A President's War Heroism: Pt 109'S Story

PT-109 was an 80-foot Elco motor patrol torpedo boat, one of hundreds built by the Elco Works Naval Division of the Electric Boat Company in Bayonne, New Jersey, between 1942 and 1945. The boat was delivered to the Navy in July 1942 and was placed in service in the Pacific, joining Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Five and later Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Two. In 1943, Lieutenant Junior Grade John F. Kennedy took command of the boat and, on the night of August 1, 1943, PT-109 was patrolling Blackett Strait when it was rammed and cut by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri, eventually sinking with eleven survivors.

PT-109's specifications

PT-109 was an 80-foot (24-metre) Elco motor patrol torpedo boat. It was the seventh 40-ton Motor Torpedo Boat (MTB) built by the Elco Works Naval Division of the Electric Boat Company in Bayonne, New Jersey. It was delivered to the Navy on 10 July 1942 and fitted out in the New York Naval Shipyard at Brooklyn. It was powered by three 1,500-horsepower Packard 4M-2500 marinized aero gasoline engines, with a designed top speed of 41 knots (76 km/h).

PT-109 was armed with four 21-inch (53-cm) torpedo tubes containing Mark 8 torpedoes. It also had a single 20 mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft mount at the rear, two open circular rotating turrets mounting twin M2 .50-calibre (12.7 mm) anti-aircraft machine guns, and a smoke generator.

The boat was crewed by three officers and 14 enlisted men, with a typical crew size of between 12 and 14.

PT-109 was constructed of two layers of 1-inch (2.5 cm) mahogany planking, which provided excellent speed and adequate seakeeping qualities, but limited protection in combat.

The crew of PT-109

The following men were aboard on PT-109's last mission:

• John F. Kennedy, Lieutenant, Junior Grade (LTJG), commanding officer (Boston, Massachusetts)
• Leonard J. Thom, Ensign (ENS), executive officer (Sandusky, Ohio)
• George H. R. "Barney" Ross, Ensign (ENS), observer (Highland Park, Illinois)
• Raymond Albert, Seaman 2/c, gunner (Akron, Ohio)
• Charles A. "Bucky" Harris, Gunner's Mate 3/c (GM3) (Watertown, Massachusetts)
• William Johnston, Motor Machinist's Mate 2/c (MM2) (Dorchester, Massachusetts)
• Andrew Jackson Kirksey, Torpedoman's Mate 2/c (TM2) (Reynolds, Georgia)
• John E. Maguire, Radioman 2/c (RM2) (Dobbs Ferry, New York)
• Harold William Marney, Motor Machinist's Mate 2/c (MM2) (Springfield, Massachusetts)
• Edman Edgar Mauer, Quartermaster, cook, 3/c (QM3) (St. Louis, Missouri)
• Patrick H. "Pappy" McMahon, Motor Machinist's Mate 1/c (MM1) (Wyanet, Illinois)
• Ray L. Starkey, Torpedoman's Mate 2/c (TM2) (Garden Grove, California)
• Gerard E. Zinser, Motor Machinist's Mate 1/c (MM1) (Belleville, Illinois)

On the night of 1-2 August 1943, PT-109 and 14 other boats were ordered to head north through a cut in the reefs known as Ferguson Passage to block or attack five enemy destroyers. The resulting skirmish, sometimes referred to as the "Battle of Blackett Strait", was the largest use of PT boats in the war.

During the battle, PT-109 was rammed by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri, cutting the boat in two. Seamen Andrew Jackson Kirksey and Harold William Marney were killed instantly, and two other members of the crew were badly injured and burned when they were thrown into the flaming sea surrounding the boat. The forward half of the boat was still floating after the flames died down, and Kennedy, Thom, Ross, Mauer, Maguire, and Albert crawled back on board the hull. Kennedy swam out to McMahon and Harris, towing the injured McMahon by a life-vest strap. Meanwhile, Thom pulled in William Johnston, who was debilitated by the gasoline he had accidentally swallowed. Finally, Raymond Starkey swam in from where he had been flung by the shock.

The remaining crew abandoned the remains of PT-109 and struck out for Plum Pudding Island, about four miles southeast of Gizo anchorage. Kennedy, a former member of the Harvard University swim team, towed McMahon by a life jacket strap clenched between his teeth. It took five hours to swim to the island, which was only 100 yards in diameter and had no food or water.

Over the next few days, Kennedy and Ross swam to other islands in search of food and rescue. On 5 August, Kennedy and Ross swam to Naru Island, where they found a small canoe, packages of crackers and candy, and a fifty-gallon drum of drinkable water left by the Japanese. It was then that Kennedy first spoke to native Melanesian coastwatchers Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, who had been sent by Sub-lieutenant Reg Evans, an Australian coastwatcher, to look for possible survivors.

On 6 August, Gasa and Kumana left Olasana and headed to Wana Wana Island, carrying a pencilled note written by Thom and a message written by Kennedy on a coconut husk. On 7 August, they arrived at Rendova and delivered the messages to PT Commander Warfield, who consented to risk two PTs to rescue the crew. On the morning of 8 August, PT-157, commanded by Kennedy's friend Lieutenant William Liebenow, rescued the crew of PT-109 from Olasana Island and returned them to Rendova.

The sinking of PT-109

On August 2, 1943, the PT-109, an 80-foot (24-metre) Elco PT boat (patrol torpedo boat) was rammed and sunk by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri in the Blackett Strait, Solomon Islands. The PT-109 was under the command of Lieutenant (junior grade) John F. Kennedy, who would go on to become the President of the United States.

