Patrol Boat River ( PBR)
is the United States Navy designation for a small rigid-hulled patrol boat
used in the Vietnam War from March 1966 until the end of 1971
PBR were deployed in a force that grew to 250 boats
the most common craft in the River Patrol Force, Task Force 116
and were used to stop and search river traffic in areas such as the Mekong Delta
the Rung Sat Special Zone, the Saigon River and in I Corps
in the area assigned to Task Force Clearwater
in an attempt to disrupt weapons shipments
In this role
PBR frequently became involved in firefights with enemy soldiers on boats and on the shore
were used to insert and extract Navy SEAL teams
and were employed by the United States Army's 458th Transportation Company
known as the 458th Sea Tigers
The PBR was usually manned by a four-man crew
Typically a First Class Petty Officer served as boat captain
with a gunner's mate, an engineman and a seaman on board
Each crewman was cross-trained in each other's jobs
in the event one became unable to carry out his duties
Generally PBRs operated in pairs under the command of a patrol officer
who rode on one of the boats
The PBR was a versatile boat with a fiberglass hull
and water jet drive which enabled it to operate in shallow, weed-choked rivers
It drew only 2 feet of water fully loaded
The drives could be pivoted to reverse direction
turn the boat in its own length
or come to a stop from full speed in a few boat lengths
The PBR was manufactured in two versions
the first with 31 feet length and 10-foot, 7-inch beam
The Mark II version 32 feet long
and 1 foot wider beam had improved drives
to reduce fouling and aluminum gunwales to resist wear
Typical armament configuration included
twin M2HB .50 caliber (12.7 mm) machine guns forward in a rotating shielded tub
a single rear M2HB, one or two M60 7.62 mm light machine guns
mounted on the port and starboard sides and a Mk 19 grenade launcher
There was also a full complement of M16 Rifles
shotguns, .45 ACP handguns and hand grenades
Some had a "piggyback" arrangement
a .50 caliber machine gun on top of an 81mm mortar
others had a bow-mounted Mk16 Mod 4 Colt 20 mm automatic cannon
derived from the AN/M3 version of the Hispano-Suiza HS.404
and also found on the LCMs and PBRs
On Halloween night in 1966, Petty Officer 1st Class James Elliott “Willy” Williams
commanding a two-boat patrol using craft specially designed for combat on Vietnam’s inland waterways
was gunning for enemy vessels infesting the Mekong Delta
Williams in Patrol Boat River 105 destroyed
one of two Viet Cong sampans spotted on the My Tho River
Pursuing the second down a narrow canal
PBR 105 and PBR 99 surprised two Viet Cong regiments
just beginning to move downriver in sampans and junks
an engagement between two PBRs and two sampans escalated into
a three-hour running battle involving more than 50 enemy vessels
numerous VC ground troops, and US Navy attack helicopter support
For his role in this battle, Williams received the Medal of Honor
According to the citation
the patrol accounted for the destruction or loss of 65 enemy boats
and inflicted numerous casualties on the enemy personnel
Williams is considered the most heavily decorated enlisted sailor in US Navy history
The US Navy posthumously named a guided missile destroyer
USS James E. Williams, after him