“Landing Ship Tanks” weren't deemed noble enough to have names. They were not thought of as warships even though they were the first floating metal to touch beaches in engagements from North Africa to the Philippines. The story of these ships exemplifies the collective saga of a design class that had absolutely no military precedent before the first keel was laid in June 1942.

The first Samuel B. Roberts, DE-413, perished in the greatest naval battle ever fought: In October 1944, as part of minimal force protecting jeep carriers in Leyte Gulf, the vessel faced a tremendously superior Japanese fleet. Fighting to the death, the DE-413 was able to fend off much of the Japanese force before sinking to the bottom of the ocean. The name “Samuel B. Roberts” appeared two more times, including the FFG-58, launched in 1984, which participated in Desert Storm, and remains on-call today for homeland security.

In this inside look, underwater photography beneath Pearl Harbor reveals not only the damage sustained in the Arizona's last battle but also how much the ship has degraded over time. We now think of the Arizona only in death but in life it was one of the most innovative warships of its kind, and one of the most iconic ships in American history. The USS Arizona is a national cemetery as well as a national monument, with 900 crew members buried within the vessel.

The original Enterprise, CV-6, gained immortality as “The Fighting Lady” of World War II. But despite her glorious history, she was sent to the scrap yard, only to be redeemed with the 1961 commissioning of CVN-65, the world's first nuclear-powered carrier. Today the USS Enterprise remains on the high seas and on the front lines of America's military engagements.

One of the most heroic ships of World War II, CV-8 served as the flight deck for the Doolittle Tokyo raid, and its successor, the CV-12, endured 16 months of non-stop combat action, coming within 40 miles of Japan, and setting incredible wartime records. Some of those feats include: an amazing 10 pilots reaching “Ace in One Day” status; over 1,400 enemy planes destroyed; and an impressive number of Hellcat pilots who became aces.

This episode reveals how the latest ship to be named “USS New York” was assembled. An “Amphibious Dock Ship,” it is one of the most technologically advanced vessels in America's arsenal, and is reinforced with steel from the World Trade Center towers. Its predecessor, the battleship New York, born in 1911, was present during the German High Seas Fleet at Scapa Flo in 1918. Later modernized, it fought a two-ocean war in World War II.

America's most decorated surviving warship, the USS New Jersey has fought in more battles than any other fighting ship in US naval history. From WWII to Korea and Vietnam, Lebanon and Syria, the USS New Jersey was on the front lines, lending support in every major engagement. This episode of HERO SHIPS includes the emotionally stirring first reunion in three decades of two shipmates who served together on the USS New Jersey during Vietnam.