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Combat Ships
Overview
The very first submarine, which legend claims lurked beneath New York Harbor during the American Revolutionary War. The small ships that rescued thousands from Dunkirk. The destroyer that forced the easing of the Cuban Missile Crisis. Over the centuries, conflicts have prompted advances to ship designs, making vessels stronger, faster, smarter, and capable of changing the course of wars. Join us as we examine the world's greatest Combat Ships, and reveal how they shaped world history and inspired men and women to acts of incredible courage.
Status
Returning Series
Network
Smithsonian Channel
Seasons & Episodes
Season 4
Episodes
Courageous Captains
Larry Chambers makes a risky decision during the Vietnam War. Ernest Evans faces a formidable Japanese fleet during WWII, and enslaved steamship pilot, Robert Smalls, stages a daring escape.
Explosion!
Experts discuss nautical explosions, including an attack on the USS Westchester County during the Vietnam War, a collision in Canada during WWI and a nuclear test in the Pacific Ocean.
Hidden Figures
A black Merchant Marine in World War II forces the Navy to desegregate his ship, a teenage slave pressed into Royal Navy service finds himself in the thick of the Seven Years' War, and more.
Heroes of Guadalcanal
American troops' determination to secure a vital airfield and preserve communications lines with Australia leads to a chaotic and deadly night battle in the Pacific theater of World War II.
Mutiny
Anti-war sentiment and racial unrest during the Vietnam War spark rebellions at sea, mutineers overthrow Captain Bligh on the HMS Bounty, and a U.S. slave ship revolt ends in triumph.
Smugglers and Pirates
The Navy captures an armed group of Somali pirates, a Coast Guard crew raids a drug-smuggling submarine, and Norwegian civilians in fishing boats outwit the Germans during World War II.
Record Breakers
A look at how technological advances over the centuries have led to bigger and faster combat ships and transformed maritime warfare.
Lightning Strikes
French surveillance frigate Nivôse executes a plan to capture pirates off the coast of Somalia, and the U.S. retaliates after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor with the help of the USS Hornet.
