The PT Boats
- Episode aired Sep 24, 2003
- TV-PG
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Reasonably Thorough.
It's surprisingly decent for a TV episode. The introduction details the concept, historical development, construction, and mission of the so-called PT boats. They were a bit more than 100 feet long, built of plywood, and carried two officers and a crew of ten. Armament varied but initially included four torpedoes.
The narration is objective. The boats themselves ran on high-octane gasoline and could easily blow up if the tanks were hit. The original speed was fast -- more than 40 knots -- but supplies and replacement parts were difficult to come by in the Pacific and when the engines were worn down, the boat was much slower. Even at their top speed, they could be matched by a destroyer or a torpedo.
The crew were mostly young men, and the officers tended to be from elite families and had backgrounds in sailing or speed boating. John F. Kennedy, who commanded PT-109, was twenty-six.
In legend, the PTs dashed in against heavily armored warships, launched their torpedoes, and retreated at speed, firing all the way. Richard Tregaskis describes most of their missions as less glamorous. They tried to sneak up on their targets, launch, and hastily retire without being seen. They played a critical role in the Battle of Surigao Strait during the 1944 landings at Leyte, although it's doubtful that they scored any hits.
The film combines newsreel footage with talking heads and very useful graphics. It will satisfy most people with a casual curiosity about the boats.
The narration is objective. The boats themselves ran on high-octane gasoline and could easily blow up if the tanks were hit. The original speed was fast -- more than 40 knots -- but supplies and replacement parts were difficult to come by in the Pacific and when the engines were worn down, the boat was much slower. Even at their top speed, they could be matched by a destroyer or a torpedo.
The crew were mostly young men, and the officers tended to be from elite families and had backgrounds in sailing or speed boating. John F. Kennedy, who commanded PT-109, was twenty-six.
In legend, the PTs dashed in against heavily armored warships, launched their torpedoes, and retreated at speed, firing all the way. Richard Tregaskis describes most of their missions as less glamorous. They tried to sneak up on their targets, launch, and hastily retire without being seen. They played a critical role in the Battle of Surigao Strait during the 1944 landings at Leyte, although it's doubtful that they scored any hits.
The film combines newsreel footage with talking heads and very useful graphics. It will satisfy most people with a casual curiosity about the boats.
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- rmax304823
- Sep 26, 2014
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