Original subtitles

[MISSILE ROARS]

Narrator: FOR CENTURIES, AN EXTRAORDINARY WAR HAS RAGED

ACROSS THE WORLD'S OCEANS, ABOVE AND BELOW THE WAVES.

Man: YOU COULD KILL HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE WITH ONE BROADSIDE.

THESE WERE EXTREMELY POWERFUL WAR MACHINES.

Narrator: SHIPBUILDERS DESIGNED BIGGER AND FASTER VESSELS

TO OUTWIT AND CRUSH THEIR OPPONENTS.

Man: THAT NATION THAT HAS THE MOST POWERFUL BATTLESHIP FLEET

CAN DESTROY THE ENEMY'S BATTLESHIP FLEET

AND THEREFORE CONTROL THE SEAS,

AND IF YOU CONTROL THE SEAS, YOU CONTROL THE WORLD.

Narrator: THEY CARRIED TERRIFYING WEAPONS.

Man: THIS WAS GONNA BE THE FIRST TIME

THAT SOMEBODY HAD FIRED A TORPEDO IN ANGER

SINCE WORLD WAR II.

THEY NEEDED TO GET IT RIGHT.

Narrator: BUT SHIPS HAVE ALSO LIBERATED

AND RESCUED THOUSANDS.

Man: YOU COULD THINK OF GERDA III

AS BASICALLY A LIFEBOAT FOR PERSONS HUNTED BY THE NAZIS.

Narrator: AND INSPIRED MEN AND WOMEN

TO ACTS OF INCREDIBLE BRAVERY.

Man: I WILL TAKE YOU THERE NOW, TO YOUR CANNONS,

TO YOUR DEATH, WE WILL SINK BEFORE SURRENDER.

Narrator: THESE VESSELS AND THEIR CREWS

HAVE SHAPED WORLD HISTORY.

Man: AS THE COMMANDING OFFICER OF A MISSILE‐CARRYING SUBMARINE,

I WAS DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE

FOR HELPING TO PREVENT WORLD WAR III.

[MISSILE ROARS]

Narrator: THIS TIME...

HOW A SINGLE WEAPON IGNITED A REVOLUTION ON THE SEAS.

Man: THE TORPEDO ATTACK, A SUCCESSFUL ATTACK,

THAT COULD TURN A BATTLE IN MINUTES.

Narrator: THIS TERRIFYING TECHNOLOGY

INTRODUCED THE FASTEST COMBAT SHIPS EVER SEEN.

Man: IF THESE THINGS CAN ENGAGE THEIR TARGET,

THEY CAN BE MURDEROUSLY DESTRUCTIVE.

Narrator: THE NEW FORM OF COMBAT MADE NEW HEROES.

Man: THEY THOUGHT, WOW... [WHISTLES]

YOU GUYS ARE REALLY SOMETHING!

Narrator: AND HELPED CREATE AN AMERICAN ICON.

♪

[EXPLOSION]

♪

JUNE 10, 1918.

IT'S THE LAST FEW MONTHS OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR.

THE AUSTRO‐HUNGARIAN BATTLESHIP SZENT ISTVAN IS IN TROUBLE

OFF WHAT'S NOW CROATIA'S DALMATIAN COAST.

ITS SISTER SHIP ALONGSIDE IS POWERLESS TO HELP

AND CAN ONLY CAPTURE THE REMARKABLE SCENE ON CAMERA.

AS THE SZENT ISTVAN LISTS HEAVILY TO STARBOARD,

MANY OF THE THOUSAND‐STRONG CREW ABANDON SHIP.

OTHERS TURN THE HEAVY GUNS TO PORT

IN A VAIN ATTEMPT TO BALANCE THE VESSEL.

BUT THE SZENT ISTVAN IS DOOMED.

♪

THE MIGHTY DREADNOUGHT CAPSIZES AND THEN SINKS,

WITH THE LOSS OF 89 LIVES.

OF ALL THE MANY NAVAL LOSSES OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR,

THIS WAS THE ONLY BATTLESHIP SINKING TO BE CAUGHT ON FILM.

BUT THE REASON FOR THE LOSS IS JUST AS REMARKABLE.

THE SZENT ISTVAN WAS TAKEN DOWN

BY THE TERRIFYING NEW NAVAL WEAPON OF THE ERA...

THE TORPEDO.

A TINY ITALIAN BOAT HAD SLIPPED

BETWEEN THE ESCORT SHIPS OF THE AUSTRO‐HUNGARIAN NAVY

AND APPROACHED THE BATTLESHIP.

IT FIRED JUST TWO TORPEDOES, BEFORE QUICKLY ESCAPING.

THE TORPEDO AND THE TORPEDO BOAT‐‐

A DOUBLE ACT THAT PROVED DEADLY ACROSS TWO WORLD WARS.

[ENGINE ROARING]

♪

SURPRISINGLY, THE ORIGINS OF THIS NEW COMBAT SHIP

CAN BE FOUND ON THE GENTEEL BANKS

OF THE RIVER THAMES.

140 YEARS AGO, THIS SPOT IN THE LONDON SUBURB OF CHISWICK

WAS HOME TO THE FLOURISHING SHIPYARD BUSINESS

OF JOHN THORNYCROFT.

HE'D BEEN BUILDING VESSELS SINCE THE AGE OF 19

AND SPECIALIZED IN FAST AND ELEGANT STEAMSHIPS‐‐

PLEASURE CRAFT FOR WELL‐TO‐DO LONDONERS.

James Wisdom: WHEN THORNYCROFT WAS MAKING

HIS PLEASURE LAUNCHES,

THESE WERE THINGS FOR SORT OF SIX OR EIGHT PEOPLE

TO TRAVEL UP THE RIVER, SO IT WAS THE ENJOYMENT OF SPEED.

Narrator: BUT NEWS OF THORNYCROFT'S SKILLS

SPREAD OVERSEAS.

IN 1873, THE NORWEGIAN NAVY TASKED HIM

WITH TURNING HIS SLEEK PLEASURE CRAFT

INTO SOMETHING VERY DIFFERENT.

Wisdom: AT THE FRONT OF IT THERE WAS A 30‐FOOT POLE

WITH AN EXPLOSIVE CANISTER ON THE FRONT,

AND THE INTENTION WAS TO RAM INTO A MAJOR SHIP

AND BLOW IT UP AT THE WATER LINE.

Narrator: THE EARLIEST TORPEDOES WERE LITTLE MORE THAN EXPLOSIVES

MOUNTED ON THE ENDS OF LONG POLES.

IN 1864, SUCH A DEVICE HAD SUNK A UNION WARSHIP

IN THE AMERICAN CIVIL WAR.

BUT SOON AFTER, VICTORIAN INVENTORS

BEGAN DEVELOPING A FAR MORE SOPHISTICATED WEAPON.

Nick Hewitt: FOR DECADES, ACTUALLY,

PEOPLE HAVE HAD THIS IDEA

THAT WOULDN'T IT BE GREAT AND WOULDN'T IT BE USEFUL

IF YOU COULD MAKE A WEAPON TRAVEL UNSEEN, UNDERWATER,

OVER A LONG DISTANCE.

UM, FIRED FROM A RELATIVELY SMALL

AND SIMPLE DELIVERY SYSTEM.

Narrator: ITALIAN GIOVANNI LUPPIS

DEVELOPED A BASIC DESIGN.

