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Topic: Ron 9 on the Whie Plains |
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TED WALTHER
TOP BOSS
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Posted on: May 30, 2010 - 12:32pm
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Nat;
Just as I thought the logs were the answer. O.K. if Brantingham brought this first group, which was the majority of RON 9 to Panama, then Kelly went with 159-162 on the S.S. F.W. Weller. While we have these log books out, what ships transported RON 9 to Noumea?
TED
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Nathaniel Smith
MASTER
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Posted on: May 30, 2010 - 3:11pm
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Pat remembers his boat was the USS Pecos. (I edited the designation based on Pat's comment below .. thanks Pat)
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Pat Rogers
Advanced Member
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Posted on: May 31, 2010 - 1:02pm
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It was the U.S.S. Pecos, a Navy tanker that brought six of the PT Boats, including PT154, from Panama to Noumea, New Caledonia. The S.S. designation would be commercial or non-Navy.
Compared to our trip on the S.S. White Plains, it was terrible for the PT boat enlisted personnel. The officers got to sleep in cabins or state rooms. We got to sleep on our boats. The ship made a stop in Bora Bora. The officers got to go ashore with the Pecos crew for liberty. We got to stay on board and just look at the island. I may be the only one who thought so but you could see a mountain top that I thought looked like the one in the movie "King Kong", the original with Fay Wray, Bruce Cabot and Robert Armstrong.
The PT boat enlisted personnel were invited to take care of all the undesirable and lowly tasks on the Pecos, kitchen police, laundry, mess hall details, clean up details, etc. with the Pecos seamen put in charge telling us what to do. Some Pecos chief was able to convince our officers that it was a worthy task for us to do.
We were all quite happy when we reached Noumea.
For what it is worth, PT151 and PT152 were not unloaded in Noumea. They stayed with the Pecos which then went on to someplace in Australia. I had a friend on one of the boats who came over to say good bye with a promise to pay me back the money he owed me. I'm still waiting for the money.
Pat Rogers, PT154, RON 9, Radioman
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Pat Rogers
Advanced Member
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Posted on: May 31, 2010 - 1:22pm
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To The Bridge,
We had something in the cockpit area that was behind the helmsman. To me it was more like a box as you could see the three sides and the top. I don't think it was collapsible but it was fastened to the side of the plywood.
The helmsman would stand on something but I don't recall anything like the dimensions that you mention.
I believe Nat Smith has attached some pictures in the past, one with his father at the helm and our X.O., Mr MacLaughlin, standing on the box.
The box kind of disappeared after the PT154 was shelled off of Bougainville.
Pat Rogers, PT154, RON 9, Radioman
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Nathaniel Smith
MASTER
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Posted on: May 31, 2010 - 1:36pm
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These may be the pictures to which Pat referred.
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TheBridge
TOP BOSS
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Posted on: May 31, 2010 - 1:50pm
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Pat,
Thank you for details. Most helpful!
Nat has emailed me photos you mentioned. I've also see the photos of the 154 after the shell hit. On this Memorial Day an especially poignant moment to recall our thanks to you and those that served!
Can you email your email address so I can send along some info to you. My email is bridge@gmail.com
Thank you again,
Bridge
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Jeff D
Moderator
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Posted on: May 31, 2010 - 2:59pm
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The box Pat remembers might have been an aldis light locker?
The narrow box visible in the photo, running along the port side of the bridge, is a cover for lux piping.
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Drew Cook
TOP BOSS
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Posted on: May 31, 2010 - 4:51pm
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Some time ago, we discussed the wooden "benches" that apparently ran fore-aft along the inside of the port cockpit bulkhead and port-starboard across the inside of the rear cockpit armor (and also port-starboard on top of the step on aft side of the cockpit armor) on some 80' Elcos, and speculated that was what JFK had been sitting on in the photos of him in the cockpit of 109.
I saw those wooden-slat benches realized for the first time when viewing parts of the Italeri 1/35th scale model of PT 596.
In addition, I had read several PT accounts in which a "little underway seat" and an "underway seat" in the cockpit had been mentioned. I believe this fold-down seat appears in at least a couple of photos previously posted here on the Message Board -- one of a sailor in the cockpit of PT 127, and one of officer David Cutsforth in PT 171's cockpit.
Obviously, the "benches" and seats were either removed, or never installed on many of the boats, as they don't appear in many photos. Actually, I've never seen a real-life photo of the cockpit benches at all.
It would be interesting to see, in the Elco plans, these cockpit benches and seats illustrated, and to learn which boats they were on.
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Jeff D
Moderator
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Posted on: Jun 1, 2010 - 3:57am
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This is a pretty good shot of the folding seat. It looks narrower than the step and folds down rather than up:
http://pt127.org/crew/douglas_rj/photos/pages/CockPit_tif.htm
I thought I noticed a drawing for the seat on Dick's DVD but it may have been the folding step. I'll post if I find it.
I've noticed drawings for the boats around the 150s don't match what's on the plans for them in certain areas. The bridge armor drawing lists PT 103-162 but as seen in the transport photos it is missing on the 150s boats being shipped. The drawing for the boats 163-196 is titled "Armor Plate Replacement And Aldis Light Deck Locker Details" and does not have armor installed. A bridge arrangement drawing for Pt 163-196 & 314-367 shows some changes were specific for 163-196, 175-196, 187-196, and 314-367. It sure is confusing. I've been working on the bridge and have gotten lost often. Good thing for the memory of veterans, photos, and documents kindly shared here else I'd run out of bread crumbs.
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Drew Cook
TOP BOSS
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Posted on: Jun 1, 2010 - 8:27am
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Thanks, for posting that photo, Jeff.
In other photos I've seen of the seat, it's position looks like it would have folded up and down snugged right up against the inside of the rear cockpit armor bulkhead, if the armor had been in place (it wasn't). |
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