Wooden boats of World War II
Splinter fleet or Splinter navy was a nickname given to the United States wooden boats used in World War II. The boats served in many different roles during the war. These boats were built in small boatyards on the West coast and East coast, Great Lakes and the Gulf of Mexico. They could be built quickly, in just 60 to 120 days. Most of the boats were built by boatyards that already had the tools and knowledge from building yachts, sailboats and motor boats. Many were built by craftsmen in family-owned small businesses. Under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program and War Shipping Administration contracts went out to over fifty boatyards across the country. The boats were built for the US Navy, the United States Army Air Forces, United States Coast Guard, and US Army. Some of the wooden boats went to Allied nations on the Lend-Lease program.
In addition to new boat construction, some wooden boats built between 1910 and 1941 were acquired for the war effort, some used as-is and others converted for war use. Wooden boats have lighter weight and are easier to repair than steel hull boats. These wooden boats ranged from 19 to 200 feet in length. Some worked near shore and others working in the open ocean, called the Blue-water navy. The Splinter fleet is in contrast to the more common steel hull war ships and Merchant Marine ships. After the war, many of these boats were deemed not needed. Many were abandoned or destroyed, a few served in the Korean War and a few in the Vietnam War, some sold to private and some donated. During World War I there was a debate as to if wooden boats and ships should be used in war time. William Denman, President of the Emergency Fleet Corporation, supported the building of wooden ships for the war while General Goethals disapproved. In the end, both men turned in their resignation over the heated debate. During World War II the situation was different. There was a shortage of steel and steel shipyards, so there was no debate about the need for a vast wooden fleet of boats and ships.
Submarine chaser
Submarine chasers were built to combat the threat U-boats put on merchant convoys as they departed American ports to support the Allies. These are wooden and 98 tons boats used in anti-submarine warfare. By the time the war ended 438 sub chasers had been launched and commissioned. US Navy boats were armed with one 3"/50 caliber gun, one Bofors 40 mm gun, three Oerlikon 20 mm cannons, two rocket launchers, four K-guns and Mousetraps and two depth charge racks. By the end of World War II, submarine chasers had sunk around 67 German U-boats. Submarine chasers, destroyers, destroyer escorts and Anti-submarine aircraft has ended the U-boat as a major threat in the Battle of the Atlantic. Theodore R. Treadwell wrote a book called Splinter Fleet: The Wooden Subchasers of World War II in 2000 outlining the work of the 40,000 men that served on Submarine chaser in the open seas. Examples: and.Crash boats
Crash boats of World War II were wooden speed boats built to rescue the crew of downed United States and other Allies airplanes during World War II. By the end of World War II, America had produced 300,000 planes, creating a need to have crash rescue boats, also called Recovery Craft, stationed around the globe. These boats were fast boats used to rescue pilots, crew, and passengers from downed aircraft in search and rescue, air-sea rescue missions. The boats were as small as 22-foot and the largest 104-foot. There were four standard designs used: 104-foot, 85-foot, 63-foot and 42-foot. Most were manned by the United States Army Air Forces. Many had the Hull classification designation Air Rescue Boats or ARB or AVR or P or C or R. The 104-foot had a cold-weather option, that added a heating system, ice protection on the hull, insulation for working around Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands. Most were used in the Pacific War bases across the vast South Pacific, in the Island hopping campaign. Before departing most were part of the US Navy Small Craft Training Centers for training troops and sea trials.PT boats
PT boats are well known as these small boats were heavily armed, pound for pound the deadliest boats of the war, also called motor torpedo boats. The main anti-ship weapon was four 21-inch Mark 8 torpedoes, each with a TNT warhead. These had a range of at. For anti-aircraft defense they had two twin M2 Browning heavy machine guns. Some PTs had a Oerlikon cannon added. The boats were powered with three Packard 4M-2500 and later 5M-2500 supercharged gasoline-fueled, liquid-cooled V-12 marine engines. Boats had a top speed of with 4,500 horsepower. PT boats were built in eleven US boatyards, by the end of the war 808 were built in three lengths: 70, 78 and 80-foot. After the war most were destroyed and some sold. The three high HP engines used a high amount of fuel and the boats were deemed not usable anymore. The PT boat squadrons were nicknamed "the mosquito fleet" and "devil boats" by the Japanese.Motor torpedo boat
Some US boatyards built motor torpedo boats. Most also had four depth charges. The US built 136 of the 70-foot Vosper for the Royal Navy. Motor torpedo had a crew of 13. They were powered by three Packard V1-12 marine engines. MTB 259 to MTB 268, MTB 307 to MTB 316 and BPT 8 to 20 were built by ELCO. MTB 419 to MTB 423 were built by Higgins Industries in New Orleans, Louisiana. MTB 396 to MTB 411 were built by Robert Jacob Shipyard in City Island, New York. MTB 275 to MTB 378 were built by Annapolis Yacht Yard in Annapolis, Maryland. MTB 287 to MTB 294 were built by Herreshoff Manufacturing.Minesweepers
Minesweepers removed or detonate naval mines blocking ports and shipping lanes. Minesweepers were 80 to 136-foot boats. A wood hull boat was preferred for minesweepers, as some mines were magnetically activated. For the war 481 136-foot wood hull Minesweepers were built. The Hull designation was YMS for Yard Minesweeper. They were armed with two 20mm cannons and one 3”/50 caliber gun. There were many different class minesweepers. Examples:,The US Navy operated several classes of Minesweepers:,,.