BUT WHEN HE WAS INTRODUCED

TO ENGLISH ENGINEER ROBERT WHITEHEAD IN 1864,

THE TORPEDO AS WE KNOW IT BECAME A REALITY.

Hewitt: LUPPIS HAS INVENTED

THE WORLD'S FIRST SELF‐PROPELLED TORPEDO,

WHICH IS AN EXPLOSIVE CHARGE THAT CAN MOVE UNDERWATER.

BUT HIS DESIGN IS, IS REALLY PRETTY MUCH THEORETICAL,

IT'S NOT A VERY PRACTICAL APPLICATION.

WHITEHEAD IS AN ENGINEER,

AND HE TAKES THIS TECHNOLOGY, AND HE MAKES IT PRACTICAL.

HE DEVELOPS AN ACTUAL WORKING WEAPON.

Narrator: ALL TORPEDOES CONSIST OF THREE MAIN COMPONENTS.

A WARHEAD CONTAINING AN EXPLOSIVE CHARGE...

A PROPULSION SYSTEM,

WHICH IN EARLY TORPEDOES WAS STEAM OR COMPRESSED AIR...

AND FINALLY, DEVICES TO KEEP THE WEAPON STABLE

AND GOING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.

EVEN THOUGH THE TORPEDO'S DESIGNER WAS BRITISH,

THE ROYAL NAVY WAS SLOW TO SEE ITS POTENTIAL.

BUT PLENTY OF OTHER NATIONS DIDN'T HOLD BACK.

THEY WERE ANXIOUS TO GET THEIR HANDS ON A WEAPON

THAT WAS SIMPLY CALLED A WHITE HEAD.

Hewitt: IT ALLOWS A SMALLER NAVY

FROM PERHAPS A SMALLER, POORER COUNTRY

TO PUNCH ABOVE ITS WEIGHT.

BECAUSE YOU CAN BASICALLY TAKE

THIS SEVERAL HUNDRED POUNDS' WORTH OF WEAPON,

PUT IT ON A SMALL CRAFT THAT MAYBE COST A FEW THOUSAND,

AND IF YOU GET EVERYTHING RIGHT, YOU CAN DESTROY A BATTLESHIP

THAT'S COST HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OR MILLIONS OF POUNDS.

Narrator: IN 1875, THE ROYAL NAVY

DID EVENTUALLY CONTACT JOHN THORNYCROFT

AT HIS CHISWICK BOATYARD.

LIKE THE NORWEGIANS, THEY WANTED A SMALL, FAST, NEW VESSEL‐‐

ONE THAT COULD LAUNCH THE NEW SELF‐PROPELLED TORPEDOES.

THAT VESSEL‐‐ THE HMS LIGHTNING‐‐

BECAME THE FIRST TRUE TORPEDO BOAT.

♪

Wisdom: THORNYCROFT SOLD HIS BOATS

TO PRETTY WELL ALL THE NAVIES OF EUROPE.

AND THERE WERE NO RESTRICTIONS IN THOSE DAYS.

SO ALL THE MAJOR NAVIES BOUGHT THORNYCROFT'S TORPEDO BOATS,

AND THEY ALL NEEDED THEM.

Hewitt: AND THESE BOATS START TO BE BUILT

IN GREATER AND GREATER NUMBERS.

AT FIRST THEY HAVE A, REALLY A FLEET OF EXPERIMENTS,

EVERY SINGLE ONE IS DIFFERENT TO THE ONE THAT WENT BEFORE IT.

Wisdom: SO WHAT THORNYCROFT WAS DOING WAS TESTING,

TESTING ALL THE TIME.

THE LAST BOATS THEY WERE BUILDING HERE

COULD GO TO 30 KNOTS, WHICH IS ABSOLUTELY ASTONISHING.

THE NEWEST MODERN PARALLEL IS FORMULA ONE CARS.

Narrator: BY THE START OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR,

THE INCREASE IN TORPEDO BOATS WAS SO GREAT

THAT NAVIES WERE ADAPTING TO THE NEW THREAT.

Hewitt: THE ONLY REAL SURE DEFENSE AGAINST THE TORPEDO

IN THE FIRST WORLD WAR

IS TO SINK THE THING THAT'S FIRING IT,

TO SINK THE DELIVERY SYSTEM.

Narrator: BUT THAT WASN'T EASY.

HMS CAROLINE IS A LIGHT CRUISER.

LAUNCHED IN 1914,

SHE WAS WELL‐ARMED WITH TORPEDOES OF HER OWN.

ONE OF HER ROLES WAS TO TARGET ENEMY TORPEDO BOATS.

Hewitt: CAROLINE WOULD HAVE TO TURN BROADSIDE ONTO HER TARGET.

TORPEDO TUBES WOULD THEN BE SWUNG OUTBOARD,

AND THEN THEY WOULD BE FIRED ON THE ORDERS ACTUALLY

OF THE, OF THE OFFICER ON THE SPOT

WHO'S IN COMMAND OF THAT TORPEDO MOUNT.

Narrator: BUT CRUISERS LIKE CAROLINE

WERE SIMPLY TOO LARGE AND SLOW

TO KEEP PACE WITH SMALLER TORPEDO BOATS.

SO THE BRITISH‐‐UNDER THE EXPERTISE OF THORNYCROFT‐‐

INVENTED A WHOLE NEW CLASS OF VESSEL.

THE TORPEDO BOAT DESTROYER.

Wisdom: IT COULD CARRY TORPEDOES,

ALSO CARRY HEAVY GUNS.

IT COULD TRAVEL AT A SPEED

FASTER THAN THE EXISTING TORPEDO BOATS.

IT CARRIED A COMPLEMENT OF 40 MEN AND OFFICERS.

THESE WERE SUBSTANTIAL CRAFT, AND THEY WORKED.

AND THE IRONY OF COURSE IS

THAT THORNYCROFT NOW HAD A FANTASTIC BUSINESS.

THEY WERE BUILDING TORPEDO BOATS,

AND THEY WERE BUILDING TORPEDO BOAT DESTROYERS.

Narrator: OVER THE YEARS, THIS NEW CLASS OF WARSHIP

BECAME KNOWN SIMPLY AS A DESTROYER

AND BECAME A KEY PART OF NAVIES ALL AROUND THE GLOBE.

THE WORKERS AT THORNYCROFT'S

COULDN'T HAVE IMAGINED THEIR REVOLUTIONARY VESSEL

WOULD HAVE SUCH A FUTURE.

Hewitt: THE PURPOSE OF THE DESTROYER

REMAINS PRETTY MUCH UNCHANGED

FROM THE EARLY TORPEDO BOAT DESTROYERS

OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR,

THROUGH TO THE YEARS AFTER THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

BUT THEY GET BIGGER AND FASTER AND BETTER EQUIPPED

AND BETTER ARMED AND MORE CAPABLE AT DOING THEIR JOB.

THEY CAN DELIVER TORPEDO ATTACKS,

THEY CAN FEND OFF ATTACKS BY ENEMY TORPEDO‐CARRYING CRAFT.

THEY CAN SEARCH FOR AND SINK SUBMARINES.

THEY CAN PROVIDE DEFENSE AGAINST AIRCRAFT.

THEY ARE FORMIDABLE.

Narrator: BUT DESTROYERS WEREN'T THE ONLY SHIPS EVOLVING.

SO, TOO, WERE TORPEDO BOATS.

