Marvin Perrett was a high-recognized sailor of the
United States Coast Guard.
[
Perrett served aboard the troop transport USS ''Bayfield'', commanding one of her landing craft, during the ]invasion of Normandy
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II. The operation was launched on 6 June 1944 (D-Day) with the Norm ...
, and invasions in the Pacific Ocean, including the Invasion of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima (19 February – 26 March 1945) was a major battle in which the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and United States Navy (USN) landed on and eventually captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA ...
and the Invasion of Okinawa
The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...
.[
Perrett was able to complete the landing of two sets of troops on Utah Beach, at Normandy.][ After landing his troops at Iwo Jima his landing craft shipped water, and was swamped, and was abandoned. He and his small crew spent the rest of their day on the beach, finally getting a return to his ship around midnight. At Okinawa his landing craft was involved in a series of feints, proceeding close to several beaches, but then withdrawing, without landing.
Following the war Perrett's oral history of his wartime experience was widely distributed, and he was a frequent speaker.][
]
Legacy
Interviews with Perrett appeared in multiple documentary films. The Imperial War Museum
Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...
, in London, had an exhibit focussed around Perrett, his landing craft, ''PA 33-21'', based on his oral history. Perrett gave a demonstration of piloting a recreation of his landing craft, on Lake Pontchartrain, a week prior to his death in 2007.
Higgins boats
The landing craft, vehicle, personnel (LCVP) or Higgins boat was a landing craft used extensively by the Allied forces in amphibious landings in World War II. Typically constructed from plywood, this shallow-draft, barge-like boat could ferry a ...
, the manufacturer of Perrett's original landing craft, built a reproduction, in 2009, that it named the ''Marvin Perrett''.[
In 2010, Charles "Skip" W. Bowen, who was then the Coast Guard's most senior ]non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...
, proposed that all the cutters
Cutter may refer to:
Tools
* Bolt cutter
* Box cutter, aka Stanley knife, a form of utility knife
* Cigar cutter
* Cookie cutter
* Glass cutter
* Meat cutter
* Milling cutter
* Paper cutter
* Side cutter
* Cutter, a type of hydraulic rescue to ...
in the should be named after enlisted
Enlisted may refer to:
* Enlisted rank
An enlisted rank (also known as an enlisted grade or enlisted rate) is, in some armed services, any rank below that of a commissioned officer. The term can be inclusive of non-commissioned officers or ...
sailors in the Coast Guard, or one of its precursor services, who were recognized for their heroism.[ In 2019 the Coast Guard announced that Marvin Perrett would be the namesake of the 64th cutter, .][
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Perrett, Marvin
United States Coast Guard personnel of World War II
1925 births
2007 deaths