PT-305 is a torpedo-armed fast attack craft used by Allied Navy in World War II. It's one of two fully restored and operational PT boats (and the only combat veteran). PT-305 ("Half Hitch", "Barfly", "USS Sudden Jerk") is a Higgins 78-foot (24 m) boat, that sank three enemy ships and took part in two invasions.

It was assigned during the war to RON22, and saw action against the Germans in the Mediterranean Sea. Squadron 22 was operating with the British Royal Navy Coastal Forces, and saw action along the northwest coast of Italy and southern coast of France. In June 1945 the squadron was shipped to the U.S. for refitting and transfer to the Pacific, but the war ended while still in New York. 

After war, PT-305 was cut down to 65 feet (20 m) for use as an oyster seed boat in Crisfield, Maryland. PT-305 was acquired by the Defenders of America Naval Museum (DOANM), and then sold in May 2007 to the National World War II Museum in New Orleans. Volunteers at the Museum spent more than a decade restoring PT-305 to the way it looked in 1944. In total, were more than 130,000 hours of work from a dedicated corps of over 200 volunteers.

After this lengthy restoration, PT-305 has been restored to a seaworthy, operational vessel. It was relaunched in March 2017, and The National WWII Museum offeres the public the opportunity to tour and ride restored patrol-torpedo (PT) boat 305 on her home waters of Lake Pontchartrain, where she was originally tested by Higgins Industries more than 70 years ago. 

PT-305 is a unique Museum experience – placing visitors on the very deck where members of the US Navy stood to attack Axis supply ships and troop transports, speeding over the waves just as PT-305’s crew did in the Mediterranean during the war.

Public rides on PT-305 started April 1, and will initially only be offered Saturdays. The complete experience will last approximately 90 minutes. Alternatively, deck tours will be offered on Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays between 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. each day, lasting approximately 45 minutes. Climb Aboard Living History!

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