Leyte: The Return to the Philippines

UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II

The War in the Pacific

LEYTE: THE RETURN TO THE PHILIPPINES

by M. Hamlin Cannon

OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF MILITARY HISTORY
DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY
WASHINGTON, D. C., 1954

This volume, one of the series UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II, is the fifth to be published in the subseries THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC. All the volumes will be closely related, and the series will present a comprehensive account of the activities of the Military Establishment during World War II. A tentative list of subseries is appended at the end of this volume.

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 53—61979

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office Washington 25, D. C.—Price of this volume, $6.75 (Cloth)

UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II

Kent Roberts Greenfield, General Editor

Advisory Committee

(As of 1 May 1953)

Office of the Chief of Military History

Maj. Gen. Albert C. Smith, Chief[1]

[1] Maj. Gen. Orlando Ward was succeeded by General Smith on 1 February 1953. [↑]

The History of

THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC

prepared under the direction of Louis Morton

• The Fall of the Philippines
• Guadalcanal: The First Offensive
• Victory in Papua
• Cartwheel: The Reduction of Rabaul
• Seizure of the Gilberts and Marshalls
• Campaign in the Marianas
• The Approach to the Philippines
• Leyte: The Return to the Philippines
• Triumph in the Philippines
• Okinawa: The Last Battle
• Strategy, Command, and Administration

... to Those Who Served

Foreword

With the Leyte Campaign the War in the Pacific entered a decisive stage. The period of limited offensives, bypassing, and island hopping was virtually over. American troops in greater numbers than ever before assembled in the Pacific Theater, supported by naval and air forces of corresponding size, fought and overcame Japanese forces of greater magnitude than any previously met.

Though the spotlight is on the front-line fighting, the reader will find in this volume a faithful description of all arms and services performing their missions. The account is not exclusively an infantry story. It covers as well the support of ground fighting on Leyte by large-scale naval operations and by land-based air power under the most adverse conditions. In addition, careful attention to logistical matters, such as the movement of supplies and the evacuation of the wounded, gives the reader a picture of the less spectacular activities of an army in battle.

ORLANDO WARD
Maj. Gen., U. S. A.
Chief of Military History

Washington, D. C.
30 January 1953

The Author

M. Hamlin Cannon received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History from the American University of Washington, D.C. He is already known to American historians for his writings on Mormon and Civil War history which have appeared in historical journals. During World War II he served with the Navy in Australia and New Guinea.

Preface

The landing of the American forces on Leyte on 20 October 1944 brought to fruition the long-cherished desire of General Douglas MacArthur to return to the Philippine Islands and avenge the humiliating reverses suffered in the early days of World War II. The successful conclusion of the campaign separated the Japanese-held Philippine Archipelago into two parts, with a strong American force between them. More important, it completed the severance of the Japanese mainland from the stolen southern empire in the Netherlands Indies from which oil, the lifeblood of modern warfare, had come.

The Leyte Campaign, like other campaigns in the Pacific, was waged on the land, in the air, and on and under the sea. In this operation all branches of the American armed forces played significant roles. Therefore, although the emphasis in this volume is placed upon the deeds of the United States Army ground soldier, the endeavors of the aviator, the sailor, the marine and the Filipino guerrilla have been integrated as far as possible into the story in order to make the campaign understandable in its entirety. At the same time, every effort has been made to give the Japanese side of the story.

Obviously, to include every exploit of every branch of the armed forces, of the Filipinos, and of the Japanese would be far beyond the compass of a single volume. A careful selectivity was necessary throughout in order to avoid the Scylla of omission while skirting the Charybdis of oversimplification. Despite these precautions, because of the nature of the available documentary evidence, I may have unwittingly fallen into some of the very pitfalls that I tried to avoid.

I wish to express my sincere gratitude and thanks to the many people who have given fully of their time and talents in the preparation of this volume.

Especial thanks are due to Dr. John Miller, jr., who, during his tenure as Chief of the Pacific Section, Office of the Chief of Military History, carefully reviewed the final draft of the manuscript. His sound advice and constructive criticism eliminated many a roadblock. I wish, also, to thank Dr. Louis Morton, Chief of the Pacific Section, under whose direction this volume was started; he made constructive criticism of several of the chapters. Dr. Kent Roberts Greenfield, Chief Historian, Department of the Army, devoted much time and effort to reviewing the manuscript and his many penetrating comments on the various chapters were invaluable.

Appreciation is due to the people of the Historical Records Section, Departmental Records Branch, Office of the Adjutant General, who helped to locate source material and furnished working space for me and the records. To Mrs. Lois Aldridge, Mrs. Frances Bowen, Mrs. Clyde Christian, Miss Margaret Emerson, Mrs. Ellen Garrison, Mr. Robert Greathouse, Miss Matilda Huber, Mrs. Margarite Kerstetter, Mr. Wilbur Nigh, Miss Sue D. Wallace, and Miss Thelma K. Yarborough—thanks.

I wish also to thank the members of the U. S. Air Force Historical Division, Air University, and the Naval History Branch, Naval Records and History Division, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, for placing at my disposal the pertinent air and naval records.

Thanks are also due to the members of the historical sections of the U. S. Navy and the U. S. Air Force and to the many participating commanders of various branches of the U. S. armed forces who read all or parts of the manuscript.

The late W. Brooks Phillips started the editing of the manuscript. He was succeeded by Col. B. A. Day, Chief of the Editorial and Publication Division, and Mrs. Loretto Stevens. Mrs. Stevens also prepared the final copy for the printer. Miss Mary Ann Bacon prepared the index.

Mrs. Martha Willoughby, in addition to accomplishing the arduous task of interpreting my handwriting, typed many of the drafts of the manuscript and saw that the subject and predicate agreed. Mrs. Wynona Hayden, Mrs. Stella Hess, and Mrs. Michael Miller also typed parts of the manuscript. Miss Elizabeth Armstrong painstakingly typed the final copy.

Mr. Wsevolod Aglaimoff and Lt. Col. Robert F. O’Donnell, as well as other members of the Cartographic Branch, spent many months in research for and preparation of the maps. At the time this volume was being prepared for publication, no reliable maps of Leyte were available. The maps for this volume are based on the highly inaccurate maps used by the troops during the operation. The relief in particular, as shown on these maps, has little in common with the terrain configuration which confronted the troops. Thus, both military and geographical information as given on the maps in the volume should be regarded only as an approximation of the actual situation at the time of the battle.

Major Arthur T. Lawry selected and edited the photographs used in this volume. Lt. Roger Pineau (USNR) furnished me the photograph of General Suzuki. Mr. Israel Wice and his capable assistants in the General Reference Branch were helpful at crucial stages of the manuscript.

My sincere appreciation and thanks go to Maj. Gen. Harry A. Maloney, Chief of Military History, and to his successors, Maj. Gen. Orlando Ward and Maj. Gen. Albert C. Smith, as well as to members of their staffs, for their understanding and co-operation.

M. HAMLIN CANNON

Washington, D. C.
15 June 1953

Contents

Tables

Charts

Maps

Illustrations

All illustrations but one are from Department of Defense files. The photograph of Lt. Gen. Sosaku Suzuki on page 51 was contributed by Lt. Roger Pineau (USNR).

LEYTE: THE RETURN TO THE PHILIPPINES

CHAPTER I

The Strategic Plan

“It is with the deepest regret that I must inform you that conditions over which I have no control have necessitated the surrender of troops under my command.”[1] With this message of 20 May 1942, from Lt. Col. Theodore M. Cornell, U.S. Army, to Bernardo Torres, Governor of Leyte, the control which the United States had held over the island since 1898 came to an end. Nearly two and a half years were to elapse before the sound of naval guns in Leyte Gulf would announce to the world the opening of the Leyte Campaign, the first phase of the re-entry of American forces into the Philippine Archipelago. (Map 1—inside back cover)

The primary purpose of the Leyte Campaign was to establish an air and logistical base in the Leyte area in order to support operations in the Luzon-Formosa-China coast area and particularly to nullify Japanese strength in Luzon. Leyte is one of the Visayan Islands, which constitute the geographical heart of the Philippines. It was hoped that the fertile Leyte Valley, broad and flat, could be utilized for major airfields and base sites from which large-scale operations could be launched against the rest of the Philippines.

Preliminary Discussion

Behind the decision to go into Leyte lay a series of strategically significant victories, which had followed a staggering initial reverse. American prewar plans for the Pacific had originally been based on the assumption that only the United States and Japan would be at war and that the U.S. Pacific Fleet would be in existence.[2] But the destruction of the fleet at Pearl Harbor and the entrance of Germany and Italy into the war nullified these plans. The strategy of the Joint Chiefs of Staff[3] in early 1942, therefore, was concerned chiefly with trying to limit the rapid advance of the Japanese and with keeping the line of communications to Australia open. The Pacific Theater was divided into command areas—the Southwest Pacific Area, with General Douglas MacArthur as Supreme Commander (he referred to himself, however, as Commander in Chief), and the Pacific Ocean Area (which included the Central Pacific), with Admiral Chester W. Nimitz as Commander in Chief.[4]

In 1942 and 1943 the Allied forces had halted the Japanese at Papua and Guadalcanal and started to push them back. On 8 May 1943 the Joint Chiefs approved a “Strategic Plan for the Defeat of Japan,” which was endorsed by the Combined Chiefs in December. The objective of the plan was to secure the unconditional surrender of Japan, an objective that might necessitate an invasion of the Japanese home islands. As such an invasion promised to be a “vast undertaking,” it would be necessary to secure a large supply base from which a great aerial offensive could be mounted against Japan. According to the original plan this base was to be located in China, but the Mariana Islands were afterward substituted for China. The plan called for the acquisition of successive island bases which could be used as “steppingstones,” preferably those which would shorten the sea route, provide for its security, and at the same time deny to the Japanese bases from which they might interfere with the Allied line of communications. The main effort was to be through the waters of the Pacific Ocean. Nimitz’ operations were to be conducted west through the Japanese mandated islands while MacArthur’s proceeded northwest along the New Guinea coast. The two series of operations were to be mutually supporting.[5]

Although no specific islands were named in the Strategic Plan, the Philippine Archipelago, because of its strategic position and long possession by the United States, naturally loomed large in the planning. The Philippines lie athwart all sea routes south from Japan to the economically important Netherlands Indies—rich in rubber, tin, oil, and rice. The capture of the Philippines would help to sever this line of communications and would furnish an excellent staging area for attacks against China, Formosa, or Japan. Aside from strategic considerations, the liberation of the Islands was important for reasons of Far Eastern politics and prestige.[6] The obligation of the United States to the subjugated Filipino people could not be lightly ignored. Furthermore, General MacArthur was imbued with a burning determination to return to the Philippine Islands and avenge the humiliating defeats suffered by the American forces in 1941 and 1942.

By the spring of 1944 the operations in the Pacific were going so well that the successes had exceeded even the most optimistic hopes of any of the planning officers. On 12 March the Joint Chiefs ordered General MacArthur to prepare plans for a return to Mindanao, southernmost island of the Philippines, with a target date of 15 November 1944.[7] General MacArthur on 15 June issued a plan for his future operations. The entrance into the Philippines was to be accomplished in two phases. The first would be a preliminary operation on 25 October into the Sarangani Bay area in southern Mindanao in order to establish land-based air forces to augment the carrier-based air support for the principal effort. The major effort was to be an amphibious landing operation with forces mounted from New Guinea for the seizure on 15 November of airfields and bases on Leyte.[8] The latter was to follow quickly on the heels of the first operation in order to take full advantage of the surprise tactics.

Leyte occupies a commanding position in the Philippine Islands. Because of its central location, its repossession by the United States would not only divide the Japanese forces in the Philippines but would also provide an excellent anchorage in Leyte Gulf, together with sites for bases and airfields from which land-based aircraft could bomb all parts of the Philippines, the coast of China, and Formosa. To an even greater extent than Mindanao, Leyte could be made into an excellent springboard from which to launch subsequent operations against the Japanese in Formosa or in the rest of the Philippines.

In his planning, General MacArthur recognized that the Leyte operation, his most ambitious to date, would require “massed carrier-based air support” and all of the “combined amphibious and naval forces available at the time.”[9]

By June 1944 General MacArthur’s forces had pushed up the New Guinea coast to the island of Biak, about nine hundred nautical miles southeast of Davao, Mindanao, while those of Admiral Nimitz were poised to strike at Saipan some twelve hundred miles northeast of Davao. In most of their previous campaigns the Americans had struck with overwhelming force at weakly held Japanese garrisons. Since the tide of war was now so favorable to the Allied cause, the Joint Chiefs thought that the Pacific timetable of pending operations might be accelerated. On 13 June they had therefore asked MacArthur and Nimitz their opinions with regard to three ways proposed for speeding up operations: “(a) By advancing target dates of operations now scheduled through operations against Formosa; (b) By by-passing presently selected objectives prior to operations against Formosa; and (c) By by-passing presently selected objectives and choosing new ones including the home islands.” Although the Philippine Islands were not explicitly named as targets that might be bypassed, they were certainly included by implication.[10]

On 18 June General MacArthur replied to the query of the Joint Chiefs,[11] and on 4 July Admiral Nimitz made known his opinions.[12] On the advancement of the target dates, both commanders were in complete agreement—it was impossible unless certain conditions could be changed. The logistic resources in the Southwest Pacific were being strained to the limit to meet the fixed target dates, while the strengthening of Japanese garrisons made it unlikely that the Central Pacific could make its present scheduled dates.

With respect to bypassing objectives prior to the seizure of Formosa, MacArthur thought it would be “unsound” to bypass the Philippines and launch an attack across the Pacific directly against Formosa—an attack which would have the benefit of no appreciable land-based air support and which would be based upon the Hawaiian Islands, 5,100 miles away. In his opinion it was essential to occupy Luzon and establish land-based aircraft thereon before making any move against Formosa.[13] Nimitz stated that in a series of informal discussions between his and MacArthur’s planning officers, the latter anticipated the seizure in early September of Morotai Island, 300 statute miles southeast of Mindanao. This was to be followed in late October by a limited occupation of the Sarangani Bay area on Mindanao, which was to be used primarily as a base for short-range aircraft. The major operation was to be the occupation of Leyte about 15 November. Nimitz thought that this timing was “optimistic.” He felt that the critical and decisive nature of the Leyte operation required “practically all available covering and striking forces, fire support forces, and all available assault shipping.” If successful, however, the Americans would achieve air supremacy over the Philippines. Therefore, since the inclusion of the Leyte operation with that of Mindanao would expedite subsequent operations, Nimitz considered it “advisable.”[14]

As to the feasibility of bypassing present objectives and choosing new ones, including the Japanese home islands, the two commanders were not in complete agreement. MacArthur pronounced the concept “utterly unsound,” since the available shipping was limited to a seven-division lift and there was insufficient air support. Nimitz thought that no decision should be made until after further developments.

The proposals disturbed General MacArthur, who concluded his message to the Joint Chiefs with the following peroration:

It is my opinion that purely military considerations demand the reoccupation of the Philippines in order to cut the enemy’s communications to the south and to secure a base for our further advance. Even if this were not the case and unless military factors demanded another line of action it would in my opinion be necessary to reoccupy the Philippines.

The Philippines is American Territory where our unsupported forces were destroyed by the enemy. Practically all of the 17,000,000 Filipinos remain loyal to the United States and are undergoing the greatest privation and suffering because we have not been able to support or succor them. We have a great national obligation to discharge.

Moreover, if the United States should deliberately bypass the Philippines, leaving our prisoners, nationals, and loyal Filipinos in enemy hands without an effort to retrieve them at earliest moment, we would incur the gravest psychological reaction. We would admit the truth of Japanese propaganda to the effect that we had abandoned the Filipinos and would not shed American blood to redeem them; we would undoubtedly incur the open hostility of that people; we would probably suffer such loss of prestige among all the peoples of the Far East that it would adversely affect the United States for many years....[15]

In reply, General George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff, cautioned MacArthur to “be careful not to let personal feelings and Philippine politics” override the great objective, which was to end the war. He also pointed out that “bypassing” was not “synonymous with abandonment.”[16]

Admiral William F. Halsey, the commander of the Third Fleet, and his staff, when they heard of the proposal, were enthusiastic about the possibility of bypassing the more immediate objectives. But in contrast to Admiral Ernest J. King, Chief of Naval Operations, who wished to move directly to Formosa, bypassing the Philippines, Halsey felt it necessary and profitable to go into the Philippine Archipelago, which he considered to be “the vulnerable belly of the Imperial dragon.”[17] Halsey stated that when Rear Adm. Robert B. Carney, his chief of staff, was asked by King, “Do you want to make a London out of Manila?” Carney replied, “No, sir. I want to make an England out of Luzon.”[18]

CONFERENCE AT PEARL HARBOR brings together (left to right) General Douglas MacArthur, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Admiral William D. Leahy and Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff concluded that none of the currently selected objectives could be bypassed. They continued, however, to search for means by which the tempo of the war in the Pacific might be accelerated.