[GUNFIRE]

IN THE LATE 1800s,

THE INVENTION OF THE SELF‐PROPELLED TORPEDO

CAUSED A REVOLUTION IN SHIP DESIGN.

NAVIES NEEDED NEW VESSELS TO FIRE THEM...

AND NEW VESSELS TO DEFEND AGAINST THEM.

AT THE START OF THE FIRST WORLD WAR,

GERMANY ORDERED 48 NEW OCEAN‐GOING TORPEDO BOATS.

THESE, THEY BELIEVED, COULD SINK AN ENEMY FLEET.

THE ROYAL NAVY WAS ARMED WITH TORPEDO BOAT DESTROYERS,

BUT STILL FEARED THE GERMAN THREAT.

Hewitt: ADMIRAL SIR JOHN JELLICOE,

WHO'S IN CHARGE OF THE ROYAL NAVY'S GRAND FLEET,

EVEN BEFORE THE WAR BREAKS OUT, HE IS ON THE RECORD AS SAYING,

"IF I SEE THE ENEMY ABOUT TO LAUNCH A TORPEDO ATTACK,

EVEN IF I SEE THE ENEMY FLEET TURN AWAY FROM ME,

I WILL ASSUME THAT THEY'RE PLANNING A TORPEDO ATTACK

AND I WILL TURN AWAY FROM THEM."

BECAUSE A TORPEDO ATTACK, A SUCCESSFUL ATTACK,

BY SWARMS OF TORPEDO BOATS,

THAT COULD TURN A BATTLE IN MINUTES

IF ANY OF THOSE TORPEDOES STRIKE HOME.

[EXPLOSION]

Narrator: JELLICOE'S FEARS CAME TRUE ON MAY 31, 1916.

THE GERMAN AND BRITISH FLEETS CLASHED IN THE NORTH SEA

OFF THE COAST OF DENMARK‐‐ THE BATTLE OF JUTLAND.

Hewitt: THERE IS ONE PARTICULAR MOMENT WHERE THE TORPEDO

HAS A DRAMATIC EFFECT ON THE COURSE OF THE BATTLE.

WITH THE GERMAN FLEET IN TROUBLE,

OUTNUMBERED AND TRYING TO GET HOME,

ADMIRAL SCHEER SENDS HIS TORPEDO BOATS FORWARD.

AT LEAST 60‐ODD TORPEDO BOATS ALL COME AT THE BRITISH.

ADMIRAL JELLICOE, HE TURNS HIS FLEET

AWAY FROM THE GERMAN TORPEDO BOATS,

WHICH LAUNCH OFF THEIR TORPEDOES,

AND I THINK ONLY ONE HITS ITS TARGET.

BUT THE KEY POINT IS,

SCHEER IS ABLE TO GET HIS FLEET AWAY

INTO THE MIST AND THE DARKNESS

AND ULTIMATELY GETS HIS FLEET HOME.

AND THIS PROVOKES DECADES OF ARGUMENT,

UM, WITHIN THE ROYAL NAVY

ABOUT WHETHER JELLICOE WAS RIGHT TO MAKE THIS DECISION.

Narrator: DURING THE YEARS BETWEEN THE WARS,

TORPEDO BOATS BECAME EVEN MORE TERRIFYING.

STEAM‐DRIVEN TURBINE ENGINES WERE REPLACED

WITH MORE POWERFUL GASOLINE ENGINES.

ONCE AGAIN, IT WAS THE GERMANS WHO LED THE WAY.

A QUIET BOATYARD IN CORNWALL, ENGLAND,

IS AN UNLIKELY PLACE TO FIND A NAZI KILLING MACHINE.

S‐130 IS A GERMAN MOTOR TORPEDO BOAT FROM 1943,

BETTER KNOWN AS AN S‐BOAT.

HAVING FALLEN INTO BRITISH HANDS AT THE END OF THE WAR,

SHE'S CURRENTLY UNDERGOING A FULL RESTORATION.

♪

SINCE THE FIRST WORLD WAR,

THE SIZE AND POWER OF THE GERMAN NAVY

HAD BEEN STRICTLY CONTROLLED BY INTERNATIONAL REGULATIONS.

SO THE GERMANS WENT BACK TO BASICS,

BUILDING SMALL AND SIMPLE VESSELS

THAT CONCEALED THEIR TRUE NATURE.

Harry Bennett: IT'S A WOODEN MOTOR LAUNCH,

AT LEAST THAT'S THE WAY IT APPEARS

IN TERMS OF INTERNATIONAL LAW‐‐

BUT IT'S A WOODEN MOTOR LAUNCH THAT PACKS AN ENORMOUS PUNCH

WITH A TORPEDO THAT CAN SINK A BATTLESHIP.

Narrator: "S‐BOAT" IS SHORT FOR "SCHNELLBOOT."

LITERALLY, "FAST BOAT."

THEY WERE BUILT TO GET CLOSE TO ENEMY TARGETS,

FIRE THEIR TORPEDOES, AND MAKE A QUICK GETAWAY.

Bennett: THIS BOAT IS ALMOST DESIGNED LIKE A KNIFE.

IT'S THERE TO CUT THROUGH THE WATER.

WHAT'S STRIKING ABOUT THIS IS YOU'VE GOT TECHNOLOGY HERE

IN TERMS OF A WOODEN BOAT THAT THE VIKINGS WOULD RECOGNIZE.

THE COMBINATION OF VERY OLD‐FASHIONED WOODEN TECHNOLOGY

TOGETHER WITH THE LATEST IN TERMS OF GERMAN ENGINEERING.

BUT IN THE MIDST OF IT YOU'VE GOT THIS INTERNAL SKELETON

MADE OUT OF ALUMINIUM, WHICH WILL REINFORCE THE WOOD,

AND AT THE HEART OF IT

YOU'VE GOT THESE BIG THREE MARINE DIESELS,

MERCEDES‐BENZ DIESELS‐‐

EACH ONE IS THE SIZE OF A SMALL COMPACT FAMILY CAR‐‐

WHICH WILL POWER THIS THING THROUGH THE WATER

AT 44 TO 45 KNOTS.

Narrator: DESPITE WEIGHING 100 TONS FULLY LOADED,

THE S‐BOATS WERE FASTER THAN ANY OF THE ALLIES' TORPEDO BOATS.

Bennett: AND HERE'S ONE OF THE PROPELLERS,

A BEAUTIFUL PIECE OF WORK.

THREE OF THESE DRIVING THROUGH THE WATER,

EACH ONE VERY, VERY FINELY TUNED.

SO THOSE ENGINES ARE DRIVING THESE THREE PROPELLERS,

EACH ONE A BEAUTIFUL WORK OF ART,

AND THAT'S WHAT'S PUSHING THIS THING THROUGH THE WATER,

LITERALLY AT A RATE OF KNOTS.

THIS IS LIKE THE GERMAN EQUIVALENT OF THE SPITFIRE

IN TERMS OF THE WAR AT SEA.

Narrator: THE RESTORATION OF THE S‐BOAT HAS REVEALED

THE CENTURIES‐OLD CRAFTSMANSHIP OF THE GERMAN SHIPBUILDERS.

Bennett: LOOK AT EACH ONE OF THESE.

IT'S BEAUTIFULLY CUT.

Narrator: BUT IT'S ALSO REVEALED THE WARTIME PRESSURES

THE SHIPYARDS WERE UNDER.

