US Patrol Torpedo Boats

US Patrol Torpedo Boats PDF Author: Gordon L. Rottman
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1780962088
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN E-BOOK. Motor torpedo boat development began in the early 1900s, and the vessels first saw service during World War I. However, it was not until the late 1930s that the US Navy commenced the development of the Patrol Torpedo or PT boat. The PT boat was designed for attacking larger warships with torpedoes using its 'stealth' ability, high-speed and small size to launch and survive these attacks – although they were employed in a wide variety of other missions, including rescuing General MacArthur and his entourage from the Philippines. This book examines the design and development of these unique craft, very few of which survive today, and goes on to examine their role and combat deployment in World War II.

US Patrol Torpedo Boats

US Patrol Torpedo Boats PDF Author: Gordon L. Rottman
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1780962088
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN E-BOOK. Motor torpedo boat development began in the early 1900s, and the vessels first saw service during World War I. However, it was not until the late 1930s that the US Navy commenced the development of the Patrol Torpedo or PT boat. The PT boat was designed for attacking larger warships with torpedoes using its 'stealth' ability, high-speed and small size to launch and survive these attacks – although they were employed in a wide variety of other missions, including rescuing General MacArthur and his entourage from the Philippines. This book examines the design and development of these unique craft, very few of which survive today, and goes on to examine their role and combat deployment in World War II.

United States PT-boats of World War II in Action

United States PT-boats of World War II in Action PDF Author: Frank D. Johnson
Publisher: Blandford
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 168

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Book Description
An account of the development of American motor-torpedo boats and their important role in naval operations during World War II.

PT Boats

PT Boats PDF Author: David Doyle
Publisher: Schiffer Military History
ISBN: 9780764356667
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Patrol Torpedo--or PT boats--captured the public's imagination during WWII due to the daring exploits of their crews. Built not of plywood, as many believe, but rather of mahogany planks, and powered by a trio of Packard marine engines, these vessels operated in every theater, often facing opponents many times their size. The use of PT boats to evacuate General Douglas MacArthur and his family from the Philippines, a story dramatized in the movie They Were Expendable, put the PT boats and their crews in the public forefront, as did John F. Kennedy's loss of PT-109 and the subsequent rescue of him and his crew. This book looks at all the PT boat configurations used by the US Navy during WWII through rare archival photos, augmented by images of the few remaining vessels of the type. Part of the Legends of Warfare series.

PT Boats at War

PT Boats at War PDF Author: Norman Polmar
Publisher: Motorbooks International
ISBN: 9780760304990
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
A study of the development, construction and use, by the United States Navy, of patrol boats as attack vessels and torpedo launchers. It charts their military career from the Second World War, through the Vietnam War up to and including the boats' retirement due to advances in missile technology.

At Close Quarters: PT Boats in the United States Navy

At Close Quarters: PT Boats in the United States Navy PDF Author: Robert J. Bulkley
Publisher: Historical Studies
ISBN: 1622800044
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 683

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Book Description
Small though they were, PT boats played a key role in World War II, carrying out an astonishing variety of missions where fast, versatile, and strongly armed vessels were needed. Called "weapons of opportunity," they met the enemy at closer quarters and with greater frequency than any other type of surface craft. Among the most famous PT commanders was John F. Kennedy, whose courageous actions in the Pacific are now well known to the American public. The author of the book, another distinguished PT boat commander in the Pacific, compiled this history of PT-boat operations in World War II for the U.S. Navy shortly after V-J Day, when memories were fresh and records easily assessable. Bulkley provides a wealth of facts about these motor torpedo boats, whose vast range of operation covered two oceans as well as the Mediterranean and the English Channel. Although their primary mission was to attack surface ships and craft close to shore, they were also used effectively to lay mines and smoke screens, to rescue downed aviators, and to carry out intelligence and raider operations. The author gives special attention to the crews, paying well-deserved tribute to their heroism, skill, and sacrifice that helped to win the war.