In the latter days of July, General Marshall invited General MacArthur to visit Pearl Harbor in order to confer with Admiral Nimitz on future plans for the war in the Pacific. MacArthur arrived on 26 July. To his surprise, the President of the United States was present. President Roosevelt invited him and Admirals Halsey and Nimitz to dinner. After dinner the President drew out a map and, pointing to Leyte, is reported to have said, “Well, Douglas, where do we go from here?”[19]

Although Mac Arthur had been given no intimation that strategy was going to be discussed, he launched into a long talk on the necessity of taking Luzon before moving against Formosa. Nimitz did not enter into the conversation. The following morning the discussions were continued. Admiral William D. Leahy, who was present, later declared: “Both General MacArthur and Admiral Nimitz felt that they did not require any additional reinforcements or assistance” for the scheduled operations.[20] This Admiral Leahy considered most unusual.

Admiral Nimitz reported to Admiral King that the conferences “were quite satisfactory. The general trend of the discussion ... was along the line of seeing MacArthur into the Central Philippines....”[21]

There was no strong disagreement between General MacArthur and Admiral Nimitz. Admiral Leahy said, “I personally was convinced that they together were the best qualified officers in our service for this tremendous task, and that they could work together in full agreement toward the common end of defeating Japan.”[22]

Strong efforts were already under way to accelerate operations in the Pacific. A shortage of shipping appeared to be the bottleneck which halted all attempts to speed up the operational target dates. General MacArthur at Brisbane had been directing the whole of his planning toward the reoccupation of the Philippine Islands, and on 10 July had issued a plan for all operations into the archipelago. According to this plan the conquest of the Islands was to be accomplished in four major phases.

The initial phase envisaged footholds in the southern and central Philippines for the establishment of bases and airfields from which subsequent operations could be supported. The first operation, planned for 1 November 1944, was to be the seizure of the Sarangani Bay area in southern Mindanao for the purpose of establishing land-based air forces to augment the carrier-based air support for the advance into Leyte. The Leyte operation, the main effort of this series, was to come on 22 November. Major air, naval, and logistic bases were to be constructed on the shores of Leyte Gulf for the control of Leyte, Samar, and Surigao Strait, and for the neutralization of the Japanese aerial strength on Luzon.[23] The other phases covered the occupation of Luzon and the consolidation of the Philippines.

On 26 July the Joint Chiefs agreed that the primary purpose of the occupation of the Leyte-Mindanao area was to establish air forces there in order to reduce the enemy air strength on Luzon. Some of Admiral Nimitz’ assault craft which were suitable for shore-to-shore operations were to be transferred to General MacArthur. The Joint Chiefs, therefore, asked their planners to submit their views on the possibility of advancing the target date for Leyte to 15 November by compressing the intervals between contemplated operations or by the elimination of certain scheduled operations.[24]

In furtherance of this directive, planning officers from Washington met with General MacArthur and his staff in Brisbane in the early part of August and discussed means of accelerating the target date for Leyte. General MacArthur told them that a substantial interval between the operations at Sarangani Bay and Leyte was necessary. His reasons were as follows: (1) the assault shipping that was used for the Sarangani Bay operation would have time to turn around, reload, and then be used for the Leyte operation; (2) in the interval six combat air groups could be installed in the Sarangani Bay area to support the Leyte operation; and (3) the carriers would have sufficient time to execute two strikes before the Leyte operation.[25]

The planners from Washington, however, felt that there was sufficient assault shipping in the Pacific without using the same craft for both the Sarangani Bay and the Leyte operations. An enumeration of the vessels assigned to the Southwest Pacific and the Central Pacific gave the areas more than a six-division lift. As Brig. Gen. Frank N. Roberts, chief of the Strategy and Policy Group, Operations Division, War Department General Staff, in Washington, told Col. William L. Ritchie, his deputy, who was in Brisbane, “If you sit down and look at those figures a bit you will see that there should be sufficient assault lift for Leyte just on playing the numbers racket, without touching the shipping on Sarangani.”[26]

Both Washington and Brisbane recognized that the operations in the Leyte-Surigao area were necessary in order to provide air bases, depot areas, and a fleet anchorage for any future advance whether in the Philippines, against Formosa, or by a direct route into the Japanese homeland. Consequently, the planners never seriously entertained any idea of bypassing this area, although they continued to probe for means which would accelerate the target date.

The determination of the target date was dependent upon the availability of assault shipping and the desire of General MacArthur to have each successive advance supported by land-based aircraft. The existing shipping was needed for operations already scheduled. The planners concluded that additional shipping could be made available if certain phases of the campaigns of Central Pacific forces into the Palaus, scheduled to start on 15 September, were canceled or set ahead of schedule. The alternatives were to modify the concept of providing land-based air support for subsequent operations or to execute the Sarangani Bay and Leyte operations simultaneously.[27] There the matter rested. Apparently the Joint Chiefs had decided that the time was not opportune for an acceleration of the target dates.

On 27 August General MacArthur furnished General Marshall a timetable for future operations by his forces. On 15 September a division and a reinforced regiment were to seize Morotai in order “to protect the western flank” and to provide land-based aircraft for advances northward. On 15 October a division less one regimental combat team was to land in the Talaud Islands northwest of Morotai in order “to neutralize the [Japanese] western flank,” to establish air bases from which the neutralization of Mindanao and the western Visayan Islands could be accomplished, and to set up a base for airborne troops. On 15 November two divisions were to land in the Sarangani Bay area in order to construct bases for land-based aircraft that were to support the Leyte operation. On 7 December a regimental combat team and a parachute battalion were to drop on Mindanao and establish an airfield for fighter cover for the aerial neutralization of the western Visayan Islands and southern Luzon. On 20 December five divisions were to land on Leyte for the purpose of providing “major air and logistic bases for operations to the northward.” The plan was predicated on the assumption that there would be available in the Pacific sufficient amphibious lift and fleet support.[28]

Plans Agreed Upon

On 1 September 1944 the Joint Chiefs of Staff in their 171st meeting reviewed the situation in the Pacific. The time had come when it was necessary to issue a directive for future operations in that area. After much discussion, the Joint Chiefs left in abeyance the question of what operation should follow Leyte but “directed the Joint Staff Planners to prepare, as a matter of urgency, a directive to the Commander in Chief, Southwest Pacific Area, and the Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas, to carry out the Leyte operation.”[29]

Accordingly, on 8 September, the two commanders were given the following missions: General MacArthur, after conducting the necessary preliminary operations, was to take the Leyte-Surigao area on 20 December, with Admiral Nimitz furnishing fleet support and additional assault shipping. Both commanders were to arrange for co-ordination of plans and mutual support of operations; to co-ordinate plans with General Joseph W. Stilwell, Commanding General, United States Army forces, China, Burma and India, in order to get maximum support from that theater; and to arrange with General Henry H. Arnold, Commanding General, Twentieth Air Force, for supporting operations.[30]

Concurrently with the issuance of this directive, momentous events were taking place in the Pacific. Admiral Halsey was in command of scheduled operations against the Palau Islands. On 7 and 8 September aircraft from his carriers struck at Yap and the Palau Islands, against which Admiral Nimitz had scheduled operations, and for the next two days bombed Mindanao. On the 12th and 14th the bombers hit the central Philippines in support of the operations against the Palau Islands and Morotai.

Admiral Halsey advised Admiral Nimitz that, as a result of the strikes, few serviceable planes in the Philippines were left to the Japanese, the bulk of the enemy’s oil supplies was destroyed, there was “no shipping left to sink,” the “enemy’s non-aggressive attitude [was] unbelievable and fantastic,” and “the area is wide open.”[31] Halsey also told Nimitz that one of his downed carrier pilots had been told by his Filipino rescuers that there were no Japanese on Leyte.[32] He therefore felt that it was time to accelerate the operations in the Pacific, and he strongly recommended that the intermediate operations—Yap, Talaud, and the Sarangani Bay area on Mindanao—be canceled. Leyte could be seized immediately and cheaply without any intermediate operations. Halsey’s fleet could cover the initial landing until land-based aircraft could be established. The force intended for the occupation of Yap could be made available to General MacArthur.[33]

When this message was received, the Combined Chiefs of Staff were attending a conference in Quebec. The recommendations were transmitted to Quebec by Admiral Nimitz, who offered to place at MacArthur’s disposal the III Amphibious Force, including the XXIV Corps, which was loading at Pearl Harbor for Yap. General Marshall so informed General MacArthur and asked his opinion on the proposed change of target date.[34]

The message reached MacArthur’s headquarters at Hollandia, on New Guinea, while MacArthur was en route to Morotai and observing radio silence. His chief of staff advised General Marshall that although the information from the rescued pilot that there were no Japanese on Leyte was incorrect, the intermediate operations could be eliminated. The 1st Cavalry Division and the 24th Infantry Division with sufficient service troops were available for the Leyte operation; adequate air strength could be provided; the logistic support was practicable; and the XXIV Corps could be used.[35]

General Marshall received this answer at Quebec on 15 September while he, Admiral Leahy, Admiral King, and General Arnold were at a formal dinner given by Canadian officers. The Americans withdrew from the table for a conference. Within an hour and a half after the message arrived, the Joint Chiefs ordered MacArthur and Nimitz to cancel the three intermediate operations of Yap, Talaud, and Sarangani, co-ordinate their plans, and invade Leyte on 20 October.[36]

Later that evening, as he was on his way to his quarters after the dinner, General Marshall received this message: “Subject to completion of arrangements with Nimitz, we shall execute Leyte operation on 20 October.... MacArthur.”[37]

On 3 October the Joint Chiefs of Staff directed General MacArthur to occupy Luzon on 20 December 1944, the date originally set for the entrance into Leyte.[38] The decision had been made. General MacArthur was to return to the Philippine Islands in force.

[1] Philippine Municipal Government Reports, Folder 2, App. DD, Guerrilla File 6910.23 (B), Military Intelligence (MI) Library. [↑]

[2] Louis Morton, “American and Allied Strategy in the Far East,” Military Review, XXIX (December, 1949), 38. [↑]

[3] The Joint Chiefs of Staff were General George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff, United States Army; Admiral Ernest J. King, Commander in Chief, U.S. Fleet, and Chief of Naval Operations; General Henry H. Arnold, Commanding General, Army Air Forces; and Admiral William D. Leahy, Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief—the President of the United States. The Joint Chiefs were responsible for the conduct of the war in the Pacific, subject to the decisions of the Combined Chiefs of Staff. The latter were representatives of the United States and the United Kingdom. The Joint Chiefs represented the United States. [↑]

[4] Memo, Gen Marshall and Admiral King for President, 30 Mar 42, no sub, and two incls, “Directive to the Commander in Chief of the Pacific Ocean Area” and “Directive to Supreme Commander in the Southwest Pacific,” OPD ABC 323.31 POA (1–29–42), 1-B. [↑]

[5] JCS 287/1, Strategic Plan for the Defeat of Japan, 8 May 43; CCS 417, Over-all Plan for the Defeat of Japan, 2 Dec 43. [↑]

[6] United States Strategic Bombing Survey [USSBS], Military Analysis Division, Employment of Forces Under the Southwest Pacific Command (Washington, 1947), p. 32. [↑]

[7] JCS to CINCSWPA, CM-IN 5137, 12 Mar 44. CM-IN and CM-OUT numbers used in the footnotes of this volume refer to numbers on copies of those messages in General Marshall’s Message Log, on file in the Staff Communications Office, Office of the Chief of Staff, U.S. Army. [↑]

[8] GHQ SWPA, RENO V, 15 Jun 44. [↑]

[9] Ibid. [↑]

[10] Rad, JCS to CINCSWPA and CINCPOA, CM-OUT 50007, 13 Jun 44. [↑]

[11] Rad, CINCSWPA to CofS, CM-IN 15058, 18 Jun 44. [↑]

[12] Rad, CINCPOA to COMINCH, CM-IN 2926, 4 Jul 44. [↑]

[13] Rad cited n. 11. [↑]

[14] Rad cited n. 12. [↑]

[15] Rad cited n. 11. [↑]

[16] Rad, CofS to CINCSWPA, CM-OUT 55718, 24 Jun 44. [↑]

[17] William F. Halsey, Admiral Halsey’s Story (New York, 1947), pp. 194–99. [↑]

[18] Ibid., p. 195. [↑]

[19] Information was furnished by Capt. Samuel Eliot Morison, USNR, 22 January 1951, who stated that Roosevelt had related the incident to him. Lt. Gen. Robert G. Richardson, who was not present, states that MacArthur told him that the President pointed to Mindanao when he made his remark. Ltr, Gen Richardson to Gen Marshall, 1 Aug 44, Book 21, OPD Exec 9. [↑]

[20] Interv with Admiral Leahy, 5 Oct 50, OCMH. [↑]

[21] Memo, COMINCH for CofS, 9 Aug 44, OPD ABC 384 Pacific (1–17–43). [↑]

[22] Interv with Admiral Leahy, 5 Oct 50, OCMH. See also, Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy, I Was There (New York, 1950), pp. 247–52. In answer to an inquiry about the conference made to the director of the Franklin D. Roosevelt Library, the author was informed that “a careful search of the papers of Franklin D. Roosevelt in this Library has not revealed any materials that would be pertinent to the subject....” Ltr, Herman Kahn to author, 20 Oct 50, OCMH. [↑]

[23] GHQ SWPA, MUSKETEER Plan, 10 Jul 44. [↑]

[24] Rad, JPS to Staff Planners of CINCPOA and CINCSWPA, CM-OUT 71483, 27 Jul 44. [↑]

[25] Tel conf, Washington and Brisbane, 7 Aug 44, WD-TC 797. [↑]

[26] Tel conf, Washington and Brisbane, 10 Aug 44, WD-TC 809. [↑]

[27] Ibid. [↑]

[28] Rad, CINCSWPA to CofS, CM-IN 24770, 27 Aug 44. [↑]

[29] Min, JCS 171st Mtg, 1 Sep 44. [↑]

[30] Rad, JCS to CINCSWPA and CINCPOA, CM-OUT 27648, 8 Sep 44. [↑]

[31] Rad, Com3dFlt to CINCPOA, CM-IN 13120, 14 Sep 44. [↑]

[32] Rad, Com3dFlt to CINCPOA, CINCSWPA, and COMINCH, CM-IN 12893, 13 Sep 44. [↑]

[33] Rad, Com3dFlt to CINCPOA, CM-IN 12893, 14 Sep 44. [↑]

[34] Biennial Report of the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, July 1, 1943, to June 30, 1945, to the Secretary of War (Washington, 1945), p. 71. [↑]

[35] Rad, CINCSWPA to JCS, CINCPOA, and Com3dFlt, CM-IN 12636, 14 Sep 44. [↑]

[36] Rad, JCS to CINCSWPA, CINCPOA, and Com3dFlt, 15 Sep 44, OCTAGON 31-A, CofS CM-OUT Log, 15 Sep 44; Biennial Report, p. 71, cited n. 34; General of the Air Force Henry H. Arnold, Global Mission (New York, 1949), pp. 529–30. [↑]

[37] Rad, CINCSWPA to JCS, CM-IN 17744, 15 Sep 44. [↑]

[38] Rad, JCS to CINCSWPA et al., CM-OUT 40792, 3 Oct 44. [↑]

CHAPTER II

The Nature of the Target

The Philippine Islands, the largest island group in the Malay Archipelago, were discovered by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521. They became a Spanish possession in 1565 and remained so until 10 December 1898 when they were ceded to the United States by the Treaty of Paris as a result of the Spanish-American war. In the spring of 1942 Japan secured military domination over the Islands.

The Philippine Archipelago lay in the geographical heart of the Far Eastern theater of war. As a pivotal point of control the Islands were centrally placed in relation to Japan, China, Burma, French Indochina, Thailand, British Malaya, and the Netherlands Indies. Being the most northerly part of the Malay Archipelago, the Philippines were also close to the vital areas of Japan and the Chinese-held areas of the Asiatic mainland. Located southeast of the continent, they occupy much the same position with respect to the mainland of Asia that the West Indies do with respect to North America.