Bennett: YOU BEGIN TO SEE THE PROBLEMS THAT THEY'RE HAVING

WHERE YOU FIND DIFFERENT SIZE SCREWS

BECAUSE THEY'VE RUN OUT OF THE RIGHT SIZE SCREW

FOR THE PARTICULAR JOB,

SO THEY GO TO THE SCREW WHICH IS THE NEXT SIZE UP.

IT TELLS YOU SOMETHING ABOUT THE GERMAN WAR ECONOMY‐‐

IT SAYS, "HEY, WE'RE RUNNING SHORT OF MATERIALS HERE,

WE'RE NOT GETTING THE STUFF THAT WE REALLY WANT."

Narrator: SO HOW SUCCESSFUL

WERE THESE SLEEK, SOPHISTICATED KILLING MACHINES?

ONE KEY GERMAN TACTIC WAS TO DISRUPT BRITISH SUPPLY LINES.

ATLANTIC CONVOYS COULD BE PICKED OFF BY SUBMARINES.

BUT THE CONVOYS THAT HUGGED THE SHALLOW WATERS

OF THE BRITISH COASTLINE

WERE HARDER TO ATTACK.

Bennett: THOSE CONVOYS ARE CARRYING

TYPICALLY THINGS LIKE THE COAL,

WHICH IS ESSENTIAL TO KEEP THE LIGHTS BURNING IN LONDON.

YOU STOP THE COASTAL CONVOYS;

YOU BRING THE BRITISH WAR ECONOMY TO ITS KNEES.

Narrator: WHEN FRANCE FELL IN 1940,

THE S‐BOAT BECAME THE PERFECT BOAT FOR THE JOB.

OPERATING FROM FRENCH CHANNEL PORTS,

THEY COULD CREATE HAVOC ALL ALONG THE NEARBY ENGLISH COAST.

Bennett: THAT'S WHERE THESE THINGS ARE SO DEADLY,

BECAUSE THEY CAN COME FROM THEIR LAIRS AT NIGHT,

THEY CAN SIT THERE, THEY CAN WAIT FOR THE COASTAL CONVOYS.

Narrator: THE S‐BOATS HAD A TACTIC KNOWN AS STICHANSATZ‐‐

OR RANDOM APPROACH.

THEY WOULD HEAD TOWARDS AN ENEMY CONVOY IN A LINE.

TEN MILES OFF, THEY WOULD SPLIT INTO PAIRS,

SPACED TWO MILES APART.

THEN THEY WOULD SIMPLY WAIT

FOR THE CONVOY TO SAIL PAST.

FOR MORE THAN TWO YEARS,

THE GERMAN S‐BOAT HELD THE UPPER HAND

IN THE ENGLISH CHANNEL,

PICKING OFF CONVOYS ALMOST AT WILL.

Bennett: TO GIVE YOU AN IDEA OF THE POTENCY OF THE S‐BOATS,

LATE 1942, OFF THE EDDYSTONE LIGHT,

WHICH ISN'T ACTUALLY FAR FROM WHERE WE ARE TODAY,

GERMAN S‐BOATS SINK, DURING THE COURSE OF A FEW MINUTES,

THREE MERCHANT SHIPS,

AN ARMED TRAWLER, WHICH IS THERE FOR THEIR DEFENSE.

OVER 30 SEAMEN LOSE THEIR LIVES.

IF THESE THINGS CAN ENGAGE THEIR TARGET,

THE COASTAL CONVOYS, THEY CAN BE MURDEROUSLY DESTRUCTIVE.

THAT'S WHERE THE TORPEDO TUBE WOULD SIT,

ONE EACH SIDE OF THE BOAT, AND IMMEDIATELY BEHIND IT

A LITTLE WAY FURTHER DOWN THE DECK,

THAT'S WHERE THE RELOADS WOULD SIT.

SO IN OTHER WORDS, YOU COULD FIRE OFF ONE TORPEDO,

THEN YOU COULD BRING UP THE RELOAD,

EASE IT INTO THE TUBE, YOU'D BE READY TO GO AGAIN.

THOSE TORPEDOES WOULD STILL SINK ANY SHIP TODAY,

THOSE CANNON INFLICT DAMAGE EVEN ON A SHIP TODAY,

SO THIS THING, EVEN THOUGH IT'S 70 YEARS OLD,

STILL HAS GOT A LOT OF FORMIDABLE POTENCY ABOUT IT.

EVEN THOUGH WE SEE IT HERE IN KIND OF A RESTORATION STATE,

THIS THING OOZES POWER, OOZES AUTHORITY.

♪

Narrator: BY MID 1943, THE GERMANS WERE PREPARING

FOR WHAT THEY BELIEVED WAS INEVITABLE‐‐

AN ALLIED INVASION OF EUROPE.

THE S‐BOAT WOULD NOW PROVE ITS ADAPTABILITY.

THE TERROR OF THE BRITISH COASTLINE

WOULD BECOME FIRST LINE OF DEFENSE

FOR THE FRENCH COAST.

Bennett: AS THE WAR HAS BEGUN TO TIP IN THE BALANCE,

THESE THINGS THEN BECOME PERHAPS YOUR PRIMARY MEANS

TO DELAY OR TO STOP THE ALLIED INVASION.

THEY WANT THESE THINGS TO INTERCEPT THE ALLIES

AND HOPEFULLY TO DO SUFFICIENT DAMAGE

TO GIVE THE GERMAN ARMY A CHANCE AT THE WATERFRONT.

Narrator: IN APRIL 1944,

THE GERMAN S‐BOATS DID INFLICT A BLOW TO ALLIED INVASION PLANS.

Craig Symonds: FOR A LONG TIME IT WAS KEPT SECRET

BECAUSE THE FEAR WAS, BOY, THIS WILL NOT BE GOOD FOR MORALE.

Narrator: AFTER 40 YEARS,

IT TOOK ONE MAN'S TENACITY TO UNCOVER THE TRUTH.

Dean Small: AND I NEVER FORGET ONCE

A VETERAN SAYING TO MY DAD, KEN SMALL, I OWE YOU EVERYTHING.

AND MY DAD SAID, "NO, I OWE YOU EVERYTHING."

Narrator: THE BEAUTIFUL SOUTHWEST COAST OF ENGLAND

IS AN UNLIKELY AREA OF CONFLICT.

BUT FOUR YEARS INTO THE SECOND WORLD WAR,

THE PEOPLE OF SLAPTON WERE MOVED FROM THEIR HOMES

SO THAT MILITARY EXERCISES COULD TAKE PLACE.

THE TRUTH OF WHAT HAPPENED DURING THOSE EXERCISES

REMAINED A MYSTERY FOR 40 YEARS.

IN THE 1970s, KEN SMALL WAS RUNNING A LOCAL GUESTHOUSE.

IN HIS SPARE TIME, HE WOULD GO BEACHCOMBING.

HE OFTEN FOUND COINS AND JEWELRY.

BUT AT SLAPTON, HIS FINDS WERE MORE SINISTER.

Small: HE HAD THIS HUGE CONTAINER,

WHERE HE WOULD LITERALLY PUT

HUNDREDS ALMOST, OF PIECES OF SHRAPNEL,

AND THEY WOULD JUST GO INTO THE BUCKET,

ALONG WITH BULLET HEADS, BULLET CASES, ET CETERA.

