Evening star., 1943-10-17
Saga of the Navy's PIT Boats

Second in number is the production
by Andrew J. Higgins, the New Orleans
shipbuilding genius, whose Higgins boats
have revolutionized boat building tech
nique From the drawing boards Of the
Higgins plants have come many OF the
improvements in boat building which
have made the light assault craft and
landing craft used by United States
forces supreme on the water. A large
percentage of light ships used by our
military forces are made under Higgins
owned patents.
Andrew Jackson Higgins.
Andrew J. Higgins dynamic, forceful
and broad of vision, has made notable
mark in ship construction. Higgins
landing craft have nosed their inquisitive
way into the business of all the worlds
military pests. They'll play major part
in cutting off those noses.
The Navy and Army call the small
Higgins jobs Lei or landing craft in
fantry."
Deadliest Thing Ahoat.
The PIT boat, 7s feet long, is big
brother of the speed boats that scoot
around any lake or river (or did before
gas rationing) in the United States But
she packs a deadly punch. Four high
speed Packard motors drive the PTS at
speeds close to 80 miles an hour. She
carries, mounted on her decks four tor
caliber machine guns and depth charges
to strafe any sub that may come along.
For little ship she carries wallop.
Pound for pound they pack the toughest
punch of any warship afloat. On her
slim prov is Walt Disney designed en-
blem, mosquito perched astride tor
pedo flying through a rough sea.
She depends entirely on speed and
maneuverability, for protective armor
has been sacrificed for speed and get
ting around ability. Her planking is
only of three -eighth-inch plywood, and
she bounces around in a seaWay under
power.
One officer describes riding in a PIT
boat as some one whacking you across
bat every other second Under way, the
men aboard the sea mosquitoes wear
special padding to avoid being bruised
when tossed against rails and bulkheadS
Big, foaming waves, 20 feet high
thundered over the cockpit, drenching
every one topside," said the officer. "It
was darned cold The helmsmans, eyes
and ours were full of stinging salt water
The spray slaps like an open hand" The
men who man the little sea stingers take
plenty of punishment, but they also car
dish it out.
PIT Fl ghting History.
Motor torpedo boats are not new tt
war. They were used in the last worle
conflict, but not with the same effec'
tiveness as those now in use. The Brit
ish have their version of the PTS The.
have played notable part in sea patro
around the British Isles, and in foray
against the enemy held coast.
Major mission of the PIT boat agains
heavy ships is as self-propelled high
speed carrier for discharging torpedoes
just as the bomb carrying airplane ha
the effect of highly mobile heavy artil
lery.
Development of the high speed in
ternal combustion engine made the mo
tor torpedo boat, and gave it the ad
vantage over the slower submarine. P,
boats are now in mass construction i
the United States, in many plants work
ing "a hours a day, turning out tn
fast little jackrabbitts with stingers.
The boats do all sea jobs, operatin
with larger ships, dashing in and ou
of smoke screens, hurting torpedos an
then running for cover. They are tn
D cavalry of the sea, used for recor
l naissance, for sharp, deadly thrusts 6
the big brutes of larger ships, for routir
S patrol work and other odd jobs The
r are indispensable in submarine patre
and often are used in collaboration wit
S aircraft for this purpose, speeding to
i spot where a sub has been sighted ar
a dropping their ashcans while whirlir
S through the water at mile a -minu
e rate.
r Nor are they helpless against air a
t tack The Jap felt the first sting of Il
= Nsvy's mosquitoes at Cavite Decemb
10, 1941, when Mitcubishi bombers vi
= loaded over .the United States Ma
t, Yard. When the second section of thr
s dive bombers appeared two of Bulkeley
: boats deliberately placed themselves
L. the path of the raiders.
Down came the dive bombers in
d headlong rush at Cavite. Turrets
n the MTBs went into action, guns spou
4. ing deadly stream of lead at t
It raiders. All three dive bombers II
" riddled by bullets.
~ The incident of another Jap crui.
,s came on the night of January 10. Lie