On the night of April 8/9, 1942 Bulkeley in PT-41 and Kelly in PT-34 engaged the Kuma off Cebu Island, firing several torpedoes, only one of which hit, but failed to explode. The next morning PT-34 was attacked by Japanese aircraft, forced to beach and then destroyed.[3] Kelly, who was wounded in the action, was awarded the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Service Cross for "distinguished conduct and extraordinary courage in combat."[2]
Lt. Cdr. Kelly (center) with the crew of PT-157 at Rendova, 1943
With the rank of commander, Kelly commanded the destroyer Irwin (DD-794) from June 1945 until her decommissioning on May 31, 1946,[4] seeing action during the battle of Okinawa,[2] and being awarded the Legion of Merit.[1]
Kelly retired in 1961 with the rank of captain. He worked for the Aerospace Division of Martin Marietta, and later as a counselor of vocational rehabilitation for the State of Maryland.[2]
MTB Squadron 3's exploits in the Philippines in 1941–42 were portrayed in the 1942 book They Were Expendable by William L. White, and the 1945 film of the same name, in which the character of "Rusty Ryan", played by John Wayne, was based on Kelly.[2]
Referencesedit
^ abc. Military Times Hall of Valor. 2012. Archived from the original on 24 February 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
^ abcdefgFowler, Glenn (January 28, 1989). "Robert B. Kelly, 75, Naval Officer Prominent in Storied PT Boat Unit". The New York Times. New York. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
^ abBulkley, Robert J. (2003). At Close Quarters: PT Boats in the United States Navy. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. pp. 1–27.
^"USS Irwin (DD-794)". navsource.org. 2012. Retrieved 8 June 2012.
robert, kelly, naval, officer, captain, robert, bolling, kelly, june, 1913, january, 1989, officer, united, states, navy, served, during, world, robert, bolling, kelly, specht, commodore, edward, mike, moran, lcdr, kelly, rendova, 1944born, 1913, june, 1913new. Captain Robert Bolling Kelly June 9 1913 January 23 1989 was an officer of the United States Navy who served during World War II Robert Bolling Kelly L R Cdr W R Specht Commodore Edward Mike Moran and LCdr R B Kelly at Rendova May 1944Born 1913 06 09 June 9 1913New York CityDiedJanuary 23 1989 1989 01 23 aged 75 Columbia MarylandAllegiance United StatesService wbr branchUnited States NavyYears of service1935 1961RankCaptainCommands heldMotor Torpedo Boat PT 34 Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 9 USS Irwin DD 794 USS Atka AGB 3 USS Shenandoah AD 26 Battles warsWorld War IIAwardsNavy Cross Distinguished Service Cross Silver Star with gold star Legion of Merit Contents 1 Biography 1 1 World War II 1 2 Post war career 2 In media 3 References 4 External linksBiography editKelly was born in New York City and graduated from the U S Naval Academy at Annapolis in 1935 1 World War II edit In 1941 42 Lieutenant Kelly served as both Executive Officer of Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 3 under Lieutenant John D Bulkeley and as commander of Motor Torpedo Boat PT 34 based in the Philippines 2 Kelly took part in the operation to evacuate General Douglas MacArthur and his staff from Corregidor to Mindanao on the night of March 12 13 1942 3 and was subsequently awarded the Silver Star 2 On the night of April 8 9 1942 Bulkeley in PT 41 and Kelly in PT 34 engaged the Kuma off Cebu Island firing several torpedoes only one of which hit but failed to explode The next morning PT 34 was attacked by Japanese aircraft forced to beach and then destroyed 3 Kelly who was wounded in the action was awarded the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Service Cross for distinguished conduct and extraordinary courage in combat 2 nbsp Lt Cdr Kelly center with the crew of PT 157 at Rendova 1943 Kelly commanded Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 9 in 1943 44 and earned another Silver Star for his actions during the New Georgia and Bougainville Campaigns 1 With the rank of commander Kelly commanded the destroyer Irwin DD 794 from June 1945 until her decommissioning on May 31 1946 4 seeing action during the battle of Okinawa 2 and being awarded the Legion of Merit 1 Post war career edit Kelly commanded the icebreaker Atka AGB 3 between 1950 and 1956 5 and the destroyer tender Shenandoah AD 26 in 1958 59 6 Kelly retired in 1961 with the rank of captain He worked for the Aerospace Division of Martin Marietta and later as a counselor of vocational rehabilitation for the State of Maryland 2 Kelly died of pneumonia at Howard County General Hospital in Columbia Maryland 2 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery 7 In media editMTB Squadron 3 s exploits in the Philippines in 1941 42 were portrayed in the 1942 book They Were Expendable by William L White and the 1945 film of the same name in which the character of Rusty Ryan played by John Wayne was based on Kelly 2 References edit a b c Robert Bolling Kelly Military Times Hall of Valor 2012 Archived from the original on 24 February 2013 Retrieved 8 June 2012 a b c d e f g Fowler Glenn January 28 1989 Robert B Kelly 75 Naval Officer Prominent in Storied PT Boat Unit The New York Times New York ISSN 0362 4331 Retrieved 8 June 2012 a b Bulkley Robert J 2003 At Close Quarters PT Boats in the United States Navy Annapolis Naval Institute Press pp 1 27 USS Irwin DD 794 navsource org 2012 Retrieved 8 June 2012 USS Atka AGB 3 Commanding Officers navsource org 2011 Retrieved 8 June 2012 USS Shenandoah AD 26 Commanding Officers navsource org 2011 Archived from the original on 9 June 2015 Retrieved 8 June 2012 Arlington National Cemetery Surnames Ka Ki interment net 2011 Retrieved 8 June 2012 External links editPT Boat Squadrons 6 10 Archived 2012 03 18 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Robert Kelly naval officer amp oldid 1221508136, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
