AVR 661
Encyclopedia
AVR 661 is an R-1 type United States Air Force
"crash boat"
, a boat used in air-sea rescues. It is 85 feet long and has two Packard Marine 4M-2500 engines of 1500 horse power. It has a top speed of 35 knots. The boat was armed with a twin .50 caliber machine gun, a 20 mm anti-aircraft gun and two depth charges.
These types of boats were used to rescue aircraft crews at sea. The designation AVR was used for "Aircraft Rescue Vessel", so it was one of the small, fast craft, that were used for rescuing pilots from downed planes.
The AVR 661 was built in 1943 for the Army Air Corps
and served in the Gulf of Mexico during World War II.
After the war the Air Force sold many of its crash boats to private parties for use as yachts or commercial vessels. Many others were used as targets and sunk. The AVR 661 was kept in active service assigned to Tyndall Air Force Base
, near Panama City, Florida. During the Vietnam War, the AVR 661 towed targets for helicopter gunship training and anti-mine training as well as to recover drones.
In 1971, the Air Force decided to preserve the AVR 661 as one of the last remaining crash boats from World War II. It was to be placed on display at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
, near Dayton, Ohio. That plan was scrapped as the boat was too large for the cargo plane. It was then donated to the PT Boat Museum in Memphis, Tennessee That, too, proved problematic. As it was being run upriver to Memphis, it struck a submerged obstruction and damaged its running gear. Once at Memphis, the boat sank at its moorings.
The US Naval Sea Cadet Corps
expressed an interest in salvaging the crash boat. The boat was placed on a barge and shipped to Chicago.
The Sea Cadets plan was to restore the boat and use it as a training vessel and then to donate it to a museum.
Its status and current location are unknown.
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
"crash boat"
Crash rescue boat
Crash Rescue Boat is a name used in the USA to describe military high-speed offshore rescue boats, similar in size and performance to Motor Torpedo Boats, used to rescue pilots and aircrews of crashed aircraft...
, a boat used in air-sea rescues. It is 85 feet long and has two Packard Marine 4M-2500 engines of 1500 horse power. It has a top speed of 35 knots. The boat was armed with a twin .50 caliber machine gun, a 20 mm anti-aircraft gun and two depth charges.
These types of boats were used to rescue aircraft crews at sea. The designation AVR was used for "Aircraft Rescue Vessel", so it was one of the small, fast craft, that were used for rescuing pilots from downed planes.
The AVR 661 was built in 1943 for the Army Air Corps
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
and served in the Gulf of Mexico during World War II.
After the war the Air Force sold many of its crash boats to private parties for use as yachts or commercial vessels. Many others were used as targets and sunk. The AVR 661 was kept in active service assigned to Tyndall Air Force Base
Tyndall Air Force Base
Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt Frank Benjamin Tyndall...
, near Panama City, Florida. During the Vietnam War, the AVR 661 towed targets for helicopter gunship training and anti-mine training as well as to recover drones.
In 1971, the Air Force decided to preserve the AVR 661 as one of the last remaining crash boats from World War II. It was to be placed on display at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Greene and Montgomery counties in the state of Ohio. It includes both Wright and Patterson Fields, which were originally Wilbur Wright Field and Fairfield Aviation General Supply Depot. Patterson Field is located approximately...
, near Dayton, Ohio. That plan was scrapped as the boat was too large for the cargo plane. It was then donated to the PT Boat Museum in Memphis, Tennessee That, too, proved problematic. As it was being run upriver to Memphis, it struck a submerged obstruction and damaged its running gear. Once at Memphis, the boat sank at its moorings.
The US Naval Sea Cadet Corps
United States Naval Sea Cadet Corps
The United States Naval Sea Cadet Corps is a congressionally chartered, U.S. Navy-based organization that serves to teach individuals 13 to 17 years old about the sea-going military services, U.S. Naval operations and training, community service, citizenship, and an understanding of discipline and...
expressed an interest in salvaging the crash boat. The boat was placed on a barge and shipped to Chicago.
The Sea Cadets plan was to restore the boat and use it as a training vessel and then to donate it to a museum.
Its status and current location are unknown.