The Islands are among the remnants of a great continent that once extended over the space now occupied by the entire East Indies. There are some 7,100 islands and islets in the Philippine Archipelago, which has a land area of 114,830 square miles. Of these, about 460 have an area of one square mile or more and 2,773 are named. The Philippine Islands are divided into three main groups—Luzon and adjacent islands in the northern sector; the Visayan Islands in the central portion, comprising Samar, Leyte, and numerous others; and finally, in the southern part, Mindanao and the Sulu Archipelago. The Philippines had a prewar population of about 16,000,000, of whom 14,550,000 were Christians, 678,000 were Mohammedans, 626,000 were pagans, and about 64,000 were Buddhists and Shintoists.[1]

Geography of Leyte

The northeastern Visayan group, which consists mainly of Leyte and Samar, was selected as the point of entrance into the Philippines. Leyte had the higher potential military value. The air distance from the capital city of Tacloban to Manila is 295 miles. Leyte is a natural gateway to the rest of the Philippines, and its possession would greatly facilitate and support further operations to the north as well as expedite control over the remaining islands in the Visayan group.[2]

Leyte roughly resembles a molar tooth with its crown toward Samar and its roots pointing to Mindanao. The eighth largest island in the Philippines, with an area of 2,785 square miles, it runs generally from north to south, with an approximate length of 115 miles and a width of 15 to 45 miles. It is situated on one of the principal submerged shelves of the Philippine Archipelago, and the waters over the shelf have an average depth of 22 fathoms. (Map 2—inside back cover)

The Terrain

The island is mainly volcanic in origin. A range of mountains, the topographical backbone of the island, extends southeast from Biliran Strait in the north to Cabalian Bay in the south and separates the Leyte and Ormoc Valleys. All of southern Leyte is mountainous and, militarily speaking, of little importance. The northwest coast is also rugged, and except for the port of Palompon has little tactical significance. The heavily forested central mountain range is composed of numerous knifelike ridges and spurs and deep ravines and serves as an effective natural barrier between the island’s eastern and western coastal areas. It is a major obstacle to the rapid movement of troops and can be utilized very effectively in defending the island.

Leyte Valley, a broad and fertile plain, stretches across the northeastern part of the island from Leyte Gulf to Carigara Bay. More than twenty-five miles wide along the shore of the gulf, it is gradually narrowed by the mountain ranges to the north and south to less than ten miles as it reaches Carigara Bay. Most of the island’s population live in this valley, and here too are most of the principal cities and airfields.

The main road net of the island runs through Leyte Valley, a great number of streams interlacing it. The numerous rice paddies, centuries old, disrupt the natural drainage of the valley. Rarely is the water level more than a few inches below the surface. Even in the drier months, vehicular movement is limited to the existing roads. In 1944 these were poor, inadequate, and ill suited for heavy military traffic. The best of them had only a light bituminous surface and were neither wide enough nor strong enough for two-way military traffic.[3] It was hoped that Leyte Valley could be developed into a large air and logistical base to support further operations, but it was not well suited for this purpose.

The shore line of Leyte Valley along Leyte Gulf and San Pedro Bay affords the best landing beaches on the island. This coast is dangerous for beach landings during northeast monsoon periods, when heavy surf, high winds, and torrential rains imperil men, equipment, and shipping. July, August, and September are the best months for landing. In general there are good firm sand beaches, onto which landing craft can go directly. A road parallels the shore line, but there are few exit roads from the beach to this road and beyond. In many places close to the shore there are swamps and rice paddies which prevent rapid egress from the beach. There are other good landing beaches on the east coast of Ormoc Bay, but they are crossed by innumerable creeks and streams.

Leyte Gulf is large and open, offering an excellent anchorage for a considerable number of vessels, including those of largest size. Carigara Bay, to the north of the island, is twenty miles wide, but shallow waters, swamps, and the hilly terrain of its eastern and western sides restrict its value for military operations. A narrow neck of the central mountain range separates the bay from the northern end of Ormoc Valley. San Juanico Strait, which separates Leyte from Samar in the north, connects Carigara Bay and San Pedro Bay, the latter being a northern extension of Leyte Gulf. The strait is thirteen and a half miles long with an average width of a quarter to a half mile. Small landing craft can navigate the channel, but there are strong tidal currents which cause violent rips and swirls at many points.

Wedged in between the central mountain range and the hill mass of the northwest coast of Leyte, the Ormoc Valley, about five miles wide in its largest part, extends from Ormoc Bay to the north for fifteen miles where a narrow neck of the central ridge separates it from Carigara Bay. Through the valley runs a narrow road, its northern portion marked by steep grades and sharp curves. Halfway along, a branch road zigzags its course to Port Palompon on the west coast. Although most of the southern part of the valley is under cultivation, there are large patches of forest, scrub growth, and cogon grass in the north.[4]

The largest city on the island, the provincial capital, is Tacloban, which lies at the head of San Pedro Bay. As the only sizable port in the area, it handles most of the outbound shipping, mainly from Leyte and Samar. Its prewar population was about 31,000. Other important towns are Carigara and Barugo on the north coast; Baybay and Ormoc, the leading ports on the west coast; and Palo, Tanauan, and Abuyog along the east coast. All the more significant towns are situated on the main road system of the island, and the larger coastal barrios (villages) have roads of a sort.

The road system is divided into a northern and a southern coastal road net. The former, which is the better, was designed for the transportation of agricultural produce from the northern interior areas to Tacloban. The latter is composed of narrow, roundabout roads that are constantly in need of repair. The two systems are joined by a road, scarcely better than a trail, which runs west of Abuyog and corkscrews its way through heavily forested mountains to Baybay. Another road, long, narrow, and broken in parts, goes north from Baybay to Ormoc and thence through the Ormoc Valley to Carigara.

The Tacloban airstrip, the principal airfield on the island, was located on the Cataisan Peninsula, which lies just southeast of Tacloban. The Japanese had constructed another airfield, known as the Dulag airstrip, two miles west of Dulag; three others—the Buri, Bayug, and San Pablo airstrips—near Burauen, five miles west of Dulag; and still another at Valencia in the Ormoc Valley, eight miles north of Ormoc.

Control of the island of Leyte is dependent upon control of the Leyte and Ormoc Valleys and their adjacent hills and mountains. Thus, before a successful movement into Leyte Valley could be assured, control of the high ground in the vicinity of Palo would be essential. Continued dominance over the valley is dependent upon control of the high ground at its northwestern end in the vicinity of Pinamopoan on Carigara Bay, possession of which would preclude infiltration from Ormoc Valley. The control of Ormoc Valley and use of the excellent anchorage and harbor facilities of Ormoc Bay is dependent upon control of the lowland in the vicinity of Ormoc city and the commanding hills to the east.

The People

In 1939 the total population of Leyte was 915,853, of whom more than 912,000 were native Visayans of Malaysian stock. The largest other group consisted of 3,076 Chinese, half of whom were engaged in retail trade. There was a sprinkling of other national groups—40 Spaniards, 20 Germans, 81 from other European countries, 56 Americans, and 73 Japanese.

Because of their insular position and somewhat primitive culture, the inhabitants are primarily an agricultural and fishing people. The principal crops are rice, sugar cane, corn, and copra. Judged by Occidental standards, the mode of farming is backward and shows little tendency to progress. The Filipinos who have been exposed to industrial life, however, have been able to adapt themselves to employment in the limited trade crafts and manufacturing on the island.

According to his own standards, the Filipino lives well enough. His chief foods are rice or corn, fish, camotes (sweet potatoes), and occasionally chicken or other meat. The men’s clothing is simple; the average man has several changes of cheap cotton shirts and pants made of imported cotton cloth or, in the more remote districts, from homespun material.

Most of the dwelling houses are made of bamboo and sheathed with palm leaves on roof and sides. The material is gathered locally and tied with rattan. The houses rarely consist of more than two rooms, and many are raised on pilings, with space for the family pig and chickens underneath. In one of the rooms, or outdoors, is an open fireplace with a mud and stone hearth for cooking. There is little furniture, and in three out of four families the personal possessions would not be worth more than ten dollars.

Less than 5 percent of the people have a rising standard of living. This higher standard is exemplified by a better type of habitation, which ranges from a three-room house to a dwelling similar to that of the American middle class. The diet of more prosperous Filipinos is basically the same as that of the poorer class, but it offers a greater variety. Clothing follows the Occidental fashion. The wealthiest people and those with foreign education or contacts, who make up less than 1 percent of the population, dress and live in the same manner as Occidentals.

The Japanese, during their occupation, governed through the old administrative organization of the province. They and their puppet officials also set up larger governing bodies that exercised superior jurisdiction. On 6 February 1944 the puppet president of the Philippine Republic, José Laurel, appointed a commissioner who held supervisory power over the local governments in the Visayan Provinces.

The governor of the province of Leyte, who previously had been an elected official, was appointed by the president. He was the chief operative and administrative head of the province and on all provincial administrative matters his decision was final. The treasurer of the province, who reported directly to the governor, was its chief financial officer and tax assessor. He collected all taxes and license fees, national and local, and prepared financial statements for the governor but he had no say in administrative matters. The law officer of the province was legal adviser to the governor and to the municipal authorities. He could advise only on administrative matters.

The Japanese Military Administration maintained liaison between the Japanese Army and the civil government. The military police collected military intelligence and information and disseminated propaganda. The Japanese allowed only one political party on the Islands—the Kalibapi—to which all government officials were required to belong. This party was one of the principal propaganda agencies, being the prime mover of the pacification programs in the province, and exercised general supervision over the local neighborhood associations. The latter helped in maintaining law and order, assisted the constabulary, and aided in the distribution of scarce commodities.

It should be emphasized that during most of the occupation there were few Japanese on Leyte. Southern Leyte in general maintained the same Filipino institutions and officials as in the prewar years. The heel of the Japanese conqueror pressed but lightly on most of the people of Leyte. Beginning in early 1944, however, the Japanese Army forces on the island were reinforced. From that time forward the Filipinos had their crops appropriated and in other ways were subjected to the will of the Japanese. Misery, hunger, and poverty became commonplace and a resistance movement grew.

The Resistance Movement on Leyte

The Organizing of Guerrilla Bands

A period of uncertainty and confusion followed the surrender of the American and Filipino forces in the Philippines in the spring of 1942. Civilians and members of the armed forces who did not surrender to the Japanese Army fled into the hills. Some went because they wanted to continue the fight, others because they felt that the chaotic conditions on the Islands would afford unequaled opportunities for looting and pillaging.

Once in the hills, the men formed themselves into guerrilla bands.[5] At first all of the bands, because of their lack of money and supplies, freely raided farms and storehouses for food and equipment whenever they had the opportunity. Moreover, there were real bandit groups who frequently and wantonly raped the countryside. For a time all of the groups were discredited by the people. Gradually, however, strong men emerged who formed the guerrilla bands into semi-military organizations. The leader of each band, who was generally an ex-member of the armed forces, gave himself a “bamboo commission,” usually considerably higher than the one he had hitherto possessed.

The following oath of allegiance taken by the members of one of the bands is probably typical:

I do solemnly swear that I shall obey orders from my superior officer; that I shall fight the enemy of the Government of the Commonwealth of the Philippines and the United States of America whosoever and wherever he maybe [sic] in the territory of the Philippines; that I shall never allow myself nor any arm or ammunition to be caught by the enemy; that I shall never turn traitor to my country nor the United States of America; and muchless [sic] reveal to the enemy any secret of the Army to which I honorably belong; that I shall never abandon a wounded brother in arms; that I join the United Forces in the Philippines without personal or party interest, but with the determination to sacrifice myself and all that is mine for FREEDOM and DEMOCRACY; that I shall protect the lives and property of all loyal Filipinos everywhere.

I make this LOYALTY OATH without mental reservation or purpose of evasion.

SO HELP ME GOD.[6]

For some time the various guerrilla bands on Leyte operated separately, and there was little or no co-operation between them. They were united, however, in their hatred of the Japanese. Jealousy and strife between groups were rampant, but circumstances gradually compelled the smaller bands to submit to absorption, either by force or persuasion, into the larger and more powerful groups. The fact that there were few Japanese on the island enabled the guerrillas and loyal provincial officials to organize the governments of most of the barrios.

GUERRILLAS PREPARE FOR INSPECTION AT CONSUEGRA

All of the guerrillas declared that their primary purpose was to aid the civilians, maintain peace and order, and keep the Japanese from abusing the people. They also assumed control over various phases of public activities—the allotment of food supplies, the issue of emergency currency, and the punishment of criminals. The guerrillas in northern Leyte depended upon voluntary contributions to support them, while those in southern Leyte levied a loyalty tax. Hard money having been driven out of circulation, the guerrilla units tried to issue paper, which was acceptable only in those regions where the particular unit was active. There was no widespread circulation or acceptance of any of the guerrilla money.

The most important of the guerrilla leaders on Leyte were Lt. Col. Ruperto K. Kangleon and Brig. Gen. Blas E. Miranda. Colonel Kangleon had served for twenty-seven years in the Philippine Army and was a graduate of the Philippine Academy and General Service School. General Miranda,[7] a former member of the Philippine Constabulary, was very hostile to the Japanese and to anyone who surrendered to them. He killed many former prisoners, whom the Japanese had released, on the pretext that they were enemy spies. Miranda was especially bitter toward Kangleon, a former prisoner of the enemy.

Official recognition from General MacArthur’s headquarters was slow in reaching the guerrillas on Leyte, a fact that brought about misunderstandings. General MacArthur had early established contact with Col. Macario Peralta on Panay and Col. Wendell Fertig on Mindanao. In the middle of February 1943 MacArthur sent Lt. Comdr. Charles Parsons, USNR, to the Islands by submarine. Before his departure, General Headquarters had established the policies to be followed. The prewar military districts, as of December 1940, were to be revived.[8] Since General MacArthur had received information that Colonel Fertig had successfully created an effective guerrilla organization on Mindanao and Colonel Peralta one on Panay, he recognized them as commanders of the 10th and 6th Military Districts, respectively. Radio communication from MacArthur’s headquarters informed Peralta and Fertig of the appointments on 21 February 1943. Commander Parsons also carried formal letters, dated 13 February 1943, making these appointments.

Parsons safely reached the Philippines in early March and established friendly relations with Colonel Fertig. While on Mindanao he made several local trips, one to southern Leyte where he heard of Colonel Kangleon who had escaped from the Butuan prison camp and returned to his home. Parsons visited Kangleon with the promise that he would be made commander of the 9th Military District (Leyte and Samar), and succeeded in persuading him to join the guerrilla movement on Leyte.[9]

Until area commanders could be selected for the 7th, 8th, and 9th (Leyte) Districts, Peralta and Fertig had been authorized by MacArthur’s headquarters, through Parsons, to organize the guerrillas on neighboring islands, as well as on their own. Each thought he was to organize the guerrillas on Leyte. Peralta made contact with General Miranda on northwestern Leyte; Fertig got in touch with Colonel Kangleon. Both Peralta and Fertig told their contacts to organize Leyte with the official sanction of General MacArthur’s headquarters. Consequently, Kangleon and Miranda each thought the other to be a usurper.[10]

Miranda was adamant in his refusal to treat with Kangleon. Colonel Kangleon thought that Miranda should be ordered to “forget his established kingdom,” but if this failed, he declared, the 92d Division, commanded by himself, would “force ... Miranda to join us.”[11]

The situation became extremely tense, since both Kangleon and Miranda felt much bitterness. In August 1943 Kangleon sent a force against Miranda and during a clash between the two parties some of the men were killed. Miranda was routed and many of his followers joined Kangleon.[12] The power of Miranda was broken. Kangleon incorporated the other guerrillas on the island into the 92d Division, and Leyte was then unified under his command.

On 21 October 1943 General MacArthur recognized Colonel Kangleon as the Leyte Area Commander, and in a letter accompanying the appointment he told Kangleon what he expected of him. “I desire that you establish and maintain direct communication with this headquarters at your earliest opportunity and thereafter you keep me informed of major developments involving enemy movement, dispositions and other activity within your area and observation.”[13]

Japanese Punitive Expeditions

In the latter part of 1943 the Japanese military authorities tried to conciliate the guerrillas, offering, in return for their surrender, not only freedom from punishment but also jobs and the opportunity to resume their normal family life. A great many guerrillas took advantage of this offer of amnesty and surrendered.[14] Among the guerrilla units that surrendered to the Japanese were those of Maj. Marcos G. Soliman and other subordinates of General Miranda’s command.[15] They gave themselves up in January 1944, but General Miranda himself refused to surrender and left for either Cebu or Bohol.

After their attempts at pacification, the Japanese launched more frequent and intensive patrols against the guerrillas. The garrison troops that had been stationed on Leyte were reinforced. Southern Leyte, which had known few Japanese, was “reinvolved” on 8 December 1943. The guerrillas withdrew and hid in the interior. It was thought that after a month the troops would leave and be replaced by constabulary officers. But after two weeks the Japanese turned their attention to the civilians. Some they arrested and imprisoned for days without food and water, others they tortured and executed. Houses were broken into, property was looted, and food was stolen. Spies were brought in from neighboring islands to locate the guerrilla hideouts.

Since the people begged for action, Colonel Kangleon held a meeting of his unit commanders on 24 January 1944. With his officers in unanimous accord, he issued an order to fight, commencing on 1 February 1944. All officers and enlisted men of his command signed a loyalty oath that they would not allow either themselves or their weapons to be captured.

From 1 February until 12 June, according to Colonel Kangleon, the guerrillas in southern Leyte had only 10 casualties. In a report dated 18 May 1944, the Japanese casualties were listed as 434 killed, of whom 4 were officers, and 205 wounded.

