Florida museum locks out scouts, Vietnam vets;

By C.J. Raven
November 02, 2007

Orange City Boy Scout Troop No. 544 and a group of Vietnam veterans are waiting to see if they will be able to march in a Florida Veterans Day Parade.

Scouts and vets have been locked out of the DeLand Naval Air Station Museum and denied access to the PTF-3, a historic boat with critical ties to the Tonkin Gulf Incident in 1964. The scouts own the boat and, with a group of veterans, are restoring the former U.S. Navy craft.

"The city says we can march, but all our stuff is locked up," Vietnam veteran Gerry Millholen said.

The air station museum is owned by the city, but operated by a museum board.

The lock-out is another power play by the illegally self-appointed board trying to capture more than $450,000 donated for the boat's restoration, Millholen said. The Florida Historic Preservation Bureau donated $350,000 for restoration, and the state's Veteran's Affairs Department gave another $100,000. Other money has come from individual and corporate donors.

"If they can get a judge to sign an eviction order, they will seize the boat, and they think they're going to seize the assets," Millholen said. "The state and VA won't let that happen. The funds are for restoration. They have a lawyer who must see something where they can get our money. They'll scrap the boat."Kirk Bauer, attorney for the museum board, did not return a phone call.PTF-3 was decommissioned in 1977, bought as scrap in 1978 and donated to the Scouts in 2001. But before that, she had an illustrious history.

What is PTF-3?
Built of mahogany, PTF-3 was one of 14 PT boats constructed for the United States in Norway. PTF-3 was the lead boat in Gen. William Westmoreland's plan to intensify raids on North Vietnam. The date was July 30, 1964. Four boats -- PTF-2, PTF-3, PTF-5 and PTF-6 -- left Da Nang and headed up the coast toward the demilitarized zone in a covert naval combat attack. Five hours later, they closed in on the offshore islands of Hon Me and Hon Ngu.

Heavy fire from North Vietnamese guns on Hon Me prevented the PTFs from fulfilling their mission to plant demolition charges near the shore. With injured men on the bullet-riddled PTF-6, she and PTF-3 rushed in to accomplish another goal. Their 20-mm and 40-mm guns and 57-mm rifle spewed rounds into a water tower surrounded by a few North Vietnamese military buildings. The other two boats took out targets on Hon Ngu. All returned to port.

The USS Maddox, a heavily-armed destroyer, was in international waters when the battles took place, but the North Vietnamese believed the raids and the destroyer's appearance were not coincidental. In fact, the mission of the Maddox was to record North Vietnamese radar and other electronic emissions expected to intensify after the PTF raid. A naval battle between Maddox and several North Vietnamese torpedo boats happened on Aug. 2, 1964, two days after the PTF boat attacks.

In less than a week after the encounter, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, and America became embroiled in the Vietnam War.

Still fighting
Now, PTF-3 is in another battle for its survival. Before locking the gates, the museum board demanded scouts and vets move the boat. The legal basis for their request is not clear, but experts say moving the craft in its present condition would damage PTF-3 beyond any hope of restoration. It is structurally unsound because of the restoration work. Until the hull frame, transom and deck are completed, and the boat has a unified, self-supporting structure, moving will cause the structure to rack and destroy its integrity. The eviction notice came next. The notice states that the museum can evict any tenant whose lease has expired. Veterans say they have an agreement to remain where they are for four more years. They expect the boat to be fully restored by then, provided they get no more interference from the museum.

Robert McCray, PTF-3's project manager, appealed for help to Kirby J. Mole, Florida's inspector general. In his June letter, McCray wrote, "We have been stunned by the treatment of the legitimate (museum) board which is the primary work force at their museum and our sudden treatment as a baldheaded stepchild by present (museum) board. All because of one 85-year-old individual who refers to DNAS as 'HIS' and that he owns the F-14 TOMCAT and TBF AVENGER and has told us "to get our piece of junk off of his property" …Another letter went to retired Adm. LeRoy Collins Jr., director of Florida's Department of Veteran Affairs. McCray wrote: "[Museum board chairman Dale] Alexander has had a long standing and well known dislike for anything about the Vietnam War, (and) has turned his attention to removing the PT Boat, from 'his' Museum."

What's next?
The battle drags on. Scouts could be in court any day now. While the museum denies the historical significance of PTF-3, all work has had to stop since the locked gate prohibits access to the boat.

Project member Jack Waples says it is illegal for the museum to seize property or lock out the group until the court orders such action. He also believes that, because the museum turned off the boat's utilities, the project group is violating safety rules set by the federal Occupational, Safety and Health Administration.

"If it becomes the perception of our outside sponsors that our project is meeting major legal problems, well, let me just say this: It took us a long time to get the money we have now," Waples told members. "Also, the state doesn't owe us anything, and time is running out. Don't make assumptions that someone we know will pull us out at the last minute. We're in a serious survival mode as of now."

And the Veterans Day parade is Nov. 10. One has to wonder what lessons scouts will learn, and Vietnam veterans will commemorate, if they aren't able to march.

Learn more about PTF-3 by visiting the boat's Web site at http://www.ptf3restoration.org

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