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Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2
Posted by: Cutter78 (IP Logged)
Date: December 03, 2018 11:17PM

Dear Sirs,

Good Morning!

Sir Andreas has just pointed me to this discussion about our Q-Boats of World War Two.

There were two that was ordered and built by Vosper Thornycroft, They are Q-111 (Luzon) and Q-112 (Abra).

The third one is Q-113 (Agusan) locally built by Naval Architect/Engr Bernardo Abrera, She was commissioned on 26 March 1941. a line up of about 24 hulls were prepared but Engineer Island near Pasig River was bombed by the Japanese destroying all the lined up hulls.

During the war Luzon, Abra, and Agusan form the 1st Filipino Q-boat Squadron, they were augmented by Q-114 Danday a Motor Vessel formerly named Carmen, she was repaired by Engr Vicente Dela CRuz and was commissioned into the OSP as the Q-114 Danday named after the wife of Capt Enrique Jurado-the OSP C.O.

Q-115 is the Presidential Launch under 2nd Officer Jose Sison of the Presidential Yatch Casiana, she was taken over by the OSP and skippered by Capt Carlos Albert with Executive Officer LT Felix Apolinario.

As for their fate please see below article that I wrote two years ago about the Filipino Q-boats.

PHILIPPINE NAVY HISTORY: The Saga of Q-111 " Luzon" - The Second Filipino Motor Torpedo Boat that served in Three Navies...by CMDR Mark R Condeno

On June 1939... the second Filipino Q-Boat arrived in Manila and was named LUZON after one of the three Island groups of the country and was given hull number Q-111, she is 10 feet longer than Q-112 and has a cruising speed of 41 knots with a crew of 2 Officers and 4 Enlisted Personnel.

Three months prior on 02 March 1939 the First Filipino Motor Torpedo Boat arrived in Manila aboard the Steamship SS Mecklenburg from Antwerp, Belgium she was christened ABRA after the Province of Abra and with Hull Number 112.

She was later called Q-112, thus beginning the Q-Boat mystery of the Philippine Navy, eventually, through the years Q- would be known as Quest for Mystery but would also signify as the Quezon Boat for President Quezon as the Offshore Patrol (OSP)- the naval arm of the Philippine Army was activated during his tenure.

Two Years and Six months later beginning on 08 December 1941 to 08 April 1942...the Q-Boats of the Offshore Patrol (OSP) would be in the thick of the action against the Japanese Invasion of the Philippines.

The Five Q-Boats of the Offshore Patrol, the 44-ship Navigation Division of the Philippine Coast Guard under the Bureau of Customs and Ships of the Philippine Merchant Marine were commissioned into the OSP Reserve...all of this seagoing forces forms the Philippines Naval Defense along with the US Navy's Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 under LT John D Bulkeley USN along with the Submarine Tender

As the dark clouds of Japanese conquests embraces the archipelago, the Q- Boat Squadron made one final sortie with the plan of escaping the Japanese blockade of Manila and proceed to Australia to join the other allied forces thereat.

On 08 April 1942 beginning at 12 midnight preparations were undertaken as the squadron made its final bid from Sisiman Cove, Bataan to Freedom...MAJOR ENRIQUE JURADO commanded the Squadron aboard Q-111 Luzon, with CAPTAIN ALBERTO NAVARETTE as the Skipper, LT HERACLEO ALANO as Executive Officer and LT ABRAHAM CAMPO as Navigator....The primary objective was to sortie out of Manila and proceed to Corregidor, iloilo and then to Australia... leaving in echelon formation with the fist sign of trouble appearing when the engines of Q-112 ABRA gave up making LT RAMON ALCARAZ withdrawing from the formation and Scuttling Q-112 near Navotas.

Another Q-BOAT Q-115 "BALER" was also having engine problems as it was only making 12 knots from its usual 30 knots. All was well, but upon approaching the mount of Manila Bay, Japanese Land based Naval Aircraft of the 1st Kokutai engaged the Q-Boats... in the ensuing melee..one of the Japanese planes was shotdown.

As per LT CAMPO's narration, the remaining Japanese planes circled the squadron as if waiting for something...and a few minutes later a lookout on the Q-Boats shouted "Ships ahead'...

These Ships which I recently identified with the help of Russian Tugboat Captain Ivan Gogin through our recent communication in 2017 were the Imperial Japanese Navy Destroyers SAMIDARE and MURASAME.

