Motor Torpedo Boat PT-109
PT-109 redirects here. For the movie starring Cliff Robertson, see
PT 109 (movie).
|
Lt. Kennedy with crew of PT-109 |
United States Ship
PT-109 was a
PT boat commanded by Lieutenant (j.g.)
John F. Kennedy (later
United States President) in the
Pacific Theater during
World War II. Kennedy's actions after the sinking of the
PT-109 both solidified his "war hero" status in his political career, and may have contributed to his long-term back problems.
Kennedy's boat was rammed by the
Japanese destroyer Amagiri on
August 2,
1943 in the
Blackett Strait between
Kolombangara and
Arundel in the
Solomon Islands, cutting it in half and killing two of his men. Kennedy led the survivors, clinging to the wreckage of the boat, to safety on the deserted
Plum Pudding Island. An article about the experience was printed in
Reader's Digest just before Kennedy's first
Congressional run, and the campaign reproduced the article and distributed it to potential voters.
Though Kennedy emerged a hero (awarded the
Navy and Marine Corps Medal) a few in the military, including
Douglas MacArthur, thought he should have faced a
court-martial for losing his boat in such a manner. Their argument was that such a quick and manueverable craft should have been able to escape getting struck by a slower enemy craft.
In addition to the book mentioned below, the episode was also made into a 1963 movie
PT 109, starring
Cliff Robertson. The island was renamed to
Kennedy Island.
The wreckage of
PT-109 may have been located; a May
2002 a
National Geographic expedition headed by
Dr. Robert Ballard found wreckage matching the description and location of Kennedy's vessel in the
Solomon Islands [
1]. However, under current
Navy policy, the wreckage site is a gravesite and may not be disturbed.
Gerard Zinser, the last survivor of the
PT-109, died in 2001.
*
Robert J. Donovan,
PT 109: John F. Kennedy in WWII (1961) ISBN 0071376437
* Edward J. Renehan Jr.
The Kennedys at War: 1937-1945. (Doubleday, 2002)
* Richard Tregaskis,
John F. Kennedy and PT-109 (American Printing House for the Blind, 1966) ASIN: B0007HSN7S
* Robert D. Ballard,
Collision With History: The Search for John F. Kennedy's PT 109 (National Geographic, 2002)
*
Michael J. Hoadley,
A History of Kennedys. (Scholastic, 1998) ISBN 00634719384
* Haruyoshi Kimmatsu,
The night We sank John Kennedy's PT 109 appeared in
Argosy Magazine December 1970 Vol 371 # 6
* Tameichi Hara,
Japanese Destroyer Captain (Ballantine Books, 1978) ISBN 0345278941
*
Maritimequest PT-109 Photo Gallery and Fact Sheet*
The Naval Historical Center's History of PT-109
