The E class comprises eight 14,770 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) container ships. Each sister ship bears a name beginning with the letter "E". Until 2012, they were the largest container ship ever constructed, and are among the longest ships currently in use at 398 metres (1,306 ft) long and 56 metres (184 ft) wide. They are owned by the Danish A. P. Moller-Maersk Group. The first in the class built was Emma Maersk by Odense Steel Shipyard Ltd., Denmark. The ships Emma,^[2] Estelle,^[3] and Eugen^[4] were subjects of TV documentaries. The E class was followed by the larger and more fuel efficient Triple E class.^[5]

In 2016, the decision was made to upgrade the capacity of the ships and make them more efficient at lower speeds. The capacity increase was done by increasing the height of the lashing bridges and adding an extra floor to the accommodation block. This allows the containers to be stacked higher on deck. To help maintain stability, flume tanks were added on the sides of the accommodation block. The work was carried out at Qingdao Beihai Shipbuilding Heavy Industry's shipyard in China.^[6]

• Maersk Edinburgh-class container ship