The Japanese commander in Leyte made quite a different report. He stated that from 1 January to 31 August his forces had taken part in 561 engagements with the guerrillas. They had seized 7 vehicles; 7 generators; 37 radios and other items of wireless equipment; 1,556 weapons, including rifles, bayonets, and homemade shotguns; and 55,348 rounds of ammunition, as well as sticks of dynamite. The Japanese declared that they had taken 2,300 prisoners of war, including 3 Americans; that 6 Americans and 23,077 Filipinos had surrendered; 1,984 guerrillas had been killed; and that the Japanese casualties amounted to 7 officers and 208 enlisted men killed, and 11 officers and 147 men wounded.[16]

In the month of October 1944 General MacArthur’s Military Intelligence Section estimated that the strength of the guerrilla 92d Division was as follows: Headquarters, Leyte Area Command, 23 officers and 107 enlisted men; 94th Regiment, 71 officers and 1,210 enlisted men; 95th Regiment, 78 officers and 954 enlisted men; 96th Regiment, 37 officers and 710 enlisted men; total strength, 209 officers and 2,981 enlisted men.[17]

Colonel Kangleon stated that as a result of guerrilla activities the Japanese sent out fewer patrols, staying mainly in the towns. The civilians, he claimed, were therefore able to plant and harvest their crops. Despite these brave words the guerrillas were definitely on the defensive, since Japanese intelligence had accurate information on their movements and strength. Nevertheless, the Japanese also knew that the guerrillas had established communication with General MacArthur in Australia and that they were sending important information to General Headquarters. This service the Japanese were unable to cut off.

Liaison Between Leyte and Australia

After his arrival in Australia in March 1942, General MacArthur had maintained radio contact with Corregidor until 6 May, but because of conditions in the Philippines radio communication with other parts of the Islands was all but impossible.[18] Before its fall, Corregidor maintained radio contact with military commanders on the other islands. Afterward, a few men escaped and made their way to Australia. The sum of information they brought was not large, but it included the welcome news that guerrilla units were in existence all over the Islands. In the summer of 1942 General Headquarters began to receive messages from the guerrillas in the Philippines, though at first General MacArthur was not sure that the messages actually came from the guerrillas.

In August 1942 MacArthur decided to get in touch with the members of the resistance movement in the Philippines, and for this purpose he enlisted the services of Maj. Jesus Antonio Villamor, who had escaped from the Islands and who volunteered to return.[19] From August to December methods were devised and plans were made for sending an intelligence party to the Philippines.[20] On 27 December 1942 Major Villamor received orders to return secretly to the Islands by submarine with three other Filipino officers and two enlisted men.[21] They were instructed to establish an intelligence and secret service network throughout the Philippines; develop a chain of communications within the Philippines and to Australia, together with an escape route from the Islands for the evacuation of important personages; build up an organization for subversive activities, propaganda, limited resistance, and sabotage; and make an intelligence survey to obtain information on Japanese political, military, and civil intentions as well as the strength and disposition of Japanese military, naval, and air forces.[22]

Armed with these instructions, Major Villamor returned to the Philippine Islands. Slowly but carefully, from December 1942 to November 1943, he established an intelligence network that covered Luzon and the Visayan Islands. His story is told in part as follows:

I established this network principally with the idea that this net would be entirely independent of all intelligence nets previously established by the guerrillas, believing that in all probability you [General MacArthur] could rely more on guerrilla intelligence activities for the present. I wanted to establish something that would really be underground and as secret as possible. For that reason, I took my time about it. I took as much as two months to train each individual man. I tried to impress on each man that after he left my place, he would be on his own and that no matter what happened to me or to the rest of the net, he would carry on. I assured him that both GHQ and I would have faith in him.[23]

Kangleon was largely responsible for the Leyte radio network. This intelligence network did not cover the entire island but only those positions over which he had control. General MacArthur did not furnish any considerable supplies for this net until shortly before his return in October 1944.[24] On 3 July 1944 Kangleon received seventy tons of supplies; an additional shipment of supplies and men followed on 20 July.[25] This allotment was in addition to money sent him. The funds available to Kangleon consisted of $50,000 in prewar currency (“only a few hundred” of which were spent by him), $225,000 in “bogus Japanese” currency, and $479,198 in emergency currency printed in the Islands and used for “army” purposes.[26]

Several clandestine radio stations were in operation on or near Leyte in June 1944. These were primarily contact stations established originally to integrate more closely the activities of the various guerrilla units with the directives of Colonel Kangleon’s headquarters, which was in touch with General Headquarters. After the Leyte Area Command was recognized by General MacArthur, the first radio was sent to Leyte, but the Japanese captured it early in 1944 before it could be put to use. Kangleon received a new set from Mindanao. There were two coastwatcher stations in operation—one in southern Leyte and the other on Dinagat Island. These furnished MacArthur information on the activities of the Japanese in the area. Colonel Kangleon also used the radio set in southern Leyte to maintain contact with Colonel Fertig on Mindanao.[27]

As a result of information received from the intelligence network, on Leyte and in other areas, together with information from other sources, General MacArthur’s intelligence officers were able to piece together a reasonably accurate picture of the Japanese units on Leyte, their strength, dispositions, and fortifications.

Kangleon’s network, however, was not as active as most of the others in the Philippines that were operated by coastwatchers and guerrillas. From March 1944, when Kangleon’s network was established, to October 1944, when the American forces returned, the monthly totals of messages received by General Headquarters from Leyte were as follows: March, 6; April, 7; May, 7; June, 12; July, 13; August, 13; September, 17; and October, 26.[28]

The guerrillas of the Philippine Islands made far-reaching contributions to the war effort. They were an extremely valuable source of intelligence; their activities forced the Japanese to retain in the Philippines comparatively large forces which would otherwise have been sent south; it is estimated that they killed from eight thousand to ten thousand Japanese troops; and, finally, they bolstered the morale, spirit, and loyalty of the Filipino people.[29] They kept alive the hope and belief that the forces of the United States would return and redeem the Islands.

[1] MI Sec, WDGS, Survey of the Philippines, 3 vols., 15 Feb 43; Div of Naval Intel, Office, Chief of Naval Opns, ONI 93, Field Monograph of the Philippines, Jan 44; Allied Geographical Sec, GHQ SWPA, Terrain Study 84, Leyte Province, 17 Aug 44; ASF Manual M365–1, Civil Affairs Handbook, Philippine Islands, 25 Apr 44. [↑]

[2] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 5. Unless otherwise stated the material on terrain is based upon this report, pages 5–7. [↑]

[3] S. D. Sturgis, Jr., Brigadier General, U.S. Army Air Engineer, USAF, Engineer Operations in the Leyte Campaign, reprinted from The Military Engineer, November and December, 1947, and January, 1948, p. 4. [↑]

[4] Allied Geographical Sec, GHQ SWPA, Terrain Study 84, Leyte Province, 17 Aug 44, p. 43. [↑]

[5] Unless otherwise stated, material on the guerrillas is based upon the Guerrilla Papers, a collection of disorganized, miscellaneous records by and about the guerrillas in the Philippine Islands. It is located in the Documents Files Section, G-2, Department of the Army.

The records of the Leyte guerrillas are incomplete, inadequate, and controversial. Some of the guerrilla bands had no records, and all that is known of others is from violently prejudiced sources. Consequently, the full story of the guerrillas can probably never be told. [↑]

[6] 24th Div G-2 Jnl, 22 Oct 44. [↑]

[7] Miranda’s rank is obscure. At various times he is referred to as lieutenant, major, colonel, and brigadier general. [↑]

[8] MI Sec, GHQ AFPAC, Intelligence Series, Vol. II, Intelligence Activities in the Philippines. During the Japanese Occupation (hereafter cited as Intelligence Activities in the Philippines), App. 7. [↑]

[9] Intelligence Activities in the Philippines, p. 56. [↑]

[10] Ibid., pp. 16–18. [↑]

[11] Memo, Col Kangleon for K-50-OCTOPUS (probably for MacArthur), 23 May 43, Guerrilla Papers. [↑]

[12] The estimates on the number of deaths vary considerably. In a letter to President Manuel Quezon by Senator Carlos Garcia, dated 16 October 1943, the deaths are mentioned as “several”; a manuscript by Mrs. Charlotte Martin, who was on Leyte, says “many lives were lost”; and 1st Lt. Jack Hawkins, USMC, a guerrilla, stated in December 1943 that “over three hundred casualties were suffered by the contesting sides.” Guerrilla Papers. [↑]

[13] GHQ FEC, MI Sec, GS, Messages in the Guerrilla Resistance Movement in the Philippines, Kangleon 201 File, DRB AGO. [↑]

[14] Office of Strategic Services, Research and Analysis Br, Rpt, Guerrilla Resistance in the Philippines, 21 Jul 44, Guerrilla Papers. [↑]

[15] ATIS, GHQ SWPA, Current Translations, 148, 6 Feb 45. [↑]

[16] ATIS, SWPA, Enemy Publications 359, Guerrilla Activities in the Philippines, 2 parts, 28 Apr 45, passim, DRB AGO. Any resemblance between the Japanese figures and those in Kangleon’s reports is purely coincidental. [↑]

[17] MI Sec, GHQ SWPA, G-2 Info Bull, The Resistance Movement on Leyte Island, 7 Oct 44, Doc Files Sec, G-2, Dept of Army. [↑]

[18] Intelligence Activities in the Philippines, p. 5. [↑]

[19] Lt. Gen. Lewis H. Brereton considered Villamor “the most daring of the Filipino pilots.” Lewis H. Brereton, The Brereton Diaries (New York, 1946), p. 58. [↑]

[20] Interv with Maj Villamor, 12 Oct 50. [↑]

[21] The party consisted of Major Villamor, 1st Lt. R. C. Ignacio, 2d Lt. D. C. Yuhico, 2d Lt. E. F. Quinto, Sgt. P. Jorge, and Sgt. D. Malie. [↑]

[22] AIB, GHQ SWPA, Instructions to Maj Villamor, 27 Dec 42, Guerrilla Papers. [↑]

[23] Villamor Rpt on Intel Net in Philippines, Guerrilla Papers. [↑]

[24] Intelligence Activities in the Philippines, p. 77. [↑]

[25] Ibid., App. 2. The number of men and the amount and kinds of supplies are not given. [↑]

[26] Ibid., App. 1. [↑]

[27] Ibid., passim. [↑]

[28] GHQ FEC, MI Sec, GS, A Brief History of the G-2 Section, GHQ SWPA, and Affiliated Units, Plate 10, facing p. 32, copy in OCMH. [↑]

[29] Office, Chief of Naval Opns, Guerrilla Activities in the Philippines, 14 Sep 44, file OP-16 FE. [↑]

CHAPTER III

Plans Are Made and Forces Are Readied

Estimate of the Enemy Situation

American knowledge of the Japanese forces on Leyte was derived from many sources.[1] The guerrillas on Leyte and other islands in the archipelago sent information to Australia on the movements, dispositions, fortifications, and defenses of the Japanese. Commander Parsons, on his submarine trips to the Islands, brought back with him important intelligence. Just before the invasion an intelligence officer from Sixth Army and one from the Seventh Fleet secretly went ashore from a submarine and gathered material on Japanese coastal fortifications and defenses in the beach area.

Much effort was expended before the invasion in mapping the island, but this work was based on prewar maps and the results were very inaccurate. Since much of the island was under heavy fog for long periods, the photomaps that were produced had little value. They missed many important terrain features and misplaced others by thousands of yards. In general, however, the maps of the beachhead areas were accurate.

In the spring of 1944 General MacArthur’s headquarters received information that the Japanese were starting to reinforce their Philippine garrisons. An early estimate, made in June, put the number of enemy troops on the island at 20,000, a sharp increase over the 5,900 of the previous month. The increase resulted from the movement to Leyte from Samar of the veteran 16th Division, which had fought at Bataan, and the arrival of 4,000 naval troops from the Palau Islands.[2] For the next month reports flowed in to General Headquarters that the 16th Division was building coastal defenses and air-raid shelters, and improving the airfields and garrison defenses of the island.[3]

In July 1944 the Americans received information that all was not going well in the Japanese homeland. From a radio interception they learned that Premier Hideki Tojo and his entire cabinet had resigned on 18 July. The Japanese message stated: “The situation is the result of the period of ‘sweating blood’ and we sincerely regret causing anxiety to the Emperor. We thank the people at home and at the front for co-operating with the government....”[4] The tenor of the announcement and of subsequent statements made it abundantly clear, however, that the Japanese were determined to do their utmost toward prosecuting the war to a successful conclusion.

Meanwhile, all the Japanese garrisons in the Philippines were reinforced. The senior headquarters in the western Pacific was transferred from Singapore to Manila, and the brigades in the Islands were being developed to divisional strength. Of the estimated 180,000 troops, 80,000 were believed to be on Luzon, 50,000 in the Visayan Islands, and 50,000 on Mindanao. It was also believed that the enemy air strength on the Islands was being greatly increased. There were 100 to 120 airfields in operation and between 700 and 1,500 aircraft, of which half were combat planes and the others training aircraft.[5]

In September 1944 Sixth Army G-2 estimated that the Japanese forces on Leyte consisted mainly of 16th Division units and service troops—a total of 21,700 troops. The 35th Army had just been activated on Cebu and was to be charged with the defense of all the Visayan Islands. It was estimated that the Leyte garrison consisted of the following combat troops: 20th Infantry Regiment, 3,000; 33d Infantry Regiment, 3,000; 16th Division Reconnaissance Regiment, 1,000; elements of 102d Division, 1,700; 7th Independent Tank Company, 125; and 16th Division Headquarters troops, 1,800. The total amounted to 10,625 men. In addition there were 1,000 base-defense troops and 10,075 service troops.

It was believed that the Japanese would commit one division on the day of the landing and the equivalent of another division, assembled from the tactical reserves on the island, not later than three days after the landing. For the next ten days, five to eight regiments might be sent in from neighboring islands. These would constitute the “maximum numbers of reinforcements predicated upon the existence of conditions most favorable to the enemy.”[6] The enemy had an undetermined number of tanks and armored cars. The only artillery known to be available were some coastal defense guns emplaced along the east coast and some artillery pieces on the hills overlooking Tacloban.

Sixth Army believed that on Leyte there were five operational airfields; three probably operational or under construction; seven nonoperational; and one seaplane base. The two most important operational airstrips were the one at Tacloban with forty-five hardstandings and the one at Dulag with twenty hardstandings. The Tacloban airstrip could accommodate both bombers and fighters. At the time of the invasion, it was estimated that the Japanese could oppose the amphibious movement and the landing with 442 fighters and 337 bombers from airfields scattered throughout the Philippines.

Although the possibility existed that the Japanese Fleet, which was based in waters near the home islands, might move to the Philippines, such a move was considered doubtful. It was believed that the principal and immediate threats consisted of a strong cruiser-destroyer task force; submarines; and motor torpedo boats and similar craft.

Sixth Army concluded that the town of Tacloban, with its important port and airfield, was the key to the Japanese defense of the island. Consequently, a strong perimeter defense of the town and the surrounding area was expected. Since it was impossible for the Japanese, with a limited number of their troops on the island, to defend all of the east coast, strong forces and emplaced defensive positions were likely to be concentrated at road junctions and at the operational airfields. Mobile reserves would almost certainly be held in readiness at key points in Leyte Valley, ready to be rushed to the east coast areas under attack. It was assumed that strong defenses were already established in the Ormoc area and along the northeast coast of Ormoc Bay, since the port of Ormoc could be used to bring in reserves from the other islands in the archipelago. A strong garrison was expected at Carigara to protect the northern approaches to Leyte Valley and to repel any amphibious landing through Carigara Bay.

The plan for the liberation of Leyte called for more men, guns, ships, and aircraft than had been required for any previous operation in the Pacific. For the first time ground troops from the Central Pacific and Southwest Pacific were to join and fight the foe under a common commander. General MacArthur, who had left Luzon in a motor torpedo boat, was to return to the Philippines with a vast armada—the greatest seen in the Pacific up to that time.

The Tactical Plan

The Southwest Pacific Area was the command responsibility of General MacArthur. He had under his command Allied Air Forces, Lt. Gen. George C. Kenney commanding; Allied Naval Forces, Vice Adm. Thomas C. Kinkaid commanding; Allied Land Forces, Gen. Sir Thomas Blamey commanding; United States Army Services of Supply (SWPA), Maj. Gen. James L. Frink commanding; and Alamo Force, which was virtually Sixth Army, Lt. Gen. Walter Krueger commanding.

