PT-658

PT-658

PT-658

USA

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.7	2.7	2.7

Class:

PREMIUM

Motor torpedo boat

Boat

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Show in game

Description

The Higgins 78 ft PT-658 is a premium gift rank III American motor torpedo boat with a battle rating of 2.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced during Update "Direct Hit" as a reward for Battle Pass: Season V, "River Hunter".

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull40 mm (wood)

Superstructure15 mm (wood)

Number of section3

Displacement58 t

Crew17 people

The survivability of the PT-658 is the same as most other small coastal vessels: if you get hit, it's going to hurt. The wooden construction and lack of dedicated armour on the boat makes for a short lifespan while under fire if not approached carefully. The best way to maximize your odds is hide behind islands, outcroppings, or other form of cover until an unaware victim has passed. Captains should also remember that large calibre shells may destroy the vessel outright with a single direct hit, making even the weakest destroyer a valid threat.

Ammunition on the PT-658 is stored in two locations; one cache below the forward 37 mm cannon and the other below the 40 mm cannon. This often means that when an opponent is aiming to knock out your two main armaments they may detonate your ammo.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB104 / 23 km/h

RB74 / 16 km/h

PT boats in general have excellent mobility, and the PT-658 is no exception to this rule. It combines superb acceleration, excellent manoeuvrability in tight spaces, and an above average top speed to make for an excellent early game capture point taker.

Mobility Characteristics
Game Mode	Upgrade Status	Maximum Speed (km/h)		Turn Time (s)	Turn Radius (m)
		Forward	Reverse
AB	Stock	___	___
	Upgraded	104	23
RB/SB	Stock	___	___
	Upgraded	74	16

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB1 702

RB1 894

Crew training10 000

Experts115 000

Aces500

Research Aces640 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 110 / 170 / 50 %

2 × 142 / 142 / 142 %

Modifications

Seakeeping	Unsinkability	Firepower
Dry-Docking Rudder Replacement Propeller Replacement Engine Maintenance	Damage Control Division Fire Division Smokescreen New Pumps	Anti-Air Armament Targeting 40 mm HE clips 20 mm HE magazines Auxiliary Armament Targeting 40 mm AP clips 20 mm AP magazines Primary Armament Targeting Depth Charges Rocket Launcher Artillery Support

Armament

Primary armament

Turret40 mm Bofors L/60 Mark 3 gun

Ammunition2000 rounds

Belt capacity4 rounds

Fire rate160 shots/min

Vertical guidance-7° / 88°

Turret37 mm AN-M4 cannon

Ammunition900 rounds

Belt capacity30 rounds

Fire rate150 shots/min

Vertical guidance-6° / 30°

The primary armament of the PT-658 consists of two main cannons of differing calibres. The first is a forward-mounted 37 mm AN-M4 and the second is a rear-mounted 40 mm Bofors L/60 Mark 3. These two weapons can knock out most coastal vessels with a few sustained volleys and can easily cripple aircraft with a single hit or two hits. Keeping this is mind allows for aggressive attacks with overwhelming firepower.

• Universal: AP-T · HEFI-T
• 40 mm AP clips: AP-T · AP-T · AP-T · HEFI-T
• 40 mm HE clips: HEFI-T · HEFI-T · HEFI-T · AP-T

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
HEFI-T	3	3	3	3	3	3
AP-T	81	78	68	58	49	41

Shell details
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
						0%	50%	100%
HEFI-T	874	0.9	0	0.1	67.13	79°	80°	81°
AP-T	874	0.89	-	-	-	47°	60°	65°

Secondary armament

2 х Turret20 mm/70 Oerlikon Mk.II autocannon

Ammunition1800 rounds

Belt capacity60 rounds

Fire rate450 shots/min

The PT-658 is armed with two 20mm Oerlikon Mk.II cannons as secondary armament. These are effective as both anti-surface and anti-air weapons with the HE shells being particularly effective against aircraft. The fire rate adds to this effectiveness as a near miss can quickly be corrected to ensure accuracy. It should be noted however that both cannons are in exposed mounts which means they can easily be knocked out by hits or near misses with HE shells.