BUT EVERY NOW AND THEN,

HE MIGHT FIND AN I. D. BRACELET WITH A NAME ON IT.

AND THE NAMES SOMETIMES, YOU KNOW,

WERE TYPICALLY AMERICAN.

WHEN YOU FIND BULLET CASES, BULLET HEADS,

IT'S NOT SO PERSONAL.

WHEN YOU FIND RINGS, TUNIC BUTTONS, BELT BUCKLES,

I.D. BRACELETS, THINGS LIKE THAT, THEN IT...

THEN IT BECOMES MORE REAL.

Narrator: KEN SUSPECTED THAT THE TRAINING EXERCISES OF THE 1940s

HAD GONE TERRIBLY WRONG.

BUT LITTLE DID HE REALIZE HE WAS UNCOVERING

ONE OF THE GREATEST SECRETS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

IT WAS AN ALLIED DISASTER AT THE HANDS OF GERMAN S‐BOATS.

KEN TALKED ABOUT HIS BEACH FINDS TO LOCAL FISHERMAN TONY STEER.

HE TOO HAD DISCOVERED SOMETHING HE COULDN'T ACCOUNT FOR.

Small: TONY EXPLAINED THAT THERE WAS THIS OBJECT AT SEA,

IN AN AREA OF THE SEABED WHERE THERE WASN'T ANY ROCKS.

AND MY DAD JUST SAID, WELL, SURELY, YOU KNOW,

AREN'T YOU CURIOUS, DON'T YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT IT IS?

EVENTUALLY, MY DAD PERSUADED HIM TO PUT ON SOME DIVING EQUIPMENT,

'CAUSE TONY WAS A DIVER, AND HE DIVED DOWN TO LOOK,

AND THAT'S WHEN HE CAME UP AND SAID TO MY DAD,

"YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE THIS, IT'S A SHERMAN TANK."

Narrator: IN 1974, KEN PAID THE U. S. GOVERNMENT $50

FOR THE RIGHTS TO THE TANK.

TEN YEARS LATER, WITH THE PRESS AND PUBLIC WATCHING,

THE TANK WAS RAISED FROM THE SEABED AND BROUGHT ASHORE.

AS NEWS OF KEN'S EXTRAORDINARY DISCOVERY

SPREAD ACROSS THE WORLD,

THOSE INVOLVED IN THE MYSTERIOUS MILITARY EXERCISES

FELT ABLE TO SPEAK OUT FOR THE FIRST TIME.

Small: THE KEY TURNING POINT WAS THE TANK.

ONCE IT CAME UP,

THAT'S WHEN MANY OF THE VETERANS THOUGHT,

WELL, HEY, THIS IS OUT NOW, MAYBE I SHOULD SPEAK OF IT.

Narrator: AFTER 40 YEARS OF SECRECY,

IT WAS REVEALED THAT THE TANK HAD BEEN INVOLVED

IN A MASSIVE NINE‐DAY REHEARSAL FOR THE D‐DAY LANDINGS,

KNOWN AS EXERCISE TIGER.

IT INVOLVED OVER 30,000 AMERICAN TROOPS.

SLAPTON SANDS WAS CHOSEN BECAUSE IT RESEMBLED

THE BEACH AT NORMANDY THE AMERICANS NAMED UTAH BEACH.

Symonds: THEY FILLED UP THE TRANSPORTS AT PORTSMOUTH,

SENT 'EM OUT TO SEA,

AND THE ORDER WAS TO GO FAR ENOUGH OUT INTO THE CHANNEL

SO THAT IT WOULD DUPLICATE

THE TIME IT WOULD TAKE TO CROSS THE CHANNEL,

SO THAT AS YOU ARE COMING IN, JUST BEFORE DAWN,

IT WILL FEEL JUST LIKE A LANDING IN NORMANDY;

WE WANT TO MAKE THIS AS REALISTIC AS POSSIBLE.

Narrator: BUT EXERCISE TIGER WAS ABOUT TO BECOME

MORE REALISTIC THAN ANYONE IMAGINED.

GERMAN INTELLIGENCE HAD PICKED UP

A SERIES OF RADIO SIGNALS IN THE AREA.

Bennett: YOU DON'T HAVE TO BREAK CODES

TO REALIZE THE KIND OF NOISE THAT A CONVOY MAKES AT SEA

AS SIGNALS ARE BEING EXCHANGED WITH LAND STATIONS,

SO YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW WHAT'S ACTUALLY BEING SAID,

YOU MIGHT NOT KNOW WHAT'S ACTUALLY AT SEA,

BUT YOU KNOW SOMETHING'S AT SEA

BECAUSE SIGNALS ARE BEING EXCHANGED.

THE GERMAN RADIO SERVICE INTERCEPTS THOSE SIGNALS

AND BASICALLY SAYS TO THE 5th AND 9th S‐BOAT FLOTILLAS

IN CHERBOURG, "THERE'S SOMETHING OUT THERE.

GO AND FIND OUT WHAT IT IS."

Narrator: IN THE EARLY HOURS OF APRIL 28th,

GERMAN S‐BOATS ARRIVED OFF THE COAST OF DEVON.

AMONG THEM, THE FORMIDABLE S‐130.

WHAT THE S‐BOATS FOUND WAS AN INVITING TARGET.

EIGHT TANK LANDING SHIPS

WERE HEADING IN A LINE TOWARDS THE BEACH,

ESCORTED BY THE ROYAL NAVY.

THE S‐BOATS SWIFTLY ADOPTED

THE STICHANSATZ RANDOM APPROACH TACTIC

AND MOVED IN FOR A TORPEDO ATTACK.

FOR THOUSANDS OF AMERICAN TROOPS,

THE D‐DAY REHEARSAL WAS ABOUT TO BECOME VERY REAL.

Bennett: AND WHEN GERMAN TORPEDOES FROM THE S‐BOATS

BEGIN TO HIT THOSE TANK LANDING SHIPS,

IT SETS ON FIRE SOME OF THE FUEL

IN THE PETROL TANKS OF THE VEHICLES

WHICH ARE THERE ON THE VEHICLE DECKS,

AND IT'S CARNAGE.

[EXPLOSION]

Actor as Steve Sadlon: OUR SIGNALMAN WAS ON THE STERN

WITH THE REST OF THEM.

AND HE SAID TO ME "I'M NOT GONNA JUMP INTO THAT COLD WATER."

AND POINTING TO THE FIRE AND EXPLOSIONS BEHIND US,

I SAID, "WELL, MAKE YOUR CHOICE:

YOU'RE EITHER GONNA BURN TO DEATH ON THE SHIP

OR YOU'LL FREEZE TO DEATH IN THE SEA."

THAT WAS THE LAST I SAW OF HIM.

Bennett: SOME SOLDIERS AND SAILORS DIE

IN THE INITIAL EXPLOSION.

SOME DROWN TRAPPED IN THE HULL.

SOME ARE BURNED TO DEATH,

SOME ARE KILLED AS THEY GO OVER THE SIDE.

Sadlon: WE GOT PAST THE BURNING WATER,

THE DEAD, AND THE PEOPLE YELLING FOR HELP, AND...

WE FLOATED BY THIS OFFICER WHO TOLD ME TO SAVE MY BREATH,

STOP SCREAMING FOR HELP LIKE THE REST OF THEM,

BECAUSE NOBODY WAS GONNA HELP US.

