NEW ORLEANS — PT-305 now sits behind a white tarp in a dry dock at Seabrook Harbor and Marine in New Orleans.
Before the Covid shutdown, the refurbished World War II era Navy vessel was in the water, docked in a now vacant boathouse near the Southshore Harbor of Lake Pontchartrain.
People could ride and tour the boat.
George Benedetto was the project manager and senior boat captain.
“It’s a little regretful that it’s no longer in the water,” Benedetto said. “But actually, the boat served for quite a while. Once we did the recommissioning of the boat, we expected a run time of one to two years.
The boat ran for more than three years
It took 120,000 man-hours and 10 years to restore PT-305.
The boat had its roots more than 70 years ago at Higgins Industries on the lake.
“It was actually a huge success in spite of the recent developments of having to be decommissioned,” Benedetto said.
The boat belongs to the World War II Museum in the Warehouse District.
Last April, the museum made the difficult decision to dry dock PT-305 to help offset the significant financial impacts of the Coronavirus pandemic.
“The unique and complicated nature of operating a restored WWII-era boat had required significant financial investments since PT-305 returned to the waters in spring 2017,” a statement released by the museum said. “The devastating impacts of COVID-19 on the Museum prompted the need to minimize expenses and preserve funds that the Museum critically needed to continue its core operations during a very challenging time.”
Lakefront Management Authority Chair Wilma Heaton says during its brief tour of duty, it was great to have the boat on the lake.
“The thing that the boat brought was not only a teachable moment for the entire metropolitan (area) and people from around the would come and learn about PT-305…it was such an amazing part of our community and it opened up something that hadn’t been for decades, it brought people back to the lake,” Heaton said.
The boathouse and surrounding Lakeshore Landing property will soon be back on the market for lease.
As for PT-305, the WWII Museum says it is still determining the next step in her journey.
“The Museum team is working on plans to return her to our main campus, where she will continue to educate visitors from across the world.”
Benedetto said if the boat becomes a static exhibit, he’s okay with that.
“I think it will be an actual next good step for it,” Benedetto said. “She’ll be in a controlled environment. It will help her live for quite a while.”
While it now appears PT-305 will remain out of the water, Captain Benedetto says besides money, there’s nothing to prevent the boat from returning to the sea.
“If at some point funding was again, the way that she’s been constructed, she could return to the sea,” Benedetto said. “She was extremely authentic and well put together when the reconstruction was finished.”
Captain Benedetto and the museum both thanked the dedicated volunteers who brought the boat back to life.
According to the museum, 3,800 guests were able to experience the thrill of a lifetime riding aboard PT-305, and an additional 3,900 visitors toured the boat during her three years of operations.