During the World War II period of 1942 to 1943, PT 105, built by Elco and 80 ft in length, was a US Navy PT boat

PT boat

PT Boats were a variety of motor torpedo boat , a small, fast vessel used by the United States Navy in World War II to attack larger surface ships. The PT boat squadrons were nicknamed "the mosquito fleet". The Japanese called them "Devil Boats".The original pre–World War I torpedo boats were...

 (from "Patrol Torpedo"), commanded by Lt Richard Keresey. The boat fought in the same battle where PT 109 was rammed and lost. It is also a book by the same title. Also mentioned in a book by oceanographer Robert Ballard is that he and Lt. Keresey returned to the Solomon Islands in May 2002 & successfully located the underwater forward section wreckage of PT 109.

Details

The author writes about many boats. One boat abandoned ship, and the crew clung to one of the inadequate life rafts that didn't even have a proper bottom. It was meant to hold onto, but not seat more than one or two persons. The book contains many photographs of the boat and bases, and a diagram of the layout of the boat. The boats could do 50 knots if they had to. Some fought their way right up against Japanese docks to rescue people. The PT boats had no armour, but after a few refrigerators got hit, they were often fitted with armour plate. Another boat, fitted with radar was run over as they were trying to figure out how to read the signals on the screen. PT 105 was sent to pick up survivors marked by a PBY only to find they were Japanese. One of these prisoners grabbed a gun and shot one of the PT 109 survivors. After the war,Lt Keresey would be contacted by some of these Japanese ex-prisoners who thanked him for their lives.