Small coastal transport
Small coastal transports or APc-1 class ships were small troopships. These ships were assigned to the Pacific War where they transported supplies, personnel and munitions around the Island hopping campaign. Most were the wooden hull Accentor minesweeper modified to carry 60 troops and their gear to a combat zones. The Small coastal transport, APC, were able to get in shallow ports. Many of the ships were under threat of air, sea and submarine attack. A few ships of the class received battle stars for combat valor, including USS APc-15, USS APc-22, USS APc-25 and USS APc-26. The wooden-hulled ships were built by many different shipyards. Following the war, many of them were converted to fishing vessels. Examples:, built by Camden Ship Building,, built by Hodgdon Brothers, sank December 17, 1943 during landing in the Battle of Arawe, was struck by a bomb during an enemy air attack off Arawe, New Britain,, built by Fulton Shipyard, renamed Cape Scott then Cape Cross. The specifications for modified coastal minesweepers redesign, where given by the District Craft Development Board on April 20, 1942, The redesign gave three planned uses for new APc transport ships:Net layers
Net laying boats of World War II built with wooden hulls were the Ailanthus-class net laying ships. The bow of the ship has a specialized net layer. Other steel-hulled Net laying ships were built. The net layer ship placed steel anti-torpedo or anti-submarine nets to protect ports. If needed steel nets were placed around Capital ships or a group of ships when at risk anchored. Net laying ships were armed with one 3"/50 caliber gun and two to four 20 mm. Built by Everett Pacific Shipbuilding & Drydock Company of Everett, Washington, and for YN 67–76 to the Pollock-Stockton Shipbuilding Company of Stockton, California. The Ailanthus-class net laying ships had a tonnage of GRT, a length of , a beam of, a draft of. Powered by Diesel-electric engines with one shaft,. A top speed of. Armed with one 3"/50 caliber gun, two and later boats, four single 20 mm AA.Tugboats
With the building of many new ships, Auxiliary floating drydocks and barges for the war, there was a demand for more tugboats. Both new wood and steel hull tugs were built. The largest wooden hull tugboat was the V3-S-AH2. One of the smaller wooden hull tugboats was the V2-M-AL1, of which 35 were built. Most V2-M-AL1 tugboats were sent to England for the war efforts under the lend-lease act. Tugs served across the globe during Work War II. SS Farallon and other Type V tugs were used to help built Normandy ports, including Mulberry harbour, on D-Day, June 6, 1944, and made nine round trips to Normandy to deliver Phoenix breakwaters. The type V3-S-AH2 was a wood hull tug at 1,220 tons also sent to Britain. The V2-M-AL1 were wood tug of the Port Sewall class, All were named American ports, most sent to Britain. Auxiliary ATR-1-class rescue tug was a wooden-hulled rescue tug at 1,315 tons fully loaded.For World War II the US Army had tugboats built to move cargo barges in harbors. Small wood US Army MTL Harbor Tugboats, 14 model 324-A with a length of 47 feet, a beam of 12 feet. MTL is for Motor Towing Launch. The Army had built 1,251 marine tractors and marine tow launches by 41 boatbuilders. MT tugs were either 26 feet or 36 feet in length and the MTL were 46 feet. US Army TP Harbor Tug with displacement 185 tons gross, a length of 96 feet, a beam 25 feet, a draft of 11 feet, Power one Fairbanks–Morse six cylinder diesel engine to a single propeller with 450 shp. The TP is for "Tug/Passenger". The US Army had 43 of this 96-foot tugs built for World War II, Ackerman Boat Company` built 15 of them. US Army had built 170 of the 65-foot, diesel-powered, passenger / cargo boats. These could also be used as harbor tugs. These were known as tug-transports, or T-boats.