Bennett: WHAT THOSE MEN WENT THROUGH THAT NIGHT

WAS UNIMAGINABLE HELL.

Narrator: FINALLY, COMING UNDER HEAVY FIRE THEMSELVES,

THE S‐BOATS TURNED AND HEADED BACK ACROSS THE CHANNEL.

BUT WITH OVER 700 SERVICEMEN LEFT DEAD OR DYING,

THE UTAH BEACH REHEARSAL PROVED FAR MORE COSTLY TO THE AMERICANS

THAN THE REAL UTAH BEACH INVASION

SOME FIVE AND A HALF WEEKS LATER.

FORTUNATELY FOR THE ALLIES,

THE GERMANS NEVER REALIZED THE SIGNIFICANCE

OF THE EXERCISE THEY'D STUMBLED UPON.

D‐DAY REMAINED A SECRET,

AND THE SURVIVORS OF THE S‐BOAT TORPEDO ATTACK

WERE ORDERED TO KEEP THE DISASTER TO THEMSELVES.

Symonds: FOR A LONG TIME IT WAS KEPT SECRET

BECAUSE THE FEAR WAS, BOY, THIS WILL NOT BE GOOD FOR MORALE

FOR THE INVADING TROOPS

OR FOR POLITICAL SUPPORT FROM BACK HOME.

Narrator: AN OFFICIAL SECRET TURNED INTO A 40‐YEAR SILENCE,

UNTIL KEN SMALL'S SHERMAN TANK BECAME A MEMORIAL

TO THOSE WHO LOST THEIR LIVES AT SLAPTON SANDS.

Small: PRETTY WELL EVERYONE INVOLVED,

ESPECIALLY THE FAMILIES NOW, THEY'RE FOREVER SAYING TO ME,

DEAN, WE OWE YOUR DAD A DEBT OF GRATITUDE AND...

AND I NEVER FORGET ONCE A VETERAN SAYING TO MY DAD,

"KEN SMALL, I OWE YOU EVERYTHING."

AND MY DAD SAID, "NO, I OWE YOU EVERYTHING."

Narrator: GERMAN S‐BOATS WERE FEARED‐‐

AND WITH GOOD REASON.

BUT THEY WEREN'T ENTIRELY UNMATCHED.

AT THE OUTBREAK OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR,

THE GERMAN NAVY HAD 15 MOTOR TORPEDO BOATS.

ALTHOUGH THE ROYAL NAVY HAD OVER A DOZEN IN THE MEDITERRANEAN,

ONLY THREE WERE IN HOME WATERS.

ONE OF THEM WAS MOTOR TORPEDO BOAT 102.

♪

MTB 102 WAS THE BRAINCHILD

OF THE VOSPERS SHIPBUILDING COMPANY.

HER SLEEK DESIGN AND FIREPOWER WERE UNMATCHED.

AND THE ROYAL NAVY'S MTB FLEET EXPANDED SWIFTLY FROM 3 TO 60.

Richard Basey: THIS WAS THE FIRST SMALL BOAT

TO CARRY TWO 21‐INCH TORPEDOES‐‐

PREVIOUSLY THEY'D BEEN 18‐INCH TORPEDOES.

THEY WERE FIRED ON THE SMALL CRAFT

BY AN EXPLOSIVE CHARGE,

LIKE A BIG GUN, IN EFFECT.

THEY JUST FELL OUT OF THE, THE END OF THE BARREL

AND FLOPPED IN THE WATER AND OFF THEY WENT.

INSIDE THEM THEY HAD A LITTLE DIESEL ENGINE

AND THEY RAN AT SOMEWHERE AROUND 40 KNOTS,

AND THEY HAD A RANGE OF ABOUT 5,000 YARDS.

Narrator: BUT IT WASN'T JUST THE WEAPONS SYSTEM

THAT MADE THIS VESSEL UNIQUE.

THE DESIGNER, PETER DU CANE,

WAS AN AIRCRAFT PILOT AS WELL AS A SHIPBUILDER.

BY STREAMLINING THE BOAT'S HULL LIKE A PLANE'S FUSELAGE,

HE INCREASED ITS SPEED BY 10 KNOTS.

ARMED WITH TORPEDOES AND DEPTH CHARGES,

THE MOTOR TORPEDO BOAT FLEET

WAS DESIGNED TO ATTACK WARSHIPS AND SUBMARINES.

BUT THEIR TRUE IDENTITY WAS KEPT UNDER WRAPS.

AS FAR AS THE GERMANS WERE CONCERNED,

THEY WERE SIMPLY CMBs‐‐ COASTAL MOTOR BOATS.

OF ALL THE MTBs, 102 IS UNDOUBTEDLY THE MOST CELEBRATED.

IT SERVED THROUGHOUT THE WAR

AND HAS THE UNIQUE CLAIM OF BEING THE SMALLEST VESSEL

EVER TO SERVE AS A ROYAL NAVY FLAGSHIP.

IN SPRING 1940,

THE MASS EVACUATION OF TROOPS FROM DUNKIRK

WAS BEING OVERSEEN FROM THE DESTROYER HMS KEITH.

BUT ON JUNE 1st, THE KEITH WAS BOMBED BY THE LUFTWAFFE

AND HAD TO BE ABANDONED.

Basey: ADMIRAL WAKE‐WALKER, WHO WAS ON BOARD KEITH

AND IN COMMAND AT SEA,

THEN TRANSFERRED HIS STAFF TO THE NEAREST NAVAL VESSEL,

WHICH HAPPENED TO BE MTB 102.

Narrator: A FLAGSHIP NEEDS AN ADMIRAL'S FLAG.

THE TORPEDO BOAT DIDN'T HAVE ONE, SO THEY IMPROVISED.

Basey: THE CREW ACTUALLY MADE AN ADMIRAL'S FLAG

FROM AN ADMIRALTY ISSUE DISHCLOTH,

WHICH IS AN OFF‐WHITE SQUARE DISHCLOTH

WITH A RED LINE WOVEN THROUGH THE MIDDLE OF IT.

THEY THEN PAINTED IN THE OTHER HALF OF THE RED CROSS,

WHICH IS, THEN GIVES YOU THE FLAG OF ADMIRALTY,

AND TWO BALLS ON IT TO SHOW

THERE WAS A REAR ADMIRAL ON BOARD.

AND SO FOR THE LAST THREE DAYS OF THE DUNKIRK EVACUATION,

102 IS TEARING IN AND OUT OF DUNKIRK HARBOR

WITH AN ADMIRALTY DISHCLOTH AT THE MASTHEAD.

♪

Narrator: FOUR YEARS LATER,

102 ESCORTED WINSTON CHURCHILL AND GENERAL EISENHOWER

ON AN INSPECTION TOUR OF THE SHIPS ASSEMBLED FOR D‐DAY

OFF THE ENGLISH COAST.

THIS CELEBRATED BRITISH MOTOR TORPEDO BOAT

IS NOW THE LAST STILL OPERATIONAL.

Basey: SHE IS AN ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC VESSEL.

IT'S JUST AMAZING THAT ONE SMALL SHIP

COULD HAVE DONE SO MUCH IN ITS LIFETIME.

IT'S ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE.

I STILL PERSONALLY CAN'T COME TO TERMS

WITH WHAT THIS BOAT HAS BEEN THROUGH IN ITS HISTORY.

