Tulagi PT boat base
The IJN task force that the Guadalcanal PT boats fought with almost every night for 4 months, the Japanese simply termed the Reinforcement Unit, the “Rat Transportation.” The bulk was composed of destroyers with a light cruiser as flagship. The mission itself was simple enough: transport reinforcements and supplies to the Japanese 17th Army and continually bombard the Americans on Guadalcanal.
To the US forces, any Japanese presence in the waters of Ironbottom Sound was considered an “Express” because of the express-train timetable regularity of its nightly operations. The sailors and Marines had a long list of colorful names for what one PT boat commander called “that nocturnal annoyance.” The much-harassed Marines branded it the Cactus Express after the code name for the island’s operations, and Insomnia Express due to the bombings; others were usually obscene.
Motor Torpedo Boat
One PT officer said later, “It was…
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Thank you, Steven, these men are so often forgotten in the big picture of events.
NO GP, they will never be forgotten as long as guys like you, me and the readers do all we can to keep the torch burning!
That’s the kind of attitude I like to hear!!