Again as per LT CAMPO's narration the Q-boats gave a good account of themselves on this battle but the Japanese Naval gunners were good in deflection....though the Q-boats machine guns counter-fired, Torpedo's were also fired though the missing the target or might not have the range to the enemy and in a few seconds Q-111 was on fire...

To cut the story short... Q-111 LUZON was scuttled off Looc, Cavite and Nasugbu Batangas...the fate of the FILIPINO Q-Boats on that day were as follows with

Q-111 " Luzon" Scuttled on 09 April 1942- between Looc Cavite and Nasugbu Batangas

Q-112 "Abra" Scuttled on 09 April 1942 off Navotas

Both LUZON and ABRA were British Made 55FT and 65 FT Motor Torpedo Boats and capable of 41 Knots, armed with 2-AA Guns 2 Torpedo tubes. They were the first and second Filipino Torpedo Boats.

Q-113 " Agusan" Scuttled on 09 April 1942 as part of the USAFFE's OPERATION PONTIAC- were in no allied equipment should be taken advantage of the enemy, AGUSAN's crew joined the Coast Artillery Corps, while its AA Weapons were converted into beach defense.

IT IS of NOTE that AGUSAN was the First PURELY FILIPINO BUILT TORPEDO BOAT patterned after the British boats. She was built at Engineer Island in Navotas under the supervision of Civil Engineer/Naval Architect BERNARDO P ABRERA of Coron, Palawan. (A more thorough background on Architect Abrera is being prepared by this author).

Q-114 " Danday" after the wife of Capt Jurado was the former MV Carmen which was salvaged and refloated by the OSP through the assistance of the MV Carmen's Marine Engineer Vicente Ty Dela Cruz. She was later burned to escape Japanese capture in Lamao, Bataan. " Danday" was the special operations craft of the OSP as she always handles agents and landing spies behind enemy lines.

Q-115 " BALER" was the former Presidential Launch which was taken over by the OSP in December 1941...She was captured by the Japanese Off Cabra Island with the whole crew & passengers totaling about 23 Filipinos and American Tank Crewmen.

The curtain would not be drawn with the defeat of the Q-Boats as the Island Fortress of Corregidor would shine until 6 May 1942 as the Japanese completed their conquest of the Philippines.

Though the saga of Q-111 ended off Batangas Waters and to many lost in history as she was already scuttled unknown to many she was re-floated and refurbished by the Imperial Japanese Navy and re-commissioned into service on 12 April 1943 as Patrol Boat 114, but was again sunk by US Naval aircraft during their return to the Philippines in 1944/1945.

Q-111 has a distinction of serving three Navies- The British Royal Navy as prior to delivery she was tested by British Crews, The Filipino Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Another notable ship re-floated by the Imperial Japanese Navy was the Philippine Revolutionary Navy Flagship 800 ton steamer FILIPINAS in 1942 which was utilized as a Patrol Craft.

Sources:

1. The Philippine Navy 1898-1998 by COMMODORE REGINO " DODDS " P GIAGONIA AFP (RESERVE) Headquarters Philippine Navy.

2. Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy 1869-1945 by Hansgeorg Jentchura, Dieter Jung and Peter Mickel, Translated by Antony Preston

3. World Navies of World War Two (In Russian)
4. E-mail and correspondence with Russian Tugboat Captain Ivan Gogin January 2017

Photograph Sources:

Authors Collection
World Wide Web
Philippine Navy History Books.



Subject Written By Posted
  Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 11/08/2018 03:05PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 airintel 11/09/2018 12:31AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 11/09/2018 04:10AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 crolick 11/11/2018 10:26AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 11/14/2018 02:26PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 airintel 11/12/2018 09:53PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Cutter78 12/03/2018 11:17PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 12/04/2018 12:40AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Cutter78 12/04/2018 03:41AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 paulh 12/06/2018 08:29PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Darius 01/13/2019 12:55PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Kerber 11/16/2018 04:18PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 11/17/2018 01:24AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 crolick 11/21/2018 02:13PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 11/21/2018 03:17PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 JAKW2 11/24/2018 11:44AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 JAKW2 11/24/2018 12:12PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 JAKW2 11/24/2018 01:07PM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Andreas von Mach 11/26/2018 11:25AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Cutter78 12/04/2018 12:18AM
  Re: Philippine Motor Torpedo Boats of WW2 Cutter78 12/04/2018 01:07AM


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