Ships | War History

The USS Alaska (CB-1) Was the US Navy’s Impractical Warship

Sailors manning naval guns aboard the USS Alaska (CB-1) + USS Alaska (CB-1) at sea

The USS Alaska (CB-1) was a large, powerful and extremely capable ship built during the Second World War. Going by statistics alone, one could easily…

MD-160: The Aircraft-Ship Hybrid Known as the ‘Caspian Sea Monster’

MD-160 sitting on the beach

There have been some really unusual military vehicles built over the course of history, but none have amazed us more than the Lun-class MD-160. A…

Only Two Submarines Have Sunk Ships Since the End of WWII

ARA General Belgrano (C-4) sinking beneath the ocean's surface

Both the First and Second World Wars cemented the submarine’s place in military arsenals around the world. German U-boats and their domination of the north…

Nearly 80 Years After Sinking, the SS Richard Montgomery Still a Cause for Concern

Large boat sailing by the wreck of the SS Richard Montgomery

During the summer of 1944, the SS Richard Montgomery left port in Philadelphia for the United Kingdom. Carrying thousands of tons of munitions, the trip…

World’s First Modern Submarine HMS D1 Identified In the English Channel

HMS D1 at sea

Divers have discovered a historically valuable submarine wreck on the seafloor of the English Channel, close to the coast of Devon. This 112-year-old British vessel,…

America’s First Female Cryptanalyst Is Having a Ship Named In Her Honor

USCGC Hamilton (WMSL-753) at sea + Elizebeth Smith Friedman standing outside her front door

Mississippi shipbuilder Ingalls Shipbuilding has begun work on a new Legend-class cutter for the US Coast Guard. This new National Security cutter (NSC) is named…

The US Navy’s Zumwalt-Class Destroyers Will Be the First Outfitted with Hypersonic Missiles

USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) at sea + Common hypersonic glide body being launched from the Pacific Missile Range Facility in Kauai, Hawaii

The biggest research and development effort in the US Navy is hypersonic missiles – projectiles that move faster than the speed of sound. It had…

Wreck of the HMS Urge Found Off the Coast of Malta

HMS Urge at sea

A submarine wreck off the coast of Malta has officially been identified as the British U-class submarine HMS Urge, which was lost in 1942. Since…

Corsair Fleet: The Brave Civilians Who Took On German U-Boats to Protect the US Coastline

German U-boat at sea

While many know the story of the “Little Ships of Dunkirk,” Great Britain wasn’t the only nation to call upon every day citizens to come…

The Allied Sinking of the Lisbon Maru Resulted In the Deaths of Over 800 British and Canadian Prisoners of War

Lisbon Maru at sea

It’s inevitable that, in war, there will be tragedy, but few match the sheer heartlessness and unnecessary loss of life that occurred with the sinking…

60 US Coast Guard Cutters Saved Over 400 Allied Men On D-Day

CGC-1 tied to a Landing Craft, Transport (LCT)

On the D-Day landings of June 6, 1944, a group of US Coast Guard cutters were tasked with assisting any Allied ships in distress. While,…