WWII torpedo boats

[David Wilma]

Torpedo boats (MTBs and S-boots) seemed to have fallen
out of favor after World War II. They did not seem to have
performed as advertised at Surigao Strait, but they did
seem to find utility raiding in archipelagos and estuaries.
At what point did the Western navies determine that PTs
were not part of the future?

[John Dallman]

Post by David Wilma
Torpedo boats (MTBs and S-boots) seemed to have fallen
out of favor after World War II.

They turned into missile-armed Fast Attack Craft instead, because those
have much better weapon ranges and are thus less likely to be killed by
the target's defences.

FAC are rather vulnerable to aircraft, now that just about all combat
aircraft have effective radars, so they're mostly used by navies that
lack the money for something better, or have archipelagoes to defend
where FAC can hide.

John

[David Wilma]

Post by John Dallman

Post by David Wilma
Torpedo boats (MTBs and S-boots) seemed to have fallen
out of favor after World War II.

They turned into missile-armed Fast Attack Craft instead, because those
have much better weapon ranges and are thus less likely to be killed by
the target's defences.
FAC are rather vulnerable to aircraft, now that just about all combat
aircraft have effective radars, so they're mostly used by navies that
lack the money for something better, or have archipelagoes to defend
where FAC can hide.
John

It would seem that the vessel was defined by the weapon, In looking at
the future of the MTB did the planner decide that aircraft served that
purpose? In 1945, aircraft were seen as the solution to future warfare
in all venues, right?

[John Dallman]

Post by David Wilma
It would seem that the vessel was defined by the weapon, In looking
at the future of the MTB did the planner decide that aircraft served
that purpose?

Well, aerial torpedoes disappeared shortly after WWII, presumably because
using them against defended targets was seen as impractical against
radar-controlled guns with proximity-fused shells. The exception was
anti-submarine homing torpedoes that had to find their own targets after
being dropped in the right few square miles. Submarines very rarely shoot
back against aircraft.

Post by David Wilma
In 1945, aircraft were seen as the solution to future warfare
in all venues, right?

Different navies and different groups within them probably had different
ideas. Looking at what got built is easier than digging through the
minutes of lots of committees.

John

[Don Phillipson]

Post by David Wilma
Torpedo boats (MTBs and S-boots) seemed to have fallen
out of favor after World War II. They did not seem to have
performed as advertised at Surigao Strait, but they did
seem to find utility raiding in archipelagos and estuaries.
At what point did the Western navies determine that PTs
were not part of the future?

Of course navies have long recognized that they need small
boats as big ships: although ideas change about their
suitability for combat.

After WW2 there was naturally a pause in naval shipbuilding
after completion of vessels begun in wartime (e.g. HMS
Vanguard 1946, HMS Powerful 1945 = HMCS Bonaventure 1952.)
Nuclear submarines were the first new i.e. postwar type, unless
we also include the angled deck on aircraft carriers (1954.)

Navies after the Korean War were organized principally for
submarine attack, convoy escort and carrier-borne warfare
(more or less as in WW2.) No special role was envisaged
for MTBs and the like, perhaps because future wars were
expected to be extra violent but short (despite the emphasis
on ASW.)

[Kenneth Young]

Post by Don Phillipson
Of course navies have long recognized that they need small
From memory the RN built prototype fast attack craft for testing as it

was assumed they could be built fast in emergency.

[Jim H.]

Post by Kenneth Young

Post by Don Phillipson
From memory the RN built prototype fast attack craft for testing as it

was assumed they could be built fast in emergency.

The USN was experimenting with gun-armed patrol craft around the
time of VN. PT sized, but modern. Google PGM-84 Asheville, PGH-1
High Point, and PGH-2 Tumcari. I saw all three off VN or in Yokuska.

Jim H.

[David Wilma]

My question stems from Surigao Strait when the PTs
did not perform as advertised, although they did
"light up" the Japanese columns.