![]() ![]() On a quiet night, PBRs running at high speed could be heard more than three miles away. ![]() The long patrol hours meant little time for maintenance, and spare parts were at a premium, though the availability of parts improved by mid-1968. They also recommended that divers frequently clear the pump intakes of rice, fish, grass, weeds and the occasional snake. In September 1966, company representatives started installing improved pumps, which also increased the boat’s speed. The Jacuzzi pumps also aged quickly in the harsh conditions. The cracks apparently were caused by repeated hoisting and lowering into the water, and heavy weather. Cracks allowed water to invade the Styrofoam hull reinforcement. The Navy experienced problems with the Mark I PBRs within a few months of deployment.Ĭrews noticed premature aging, corrosion and deterioration of the fiberglass hull. ![]() (Journalist 1st Class Ernest Filtz, now in the collections of the 50 caliber machine gun mount with belt link feed as his craft patrols the Yung Tau River in Vietnam on 14 April 1966 in anticipation of trouble with the Vietcong. S River Patrol Boat crewman mans his twin air-cooled. and South Vietnamese military were based on a pleasure boat design constructed by Uniflite, a boatyard in Bellingham, Washington, on the northern end of Puget Sound near the Canadian border. The 11 PBRs delivered in March 1966 and the approximately 300 delivered over the next few years to the U.S. ![]() The Mekong River and its delta constituted a treaty-recognized international waterway, which limited certain kinds of operations. They were authorized to board and search all river craft-except foreign-flagged steel-hull merchant ships, warships and military, police or customs craft, unless specifically authorized by the task force commander. Game Warden units performed harassment and interdiction operations, river patrols and minesweeping operations, especially along the main Saigon shipping channels. Game Warden forces were charged with disrupting Viet Cong infiltration and resupply operations, destroying VC insurgents in their areas of operation and enforcing South Vietnamese government curfews. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |