Walter Kundis - PT 524 Skipper Wolf

"One of the most important statements made by Skipper James P. Wolf to the newly formed crew of PT 524 took place at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in New York. Prior to departing for shakedown, Skipper Wolf assembled the crew and stated:" I will never strike my colors. I will not tolerate anyone on the crew that would. Anyone that thinks he would, should leave now.”

Needless to say, no one left. The quote from Skipper Wolf relating to not ever lowering his flag and surrendering was quite appropriate on the night of November 10, 1944, when our PT was pursued by a Japanese destroyer for 45 minutes. The destroyer was 300 yards away with a searchlight beam lighting up the boat. Over a loud speaker the Japs were telling us to surrender, while at the same time they were firing their 4.7-inch forward guns at us, and also their smaller weapons.

Lt. (j.g.) James P. Wolf enjoys some downtime with three of his charges.

At the direction of our Skipper I was on the headset telling our torpedo man to lay smoke using our smoke screen generator. Each turn would edge the 524 closer to the shores of Leyte. It wasn’t going to be long before our PT would run out of water. When the Jap firepower would let up for correction, Wolf would wheel the boat to avoid the correction and then shells would scream past.

Time was running out and something had to be done. Each time our PT tried to turn and outrun the Nip, we would be cut off and have to run closer to the beach. Shells sprayed all around the boat. Wolf gave me the signal to open up the smoke bottle and slowly the Japanese searchlight was blotted out.

The 524 immediately dodged away from the smoke as the Japs pumped the big white cloudy stuff full of holes. This allowed the 524 to slip past to the open sea and safety. If only our torpedoes would work when they were needed. In this case we set the torpedoes for 9 feet and I believe the Jap destroyers were drawing only 7 feet. A mistake on our part. Damn it! It did make a very interesting night though.

Skipper Wolf didn’t tolerate cowardice. The fury of the war increased with every passing day. One patrol we attacked two luggers with approximately 200 Japs each. We received intense return fire. One of the crew on our 40mm cannon acted in a cowardly manner in the face of the enemy and began to cry and shout, “I can’t see the target.” He stopped firing. I replaced him. After we returned from patrol he was replaced and I began to be the permanent pointer on the 40mm that fired the gun using a foot pedal.

Lt. (j.g.) James P. Wolf (on the left) with an unidentified crewman.

A few days later during an intense air raid three enemy planes were shot down by the 40mm cannon within an hour. When the last one was fired on and hit, it continued to dive towards our boat crashing within 25 yards. The first loader on our gun bolted from his position and jumped over the side of our PT. He also was removed from the crew."

Photos courtesy the private collection of Walter Kundis.

Walter Kundis - Mios Woendi and Bet Me

"Mios Woendi was huge. Mios Woendi was the biggest and best base we operated from. Mios Woendi seemed like paradise after the mud and dampness of Drager Harbor. Skipper Wolf remarked that it must have been some mistake that gave this South Pacific paradise to the PT boats for a base.

When we arrived at the base for the first time, our PT was tied to the last remaining pier. After a meal the Skipper briefed us on the layout of the base. The base had all the facilities to support PT boats in addition to a post office and an outdoor movie theater. All facilities were housed in Quonset huts under palm trees. Our maintenance personnel were able to take care of almost anything that had to do with the boat.There was even a dry dock. We took advantage of the hot fresh-water showers and the food was good.

As we strolled around the base, we met many former buddies from stateside training who were there with other squadrons. The mood at the base was very friendly. Regarding celebrations, we didn’t participate in many social activities. In fact, you couldn’t even buy a beer to drink. It’s hard to estimate how many men were at the base, but when the 45 boats left for the invasion of the Philippines with our support personnel in tow, there weren’t too many people left behind.

PT 524 was well maintained and she was a dream to be at the wheel. With her outstanding speed and our armament we could face and defeat anything the Japs could throw at us.Our particular Squadron didn’t settle upon a name so the naming of the boats was at the discretion of the individual Skippers.

Many of the crew had had a chance to see the names and insignia of other PT boats. Skipper Wolf was from Texas. He wanted to call the 524 the “stud,” with the appropriate insignia to go with the name. Our Squadron Commander objected to the stud horse insignia with a torpedo between its legs so thoughts turned in other directions.

From the start our crew had adopted the expression "Bet Me," whenever anyone would doubt another’s word. This saying originated with the expression, "Do you want to bet on it?" Our crew thought this might be an appropriate name for our PT. In other words, the crew was betting their lives on the 524 against the Japs.

