On Aug 2, 1943, what PT boat was run down by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri, resulting in a 5 day evasion scenario for future president John F. Kennedy and his remaining crew?
Japanese destroyer Amagiri (1930) killed 10 crewmen. After the battle she attempted to rescue the survivors of the destroyer , but was driven off by the American destroyers and and returned to Rabaul for repairs. On 2 August, while returning from another "Tokyo Express" night reinforcement fast transport mission to Vila, "Amagiri" rammed and sank the "PT-109" torpedo boat, commanded by the future U.S. President, then Lieutenant, junior grade John F. Kennedy. It is widely believed that those aboard "Amagiri" were not even aware of "PT-109", which was difficult to see because of its small size and lack of lights. However, Robert J. Donovan
Japanese destroyer Amagiri (1930) in his book "PT 109: John F. Kennedy in WWII", after interviewing many of the crew, concludes that it was not an accident, and he talked to the man at the wheel who was ordered to steer for a collision course. "Amagiri" also engaged other PT boats in the Blackett Strait south of Kolombangara. Lieutenant Commander Kohei Hanami — who commanded "Amagiri" at that time — attended President Kennedy's inauguration in 1961. The incident would be publicized in a book, movie, and in a hit song by Jimmy Dean, as "the Jap destroyer in the night, cut the 109 in