USS Hyperion ( AK - 107 ) USS " Hyperion " ( AK - 107 ) , a " Crater " - class cargo ship , is the only ship of the United States Navy to have this name . " Hyperion " , formerly Liberty ship SS " Christopher C . Andrews " , was launched 24 June 1943 by Permanente Metals Corp . , Richmond , California ; sponsored by Mrs . Percy Lindt ; acquired by the Navy from WSA 10 July 1943 ; and commissioned 25 August 1943 at San Diego , Lt . Comdr . C . C . Newman in command . With gasoline barge " YOG - 85 " in tow , " Hyperion " sailed for the Pacific 18 September on what was to be a memorable voyage . During the 42 - day trip , the tow was lost twice ; lightning struck the mainmast ; a crewman was lost in high seas ; and emergency flares were spotted but nothing was found . " Hyperion " finally reached Espiritu Santo , New Hebrides on 30 October 1943 . The following half year saw the cargo ship shuttling among the Solomon Islands bringing valuable supplies — gasoline , diesel oil , rolling stock , foodstuffs — to the staging area for some of the Pacific ' s most hard - fought campaigns . On 5 April 1944 " Hyperion " steamed from the Solomons with 45 passengers in addition to her usual cargo of oil and supplies . Arriving 10 April at Emirau Island in the Bismarcks , occupied only three weeks earlier , " Hyperion " discharged cargo by day and steamed out to safety at night . She then returned to her valuable work in the staging areas , operating between New Caledonia , Guadalcanal , New Zealand , and the Bismarcks . In the fall of 1944 , as the war advanced steadily across the Pacific and culminated in the climactic Battle of Leyte Gulf , one of the greatest naval engagements of all time , " Hyperion " had her first taste of battle . Departing Espiritu Santo 22 September , " Hyperion " picked up stores at Tulagi and joined TG 78 . 8 ' s reinforcement group which supported Admiral Daniel Barbey ' s Northern Attack Force TF 78 . She sailed into Leyte Gulf in a 33 - ship convoy 29 October , only three days after the conclusion of that great battle . During the next fortnight , " Hyperion " went to general quarters 87 times , fought off 37 Japanese air attacks , and splashed 2 enemy planes . Another tour of duty shuttling cargo in the staging area between New Zealand and New Caledonia ended in late April 1945 as " Hyperion " loaded 6 , 500 tons of Army engineering equipment at Nouméa and steamed for Okinawa , still the scene of bloody fighting . During the 18 days it took her to discharge cargo at Okinawa beginning 8 May , " Hyperion " witnessed naval bombardments of the Japanese positions on the island , the battles of Naha and Shuri , and countless kamikaze attacks — she was anchored less than 500 yards from when two suicide planes damaged the battleship 12 May . As the war drew to a close , " Hyperion " sailed for San Francisco , California on 4 August 1945 ending two years of continuous service in the Pacific . The cargo ship had steamed some , carried 150 , 000 tons of cargo , transported over 1 , 000 passengers , made 62 voyages to 29 islands and 37 ports , and had fought at Leyte and Okinawa , " Hyperion " had crossed the equator six times and the international date line four times . After minor repairs at San Francisco , which she reached 24 August , " Hyperion " sailed for the East Coast via the Panama Canal . Reaching Norfolk , Virginia on 24 October 1945 , she decommissioned 16 November and was returned to WSA the following day . " Hyperion " was placed in the Maritime Commission National Defense Reserve Fleet , and was berthed in the James River until she was scrapped in 1961 . " Hyperion " received three battle stars for World War II service .