A delegation of the crew took the idea to the Skipper and he agreed this would be the 524’s name. An insignia of a Royal Flush of Spades was painted on the side of the cockpit and in no time the 524 became the 'Bet Me.'"

Photo courtesy the private collection of Walter Kundis.

Walter Kundis - from New York to the South Pacific

Walter remembers the journey from New York to Panama:

"Our first tanker was the SS R.G. Stewart. Three of our Squadron’s boats were loaded on the tanker on June 4, 1944, and the following day we were on our way in convoy to the Panama Canal.

The convoy that transported three PTs from New York to Panama. Walter remembered that the convoy sped along at the top speed of 8 knots, making for a long journey.

We were unloaded on the Pacific side. Panama was the last time any of us saw liberty until after the war was over. Panama City was a sailors dream come true. It had everything: wine, women, and song. We took full advantage of it all! After all we were on our way to war.

PTs 522, 523 and 524 secured on the deck of the SS R.G. Stewart. The PT boat's crew slept on their own boats during transit. Ladders can be seen in the left side of this photo go from the deck of the Stewart to the decks of each of the PT boats.

Prior to leaving the Brooklyn Navy Yard, a 40mm cannon was removed from another ship under construction and installed on PT 524. The gun was tested for the first time off the island of Toboga near Panama. During the test the cannon failed to fire. After several attempts I was told to get down from the weapon as the first loader, and let someone up there who knew what they were doing. Brown, the other Gunner’s Mate, took my place and performed the same procedures that I did with the same results.

Skipper Wolf angrily stated that after we returned to the base, both of the Gunner’s Mates would be fired and replaced. After observing what happened when Brown ejected the round that failed to fire, I noticed an excess amount of grease on the nose of the projectile. I inserted my hand inside the chamber of the barrel and discovered that we had failed to remove the grease from the chamber. This prevented the round from being fully chambered.

I proceeded to the bridge, approached the now pissed-off Skipper, and explained our findings. I requested another attempt to test fire the 40mm cannon. He reluctantly turned the boat around and headed towards the target area, stating that if we had not corrected the problem, I would be fired and removed from the crew. I accepted his proposal.

After arriving at the target area I performed all the procedures to ready the gun for firing. I announced in a loud and clear voice, "The gun is ready to fire.” After being given permission, I gave the command to fire. The pointer of the crew pressed the firing pedal. The sound of the gun firing was music to my ears. My crew status was preserved. The gun was never to misfire or malfunction again.

Walter Kundis (seated on the left), enjoys a drink in Panama City.

While at Panama we awaited the arrival of our next two PT boats. When they arrived, all the boats in our squadron, five in total, were loaded on the tanker SS Gulf Maraciabo. That tanker took all five boats to the tip of Miline Bay, New Guinea. The PTs were unloaded and we proceeded on our own power, sailing the whole length of New Guinea. We arrived at our new base at Mios Woendi."

All photos in this post courtesy the private collection of Walter Kundis.

Walter Kundis - Gunner's Mate 1st Class - PT 524

From a Gunner's Mate aboard a patrol torpedo boat, to a missleman with the Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile system, Walter Kundis served his country well.

Walter Kundis was the first PT boat veteran I interviewed. Walt had a very distinguished military career that began with the Navy and ended with the Air Force.

This photo was taken when Walter retired from the Air Force. The number of ribbons, affectionately referred to as "fruit salad" by those in the service, is a testament to Walter's military career.

Here is how it all started:

"My father was a coal miner. He was only 48 when he died leaving a wife and seven children. All the kids had to pitch-in and help one another. That’s why I didn’t join-up after Pearl Harbor. I was just about to finish High School when the Japs attacked and so I stayed in until I graduated. I took my father’s advice, got out of the coalmines, and moved to Maryland to work in the steel mills. I worked there for one year and then decided to join the Navy in 1943. I volunteered for Gunner’s Mate School as well as PT boats. I had heard about the adventures of the PT boat fleet over the radio, and in magazines and newspapers. When I raised my hand to enlist in the Navy I was full of pride.

I received my Navy Boot Camp training at the Sampson Naval Training Base in New York. My training began on June 30, 1943 and lasted 8 weeks. I thought it was going to be tougher than it really was: the basic marching, drilling, keeping our barracks ship-shape, living with a group of men, and even handling an old whale boat using oars.

