Hostar Moves History With Care

PT-728, one of the few remaining examples of the torpedo-armed fast attack craft that helped America win WWII, is no ordinary boat. That's why moving her was entrusted to nothing less than a state-of-the-art hydraulic yard trailer from HOSTAR Marine.

Portraying various sister boats, PT-728 has played a starring role in numerous movies and documentaries, most famously as PT-73 in the television show McHale's Navy. She is the only US Coast Guard-inspected PT boat licensed to take passengers for hire. Currently undergoing restoration at the Liberty Aircraft Museum in Port Clinton, Ohio, her recent move with a 60-ton HOSTAR HST6500Y hydraulic yard trailer was overseen by MarineMax of Port Clinton/Catawba Island.

The only surviving US-built PT boat with a Vosper-designed hull, PT-728's keel was laid in Annapolis, Maryland, on August 10, 1945, just days prior to the war's end. Although completed with combat configuration, she was decommissioned in November of the same year and eventually sold to a private owner.

Originally powered by three Packard/Merlin patrol engines totaling 4,055 hp, with a strike speed of 40 knots, PT-728's displacement was 33 tons with a full battle load. Her armament included four MK8 torpedoes, a 20 mm cannon, two twin 50-caliber Browning machine guns and an assault gun. She was later repowered with two Detroit Diesel 8V 71 TI engines.

HOSTAR's HSTY series hydraulic yard trailers accommodate power boats and deep draft sailboats, up to an 8' draft and 100' in length. Equipped with low-profile high flotation industrial tires for extra-heavy loads, they have a handling capacity of up to 200,000 lbs. These adjustable height trailers save time and money by making loading and off-loading a one-man operation.

Features include an electrically powered hydraulic system with independently controlled, extendable arms. Hydraulic walking beam suspension permits frame lifting or lowering to the ground. Trailers have slide-through removable cross beams for proper keel support, with pockets through and under the frame. Easy-handling reinforced aluminum cross beams are also available as an option.

Made especially for yard use and ideal for use with a travel hoist or crane, the HSTY series increases boat handling capability and maximizes yard storage capacity. An optional ramp package includes remote control for underwater operation. The hydraulic trailers come painted in a color of choice or hot-dip galvanized.

Besides hydraulic yard and over-the-road boat trailers, HOSTAR Marine also manufactures self-propelled yard trailers, government/military trailers, boat dollies and boat stands. The company offers customization on all its hydraulic trailers to accommodate special needs for marinas, boatyards and repair facilities.