are frequently actively discouraged from using the term ' flagship ' to refer to our campuses because it is seen as hurtful to the self - esteem of colleagues at other institutions in our systems . The use of the term is seen by some as elitist and boastful . It is viewed by many , in the context of the politics of higher education , as ' politically incorrect . ' . . . Only in the safe company of alumni is one permitted to use the term . " Additionally , the term " flagship " is widely understood to encompass only public ( state - supported ) universities , even in states which contain ( sometimes considerably ) more eminent private universities . Nevertheless , the term " flagship university " is still used in official contexts by the U . S . Department of Education , various state university system boards of governors , and state legislatures . Additionally , state universities often self - designate themselves as flagships . Higher education agencies , research journals , and other organizations also use the term , though their lists of flagship universities can differ greatly . One list of 50 flagship universities ( one per state ) is employed by the Higher Education Coordinating Board , the College Board , the Princeton Review and many other state and federal educational and governmental authorities for a variety of purposes including tuition and rate comparisons , research studies and public policy analyses . Given the widespread use of this list , it has been described as a " nationally recognizable and accepted list of flagship universities " . Despite its ubiquity , this list of 50 flagships is not the only state - by - state examination of flagships . In a 2010 article , Standard & Poor ' s created its own list of flagship universities , noting that each state had typically one or two institutions with flagship characteristics . The Education Sector , an education policy organization , used a different list of 51 flagship universities in an August 2011 study of college debt . Several states had multiple universities categorized as flagships due to " less of a clear distinction between a single flagship and other public universities " in those states . Additionally , several states were not included in the study due to insufficient comparative data . There are many instances in which more than one school in a state has claimed to be , or has been described as , a " flagship " . In February 2012 , Idaho ' s State Board of Education made a controversial decision to strike the word " flagship " from the University of Idaho ' s mission statement . The Board ' s President Richard Westerberg explained that this revision was made as part of the Board ' s many changes made to multiple Idaho universities ' mission statements in an effort to ensure all statements were consistent and collegial in nature rather than comparative or competitive . Retailing . Flagship stores are core stores for brand name retailers , larger than their standard outlets and stocking greater inventory , often found in prominent shopping districts such as Madison Avenue in New York and Tokyo ' s Ginza . Flagships are prevalent among upscale retailers , including Banana Republic , Ralph Lauren , Louis Vuitton , Coach , and Prada . Broadcasting . A flagship station is the principal station of a ( radio or TV ) broadcast network . It can be the station that produces the largest amount of material for the network , or the station in the parent company ' s home city , or both . The term dates back to the mid twentieth century years of broadcasting when headquarters stations produced programs for their networks . For example , the flagship stations of the ABC , NBC and CBS television and radio networks are their owned and operated outlets in New York City . Likewise , public television ' s WNET served as primary member station for National Educational Television ( NET ) , a forerunner to the US Public Broadcasting Service ( PBS ) . In sports broadcasting , the " flagship " is a team ' s primary station in their home market , which produces game broadcasts and feeds them to affiliate s . For example , WGN is the flagship station of the Chicago Cubs baseball team , which has an extensive Cubs radio network spanning several states . Automobiles . The term flagship is also used to describe the top - end volume vehicle manufactured by automotive marque . These vehicles are usually , but not always , the most expensive , prestigious and largest vehicles in the line - up . The term is most often applied to , but not limited to sedan s . Examples include Land Rover Range Rover , Mercedes - Benz S - Class , and Ferrari F12berlinetta . The term " halo car " is often used in automotive marketing and journalism to refer to the flagship vehicle . The term is derived from the halo effect , the tendency for a favorable trait to influence the perception of subsequent traits in a sequence of interpretations ; it appears to have been used as early as 1938 . Conservation . Within conservation biology , the term flagship species refers to a species or taxon that is a symbol or rallying point to catalyze conservation actions . The metaphoric use of the term is inherently linked to ideas about representation .