On 31 August 1944 General MacArthur issued his first formal directive covering projected operations in the Philippines. The Leyte operation was known as King II. The Southwest Pacific forces were to “seize objectives in the Mindanao, Leyte and Samar areas in order to establish air, naval and logistic bases to cover subsequent operations to complete the reoccupation of the Philippines.” The assigned target dates were as follows: southern Mindanao, 15 November 1944; northwestern Mindanao, 7 December; and Leyte Gulf-Surigao Strait area, 20 December. The Sixth Army, covered by Admiral Halsey’s Third Fleet and supported by the Allied Air and Naval Forces, was directed to carry out the three operations.[7] On 15 September General Krueger received word that the Talaud and Mindanao operations had been canceled and that the target date—designated as “A Day”—for the Leyte operation had been advanced to 20 October.[8]

The American Forces

The immediate task assigned the forces of the Southwest Pacific, supported by the Third Fleet, was the seizure and control of the Leyte Gulf-Surigao Strait area in order to establish air, naval, and logistic bases to support further operations into the Philippines. Before the invasion, air and naval operations were to be conducted so as to disorganize Japanese ground and air defenses. The ground operation was divided into three phases. In the first phase overwater movement and minor amphibious operations to secure entrance into Leyte Gulf were to take place. The main effort, which constituted the second phase, was to involve a major assault to capture the airfields and base sites in Leyte Valley and to open up San Juanico and Panaon Straits. In the final phase, the remaining portions of the island in Japanese hands and the western part of southern Samar were to be secured, and Surigao Strait was to be opened.[9] The target date had been set for 20 October 1944.

General plans for the operation had long since been worked out, but not until 20 September did General MacArthur issue his final plan for the occupation of Leyte. It was based upon the assumption that American forces were or would be established along the Marianas-Ulithi-Palaus-Morotai line and that the Japanese land and air forces in the Philippines and Formosa would have been “seriously crippled and that the Japanese Fleet would elect to remain in Empire waters” with only “light forces remaining in the vicinity of the Philippines.” The Japanese were expected to have one well-supplied division in the area with only limited ability to reinforce it from others of the Visayan Islands and with all subsequent supply deliveries cut off. It was assumed that Japanese defenses would be concentrated in the vicinity of the airfields in the Leyte Valley and at Tacloban.

The command organization was as follows: General MacArthur was Supreme Commander, but during the amphibious movement and landing Admiral Kinkaid, as commander of the Naval Attack Force, was to be in command of all amphibious operations. (Chart 1) Army officers, who took control of their forces ashore, were to continue under the Commander, Naval Attack Force, until the next senior Army commander assumed control. Upon his arrival ashore and after notification to Admiral Kinkaid, General Krueger was to take control of the ground troops. General Kenney, as commander of the Allied Air Forces, would report directly to General MacArthur.

Admiral Halsey, as commander of the Third Fleet, was to co-ordinate his operations with those of General MacArthur but he was responsible to Admiral Nimitz, Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Area. The Third Fleet was composed of Vice Adm. Marc Mitscher’s Fast Carrier Task Force, together with miscellaneous elements. Mitscher’s force was divided into four carrier groups.[10]

The Allied Naval Forces, which consisted principally of the U. S. Seventh Fleet under Admiral Kinkaid, was to transport and establish ashore the ground assault force. The Central Philippine Attack Force consisted of three task forces. Task Force 77, commanded by Admiral Kinkaid, was to furnish direct air and naval support and was composed of battleships, light and heavy cruisers, destroyers, destroyer escorts, carriers, escort carriers, gunboat and mortar flotillas, mine sweepers, auxiliary vessels, and underwater demolition teams. The transports and cargo ships of the Northern Attack Force, Task Force 78, under Rear Adm. Daniel E. Barbey, and the Southern Attack Force, Task Force 79, under Vice Adm. Theodore S. Wilkinson, were to transport and set ashore the ground troops. Task Force 79 had been lent to General MacArthur by Admiral Nimitz for the operation.

Chart 1—Operational Organization for the Leyte Campaign

The Allied Air Forces, principally the Far East Air Forces under General Kenney, was to neutralize hostile air and naval forces within range of the Philippines. The Allied Air Forces consisted of the Fifth Air Force, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ennis P. Whitehead; the Thirteenth Air Force, commanded by Maj. Gen. St. Clair Streett; the Royal Australian Air Force Command under Air Vice Marshal William D. Bostock; and miscellaneous elements. On order, the Fifth Air Force was to be prepared to take over the mission of furnishing direct air support to the ground troops.

The United States Army Services of Supply, Southwest Pacific Area, commanded by General Frink, was to furnish logistic support for the operation. The Eighth U.S. Army, commanded by Lt. Gen. Robert L. Eichelberger, and the Allied Land Forces, commanded by General Blamey, were to take over missions previously assigned the Sixth Army and to assist the latter in training, staging, and mounting the troops for the Leyte operation.

The ground troops who were to attack Leyte constituted a field army—the Sixth Army, which had fought its way up the New Guinea coast since April 1943 as Alamo Force. On 25 September 1944 Alamo Force was dissolved and Sixth Army assumed its tactical missions. General Krueger was commanding general for all these campaigns. The principal component parts of Sixth Army were X and XXIV Corps. The former consisted of the 1st Cavalry and 24th Infantry Divisions, under Lt. Gen. Franklin C. Sibert, a seasoned commander who had successfully fought the Japanese on New Guinea at Wakde-Sarmi. The XXIV Corps, under Maj. Gen. John R. Hodge, who had defeated the Japanese on Guadalcanal, New Georgia, and Bougainville, was composed of the 7th and 96th Infantry Divisions. In reserve were the 32d and 77th Infantry Divisions. The Sixth Army Service Command was to perform engineer functions on the island and give general logistic support.

Approximately 174,000 troops were made available for the initial assault phase of the operation. About 51,500 of these made up the XXIV Corps and 53,000 the X Corps. In addition to these troops, the reserve 32d and 77th Divisions had a strength of about 14,500 and 14,000 troops, respectively. All of the assault divisions were reinforced with tank battalions, amphibian truck and tractor battalions, joint assault signal companies, and many attached service units. A total of about 202,500 ground troops was committed to the Leyte operation.[11]

Headquarters, Sixth Army, had never participated as such in any campaign, but as Headquarters, Alamo Force, it had directed the operations up the New Guinea coast. Both the X and XXIV Corps were yet to be battle tested, though all their divisions with one exception had participated in previous campaigns against the Japanese. The 1st Cavalry Division had taken part in the Admiralty Islands campaign; the 7th Division had defeated the Japanese at Attu and Kwajalein; the 24th Division had fought in the Hollandia campaign; the 32d Division had won the Papua Campaign and been victorious at Aitape on New Guinea; and the 77th Division had shared in the victory at Guam. Only the 96th Division was yet to be combat tested.[12]

General MacArthur’s Warning Instructions 5 and Operations Instructions 70 were used by each of the major commanders as a basis for his own operations orders. Although each order was derived from the one next above it, all were planned concurrently. There was need for constant intertheater, interservice, and intraservice conferences and discussions on all phases of the plans as they evolved. Frequently the planning was made easier by using the work done on plans for other operations. For example, the logistical plan for the canceled Yap operation was adapted with very little change to the Leyte operation. The general schemes of maneuver and the employment of support forces which had been found valuable in previous operations were also adapted with minor variations to the plans for Leyte.

Air Support

The Navy was to bear the brunt of furnishing air support in the early stages of the campaign. By arrangement with Admiral Nimitz, the Carrier Task Force from Admiral Halsey’s Third Fleet was to strike northern Luzon and Okinawa or Formosa, or both, from A Day minus 10 to A minus 7. From A minus 4 through A Day, strikes were to be made on Luzon, the Cebu-Negros area, and the Leyte area in support of the landings. As soon as the Palau air base facilities would permit, shore-based air forces from the Central Pacific were to operate in the Bicol area.[13]

The Allied Naval Forces was to furnish carrier aircraft as protection for convoys and naval task forces and, supplemented by aircraft of the Third Fleet and the Allied Air Forces, to provide direct air support for the landings. In addition, it was to furnish protective air support and cover by carrier aircraft prior to A Day for the preliminary landings in Leyte Gulf and for the mine sweeping.[14]

General Mac Arthur assigned air support missions to the Allied Air Forces. General Kenney’s airmen were (1) to make aerial reconnaissance; (2) in co-ordination with Third Fleet carrier-based aircraft, to neutralize hostile naval and air forces within range of the Philippines from A minus 9 in order to cover the movement of naval forces, the landing, and subsequent operations; (3) within capabilities and when requested by Admiral Kinkaid, to protect convoys and naval forces and provide direct support of the landings and subsequent operations; and (4) to destroy Japanese shipping and installations in the Sulu and Arafura Seas and the East Indies.[15]

On 24 September General Kenney issued his order for the Leyte operation and assigned missions to the Allied Air Forces. He designated General Whitehead’s Fifth Air Force as the Air Assault Force. It was to support the operation by intensified air activities against enemy installations, destroy hostile air and surface forces in the Celebes Sea and assigned areas in the Philippine Archipelago, and provide air defense for existing bases and forces in transit to Leyte within range of its capabilities. It was also to be prepared to establish, on order, land-based air forces on Leyte. The Thirteenth Air Force was to support the missions of the Fifth Air Force, while the Royal Australian Air Force Command was to destroy Japanese installations and sources of raw materials in the Netherlands Indies.[16]

Aircraft from other theaters agreed to aid in the operation. The Fourteenth Air Force from the China-Burma-India Theater and the Twentieth Air Force from the Central Pacific were to conduct strikes against Formosa. The Southeast Asia Command was asked to schedule air offensives against Burma and Malaya just prior to A Day.[17]

Naval Support

The Seventh Fleet under Admiral Kinkaid was assigned the following mission: “by a ship to shore amphibious operation, [to] transport, protect, land and support elements of the 6th Army in order to assist in the seizure, occupation and development of the Leyte area of the Southern Philippines.”[18] (Chart 2)

The Seventh Fleet was designated the Naval Attack Force. For the operation Admiral Kinkaid organized two attack forces: the Northern Attack Force (VII Amphibious Force), under Admiral Barbey, and the Southern Attack Force (III Amphibious Force), under Admiral Wilkinson. In addition, several subordinate units were created: a bombardment and fire support group under Rear Adm. Jesse B. Oldendorf; and a close covering group, an escort carrier group, a mine-sweeping group, and twelve underwater demolition teams. The Northern Attack Force was to transport and land the X Corps, while the Southern Attack Force was to do the same for the XXIV Corps.

The task groups of the two attack forces were to sortie from the mounting areas at Manus in the Admiralties and Hollandia in Netherlands New Guinea and rendezvous en route to the objective area. Both were “to land main elements as nearly simultaneously as practicable at H Hour on 20 October.” Meanwhile, an advance group on 17 October was to land the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion on the islands guarding the approaches to Leyte Gulf. The task groups were to regulate their speed of advance so that they would arrive at the entrance of the approach channel to Leyte Gulf at specified times. The mine-sweeping group and certain units of the bombardment and fire support group which were to render fire support for initial mine-sweeping operations were to arrive at 0600 on 17 October. They were to be followed fifteen minutes later by the attack group assigned to the island approaches. At 1000 on the same day the rest of the bombardment and fire support group were to arrive. Beginning at 2300 on 19 October the transports and LST’s of the two attack forces were scheduled to arrive in successive groups. Their time of arrival was also set so that each group would reach its transport area in sufficient time to dispatch the assault waves to the beach at the designated hour.[19]

Chart 2—Organization of the Central Philippine Attack Force

On arrival in the objective area, the bombardment and fire support group was to divide into northern and southern fire support units, which were then to move to their respective target areas. The northern fire support unit consisted of 3 old battleships—the Mississippi, Maryland, and West Virginia—and 3 destroyers. The southern fire support unit was composed of 3 battleships—the Tennessee, California, and Pennsylvania—13 destroyers, 3 light cruisers, 3 heavy cruisers, and 1 small seaplane tender.

The destroyers in the two target areas were to furnish protection to the mine sweepers and the underwater demolition teams. The latter were to cover the northern and southern beaches before A Day and search out and destroy any obstacles, either Japanese-made or natural, in the waters surrounding the landing beach areas. The mine sweepers were to start clearing Leyte Gulf of fixed or floating mines on 17 October, three days before the main assault. On the following days, including 20 October, they were to make more intensive sweeps of the channels and landing beach areas, with the vessels going as close to shore as possible without endangering gear.[20]

Admiral Oldendorf was to direct the bombardment and fire support. The bombardment was to start on 17 October in preparation for the landings on the island approaches. The gunfire before 20 October was for the purpose of rendering unserviceable both airfields and Japanese aircraft on the ground, in addition to destroying guns and emplacements, fuel storage and ammunition dumps, naval forces and shipping, beach defenses and strong points, troops, torpedo launching ramps, and torpedo barges. Close fire support was to be given to the underwater demolition teams and destructive fire was to be delivered against enemy forces attempting overwater movements. Finally, night harassing fire was scheduled to prevent any night attempts of the Japanese to reconstruct the fortifications and airfields.

On 20 October the naval gunfire support units were to cover the approach of the transports to the unloading areas and to furnish necessary counterbattery fire; thoroughly cover the landing beach areas from the low-water line to approximately 400 yards inland; and closely support the landings with rockets, 4.2-inch mortars, and gunfire of all caliber from the ships. After the landings, the naval gunfire units were to deliver fire on call and prevent the Japanese from either reinforcing or evacuating the island.[21]

The Joint Chiefs of Staff had directed Admiral Nimitz to support General MacArthur’s operation against Leyte. Admiral Nimitz ordered Admiral Halsey’s Third Fleet to “destroy enemy naval and air forces in or threatening the Philippine Area.” The Third Fleet was also to protect the air and sea communications along the Central Philippines axis. If an opportunity to destroy major portions of the Japanese Fleet should arise or could be created, such destruction was to be the primary task of all naval forces from the Central Pacific. Admiral Halsey and General MacArthur were to arrange the necessary measures for the co-ordination of their operations.[22]

In support of the Leyte operation the Third Fleet was to contain or destroy the Japanese Fleet and to destroy enemy aircraft and shipping in the Formosa, Luzon, Visayan, and Mindanao areas from 9 October through 17 October, and from A Day for as long as necessary during the next thirty days, in order to “maintain their continued neutralization.” From 18 October until such time as the escort carriers could assume direct support, the Third Fleet was to destroy enemy ground defenses and installations in Leyte and adjacent areas. Finally, the Third Fleet was to provide direct support by fast carrier aircraft for the landing and subsequent operations.[23]

Submarines from both the Southwest Pacific and Central Pacific were to support the operations by maintaining an offensive reconnaissance over the most probable Japanese route of advance, maintaining observation and lifeguard services and furnishing weather reports and strategic patrols. Submarines from the Central Pacific were to patrol in the Formosa, Luzon, Tokyo Bay, and Sasebo areas, while those from the Seventh Fleet patrolled in the area of Makassar Strait, the Celebes Sea, and the Sulu Sea. Submarines from both areas were to maintain a strong patrol in the Hainan—northern Luzon areas.[24]

The naval gunfire, the air support, and the artillery fire were to be carefully co-ordinated. At every level from battalion to army representatives from each support arm were to co-ordinate the use of their support arms against targets in their respective zones of action. Requests for support were to be screened as they passed through the various echelons for approval. Commanders in the field felt that the passage of requests through many channels was time consuming and consequently sometimes nullified what might have been an immediate advantage. However, requests for support were usually acted upon within an hour.

The Ground Forces

The ground forces designated for the Leyte operation came from two different theaters—the X Corps from the Southwest Pacific and the XXIV Corps from the Central Pacific. The XXIV Corps, originally intended for the Yap operation, had been substituted for the XIV Corps, originally intended for Leyte. As the new assignment of the XXIV Corps placed it under the operational control of General MacArthur, it was necessary that agreements on the co-ordination of operations be reached by the commanders in chief of the two areas. The XXIV Corps, with its original shipping, had been turned over to General MacArthur. During the combat phase at Leyte, General MacArthur was to furnish the replacements required by the XXIV Corps, but subsequent replacements were to be supplied by Admiral Nimitz.[25]

The initial assault for the island of Leyte was to begin in the dim half dawn of 17 October, when elements of the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion were to land under the protection of naval gunfire and seize the small islands that guarded the entrance to Leyte Gulf. ([Map 3]) Harbor lights were to be placed on Homonhon Island and the northern tip of Dinagat Island in order to guide the passage of the convoy into the gulf. Since it was believed that there were valuable mine charts on Suluan, that island was added to the objectives of the 6th Rangers.

General Krueger had wanted to use either the reinforced 158th Infantry Regiment or the reinforced 112th Cavalry Regimental Combat Team to secure the island approaches to Leyte Gulf and the Panaon Strait area. The 21st Infantry, which was assigned the mission of securing the Panaon Strait area, then could have remained with the 24th Division, its parent unit, and the 6th Ranger Battalion could have been used wherever and whenever needed. In addition, these missions would have been put in the hands of a general officer who had an experienced staff to assist him. Neither of the desired regiments, however, could be made available for the Leyte operation because of shortage of troops and previous commitments.[26]

MAP 3 C. A. Frost

SIXTH ARMY PLAN

23 September 1944

While the Rangers were seizing the small islands, the mine sweepers and underwater demolition teams were to start clearing the gulf of natural and man-made obstacles. The fire support units were to move in and start softening up the beaches. The completion of these missions would conclude the first phase of the operation.