Narrator: MTB 102 DESERVES ITS LEGENDARY REPUTATION.

BUT IT'S NOT THE MOST FAMOUS TORPEDO BOAT.

THAT ACCOLADE GOES TO ANOTHER VESSEL.

Tony Badger: PT 109'S CUT IN HALF,

THE WRECKAGE IS ON FIRE,

THEY'RE SITTING TARGETS FOR JAPANESE AIRCRAFT.

Narrator: THE STORY OF THIS ONE BOAT

WAS ENOUGH TO FORGE THE CAREER OF A 20th CENTURY ICON.

ON JANUARY 20, 1961,

A MOTOR TORPEDO BOAT BECAME AN UNLIKELY STAR

AT ONE OF THE WORLD'S GREAT SPECTACLES‐‐

THE INAUGURATION OF A U. S. PRESIDENT.

JOHN F. KENNEDY HAD JUST BECOME

THE MOST POWERFUL MAN ON THE PLANET.

BUT 18 YEARS EARLIER, HE'D MADE HIS NAME IN THE PACIFIC,

AS A PATROL TORPEDO BOAT SKIPPER.

PT BOATS‐‐AS THEY WERE KNOWN‐‐

WERE POPULAR WITH THE AMERICAN PUBLIC.

Man: BUT I'D LIKE YOU TO MEET

THE REAL SWEETHEART OF THE NAVY, 1944 MODEL.

Woman: YOU MEAN ME?

Man: NO, NOT YOU, RED. I MEAN HER.

Louis Scorzieloo: AND I GOT TO TELL YOU,

A LOT PEOPLE THOUGHT THAT WAS

A VERY GLAMOROUS THING TO BE IN, WAS THE PT BOATS,

ESPECIALLY SAILORS THAT WERE ON BIG SHIPS.

THEY THOUGHT, WOW, THIS IS... [WHISTLES]

YOU GUYS ARE REALLY SOMETHING!

Narrator: FOR A YOUNG JACK KENNEDY,

HIS PT BOAT EXPLOITS MADE HIM A WAR HERO

AND MADE THE BOATS LEGENDARY AS WELL.

THEY WERE LIGHT, THEY WERE FAST, AND THEY PACKED A LETHAL PUNCH.

♪

IN THE PACIFIC, PT BOATS PROVED TO BE SMALL AND DEADLY.

THE JAPANESE CALLED THEM MOSQUITOES.

Donald Shannon: OUT OF 434 PT BOATS

IN THE PACIFIC THEATER,

THEY SANK 1,200 VESSELS

AND 47 AIRCRAFT.

EARLY ON THEY WOULD CARRY FOUR TORPEDOES AND TORPEDO TUBES.

THE TORPEDOES HAD A WARHEAD

WITH A 600‐POUND EXPLOSIVE CHARGE IN THERE‐‐

CAPABLE OF SINKING LARGE SHIPS.

Narrator: PT BOATS WERE LOADED WITH WEAPONS.

THEY HAD TWIN .50‐CALIBER MACHINE GUNS

ORIGINALLY DESIGNED TO BE USED IN AIRCRAFT.

Shannon: THEY HAD A VERY HIGH RATE OF FIRE

AND THEY WERE VERY EFFECTIVE.

ON A PT BOAT, EVERYTHING WAS KEPT SIMPLE.

THIS GUN TURRET WAS ALL MANUALLY OPERATED.

THE GUNNER WOULD PUSH HIS BACK AGAINST THIS

AND USE HIS FEET ACTUALLY TO ROTATE THIS GUN

ON ROLLER BEARINGS.

BECAUSE IT WAS SUCH A SMALL VESSEL

AND EVERYONE ON THE CREW HAD TO CROSS TRAIN,

KNOW A LITTLE BIT ABOUT EACH OTHER'S JOBS

IN CASE SOMEONE WAS WOUNDED OR INJURED IN BATTLE,

AND SOMETIMES THEY HAD TO TRADE OFF.

Scorzieloo: I WAS THE RADAR OPERATOR,

AND I ALSO MANNED THE 20‐MILLIMETER GUN.

MY JOB WAS STANDBY AS A COOK, TOO, WHEN OUR COOK GOT SICK.

Narrator: THE PT BOAT CREWS WERE FEARLESS.

WHEN UNDER ATTACK FROM JAPANESE DESTROYERS,

THEY USED A TACTIC THAT WAS INGENIOUS BUT NEARLY SUICIDAL.

Shannon: THEY WOULD PULL RIGHT ALONGSIDE THE DESTROYER

WHERE THE GUNS COULDN'T DEPRESS ENOUGH

TO SHOOT AT THE TORPEDO BOAT

AND FIRE BACK AT THE SEARCHLIGHTS,

CAUSE CONFUSION, AND THEN THEY COULD RETREAT.

[GUNFIRE]

Narrator: BUT FOR ALL THEIR IMPRESSIVE FIREPOWER

AND CHARISMA,

PT BOATS HAD A NUMBER OF WEAKNESSES.

THEIR TORPEDOES SOMETIMES FAILED TO LEAVE THE TUBE.

Shannon: WITH NO RESISTANCE OR COOLING FROM THE SEA WATER,

THE TURBINES IN THE TORPEDO WOULD OVERHEAT AND BLOW APART.

Narrator: EVEN IF THE TORPEDOES DID FIRE PROPERLY,

THE EXPLOSIVE CHARGE COULD GIVE AWAY THE BOAT'S POSITION.

Shannon: IT COULD GIVE OFF A FLASH OF LIGHT,

WHICH WOULD GIVE THEIR LOCATION OFF AT NIGHT.

ALSO THE GREASE IN THE TUBE

COULD IGNITE AND BURN FOR EVEN FIVE SECONDS

WAS A HUGE SIGNAL FOR THE ENEMY SHIP

TO HOME ON THE PT BOAT.

Narrator: LIFE ON A PT BOAT

WAS UNLIKE ANY OTHER IN THE U. S. NAVY.

CREWS DEVELOPED WAYS TO COPE WITH THE DANGER THEY FACED.

Scorzieloo: WELL, YOU USED TO PLAY A GAME WITH CARDS.

YOU'D DEAL THE CARDS OUT, TURN THEM OVER,

WHOEVER GOT THE LOWEST CARD WAS GONNA GET KILLED THAT NIGHT.

THAT'S HOW WE PLAYED IT.

PUT IT THIS WAY, I WOULD HAVE PREFERRED TO BE WHERE I WAS

THAN ON A CARRIER WHERE YOU HAD 2,500 MEN,

AND THE ONLY GUY YOU KNEW WAS THE GUY YOU SLEPT NEXT TO.

WE WERE A VERY CLOSE GROUP, VERY, VERY REAL,

LOT OF FUN WITH EACH OTHER.

YOU KNOW, WE REALLY TOOK GOOD CARE OF EACH OTHER.

Narrator: THE NOVELTY OF THE PT BOATS

APPEALED TO A YOUNG JOHN F. KENNEDY.

AT THE AGE OF 26, HE WAS IN THE PACIFIC COMMANDING PT 109.

IT WAS PART OF A TORPEDO BOAT SQUADRON BASED ON RENDOVA‐‐

ONE OF THE SOLOMON ISLANDS.

BY EARLY 1943,

THE AMERICANS WERE PUSHING THE JAPANESE OUT OF THE REGION.