The PT-109 was one of fifteen PT boats that set out to intercept and engage four Japanese destroyers that were on a mission to supply Japanese forces on Kolombangara Island. The PT boats carried a total of 60 torpedoes but failed to hit any of the destroyers. The PT-109 was separated from its division and was idling on one engine to avoid detection by Japanese aircraft. The crew of the PT-109 realised they were in the path of the Amagiri, which was travelling at a high speed to reach the harbour by dawn. Kennedy attempted to turn the PT-109 to fire a torpedo, but the turn was too slow, and the Amagiri rammed the PT-109, shearing off a piece of the boat.

The collision resulted in a fireball of exploding aviation fuel that caused the sea surrounding the ship to flame. Two PT-109 crew members, Seamen Andrew Jackson Kirksey and Harold William Marney, were killed instantly, and two others were badly injured and burned. The forward half of the PT-109 remained afloat, and Kennedy and five other crew members managed to crawl back on board. Shouting revealed that three men were in the water about 100 yards to the southwest, while another two were an equal distance to the southeast. Kennedy swam to the group of three and towed the injured man back to the wreckage. Ensigns Thom and Ross towed the other two survivors back to the floating section.

The eleven survivors clung to the wreckage of the PT-109 for about twelve hours until it became apparent that the hull was taking on water and would soon sink. They decided to swim to Plum Pudding Island, about four miles southeast of their location, hoping to avoid any Japanese garrisons. They placed their lantern, shoes, and non-swimmers on a wooden post that had been part of the 37mm gun mount and used it as a float. Kennedy, a member of the Harvard University swim team, towed the badly burned engineer, Patrick McMahon, by clenching a life jacket strap between his teeth. It took five hours to swim to the island, and the crew took cover and set up a temporary camp.

Over the next few days, Kennedy made several swims to nearby islands in search of food and to try to signal passing American PT boats. On August 4, Kennedy and Thom assisted the injured and hungry crew with a demanding swim to Olasana Island, which was visible from Plum Pudding Island. They discovered ripe coconuts on Olasana Island but no fresh water. On August 5, Kennedy and Ross swam to Naru Island and found a small canoe, packages of crackers and candy, and a fifty-gallon drum of drinkable water left by the Japanese.

On August 6, Kennedy met native Melanesian coastwatchers Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana on Olasana Island. Gasa suggested that Kennedy scratch a message on a coconut husk, and Kumana climbed a coconut tree to pick one. Kennedy wrote:

> NAURO ISL COMMANDER... NATIVE KNOWS POS'IT... HE CAN PILOT... 11 ALIVE NEED SMALL BOAT... KENNEDY

Gasa and Kumana took the coconut and a more detailed message written by Thom to Wana Wana Island and then to a military outpost on Roviana Island. They paddled through rough seas and hostile waters for fifteen hours to deliver the messages. On August 7, Kennedy was picked up by Gasa and Kumana and taken to Gomu Island, where he rendezvoused with PT boats 157 and 171, which had been sent out to rescue the crew of the PT-109. The rescue boats picked up the rest of the crew from Olasana Island, and all the survivors were returned to the Rendova PT base on the morning of August 8.

The rescue of PT-109's crew

On the night of 5 August, Kennedy swam to Naru Island and met two native scouts, Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, who had been trained by the British and Australians in search and detection. Initially mistaking Kennedy for a Japanese soldier, the scouts fled in their canoe. Kennedy and his crew survived for six days on Plum Pudding Island and then Olasana Island, eating only a few ripe coconuts, rainwater, and small amounts of fresh water and Japanese cookies.

Gasa and Kumana returned on 6 August and were convinced by Ensign Thom that the crew were from the lost PT-109. Kennedy scratched a message on a coconut husk:

> NAURO ISL COMMANDER... NATIVE KNOWS POS'IT... HE CAN PILOT... 11 ALIVE NEED SMALL BOAT... KENNEDY

Gasa and Kumana then paddled for 15 hours to deliver the coconut message and a more detailed note written by Thom to a military outpost on Roviana Island. From there, they were sent to the PT base at Rendova, arriving on 7 August.

PT Commander Warfield was initially skeptical of the messages and the trustworthiness of the native scouts. However, facing overwhelming evidence that Kennedy and his crew were alive, he consented to risk two PT boats for the rescue. PT-157, commanded by Kennedy's friend Lieutenant William Liebenow, and PT-171 were dispatched to rescue the crew.

On the evening of 8 August, PT-157 picked up Kennedy from Gomu Island, off Kolombangara. With Kennedy on board, the PT boats rescued the weak and hungry crew from Olasana Island and brought them back to the Rendova PT base, where they received medical attention.

PT-109's legacy

Kennedy's experience on PT-109 also contributed to his ongoing health issues, including back problems and gastrointestinal problems.

The story of PT-109's sinking was featured in several books and a 1963 movie, *PT 109*, starring Cliff Robertson. Kennedy's father, Joe Kennedy Sr., had a hand in the production, financing, casting, and writing. Replicas of PT-109 tie clasps are still sold to the public by the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, Massachusetts. An original flag from PT-109 is also kept in the museum.

PT-109 was also the subject of toys, plastic and radio-controlled model ships in the 1960s, as well as a song by Jimmy Dean, which reached No. 8 on the pop music charts and No. 3 on the country music charts in 1962.

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