After you completed Boot Camp the Navy would classify your ability. I requested to become a Gunner’s Mate. I was sent to the School Section at Sampson and began my training on all type of guns the U.S. Navy maintained. I learned about various guns and the types of projectiles and powder that was used for each. This was a general get-acquainted type of course that lasted 12 weeks. I graduated on November 19, 1943.

After completing Gunner’s Mate School the Navy asked me what type of ship I wanted to be assigned to. I asked for PT boats or submarines. Because PT boats had the highest priority I was shipped to the Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron Training Center at Melville, Rhode Island, December 18, 1943.

Gunner's Mate Walter Kundis, Ligayen Gulf, Philippines, January 1945. Walter was part of the team that operated PT 524's stern mounted 40mm gun.

When we arrived by train we were greeted by a bunch of sailors on the platform that were unshaven, dirty, and they were shouting, “Go Back, Go Back!” It seems that because of the cold weather all the water pipes froze and burst and the only running water on the base was in the Mess Hall. My first thoughts were “What the Hell did I get into!” When they showed us the barracks that we were going to live in, they were full of snow. To get in we had to shovel the snow out and build a fire in a potbelly stove. This situation lasted almost two weeks. At least our training continued in heated classrooms.

I was trained on all the different type of weapons that were carried on a PT boat. The courses covered every weapon imaginable: from the torpedoes, to depth charges, 40mm, 37mm and 20mm cannon, .50 caliber machine gun, all the small arms and even the proper use of hand grenades. I was taught to repair and maintain all these weapons. I received most of my training firing guns, but the other ratings also had to learn how to fire all the weapons. We were taught all the ratings that served on the boats. Each man had to be able to take over another man’s position.

I was required to be able to take over the engine room duties. I sort of shied away from that as performing that job took a strong back to shift the gears and the heat was like being in Hell. I concentrated on being a good line handler, in operating the wheel, and docking. I was getting real good at it. We were trained on all the types of PTs available because no one knew at that time what type of boat they would be assigned to. About 60 percent was classroom and 40 percent was on the boats. The training was intense and lasted 12 weeks. I graduated on March 09, 1944.

Training in waters off Melville, Rhode Island.

My first PT boat ride was on the coldest day ever recorded and the seas were very rough. Our first four-hour ride on the boat made most of the class seasick. I wasn’t one of them. The cold weather and stormy seas didn’t dampen my determination to serve aboard a PT. I loved it. I felt I had made the right choice and at that time I was ready to meet the enemy head-on.

I was lucky because I was assigned to a brand new Squadron. We took delivery of PT 524 right from the factory, took her all the way to the South Pacific to fight the enemy, and I finished the war aboard her in Borneo. Once you were assigned a Squadron they told you what area of combat you were going to. We were told that we were headed to the Pacific. All squadrons were assigned the men to man the boats as soon as possible, so they could work as a crew. Other men were sent as replacement crewmembers right after graduation."

All photos in this post courtesy the personal collection of Walter Kundis.

Introduction

Welcome to my blog.

I have been interested in World War II history for many, many years. Ever since I was a teenager actually. My next door neighbor fought in World War II. He never really spoke about the war, although I did find out he was with a Canadian artillery unit that had seen action in Italy.

At some point in time I started interviewing veterans. I found their stories riveting. Their memories often ran the full range of emotion - joy, depression, terror, loneliness. On numerous occasions I have shared laughter and tears as they related their stories.

Despite the very real threat of being killed in action, every single veteran I have interviewed, somewhere around four dozen or so, has said to the person they would do it all over again.

I had at one point in time considered writing a book on the veterans who served in the so-called "Mosquito Fleet." Instead, I have decided to share the recollections of patrol torpedo boat veterans through this blog.

I am involved with many, different and diverse projects right now, plus my wife and I have a young family. So, I will post, as time permits, the memories these Navy veterans shared with me and some of the photos they sent to me to copy.

I freely admit that I am not an "expert" when it comes to pt boats. I don't know when certain modifications were made to the boats that were manufactured, nor do I care to know. I will leave that to others.

My interest and joy has been in collecting the memories of the men that served their country during World War II. I have always thought that many take for granted the freedoms we enjoy today. One only has to look around the world at any number of countries to realize what we have in North America is special.

By posting veteran's memories here, I hope others will learn about the sacrifices those veterans endured and better appreciate what those who have gone before us, have accomplished in the name of freedom and democracy.

Enjoy the blog and feel free to leave comment or send me an email.