History- PT109 Found!

[Lost Cause]

JFK's Sunken WW2 Boat Found Off Solomons
Wed May 29, 8:52 AM ET

HONIARA, Solomon Islands (Reuters) - A World War Two patrol boat captained by President John F. Kennedy which was sunk by a Japanese destroyer has been found off the Solomon Islands by the man who tracked down the Titanic, local radio said on Wednesday.



The remains of wooden boat PT-109 was found on the seabed of the Blanket Strait off Gizo Island, about 236 miles northwest of the Solomons capital Honiara, by an international team led by U.S. oceanographer Robert Ballard.

Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation (SIBC) radio said Ballard had told the corporation he had found the wreckage of Kennedy's boat last week after about a week of searching.

 

[riff]

Wow. The things them cats drag in these days.

There's lots of shit in them there ohshuns.

 

[Weird Harold]

According to CNN/HNN, they said they MIGHT have found the PT-109 but won't know for sure until the wereck is examined more closely.

The PT-109 was not the only PT boat sunk in that particular stretch of ocean.

 

[Azwed]

Wow there can't be alot left of the ship after 60 years. Weren't the hulls of most of the PT boats wooden?

 

[Weird Harold]

Wow there can't be alot left of the ship after 60 years. Weren't the hulls of most of the PT boats wooden?

That all depends on the conditions -- wooden ships over 500 yars sunk have been raised nearly intact.

I think most of the PT boats were plywood hulls, which should resist being eaten a bit better than plain wood.

 

[tigerjen]

I think its awesome......a piece of history that's been at
the bottom of the ocean for years............is discovered!

 

[patient1]

That all depends on the conditions -- wooden ships over 500 yars sunk have been raised nearly intact.

I think most of the PT boats were plywood hulls, which should resist being eaten a bit better than plain wood.

Harold knows what he's talking about. The hulls were canvas sandwiched between plywood, glued, screwed, & shellacked, then painted .

I can't recall the name of the place, but there's a PT boat museum near the Massecheusetts/Rhode Island border. They also have the battleship Massecheusetts & some other vessels anchored there.

 

[Lost Cause]

If Ballard tracked this wreck like he did with the Titanic, he probably looked for specific damage. If you recall, PT-109 was cut in half by a Jap destroyer, the survivors floated on the forward half of the boat. The story wasn't specific at the time of it's release, I don't know if they found the forward or aft engine half. The rights on the story belong to the National Geographic magazine, so they'll probably release a little teaser every now and then.

 

[android1966]

Hooray, my life is so enriched.