• Universal: HEF-T · HEF-I · AP-T
• 20 mm HE: HEF-T · HEF-I · AP-T · HEF-I
• 20 mm AP: AP-T · AP-T · AP-T · HEF-I

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
	10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
HEF-T	2	2	2	2	2	2
AP-T	34	32	24	17	12	8
HEF-I	2	2	2	2	2	2

Shell details
Ammunition	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
						0%	50%	100%
HEF-T	830	0.12	0	0.1	6.57	79°	80°	81°
AP-T	830	0.12	-	-	-	47°	60°	65°
HEF-I	830	0.12	0	0.1	11.17	79°	80°	81°

Anti-aircraft armament

2 х Turret2 x 12.7 mm Browning AN-M2 machine gun

Ammunition4000 rounds

Belt capacity200 rounds

Fire rate577 shots/min

The PT-658 is equipped with four .50 caliber machine guns in two dual mounts located just behind and above the bridge. These machine guns provide adequate short range anti-air coverage but at the cost of both range and damage per shot. They may also act as a limited anti surface weapon, but their damage potential is limited to small PT boats and contemporaries.

Additional armament

Setup 14 x 569 mm Mk.13 torpedo

Setup 22 x Mk.6 depth charge

Setup 34 x 569 mm Mk.13 torpedo

2 x Mk.6 depth charge

Setup 416 x 127 mm Mk.7 rocket

Setup 54 x 569 mm Mk.13 torpedo

2 x 127 mm Mk.7 rocket

Setup 64 x 569 mm Mk.13 torpedo

2 x 127 mm Mk.7 rocket

2 x Mk.6 depth charge

The PT-658 is equipped with three special armaments. These include the Mk.6 depth charge (carries two), the Mk.7 127mm rocket (carries sixteen), and the Mk.13 (569mm) torpedo (carries two).

Starting with the Mk.6 depth charge, it is a standard depth charge equipped with 136kg of TNT and is dropped off of the rear of the boat. It is recommended to leave this armament off of the boat as it lacks usefulness in most situations and adds 272kg of explosives exposed to shrapnel and incoming shells.

The second form of special armament is the Mk.7 127mm (5 inch) rocket. The boat carries sixteen of these small rockets at the bow of the ship in mounts that can adjust vertically but not horizontally. Each rocket contains .79kg of TNT which makes its usefulness limited to attacked small boats and sub chasers. It is recommended to bring these into matches as they are effective with direct hits usually one shotting compartments of boats and occasionally detonating ammo with a good hit.

The third and final form of special armament is the Mk.13 torpedo. This is a general purpose torpedo using 178kg of TNT as its warhead payload. It is a relatively slow torpedo at 56km/h with a range of 5.21km. It is an overall effective counter to most destroyers and large sub chasers you may face. These make for great ambush weapons on maps where you can hide behind islands or other such obstacles and sneak up on large unaware prey.

Usage in battles

The PT-658 can be played as an aggressive scout vehicle in that while it lacks the survivability and durability of larger boats, it makes up for it with sheer firepower and mobility. This makes for an extremely effective early match vehicle where capping points, and eliminating the hostiles capturing those points is key. After the points are capped or if the mode doesn't have them, focus on eliminating enemy small craft such as PT boats or other small vessels. The use of the rockets make this task easier as you can launch almost 13kg of explosives bow on against enemies while simultaneously limiting your silhouette. Do not openly attack large sub-chasers or destroyers unless surprise (or desperation) is on your side. The short range of the torpedoes makes long range attacks impractical/impossible and thus should be used for ambushes against the previously mentioned destroyers or sub-chasers.

Overall the PT-658 is best used aggressively against other small vessels with capping points as a close second objective if applicable. It is most effective on maps with cover and concealment to limit exposure to larger and more dangerous opponents.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Punches well above its weight in the firepower category
• Excellent overall manoeuvrability in all situations
• Small silhouette allows for effective sneak attacks
• Premium bonuses allow for quick coastal research

Cons:

• Complete glass cannon, will easily get destroyed by sustained enemy fire
• Rockets have little practical use
• Depth charges are of limited use

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ship in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the ship and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Ship-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the ship's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the ship;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Devblog] Battle Pass vehicles: PT-658 torpedo boat

Higgins Industries Ships
Patrol Torpedo Boats (PT)
81' PT Prototype	PT-6
78' PT	PT-71 · PT-200 · PT-658 · MTB-422* · MS 444**
	*PT-92 in UK service
	**PT-94 in Italian service