The second phase comprised “a major amphibious assault to attack and destroy hostile forces in the coastal strip Tacloban-Dulag inclusive, and to seize airdromes and base sites therein; a rapid advance through Leyte Valley to seize and occupy the Capoocan-Carigara-Barugo area; [and finally] open San Juanico and Panaon Straits....”[27]

In the very early hours of 20 October the Northern and Southern Attack Forces were to move to their appointed beach areas and be prepared to disembark their assault troops. The reinforced 21st Infantry Regiment was to go ashore at 0930 in the vicinity of Panaon Strait at the extreme southeast tip of Leyte and secure control of that entrance to Sogod Bay. To the north at 1000, the X Corps was to land with two divisions abreast in the Marasbaras and Palo areas. About fifteen miles farther south, in the Dulag area, the XXIV Corps was to go ashore simultaneously with two divisions abreast. The two corps would be so widely separated and their objectives so divergent that initially they could not be mutually supporting. Even within the zones of action of the two corps, the missions assigned the divisions would limit the ability of the divisions to support each other.[28]

As General Krueger felt that the Japanese would offer the greatest resistance in the north, the initial objectives of the X Corps were limited to the seizure of Palo and the capture of Tacloban and its airfield. The northernmost unit, the 1st Cavalry Division, actually an infantry square division, was to land with brigades abreast in the Marasbaras area, advance to the north, and seize Tacloban and its airstrip, the most important objective for A Day. Thereafter, the division was to secure control over San Juanico Strait. To the left of the 1st Cavalry Division, the 24th Division was to go ashore with regiments abreast in the Palo area, seize Palo, and then advance northwest through the Leyte Valley. The two divisions were to converge on Carigara, at the northern end of Leyte Valley on Carigara Bay.[29]

In the XXIV Corps zone, the 96th Division with regiments abreast was to land in the area between Dulag and San Roque, and to secure that portion of Highway 1 in its zone, Catmon Hill, and, finally, the Dagami-Tanauan area. On its left the 7th Division with regiments abreast was to go ashore in the Dulag area. One element was to go south and seize the Highway 1 bridge and crossings of the Daguitan (Marabang) River at Dao while the main force of the division was to advance along the axis of the Dulag-Burauen road and capture Burauen. The 7th Division would then be in a position to move north toward Dagami. All hostile airfields in its zone of action were to be seized and occupied. The division was to be prepared, on corps order, to seize Abuyog, to the south, and Baybay, on the west coast, destroying enemy forces on the west coast and in the southern portion of Leyte.[30]

Completion of these missions of the X and XXIV Corps would bring to an end the second phase of the Leyte operation. By this time, General Krueger hoped, the back of the Japanese resistance would be broken. With Leyte Valley and its airfields and base sites firmly in the hands of the Sixth Army, General Krueger’s forces would be in a position to apply firmly the pincers on the remaining Japanese on the island. The X Corps was to drive south down the Ormoc Valley to Ormoc while the XXIV Corps was to move north from Baybay along the shores of Ormoc Bay and make juncture with the X Corps. The remnants of the Japanese forces, driven into the mountains of western Leyte, would be unable to continue an organized resistance.[31]

The eastern shores of Leyte were chosen for the initial landing, since the beaches on this side were the best on the island, and were the logical entrance to the important airfields, base sites, and roads in Leyte Valley.

Since the large number of naval vessels required considerable room for landing the assault troops and for maneuvering, the landing beach areas of the two corps were widely separated. In addition, the value of the road net which connected Dulag with the Burauen airfields formed an important consideration in the determination of the landing beach sites of the XXIV Corps. “This latter factor—which took precedence over the potentiality of strong enemy resistance from Catmon Hill—had determined the selection of beaches in the Dulag area.”[32]

Although it was recognized as necessary for elements of the XXIV Corps to advance south to Abuyog and then overland to Baybay in order to destroy the enemy forces on the west coast, these maneuvers would leave great gaps in the battle line if only four divisions were at first employed. General Krueger therefore asked General Headquarters of the Southwest Pacific for additional combat troops, and during the progress of the campaign General MacArthur made them available.[33]

The Sixth Army was also troubled about its reserve force. Although the 32d Division at Morotai and Hollandia and the 77th Division at Guam had been designated as Sixth Army Reserve, it would be impossible for these units to arrive at Leyte before the middle of November. The shortage of amphibious shipping made it necessary to mount these divisions on the turnaround of assault shipping. Since the floating reserve would have to come from one of the assault divisions, it was difficult to determine from which division to take it. It was decided that the 96th Division, considering its mission, could best spare such a unit, and the 381st Infantry of that division was therefore selected.[34]

To summarize the mission of the Sixth Army: on 17 October, the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion would seize Suluan, Dinagat, and Homonhon Islands, in the entrance to Leyte Bay. At 0930 on 20 October, the 21st Infantry Regiment was to land in the vicinity of Panaon Strait and secure control of that entrance to Sogod Bay. At 1000 on the same day the Sixth Army with the X and XXIV Corps abreast would make a major amphibious landing on Leyte. In the north the X Corps, with the 1st Cavalry Division and the 24th Infantry Division abreast, after moving ashore in the Marasbaras and the Palo areas, would capture Tacloban, its airfield, and Palo. In the south the XXIV Corps with the 96th and 7th Infantry Divisions abreast would go ashore to secure control in the Dulag area.[35]

The Logistical Plan

Construction

The decision to land on Leyte at the beginning of the rainy season and to construct a major supply and air base thereon presented a serious problem to the engineers. The poor soil, inadequate roads, and heavy rains were obstacles that had to be met and in some way overcome if the operation was to be a logistical success. General MacArthur recognized the need for making use of Leyte as a logistical base by creating for the first time in the Southwest Pacific an army service command and by detailing his chief engineer, Maj. Gen. Hugh J. Casey, to be its commander. ASCOM, as it was called, was to provide the logistical services required for the operation and to build and operate the Army base facilities until the United States Army Services of Supply (SWPA) could take over. This transfer was expected to take place about thirty days after the assault troops first landed on the shores of Leyte.[36]

General Mac Arthur directed the Sixth Army to establish the following air facilities in the Leyte area: by A plus 5, facilities for two fighter groups, one night fighter squadron, one photo squadron, one medium bomber group plus one squadron, three patrol bomber squadrons, and one Marine reconnaissance squadron; by A plus 30, additional facilities for two light bomber groups, one air-sea rescue squadron, one tactical reconnaissance squadron, and one fighter squadron; additional facilities by A plus 45 for one fighter group, one patrol bomber squadron, two heavy bomber groups, and one laboratory squadron; and by A plus 60, further facilities for one photo squadron, one patrol bomber squadron, two troop carrier groups, and one combat mapping squadron.[37]

The final Sixth Army plan for the Leyte operation directed ASCOM to establish naval facilities in the Leyte area as well as the aforementioned air facilities; to make topographic and hydrographic surveys, followed by suitable changes in the plans for the construction of bases, docks, roads, and airdromes; to unload all units, supplies, and matériel arriving in the area and to store and issue supplies to ground and air units; and, in co-operation with the Philippine Civil Affairs Units, recruit and direct native labor.[38]

The construction program as planned for Leyte brought strong remonstrances from the Sixth Army engineers. On 10 August Col. William J. Ely, the executive officer, protested against the employment of Leyte as a major supply and air force base. The reasons for his objections were prophetic. The operation was to be launched during the season of heavy rains in an area where high winds and typhoons occurred. The harbor was so shallow and so obstructed by patches of coral that the approaches would have to be as much as 800 feet long. The fact that the flat Leyte Valley was interlaced by many streams and flooded with rice paddies indicated that the soil was “most unstable.” The condition of the soil and drainage would require the hauling, frequently for long distances, of considerable quantities of rock for the construction of roads. The existing roads and bridges, in most places so narrow as to permit only one-way traffic, would soon disintegrate under the constant heavy rains and the pounding of military vehicles. Colonel Ely forecast that, in the light of past experience with poor conditions of soil and drainage, the construction and enlargement of the airstrips would be difficult. The shortage of engineer troops decreased the possibility of providing major air and supply bases in sufficient time to properly support further operations. He concluded that “the construction mission cannot be satisfactorily accomplished with the engineer troops available, particularly during the first 90 days.” Colonel Ely gloomily summarized, “Perhaps we can mud and muddle through again on a shoestring but the shoestring must be frayed by this time and if it broke we may lose our shirt as well as our shoe.”

If the strategic plan were fixed, he recommended that one or more of the following measures be adopted: (1) increase the number of engineer construction troops; (2) shift the operation to an area where major air and supply bases could be constructed without encountering the adverse weather and port conditions existing on Leyte; (3) “decrease the tempo of the strategic plan”; and finally (4) decrease the scope of the air and supply requirements. Nothing was to be gained “by undertaking an overambitious program from the beginning that cannot be completed on a time schedule that will assure early and adequate support to future operations.”[39]

Col. Samuel D. Sturgis, Jr., Sixth Army Engineer, forwarded Colonel Ely’s report with a strong concurrence to General MacArthur’s engineer, but General Headquarters decided to proceed with the original logistical plans for the operation.[40]

Supplies

The supplies required for the operation involved staggering quantities. For an invasion force of 150,000 men, the War Department figures showed that, for the landing period alone, 1,500,000 tons of general equipment, 235,000 tons of combat vehicles, 200,000 tons of ammunition, and 200,000 tons of medical supplies were required. Thereafter, 332,000 tons of equipment would be required every thirty days.[41] According to the final plan, issued by General Krueger on 30 September 1944,[42] the units of the Sixth Army, X Corps, and Sixth Army Service Command, under General Casey, which were to arrive at Leyte between 20 and 30 October were to take ashore a minimum of ten days’ supply of all classes (except engineer supplies, which were to be for at least thirty days), and two units of fire.[43] In this way the strain on ASCOM supply units would be lessened, and ASCOM, it was hoped, would have time to establish dumps and make the necessary supply installations. In addition to supplies accompanying the assault troops, sufficient quantities were to be brought into Leyte by 30 October to bring the total supplies for the troops to the following figures, expressed in days: thirty days of food, clothing, and equipment; fifteen days of motor transport fuel and distillate; and thirty days of other petroleum products. There were also to be five units of fire for combat troops and three for service troops. The original plan had called for a thirty-day supply of all petroleum products to be brought in by A plus 10, but this quantity was reduced when General Krueger adopted a plan for the installation by A plus 7 of bulk fuel storage. The XXIV Corps supply levels were to remain the same as those planned for the now-canceled Yap operation, since the corps was already loaded with supplies which were considered adequate for the Leyte invasion.[44]

There were certain differences in the loads carried by the X and the XXIV Corps. The XXIV Corps embarked with a thirty-day supply of rations and medical supplies, twenty days of clothing, weapons, vehicles, fuels, lubricants, construction matériel, and seven units of fire for all artillery and five units for other types of weapons. Since the type of equipment loaded had been selected for the Yap operation, amphibian vehicles were favored over wheeled vehicles. Less than 50 percent of the Table of Equipment allowance of general purpose vehicles and dump trucks accompanied the units. Furthermore, many badly needed items of organizational equipment were carried by the rear echelons, which did not arrive until January 1945, after Leyte had been secured.[45]

The supplies which were to accompany the troops during the initial phases of the Leyte operation were to come from bases in New Guinea and the Central Pacific. Resupply shipping—to be called for as needed—was to be loaded at bases in the United States, Australia, and, if necessary, New Guinea.[46] In addition, ten loaded liberty ships were to be held in floating reserve, eight at Hollandia and two in the Palaus. Two of these were loaded with aviation gasoline, two with fuel oil and lubricants, two with ammunition for the air forces and four with ammunition for the ground forces. Admiral Nimitz was to furnish two of the four last mentioned. Except for the LST’s transporting the XXIV Corps, each LST arriving on 20 October was to carry thirty tons of technical supplies for the air forces. All LST’s arriving from A plus 1 through A plus 4 were to carry forty tons of similar supplies.[47] General MacArthur charged the Commanding General, United States Army Services of Supply (SWPA), with providing the Sixth Army with all supplies, except air force technical supplies, that would be needed for the operation.[48]

An Army garrison force for Yap under Maj. Gen. Roscoe B. Woodruff had been scheduled to go with the XXIV Corps, and at Admiral Nimitz’ suggestion this force was designated to accompany the corps to the new target, Leyte, though the Southwest Pacific Area had never used an organization of this type.[49] It was hoped that the force might be useful in taking over “house-keeping” duties and the development of rear areas, thus relieving the assault commander of those responsibilities. Incidentally, General Krueger made little use of the garrison force. Units which furnished logistic support for carrier operations were also included and were to be assigned to the Seventh Fleet. Admiral Nimitz was to continue furnishing logistic support to the XXIV Corps until relieved by General MacArthur.[50]

Shipping

On 21 September, Pacific Ocean Areas and Southwest Pacific Area reached an agreement on resupply of ammunition for the XXIV Corps. Arrangements were made for loaded ships from San Francisco to be sent to the Leyte area periodically to alleviate the shipping shortage.[51] It was expected that at least twenty-two cargo ships would so arrive from San Francisco during the operation.

The change in target dates and the substitution of the XXIV Corps for the XIV Corps reduced the amount of amphibious shipping available for the Leyte operation. Consequently representatives of the Sixth Army, the VII Amphibious Force, and the Fifth Air Force met at General Krueger’s headquarters to work out the details for a new shipping schedule. They made minor changes in the dates for the movement of convoys, and rearranged echelons, eliminating one.[52] The shipping for the XXIV Corps and the ten resupply ships were to remain the same as planned for Yap.[53]

The amphibious shipping allocated to MacArthur was to be made available for such turnaround shipping as would be required. The date of release of the amphibious vessels in order to mount subsequent operations would be announced later, but none were to be released for return to Nimitz’ control without permission from MacArthur. An additional division lift, which was not included, was to return the 77th Division from Guam to Guadalcanal or to a location indicated by Admiral Nimitz.[54]

On 25 September Sixth Army submitted to General Headquarters a schedule of cargo loadings of heavy shipping for the Leyte operation and made suggestions as to heavy shipping for direct movement of troops. All troops and supply ships with the assault convoy which were to depart from Hollandia must arrive in that area not later than A minus 9.[55]

The shipping instructions specified that the ships were to be loaded for selective discharge; all resupply ships transporting rations, clothing, vehicles, weapons, and ammunition would be duplicate loaded; loaded floating reserve ships would be provided; medical supplies would be top loaded to avoid breakage and damage; and sufficient stevedore gear would be placed aboard each ship to handle its cargo. On 25 and 26 September General Krueger’s transportation officer submitted to General Headquarters the heavy shipping requirements for the overwater movement of cargo and troops, respectively. It was considered necessary to utilize “all types of shipping from Navy LSM’s, LST’s, and assault transports to army controlled merchant ships and troop carriers.”[56] Additional shipping was obtained by making use of that which had carried the 1st Marine Division and the 81st Division to Peleliu and Angaur in the Palau Islands.[57] The shipping specified above was assembled at Manus and Hollandia and was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division and the 24th Division, which were embarking, respectively, at those two ports. The XXIV Corps, after leaving the Hawaiian Islands, was brought to Manus where it remained in its original shipping.