THE PT'S JOB WAS TO PREVENT JAPANESE DESTROYERS

FROM SUPPLYING THEIR REMAINING TROOPS ON THE SOLOMONS.

JFK WAS ANXIOUS TO PROVE HIMSELF

AND DISTANCE HIMSELF FROM HIS FATHER, JOSEPH KENNEDY,

THE FORMER U. S. AMBASSADOR TO LONDON.

Badger: KENNEDY WANTED TO SERVE IN WORLD WAR II

BECAUSE HIS FATHER HAD A REPUTATION

AS A DEFEATIST AND AS AN APPEASER,

AND KENNEDY WANTED TO PROVE THAT HE COULD LIVE THAT DOWN.

IN HIS WORDS, HE DIDN'T WANT TO WEAR COWARD'S TWEEDS.

Narrator: KENNEDY'S MOMENT CAME AT THE END OF JULY 1943,

WHEN INTELLIGENCE INFORMED HIS BASE

THAT A GROUP OF JAPANESE DESTROYERS

WAS APPROACHING THE SOLOMON ISLANDS.

15 PTs WERE SENT OUT IN ONE OF THE LARGEST OPERATIONS

OF THE SOLOMON ISLANDS CAMPAIGN.

Badger: THEY FIND THE DESTROYERS

RATHER EARLIER THAN THEY EXPECTED

BECAUSE THEY WERE AT LEAST AN HOUR AHEAD OF SCHEDULE,

UM, AND AT THAT POINT ALL HELL BROKE LOOSE.

Narrator: THE AMERICAN BOATS FIRE TORPEDOES AT THE JAPANESE‐‐

BUT THEY ALL MISS.

ON BOARD PT 109, KENNEDY AND HIS LOOKOUT

SPOT A DESTROYER COMING AT THEM.

IT'S AIMING TO SPLIT THEIR BOAT IN TWO.

Shannon: HE TRIED TO TURN TO A 30‐DEGREE ANGLE

TO LAUNCH A TORPEDO ATTACK,

BUT BEFORE HE HAD TIME TO EVEN MANEUVER FULLY,

THE DESTROYER WAS RIGHT ON TOP OF THEM

AND CUT INTO THE BOAT, WENT RIGHT ALONG DOWNSIDE THE BOAT.

MARNEY, WHO WAS IN THE GUN TURRET,

WAS KILLED ON IMPACT,

AND THE DESTROYER WENT RIGHT DOWN THE SIDE OF THE BOAT,

MIDSHIP, HIT THE FUEL TANK AND IGNITED THE FUEL,

AND YOU CAN IMAGINE THE IMPACT OF A DESTROYER OVER 2,000 TONS

HITTING AN 80‐FOOT WOODEN BOAT.

[BIRDS SQUAWKING]

Badger: PT 109'S CUT IN HALF, THE WRECKAGE IS ON FIRE,

THE MEN ARE SCATTERED AROUND

IN THIS AVIATION‐FUELED SEA AROUND THEM.

THEY'RE SITTING TARGETS FOR JAPANESE AIRCRAFT,

AND SO THEY HAVE TO FIND SOME WAY

OF GETTING ONTO THIS WRECKAGE,

AND THAT WRECKAGE WILL ONLY LAST A CERTAIN TIME

BEFORE IT GOES UNDER.

AND THE ONE THING, OF COURSE, THEY ARE EXPECTING

IS THAT THERE WILL BE A SEARCH FOR THEM

BY THE REMAINING PT BOATS, AND THERE NEVER IS.

AND IT'S ONE OF THE THINGS KENNEDY WAS, IN RETROSPECT,

EXTREMELY BITTER ABOUT.

AS LATE AS 1960 HE MET SOMEONE FROM ONE OF THE OTHER BOATS

IN A LIFT AT THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION,

AND WHEN THE MAN INTRODUCED HIMSELF,

ALL KENNEDY COULD SAY TO HIM WAS "WHERE WERE YOU?"

Narrator: NO SEARCH PARTY WAS SENT FOR THE CREW OF PT 109.

THEY WERE ALL BELIEVED TO BE DEAD.

IN FACT, FOR NINE HOURS,

THE 11 SURVIVORS CLUNG TO WHAT WAS LEFT OF THE HULL.

WITH NO SIGN OF A RESCUE,

THEY DECIDED TO SWIM TOWARD A DISTANT ISLAND.

KENNEDY GRABBED THE STRAP

OF AN INJURED CREW MEMBER'S LIFEJACKET,

CLENCHED IT IN HIS TEETH,

AND FOR FOUR HOURS PULLED THE MAN

THROUGH SHARK‐INFESTED WATERS TO SAFETY.

FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS, THE CREW SWAM FROM ISLAND TO ISLAND,

LOOKING FOR COCONUTS AND DRINKING WATER.

WHEN THEY FOUND A NATIVE ISLANDER,

KENNEDY CARVED A MESSAGE ON A COCONUT

FOR HIM TO TAKE TO THE ALLIED FORCES:

SEVEN DAYS AFTER BEING SHIPWRECKED,

THEY WERE FINALLY RESCUED BY A PT BOAT.

KENNEDY RETURNED HOME A HERO.

HE WON THE NAVY AND MARINE CORPS MEDAL

AND THE PURPLE HEART.

Badger: HE WAS LUCKY IN THE SENSE

THAT THE PT 157 THAT CAME TO RESCUE THEM

HAD TWO EMBEDDED WAR CORRESPONDENTS THERE,

AND SO THEY REPORTED THE STORY,

AND ONCE IT GOT THROUGH THE NAVAL CENSORS,

IT BECAME HEADLINE NEWS.

Narrator: PT 109 HAS BECOME PART OF THE JFK MYTHOLOGY.

IT FREED HIM FROM HIS FATHER'S SHADOW

AND SET HIM ON A PATH TO THE WHITE HOUSE.

A DECISION WAS MADE TO INCORPORATE A SURVIVING PT BOAT

FOR HIS INAUGURATION IN JANUARY 1961.

PT 109 WAS CHEERED ON THE STREETS OF WASHINGTON.

Badger: KENNEDY'S SERVICE ON THE PT 109

IS WHAT ENABLES HIM TO HAVE A POLITICAL CAREER,

IN APPEALING TO THE GREATEST GENERATION IN AMERICA‐‐

THE PEOPLE WHO SERVED IN WORLD WAR II‐‐

AND THEY BECOME A CRUCIAL PART OF POST‐WAR POLITICS,

AND KENNEDY HAS THIS IN WITH THEM

BECAUSE OF THIS GENUINE RECORD OF HEROISM.

Narrator: THE COCONUT CARVED 8,000 MILES AWAY

IN THE SOLOMON ISLANDS

HAD BEEN RETURNED TO KENNEDY.

HE PLACED IT ON HIS DESK IN THE OVAL OFFICE.

THE SECOND WORLD WAR WAS UNDOUBTEDLY THE HIGH POINT

FOR THE TORPEDO BOAT‐‐

THEY WERE FAST, FEARED... AND EVEN GLAMOROUS.

BUT FROM 1945, THAT DAREDEVIL AGE,

ACTED OUT IN SMALL WOODEN COMBAT SHIPS,

DREW TO A CLOSE.

TORPEDOES WOULD BE JOINED BY MISSILE TECHNOLOGY.

WEAPONS AND THEIR WARSHIPS

WOULD NOW ENTER THE NUCLEAR AGE.