American PT Boats in World War II

American PT Boats in World War II PDF Author: Victor Chun
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Torpedo-boats
Languages : en
Pages : 79

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Book Description


PT Boat Odyssey

PT Boat Odyssey PDF Author: Robert P. Gelzheiser
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476662649
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 304

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Book Description
“Nicely illustrated with black-and-white historical photos…extraordinary…impressively informative…. Expertly organized and presented…recommended”—Midwest Book Review During the Pacific War between the United States and Imperial Japanese navies, the author's father, Francis Gelzheiser, deployed with Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 16A, from New Orleans to Panama to Seattle and to Attu Island in the Aleutians. After their return voyage, the PT boats journeyed to New Guinea, then battled Japanese kamikazes for the Philippine Island of Mindoro. Like many World War II veterans, Gelzheiser only shared his recollections of combat later in life. The author chronicles his father's experience, details the roles PT boats played in the war and examines why, despite America's overwhelming wartime manufacturing capacity, the Japanese believed they could still win the war.

Under a Blood Red Sun

Under a Blood Red Sun PDF Author: John J. Domagalski
Publisher: Casemate
ISBN: 1612004091
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 523

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Book Description
The author of Into the Dark Water “balances scholarly research with accessible storytelling” to tell the heroic WWII account of Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 (Midwest Book Review). During the opening days of World War II in the Pacific, a small group of American sailors in the Philippines were propelled into the forefront of the fighting against the navy and air power of Imperial Japan. They were manned with six small, wooden PT-boats and led by a courageous, larger-than-life character in Lt. John D. Bulkeley. As America’s defense of the Philippines crumbled under the weight of a massive Japanese assault, the courageous activities of Bulkeley’s Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 made headlines across the United States—often as the only good news coming from the bleak Pacific front. The unit achieved everlasting fame by evacuating Gen. Douglas MacArthur from the front. Then, the squadron continued to fight on until all six of its torpedo boats were lost under fire. The fate of the doomed American defenders was sealed when the Japanese won the battle for the islands in the spring of 1942. The exploits of the unit were immortalized in the blockbuster 1945 movie They Were Expendable, starring John Wayne and Robert Montgomery, but since then, the saga of Bulkeley and his men has slipped into history. Under a Blood Red Sun revives the story of the Philippine PT-boats through the intertwined accounts of Bulkeley and his subordinate officers and men. It is a story of the courage and sacrifice of men thousands of miles from their homeland, representing American gallantry and fighting prowess, giving the Japanese a taste of what was to come their way.

U.S. Patrol Torpedo Boats in World War II, 1939-1945

U.S. Patrol Torpedo Boats in World War II, 1939-1945 PDF Author: T. Garth Connelly
Publisher: Nimble Books LLC
ISBN: 9781608880133
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 146

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Book Description
This is a comprehensive illustrated history of PT boats in World War II. The author, a lifelong student of PTs, briefly describes the pre-war experimental boat designs to give the reader a lead in to the war-time boats. He then covers the four classes of PT boats in service with the USN in World War II, describing the differences from boat to boat in detail. Every weapon system used on board US PTs in WWII is described and discussed, from machine guns to rocket launchers. For the first time in any great detail, the author gives a history of the six known all gun gunboats which were converted from PTs (three Elco and three Higgins) and has both drawings and photos of these gunboats (including John F. Kennedy's PT-59). Model-builders will appreciate the drawings that contain actual color chips for the various camouflage systems applied to the boats. There are also many color photos to aide modelers in painting accurate paint schemes. The author also discusses and identifies each of the radars used on PT boats in the later stages of the war. A substantial chapter on operational experience discusses how PT boats were used in every theater of war, from Pearl Harbor to D-Day and beyond. Finally, the author provides the fate of every PT boat that now survives. One hundred forty-eight photographs and drawings, full color interior.

Dog Boats at War

Dog Boats at War PDF Author: Leonard C Reynolds
Publisher: The History Press
ISBN: 0752499947
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 279

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Book Description
Built of plywood and measuring 115 feet long, powered by four supercharged petrol engines and armed to the teeth with heavy weapons, the 'D' Class Motor Gun Boats (MGBs) and Motor Torpedo Boats (MTBs) were better known as Dog Boats and played havoc with enemy shipping in home and foreign waters. During three years of war they engaged the enemy on more than 350 occasions, sinking and damaging many ships. Dog Boats at War is the authoritative account of operations by the Royal Navy's 'D' Class MGBs and MTBs in the Second World War in Home, Mediterranean and Norwegian waters. As well as drawing on official records - both British and German - the author has contacted several hundred Dog Boat veterans whose eye witness accounts add drama to the unfolding story.