Kennedy's actions in saving his surviving crew after PT-109 was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer made him a war hero.
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22 Facts About PT-109
2.
PT-109 took his PT boat to Elco in 1939 as there was a shortage of suitable engines in the UK at the outbreak of war.
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3.
PT-109 was powered by three 12-cylinder 1,500 horsepower Packard 4M-2500 marinized aero gasoline engines, with a designed top speed of 41 knots.
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4.
PT-109 was fitted with four 21-inch torpedo tubes containing torpedoes.
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5.
PT-109 had a single Oerlikon anti-aircraft mount at the rear with "109" painted on the mounting base, two open circular rotating turrets mounting twin M2.
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PT boat Packard Pacific Norfolk Solomon Islands South Carolina Inga Arvad Robert Ballard6.
Ahead of the torpedoes on PT-109 were two depth charges, omitted on most PTs, one on each side, about the same diameter and directly in front of the launchers.
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7.
PT-109 returned to Tulagi for repairs to the foredeck and the replacement of the depth charge.
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9.
PT-109 arrived in the Solomon Islands in late 1942 and was assigned to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 2 based on Tulagi island.
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10.
PT-109 participated in combat operations around Guadalcanal from 1942 to 1943, when the Japanese withdrew from the island.
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11.
PT-109 was reassigned to South Carolina in January 1942 because of his affair with Danish journalist Inga Arvad.
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12.
PT-109 was then ordered to the training squadron, Motor Torpedo, to take over the command of motor torpedo boat PT-101, a 78-foot Huckins PT boat.
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13.
PT-109's actions were against the wishes of his father who had wanted a safer assignment.
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14.
On, several PT boats of MTBRON 2, including PT-109, were ordered to the Russell Islands in preparation for the invasion of New Georgia.
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15.
The lack of speed and maneuverability caused by the idling engines of PT-109 put the ship at risk from passing destroyers, but Kennedy had not been warned by radio of destroyers in the area.
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16.
PT-109 was struck on her starboard side at a 20-degree angle, shearing off a piece of the boat.
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17.
PT-109 was gravely damaged, with watertight compartments keeping only the forward hull afloat in a sea of flames.
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18.
On instructions from Kennedy, the eleven survivors thrown from PT-109 regrouped, and then hoping for rescue, clung to PT-109 bow section for 12 hours as it drifted slowly south.
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19.
Rescue of PT-109 was a long process, largely achieved by the work of native Solomon Island scouts who first located Kennedy and his crew.
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20.
All the published accounts of the PT-109 incident made Kennedy the key player in rescuing all 11 crew members and made him a war hero.
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21.
Wreckage of PT-109 was located in May 2002, at a depth of 1,200 feet, when a National Geographic Society expedition headed by Robert Ballard found a torpedo tube from wreckage matching the description and location of Kennedy's vessel.
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22.
PT-109 was a subject of toy, plastic and radio control model ships in the 1960s, familiar to boys who grew up as baby boomers.
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