On 8 October General Krueger asked the commanding generals of X Corps, XXIV Corps, and ASCOM, together with the commanding officers of the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion and the 21st Infantry Regiment, whether they would be able to meet the target date for Leyte.[58] Upon receiving affirmative replies, he laconically informed General Headquarters: “Sixth Army Forces designated for KING TWO Operations are ready to meet KING TWO Target Date.”[59]

[1] Unless otherwise stated this section is based upon a report by Col H. V. White, G-2 Sixth Army, sub: G-2 Est of Enemy Sit, 20 Sep 44, Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 167–70. [↑]

[2] GHQ SWPA Philippine Monthly Combined Sitrep, 15 Jun 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 15 Jun 44. [↑]

[3] GHQ SWPA Philippine Islands, G-2 Est of Enemy Sit 4, 11–17 Jun 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 17 Jun 44; GHQ SWPA Philippine Islands, G-2 Est of Enemy Sit 5, 18–24 Jun 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 24 Jun 44; AAF SWPA Intel Sum, Ser 216, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 13 Jun 44; GHQ SWPA Philippine Islands, G-2 Est of Enemy Sit 6, 25 Jun–1 Jul 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 1 Jul 44; GHQ SWPA Philippine Islands, G-2 Est of Enemy Sit 7, 2–8 Jul 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 8 Jul 44; AAF SWPA Intel Sum, Ser 225, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 14 Jul 44. [↑]

[4] AAF SWPA Intel Sum, Ser 228, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 25 Jul 44. [↑]

[5] Notes, WIDEAWAKE Conference, 20 Jul 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 24 Jul 44. [↑]

[6] Sixth Army G-2 Est of Enemy Sit, 20 Sep 44, Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 170. [↑]

[7] GHQ SWPA Warning Instns 5, 31 Aug 44. [↑]

[8] GHQ SWPA Warning Instns 5/1, 15 Sep 44. [↑]

[9] GHQ SWPA Stf Study, King II, 4th ed., 20 Sep 44. This study was not a directive but a basis for planning the operation. [↑]

[10] CINCPAC-CINCPOA Opn Plan 8–44, quoted in Annex A, CINCPAC-CINCPOA Opns in POA, Oct 44, pp. 56–57, A-16–3/FF12, Ser 00397, 31 May 45. [↑]

[11] Sixth Army FO 25, 23 Sep 44, Annexes 6a-6f. [↑]

[12] Hist Div, Dept of the Army, Combat Chronicle, An Outline History of U.S. Army Divisions, passim, OCMH. [↑]

[13] CTF 77 Opns Plan, Ser 00022A, 26 Sep 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 6 Oct 44; CINCPAC-CINCPOA Opn Plan 8–44, cited n. 10, above. [↑]

[14] GHQ SWPA Opns Instns 70, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[15] Ibid. [↑]

[16] AAF SWPA Opns Instns 71, 24 Sep 44. [↑]

[17] FEAF, History of Far East Air Forces, I, 117, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[18] CANF SWPA Opns Plan 13–44, 26 Sep 44. [↑]

[19] Ibid., Apps. 1 and 2 to Annex C. [↑]

[20] Ibid., App. 3 to Annex E. [↑]

[21] Ibid., App. 1 to Annex E. [↑]

[22] CINCPAC-CINCPOA Opn Plan 8–44, cited n. 10, above. [↑]

[23] GHQ SWPA Opns Instns 70, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[24] CANF SWPA Opns Plan 13–44, 26 Sep 44. [↑]

[25] Memo, Rear Adm Forrest P. Sherman, Plans Off POA, and Maj Gen Stephen J. Chamberlin, ACofS G-3 SWPA, for CINCSWPA and CINCPOA, 21 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[26] Ibid. [↑]

[27] Sixth Army FO 25, 23 Sep 44. [↑]

[28] Ibid.; Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 23. [↑]

[29] X Corps FO 1, 30 Sep 44; 1st Cav Div FO 1, 2 Oct 44; 24th Inf Div FO 1, 1 Oct 44. [↑]

[30] XXIV Corps FO 3, 28 Sep 44; 96th Div FO 2, 10 Oct 44; 7th Div FO 9,1 Oct 44. [↑]

[31] Sixth Army FO 25, 23 Sep 44. [↑]

[32] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 23. [↑]

[33] Ibid. [↑]

[34] Ibid. [↑]

[35] Ibid., p. 20. [↑]

[36] Ibid., p. 24. [↑]

[37] Ibid., p. 19. [↑]

[38] Sixth Army FO 25, 23 Sep 44. [↑]

[39] Memo, Col Ely, Exec Off, Sixth Army Engineer, for Col Samuel D. Sturgis, Jr., Sixth Army Engineer; Air Evaluation Board SWPA, The Leyte Campaign, pp. 400–403. [↑]

[40] Interv with Maj Gen George H. Decker, formerly CofS Sixth Army, 7 Sep 51. [↑]

[41] MI, GS, GHQ FEC, History of the United States Army Forces in the Far East 1943–1945, p. 69. [↑]

[42] Sixth Army Admin O 14, 30 Sep 44. [↑]

[43] Sixth Army Admin O 14, Annex 4, 30 Sep 44. [↑]

[44] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 24. [↑]

[45] XXIV Corps Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 35. [↑]

[46] Ibid. [↑]

[47] Sixth Army Admin O 14, 30 Sep 44. [↑]

[48] GHQ SWPA Opns Instns 70, Annex 4, 21 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[49] Ibid., p. 18. [↑]

[50] Rad, CINCPOA to CINCSWPA, 16119, 19 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 19 Sep 44; Info Rad, CINCSWPA to CINCPOA, CX 18072, 20 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[51] Memo, Adm Sherman, Plans Off POA, and Gen Chamberlin, ACofS G-3 SWPA, for CINCSWPA and CINCPOA, 21 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 22 Sep 44. [↑]

[52] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 19. [↑]

[53] GHQ SWPA Opns Instns 70, Annex 4, 21 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[54] Ltr, GHQ SWPA to Comdr Allied Naval Forces, 23 Sep 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 26 Sep 44. [↑]

[55] Ltr, Lt Col James W. Hill, Asst AG Sixth Army to CINCSWPA and CG USASOS, 25 Sep 44, sub: Heavy Shipping Requirements for King II Operation, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 25 Sep 44. [↑]

[56] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, Rpt of Transportation Off, p. 270. [↑]

[57] CTF 77 Attack Plan A304–44, 2 Oct 44. [↑]

[58] Rads, CG Sixth Army to CG X Corps, CG XXIV Corps, CG ASCOM, CO 21st Inf Regt, and CO 6th Ranger Inf Bn, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 8 Oct 44. [↑]

[59] Rad, CG Sixth Army to GHQ SWPA, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 10 Oct 44. [↑]

CHAPTER IV

The Return

For more than two years the high command of the Southwest Pacific had anticipated the promised return to the Philippines. That objective had governed nearly all of the planning and most of the earlier invasions. Now the day had arrived. Plans had been made and troops and cargo were aboard ships. The fleets of the Pacific Ocean Areas and the Southwest Pacific Area were about to join forces in a mighty assault against the Philippines.

The Convoy Forms

That part of the VII Amphibious Force which carried the 24th Infantry Division and the Sixth Army Service Command assembled at the harbor of Hollandia, Netherlands New Guinea. In this force were over 470 ships, ranging in size from small rocket-launching craft to 5,000-man troopships, loaded and now waiting for the message to weigh anchor and head for the Far Shore, as Leyte was designated. They were scheduled to pick up that part of the force which was carrying the 1st Cavalry Division from Manus Island and then rendezvous with the III Amphibious Force.

At 1600 on Friday, the thirteenth of October, the word was given and the great fleet at Hollandia got under way for the target—Leyte—1,300 miles distant.[1] Minesweeping task groups had preceded it on 11 and 12 October.[2] By sundown the convoy was formed and the ships were darkened. On 14 October the ships of the convoy crossed the equator without ceremony. General quarters (battle drill) and abandon ship drills were held. The part of the force carrying the 1st Cavalry Division was sighted during the day. On the following day the two units joined and the convoy proceeded. On 17 October the convoy made visual contact with the tractor groups of the III Amphibious Force. This force had come from Hawaii with the XXIV Corps to help in the liberation of Leyte.[3]

XXIV Corps Afloat

In the early morning hours of 13 September the headquarters of XXIV Corps at Schofield Barracks, Oahu, Hawaii, was awake and active. Breakfast was served at 0330, and all men who had been informed the day before that they were to embark for an unknown shore shouldered their barracks bags and carried them to waiting trucks. By 0700 the men had been loaded on the trucks, which took them to the narrow-gauge Oahu railroad. In flat cars they traveled some twenty miles to Honolulu Harbor. The usual seeming delays followed, but eventually the hot, tired, and perspiring headquarters men boarded the George F. Clymer and were assigned bunks. The Clymer was but one unit of a large convoy that stretched toward the horizon in every direction. At 1115 on 15 September the convoy got under way for a destination believed to be Yap. As the ships departed, word was received that the Yap operation had been canceled and that Leyte was to be their destination. For the men on board, life fell into the monotonous routine common to all transports. Reading, card and dice games, eating, sleeping, and interminable “bull sessions” helped to pass the time.

On the 25th of the month the Clymer anchored at Eniwetok Island, an anchorage already crowded with hundreds of transports, warships, and cargo vessels. The men were allowed to go ashore, where they were given beer and other refreshments. The XXIV Corps was notified that it would leave for Manus, in the Admiralty Islands, where further orders would be received and the staging completed. The LST flotilla left on 26 September and two days later the transports followed. Maps, terrain studies, and aerial photographs were distributed and studied en route.[4] At the same time the XXIV Corps issued a tentative field order which was distributed to lower unit commanders, who then held conferences and issued tentative verbal field orders.[5]

Early in October the convoy crossed the equator. On many of the ships ceremonies were held transforming pollywogs into shellbacks, with the result that some of the men preferred standing to sitting for a few days. On 3 October the convoy arrived at Manus.[6] The assault troops of the XXIV Corps were transferred from AKA’s to LST’s. The 96th Division on 9 October issued a final field order for the Leyte operation. This order allowed the regimental headquarters less than forty-eight hours to complete final orders, plans, and maps, and distribute them to the headquarters of the assault battalions.[7]

On 11 October the LST transports carrying the assault battalions filed out of the Manus anchorage, and on 14 October the rest of the convoy again formed and started on the last stretch of the journey.[8] Its progress was satisfactory, and on 15 October the President of the United States sent his best wishes for the success of the operation to President Sergio Osmeña of the Philippine Commonwealth, who was at sea with the expedition.[9] When the III Amphibious Force rendezvoused with the Seventh Fleet, the largest convoy ever seen in the Pacific up to that time was formed.[10]

Composition of the Convoy

Thirty-four months had been spent in building and preparing these combatant and amphibious vessels. Practically none of them were in existence at the time Corregidor was besieged. Most of the 183 vessels of Task Force 77 were warships, while Task Forces 78 and 79, the amphibious forces, consisted mainly of transports, cargo ships, and a wide variety of landing ships and craft. Fully 518 ocean-going vessels were included in Task Forces 78 and 79.[11]

Of the vessels assigned to participate in the operation, 157 were combatant ships: 6 old battleships, 5 heavy cruisers, 6 light cruisers, 18 escort carriers, 86 destroyers, 25 destroyer escorts, and 11 frigates. There were 420 transport vessels, including 5 command ships, 40 attack transports, 10 LSD’s, 151 LST’s, 79 LCI’s, 21 LCT’s, and 18 high-speed transports. The remainder included patrol, mine-sweeping, hydrographic, and service ships.[12]

The convoy did not include the combatant ships of Admiral Halsey’s Third Fleet. The main striking force of the Third Fleet was Task Force 38, composed of four powerful carrier task groups, under Admiral Mitscher. Each group contained fast carriers, cruisers, destroyers, and the newest American battleships.[13]

After forming, the convoy proceeded toward the target. At this time a disquieting report was received from the meteorologists on board the ships: a typhoon was headed toward the Leyte Gulf area. Such a disturbance could be fatal to the expedition. A severe storm did in fact lash the gulf area from 14 through 17 October, but it gradually abated and the morning of A Day, 20 October, was clear. This favorable weather augured well for a successful landing.

Softening the Target

Early Strikes

Allied aircraft had already visited the Philippine Archipelago. The first aerial strikes since 1942 were made in the early fall of 1944. On 1 September B-24’s from New Guinea bases initiated their first large-scale air attack against airdromes in the Davao area, though bad weather prevented the protective fighter escort from attacking the target. The airborne defense encountered was surprisingly light—only three intercepting fighters opposed the strike. The bombers dropped 100 tons of bombs, destroying 34 planes on the ground and killing about 100 men.[14] Two American bombers were shot down and six received minor damages.[15] General MacArthur believed that the Japanese were conserving their air strength in order to concentrate it against anticipated Allied landings.[16]

On 4 September the first aerial reconnaissance flights were made over Leyte. During the period 9–14 September, Admiral Mitscher launched a large-scale, carrier-based air assault against the Japanese air defenses in the Philippine Islands in order to protect the Palau and Morotai landings. On 9 September aircraft from the carriers attacked airdromes and installations in the Mindanao area, destroying 60 aircraft on the ground and 8 in the air. On 12 September the attack was directed against the Visayan Islands. Of an estimated air strength of 225 aircraft in the sector, 125 were destroyed on the ground and 75 in the air. During the night of 12 September the Japanese flew in reinforcements from Luzon. A Third Fleet strike on 13 September against the reinforced air strength destroyed an estimated 135 aircraft on the ground and 81 in the air. On the 14th, the Third Fleet planes encountered no enemy air opposition but destroyed from 10 to 15 aircraft on the ground. The air strength which the enemy had conserved for an anticipated American invasion was thus decimated. About 500, or approximately 57 percent of the 884 aircraft believed to be in the Philippines, were rendered nonoperational or destroyed. This successful knocking out of the Japanese air strength in the Philippine Islands was an important factor in the decision to speed up the landing at Leyte by two months.

On 21 September Central Pacific carrier-based aircraft directed their attention to the Luzon area. In spite of their vigorous defense of the Luzon airfields, the Japanese lost an estimated 110 aircraft in the air and 95 on the ground. These included not only combat aircraft but also reconnaissance, transport, and training planes. The remaining air strength in the area was estimated to be 350 aircraft, of which 10 percent were in Mindanao, 20 percent in the Visayan Islands, and 70 percent in Luzon.

At the same time, the carrier-based aircraft made strong strikes against enemy shipping in the central and southern Philippines. It was estimated that from 1 September to 15 September 105 merchant vessels were sunk in those waters by carrier planes, destroyers, cruisers, and submarines. Although exact information was lacking on the number of enemy vessels present in the Visayan and Mindanao areas, it was thought that 50 percent of the Japanese merchant marine in those areas was eliminated. A successful attrition of the Japanese air and naval strength in the Philippines had been accomplished.[17]

The Third Fleet’s carriers then started to neutralize the approaches to the Philippine Islands. The carrier-based aircraft launched strikes against enemy aircraft staging areas in the Ryukyus, of which Okinawa is the largest and most important. As a result of attacks on 10 October, they destroyed an estimated 23 enemy planes in the air and 88 on the ground or in the water. Admiral Halsey reported that his flyers sank 1 subtender, 1 mine sweeper, 1 destroyer escort, 2 mine-craft, 4 midget submarines, 20 cargo ships, and 45 other craft. In addition, nearly as many ships, mostly of small size, were damaged.[18] On 11 October the flyers struck at Luzon.

Air and Naval Action in the Formosa Area

The plans of the Third Fleet called for strong carrier-based strikes against Formosa on 12 and 13 October. The four task groups of Task Force 38 were assigned targets in the southern Formosa, northern Formosa, central Formosa, and the Takao areas, respectively. (Takao is a port city on the southwest coast of Formosa.) After a fast run on the night of 11–12 October the carriers of Task Force 38 arrived in position off Formosa in the early morning. Although the Japanese were aware of the approach of the task force, they made no attacks against it before dawn. As the first fighters started sweeps over their respective areas, heavy opposition developed, but it dropped markedly during the day. From 12 to 14 October the Japanese lost some 280 aircraft,[19] while the Americans lost 76. As a result of the operation, the Japanese lost half of their naval air strength. This loss gave assurance that the U. S. forces would have air superiority over the Leyte area on A Day.[20]

On the evening of 13 October the American heavy cruiser Canberra was torpedoed eighty-five miles off Formosa. Admiral Halsey kept his forces in the area another day in order to afford protection to the Canberra. Attacks, therefore, continued against enemy aircraft, airfields, and installations. By this time, Japanese reinforcements had arrived. On the evening of 14 October an aerial torpedo hit the heavy cruiser Houston.

Admiral Halsey decided to capitalize on the damage inflicted on the two cruisers. He ordered two task groups, which included the battleships, to retire eastward out of sight; he sent another of the task groups to conduct intermittent air raids against northern Luzon; and he assigned the remaining task group to protect the crippled Canberra and Houston. Halsey instructed this last task group to send out messages in the clear begging piteously for assistance. He hoped that by this ruse, which he called the “Lure of the Streamlined Bait,” the Japanese fleet would be led to believe that this task group was all that remained of the task force and would therefore sweep down for the kill. The two task groups which had retired eastward would then appear and engage the enemy. The Japanese swallowed the bait and dispatched destroyers and cruisers toward the “crippled” American force. Unfortunately, their search planes uncovered the two task forces off Formosa, and the Japanese surface ships hastily withdrew.

