We followed our charted course to the general area, then the directions of the natives to the rendezvous with Kennedy. We followed all the usual tactics for operating in enemy controlled waters-that is, run at patrol speed to keep the wake down, and change course in a zigzag pattern to prevent being zeroed in on by the Japs tracking from planes or shore batteries. Besides we had patrolled this area many times. We knew the general area of the sinking from the reports of the natives and the dispatches from Evans. To the crew of the PT 157 this mission was routine. Without hesitation, I walked around to the front of the cockpit and motioned to Welford West, our torpedoman, and the most experienced sailor in the crew. So too, I knew who the real saltwater seamen were on board. Coming into a dock he seemed to know exactly when and which engine I was going to shift. I never had trouble handling a boat in close quarters, because Dan Jamieson, our lead MM, knew me like a book. The original crew that put the 157 into commission seemed to adapt as a team almost from the first. Mainly he did not know which member of the crew to rely on for which thing. Our Exec, John Ruff, had come aboard after shakedown and had not gone through the intense training in Toboga he had not lived with us long enough. I knew Commander Kelly's boat had radar and if he'd lost us we must really be out of position. No little wake tails to mark the other boats, just black water. All I could see ahead or anywhere was the Black Sea. He wasn't quite sure, but he thought the rest of the boats were up ahead. I climbed up into the cockpit and looked around while my eyes adjusted to the darkness. We also learned that this capability was there only if the helmsman (the boat skipper usually took the helm during action) and the motor machinist mate operating the engine worked as a team. It meant that we could have one or two engines going forward and one going astern or vice-versa, giving the ability to turn on a dime. This was most important in maneuverability. We learned that a PT boat had three engines, each operating its own screw. First we learned the boat-its length, beam and draft, the cockpit, the chartroom, the radio, the torpedoes, the guns and the smoke generator. We learned that there was a lot more to operating a PT boat than just grabbing the wheel and charging at a big enemy battleship with torpedoes flying. Here we got our first introduction to the boats. to torpedo school and then PT school at Melville, R. Of course many of us jumped at the chance and were interviewed by Bulkeley personally. Bulkeley, who commanded PT Squadron 3 and directed the mission, came to Northwestern University Midshipmen School looking for PT boat volunteers. My own love affair with PT boats started in early 1942 when I first heard how a PT boat had taken MacArthur out of the Philippines.
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