War Ships

Warships

As I specified, from air to ground, I must consider the waters as time moves from prehistoric times to now. We will cover from the World Wars to the newest operation known as Epic Fury. 

10. USS Nautilus

 The USS Nautilus, also known as the SSN-571, is the world's first nuclear-powered submarine commissioned by the US Navy on September 30th 1954. This submarine revolutionized naval warfare by enabling prolonged underwater operations. In 1958, this submarine was the first to reach the North Pole. It shattered its previous records of speed and distance of 500,000 miles.

9. HMS Dreadnought

The HMS Dreadnought was made in 1906. She was a Revolutionary Royal Navy ship; its design was so advanced that it outclassed other ships. She was the first battleship to feature a uniform main battery, carrying ten BL 12-inch Mark X guns in five twin turrets. This replaced the traditional mix of heavy and smaller secondary guns, allowing for more effective fire control at long ranges. The Dreadnought was the first capital ship powered by steam turbines. This allowed her to reach an unprecedented top speed of 21 knots, outrunning any contemporary battleship. She was known for sinking and destroying the U-29 on March 18th, 1915

8. Arleigh Burke-Class Destroyer

The Arleigh Burke-Class is a primary guided missile destroyer in the United States Navy; it was named after Admiral Arleigh Burke. The warship is basically the backbone of the surface fleet its mostly used for with anti-air, surface, submarine, and land attack operations and this big warship is equipped with 90 to 96mk 41 VLS cells for firing and basic missiles and an exolved seasparrow missiles and also with a large radar that can detect hundreds of targets and can engage the targets. It is made with all steel and is powered by a General Electric LM2500 engine, enabling speeds over 30 knots. There are, right now, at least 74 active ships in the United States Navy.

7.Richelieu

The Richelieu class battleship was a powerful boat designed in the 1930s to counter Italy’s Littoro class battle ship they were famous for their “all forward” design they are equipped with 8 380mm (15 inch) guns and and with two quaddruaple turrets both on the front part of the ship and they had secondary weapons on board such as nine 152mm machine guns and tripple turrets on the rear they were exceptionally fast for its times making it reach the speeds of 32 knots and had a thick armored box made with metal to withstand 15 inch shells from enemy ships.

6. HMS Hood 

The HMS Hood was the Royal Navy’s battle cruiser during the World Wars. The boat was the fastest and largest for 20 years. It had 8 15-inch (381 mm) machine guns and four twin turrets and the boat was exceptionally fast for its size, reaching speeds of 31-32 knots at 860 feet long and carried 47,000 tons fully loaded. It remained the largest boat in the Royal Navy until the 1940s. Its most famous encounter was the Battle of Denmark Straight on May 24 1941. There, it had its tragic end. Out of the 1418 people, only 3 crew members survived the attack as it was made during WW1, leading to all for nothing. The design was poorly made for the Second World War.

5. Type 055 Destroyer

The Type 055 Destroyer, also known as the Renhai class, is a stealth guided-missile destroyer for the Chinese Liberation Army Navy. At least 10 ships are active, including recent additions. The Chinese refer to it as a destroyer, but the US and NATO consider it a cruiser due to its size and multiple mission capabilities, weighing roughly over 12000-13000 tons, and is 590 feet long. It is equipped with 112 Vertical Launch System (VLS) cells capable of firing HHQ-9 surface-to-air missiles, YJ-18 anti-ship cruise missiles, and CJ-10 land-attack cruise missiles. It utilizes a flared hull design and integrated mass to reduce radar through infrared.

4. USS Gerald R. Ford

As of March 2026, the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78) is the world's largest aircraft carrier and is currently operating in the Middle East. It is the lead ship of the Navy's first new class of carriers in over 40 years, designed to replace the Nimitz class. Right now, the USS Gerald R. Ford is on an active mission called Epic Fury, stationed at the Red Sea. On March 5th, 2026, the ship will be on a 11 month deployment until further notice. It will break the Post-Vietnam War record for 294 days at sea. The ship has two reactors that generate three times the electrical power of older Nimitz-class reactors. At $13.3 billion, it is the most expensive ship built. Before entering the Middle East, the carrier operated in the High North (Arctic) and the Caribbean, where it supported operations leading to the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro in January 2026. 

3. Bismack

The Bismarck was a massive German battleship that became one of the most famous and feared warships of World War II. Despite its short career—sinking only eight days after its first mission began—it left a lasting mark on naval history by destroying the "Pride of the Royal Navy," the HMS Hood. At over 820 feet long and displacing more than 50,000 tons at full load, it was the largest battleship ever built by Germany. In its first engagement, the Bismarck destroyed the British battlecruiser HMS Hood with a single shell that detonated the Hood's magazines, killing all but three of its 1,421 crewmen. Surrounded by British battleships King George V and Rodney, the Bismarck was hammered by nearly 3,000 shells. It finally sank after being scuttled by its own crew or finished off by torpedoes from the cruiser HMS Dorsetshire. Out of its 2,200+ crew, only about 115 survived. 

2. USS Iowa Class

Currently located at Berth 87 in the Port of Los Angeles (San Pedro), this legendary "Battleship of Presidents" serves as a maritime museum and community hub. It earned 11 battle stars across WWII and the Korean War and is famous for carrying President Franklin D. Roosevelt to the Tehran Conference in 1943. The museum showcases the ship's 1980s-era modernization, including Tomahawk and Harpoon missile launchers added during the Cold War. 

1. IJN Yamaoto

The IJN Yamato was the lead ship of her class and the largest, most heavily armed battleship ever constructed. Serving as the flagship of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II, she was designed to overpower any individual vessel in the United States fleet through sheer scale and firepower. The ship was measured 863 feet (263 meters) in length and displaced approximately 72,800 tons when fully loaded. Its primary battery consisted of nine 46-centimeter (18.1-inch) guns—the largest ever mounted on a warship capable of firing 3,200-pound shells up to 26 miles. Designed to withstand hits from her own massive cannons, she featured armor up to 16 inches thick.

Written By Ryan Yoo

Edited By John Stratton

Art By John Stratton