The enemy pilots made such greatly exaggerated claims of success that Imperial General Headquarters decided to order out the 2d Diversion Attack Force against the Americans. The flying units of Carrier Divisions 3 and 4 were transferred to the 2d Air Fleet. These air units proceeded to Formosa on the 12th of October. Carrier Divisions 3 and 4, however, remained in the Inland Sea until they sortied forth for the Battle of Leyte Gulf.[21] The exaggerated claims of the Japanese air force were accepted jubilantly on the home islands. The people felt that the American Navy had indeed been given a death blow, and the Finance Ministry distributed “celebration sake” to all households in the country to commemorate the event. The Tokyo radio made the unfounded claim that “a total of 57 enemy warships including 19 aircraft carriers and four battleships were sunk or heavily damaged by the Japanese forces ... the enemy task forces lost the majority of their strength and were put to rout....”[22] It also predicted that the Allied losses would delay the invasion of the Philippine Islands by two months.[23]

Admiral Halsey’s reaction was to report that “all 3d Fleet Ships reported by radio Tokyo as sunk have now been salvaged and are retiring towards the enemy.”[24]

The convoy, as it steamed toward Leyte, received the news of the United States success with considerable satisfaction. At this time, however, Admiral Halsey announced that the Third Fleet was being deployed for action, since he was expecting the Japanese to rise to his bait. Consequently the Third Fleet, except for the current strike at Luzon, could not furnish any more carrier support for the operation.[25] The Third Fleet task group which went to the Luzon area successfully struck at enemy airfields and shipping. From 17 to 19 October it destroyed an estimated ninety-nine enemy aircraft on the ground and ninety-five in the air.[26]

Realignment of Air Support

On the heels of Admiral Halsey’s announcement that no assistance in connection with the Leyte landings could be expected from the Third Fleet, Far East Air Forces stated that the Fifth Air Force would support the Leyte operation as a “priority mission.”[27] At the same time the Seventh Fleet requested intensive reconnaissance of San Bernardino and Surigao Straits in the Leyte area. This mission was assigned to the Fifth Air Force, which was also charged with neutralizing the Visayan airfields. The Thirteenth Air Force was to expedite the basing on Morotai of heavy bombers which could be called forward in support when requested by the Fifth Air Force. From 18 to 19 October the carrier aircraft of the Seventh Fleet protected the convoy and struck at small vessels and airfields in northern Mindanao as well as defense and communications installations and airfields on Leyte.[28]

Although the missions Admiral Halsey had assigned his carriers apparently prevented any aircraft of the Third Fleet from participating in direct support of the landings, Halsey nevertheless ordered one of the task groups to strike at the Leyte, Samar, Cebu, and Negros areas on 18–19 October and to provide direct air support for the Leyte operation on 20 October.[29] Moreover, by 18 October news was received that the Japanese had discovered the ruse and withdrawn their warships from the Formosa area, thus leaving Admiral Halsey’s forces free to protect the operation by covering San Bernardino and Surigao Straits.[30]

The carrier force of the Seventh Fleet was to bear the brunt of the tactical air support. By the afternoon and night of 17 October the weather had cleared, and flying conditions were perfect as the carriers moved into their operation areas the following morning. The force was divided into three units: one unit operated in the southern part of Leyte Gulf to protect the landings at Panaon Strait; another operated near the entrance to the gulf in order to support the landings of the Southern Attack Force at Dulag; and the last operated southeast of Samar Island to support the landings of the Northern Attack Force at Tacloban.

During 18 and 19 October, aircraft from the carriers struck at enemy airfields on Cebu, Negros, and Panay Islands. There was very little enemy activity from the Japanese airfields in the Leyte area, since they were still sodden from the recent storms. In the two days’ strikes, the Seventh Fleet aircraft destroyed an estimated thirty-six enemy planes and damaged twenty-eight more.[31]

Japanese Plan of Defense

The air blows on the Philippines served as a warning that the Americans were ready to return to the Islands—an event long expected by the Japanese. By the end of June 1944, the Japanese military situation had considerably worsened. The outer circle of Japan’s perimeter had been pierced and the impetus of the American drive showed no signs of slackening. ([Map 4])

The Allied nations had hit the Japanese from east and west and seriously interfered with their seaborne commerce. Japan was in grave danger of being separated from her stolen southern area—the source of her raw materials. Units within this area were also being forcibly isolated from each other. The fall of Saipan had brought about a “most serious crisis.” Premier Tojo was removed and Kuniaki Koiso formed a new cabinet.[32]

In the summer of 1944 Imperial General Headquarters had started to strengthen the Philippines, the Ryukyus, the Kurile Islands, and Japan itself—the “first line of sea defense.” If the Allies landed forces in any of these areas, the Japanese would concentrate their land, air, and sea forces and attempt to repel the landing force. These operations were known as the SHŌ (Victory) Operations. Defense of the Philippines was SHŌ I.[33]

The Japanese strategy was simple. Japan wished to remain in the war, and to do so she must at all costs keep open the lines of communication to the sources of her raw materials in the Netherlands Indies.

In the first part of August 1944, the headquarters of the 14th Area Army, which was to be charged with the defense of the Philippine Archipelago, was organized under the command of the Southern Army, while the 35th Army, which was to defend the Visayan Islands, was established under the command of the 14th Area Army.[34]

The Philippine Islands were under the jurisdiction of the Southern Army, whose command organization was extremely complex. (Chart 3) The supreme commander was Field Marshal Count Hisaichi Terauchi. There were four area armies in the Southern Army: the 2d Area Army occupied Netherlands New Guinea, thence west to Timor; the 7th Area Army was at Singapore; the Burma Area Army was at Rangoon; and the 14th Area Army, commanded by Lt. Gen. Shigenori Kuroda, was in the Philippines with its headquarters at Manila. The Southern Army also had two air armies and three garrison armies: the 3d Air Army in Singapore; the 4th Air Army, consisting of two air divisions in the Philippines and one air division in western New Guinea; and a garrison army stationed in Thailand, another in French Indochina, and a third in Borneo. The commander of the 14th Area Army maintained a staff liaison with the 4th Air Army but otherwise had no control over it.

The 1st Air Fleet, under the command of the Southwest Area Fleet, was stationed in the Philippines, with headquarters at Manila. Admiral Soemu Toyoda, commander in chief of the Combined Fleet with headquarters at Tokyo, controlled the entire naval forces, including the Southwest Area Fleet.[35]

MAP 4 C. A. Frost

SITUATION IN THE PACIFIC

Mid-October 1944

Chart 3—Japanese Army Organization of Major Units for the Leyte Operation

Plans for the 14th Area Army

The Japanese during the summer of 1944 anticipated that the United States forces would return to the Philippine Islands, but when and where were two questions for which not even Tokyo Rose, the Japanese radio propagandist, had the answers. Consequently, the Japanese wished to keep their troops sufficiently mobile that reinforcements might be rushed to the point of contact. The original plan called for the main defensive effort of the ground forces to be made on Luzon, since there were too few Japanese troops in the archipelago to defend all of the Philippines. The Japanese Navy and Air Forces, however, were to carry out “decisive” actions in the central and southern Philippines.[36]

To General Kuroda fell the task of making and executing plans for the defense of the Philippines by the 14th Area Army. General Kuroda was essentially a realist. He stated in June 1947 that in October 1944 he had told Maj. Gen. Seizo Arisue, Chief of Army Intelligence, Imperial General Headquarters, that “it would be best for Japan to negotiate an immediate peace before the Americans could destroy our nation by air power.”[37] Kuroda thought that all available land forces should be concentrated in the Luzon area in order to counterattack any American landing within the Luzon perimeter. However, because of their predominant aerial strength, the Americans in their next attempt could unless they made “some terrible mistake ... land in force and once ashore, could take the Philippines.”[38] General Kuroda’s plan was never considered. Imperial General Headquarters’ plan for the defense of the Philippines called for the employment of ten divisions and five brigades: five divisions and two brigades in Luzon, four divisions and two brigades in the southern Philippines, and one division and one brigade in China and Formosa. The two units last mentioned would be rushed to the Philippines as soon as the American landing became imminent.[39] When the Americans landed, all of these units, acting in concert, were to participate in fighting a decisive battle against the American troops. This plan was never carried out in its entirety.

The Japanese occupation troops of the Philippine Islands had grown soft and had “no particular will to fight.” In the spring of 1944, there were only minor units available to set up an organized defense.

Imperial General Headquarters and the Southern Army thought that because of the many islands in the archipelago emphasis should be placed on air power. Air attacks could destroy the American forces before they arrived at the landing areas or at least before they could make appreciable gains. The way could then be opened to turn a defense into an offensive.[40] General Kuroda threw cold water on this plan by bluntly stating:

That concept is good, but you cannot fight with concept alone. Words alone will not sink American ships and that becomes clear when you compare our airplanes with theirs. That is why the major battles have been occurring on land. We can say that the power of our air force is negligible at this time. No matter how much the Fourteenth Army devotes their efforts toward air power, in actuality, should there be a decisive fight, they must fight on land. The preparation and conduct of an operation, and the responsibilities thereof cannot be conducted by airplanes and air units. The land army should initiate its own preparations. For example, for what purpose were the group of air bases constructed at Davao and Tacloban? Even though they are built, they aren’t used. It amounts to construction for the use of the enemy.[41]

During the month of August, the Japanese devoted their main efforts toward strengthening the air force. After the first of September more emphasis was placed on building up the ground troops while the air preparations continued to some extent. The Southern Army in late August ordered about one half of a division to Sarangani and one division to Davao against the wishes of the 14th Area Army. This meant a reshuffling of the troops that had been moving and repairing defenses since the first part of August. “The order was carried out begrudgingly.”[42]

Lt Gen. Sosaku Suzuki, the commander of the 35th Army, thinking that the American Army would land on 1 October, said: “Contrary to what has been announced by General Headquarters our air force cannot be prepared and equipped in time, nor can the Combined Fleet be depended upon. The situation grows worse and for this reason the land force preparations must be hastened. Yet, in spite of that, we must not discourage the air forces and should do as much as possible to prepare aggressive aerial opposition.”[43]

In the middle of September, Imperial General Headquarters decided to replace General Kuroda with General Tomoyuki Yamashita. Not only did General Kuroda have a concept of the Philippine operations that differed from that of his superiors, but he was charged with neglecting his duty as field army commander.[44] Lt. Col. Seiichi Yoshie of the Personnel Bureau of the War Ministry, who had been sent to the Philippines to investigate personnel matters in the Southern Army, said of the incident:

Stories reached the War Ministry that Lt. Gen. Kuroda was devoting more time to his golf, reading and personal matters than to the execution of his official duties. It appeared that his control over staff officers and troops was not sufficiently strong and that there was a good deal of unfavorable criticism of his conduct among the troops. There were also indications that discipline was becoming very lax.

On 4 September 1944, I left Tokyo under orders ... to investigate. As a result I obtained many statements substantiating the unfavorable stories in regard to Lt. Gen. Kuroda. The recommendations of all the staff was that Lt. Gen. Kuroda be relieved as soon as possible, and be replaced by Gen. Yamashita ... who was a superb tactician and excellent leader.[45]

General Yamashita, who was in Manchuria, received notification of his appointment on 23 September, and on the 9th of October he assumed command of the 14th Area Army.[46] On his arrival in the Philippines, he found conditions were “unsatisfactory.” Of the eleven members of the old staff only five were left and the new staff officers were unfamiliar with conditions in the Philippine Islands.[47] The state of affairs was well exemplified by a remark of his new chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Akira Muto, who arrived in the Philippines on 20 October from Sumatra, where he had been in command of the 2d Imperial Guards Division.[48] Upon being told that the Americans had landed on Leyte, Muto is said to have replied, “Very interesting, but where is Leyte?”[49]

GEN. TOMOYUKI YAMASHITA

Maj. Gen. Toshio Nishimura, one of three assistants to Yamashita, states that the planning for the Leyte campaign was “very bad.” The supply situation, however, was favorable. Since Manila was the main depot not only for the Philippines but also for other places in the south such as Borneo and Singapore, a sufficient amount of everything needed was at hand.[50]

LT. GEN. SOSAKU SUZUKI

There were two tactical concepts of defense of the islands in July and August 1944. One was termed the policy of “annihilation at the beachhead” and the other the policy of “resistance in depth.” The respective merits of the two concepts were bitterly debated by their partisans. The proponents of resistance in depth thought that the beach defenses, which had been constructed with a great deal of labor, were useless, since it was believed they could not withstand naval bombardment. On the other hand, the friends of annihilation at the beachhead felt that semipermanent beach fortifications could withstand bombardment. Imperial General Headquarters, after studying the battle lessons of the Pacific Campaign and the actual effect of naval bombardment, decided to adopt the resistance in depth tactics and instructed the entire army forces to comply. Consequently, the various group commanders abandoned their beach defenses with regret and began to build strong fortifications in selected areas of the interior.[51]

The control of the Visayan Islands and Mindanao was vested in the 35th Army, which was the equivalent of an American army corps. General Suzuki, its commander, compromised between the two concepts of defense. At a meeting of the 35th Army unit commanders in the middle of August 1944, he stated that although the main battle was to be fought away from the beaches some troops should remain to resist the American landings and “therefore part of the troops must suffer premature losses.”[52]

The 16th, 102d, 30th, and the 100th Divisions, which were in Leyte, Panay, and Mindanao, were placed under the 35th Army, whose headquarters was at Cebu.[53]

The Suzu Plan

On 17 August General Suzuki issued the Suzu orders for the defense of the Visayan Islands and Mindanao by the 35th Army. The 100th Division was to protect the Davao area on Mindanao while the 16th Division would defend Leyte. Most of the 30th Division and two infantry battalions were made mobile units which could be rushed to annihilate the American force wherever it landed. However, if the Americans landed simultaneously on Davao and Leyte, the main force of the 30th Division was to be sent to Davao and the other mobile units would go to Leyte.

In late August, Suzuki received orders to dispose his troops as follows: a reinforced division in the Davao area, three battalions in the Sarangani Bay area, three battalions in the vicinity of Zamboanga, two battalions in the Jolo Islands, a “strong unit” in the vicinity of Surigao, and one division in the Leyte Gulf area. The 55th Independent Mixed Brigade was to be assigned to the 35th Army. Units of the 16th Division which were in Luzon were sent to the 16th Division on Leyte. These elements, which consisted of one engineer company, an independent transportation unit, and a medical unit, were placed under the commander of the 33d Infantry Regiment.[54]

Lt. Gen. Shiro Makino, commanding the 16th Division, which was the major force on Leyte, had directed his efforts since April 1944 toward the construction of defensive positions on the island. The first line of defense, which was on the east coast in the Dulag area, was practically completed by the middle of October. The third defensive line was in the middle of Leyte Valley in the vicinity of Dagami. The second line of defense was between the two others, while the bulk of supplies was assembled in the central mountain range at Jaro.

The distribution of the other troops at the time of the American landings was as follows: one battalion of the 9th Infantry Regiment in the Catmon Hill and Tanauan district, and the main strength of the 33d Infantry Regiment in the Palo and Tacloban area. The larger part of the 33d Infantry Regiment, which was less adequately trained than the other regiments, had arrived on Leyte in mid-September from Luzon. Its officers were unfamiliar with the terrain and did not fortify their positions.[55]

On 17 October General Makino, having heard that American warships had approached Leyte Gulf, alerted the 16th Division for the impending battle and ordered all units to “shatter the enemy landing attempts.”[56] On 18 October the 14th Area Army received a report from the 16th Division which indicated that the latter was not certain the vessels sighted off Leyte were an enemy attacking force. They might be ships seeking safety from the storms, or vessels damaged in the naval battle off Formosa. Consequently, 14th Area Army was not sure that an attack was imminent at Leyte.[57] Plans for the 4th Air Army

The principal assignment of the 4th Air Army was to attack American transports and interdict American shipping and, if given the opportunity, to attack the American combatant vessels. The 4th Air Army was also to give aerial support to the movement of reinforcements.[58]

In October the 4th Air Army issued a plan for anticipated operations. In co-operation with the Army and the Navy, the 4th Air Army would attempt to destroy the American forces when they struck the Philippines. The Army air force in concert with the naval air units would try to destroy carrier-based planes and air bases. In operations against the American fleet, the Army and Navy air units were to have “a unified and tactful commitment.” If the naval air units could not co-operate the Army air force was to venture a surprise attack with a few planes. Dusk, night, and dawn attacks were to be made against Allied air bases and all means exerted to foil Allied attempts to establish advance bases in the Philippines. The main strength of the fighter units was to move into the central and southern Philippines in order to destroy the principal American landing force. The mission of the Japanese 4th Air Army, operating from Mindanao, Celebes, and northern Borneo, would be restricted to checking the current attempts on the part of the Americans to establish bases on Halmahera and western New Guinea and the destruction of the planes there. For this purpose the Japanese air force would use bases in the southern Philippines.

When the American convoy was sighted moving toward the Philippines, the heavy bombers were to deploy to the central and southern Philippines and make preparations for an immediate attack on the convoy after it had arrived in the harbor. The fighter units were to attack Allied aircraft and, if the circumstances were propitious, were also to attack the convoy. If the Americans should attempt simultaneous landings at various points, the Japanese Army air forces would “try to annihilate the landing parties one by one,”[59] acting in concert with the Japanese Navy.

Capt. Toshikazu Ohmae, the chief of staff to the commander in chief of the Japanese Third Fleet, was highly critical of the liaison between the Army and Navy air forces. “The Army and Navy always quarreled with each other. In theory they were supposed to cooperate and on the higher levels it would work, but personalities were the trouble.”[60]

Japanese Navy Plans

On 21 July 1944 Admiral Toyoda received a directive which laid down the basic policies for subsequent “urgent operations.” A great deal of the contracting empire was abandoned. The Southwest Area, which embraced the region from Manila to Singapore, was ordered to “maintain security of resources areas, hold vital sectors for their defense, and place emphasis on protection for fleet anchorages.” Thus the Japanese planned to restrict battle “to the homeland and to the island chain which protected the last links” of the empire with the south. The forces in the Japanese home islands, the Ryukyu chain, Formosa, and the Philippine Islands were told to take “all measures to expedite the establishment of conditions to cope with decisive battle. In event of enemy attack, summon all strength which can be concentrated and hold vital sectors, in general intercepting and destroying the enemy within the operational sphere of planes of our base air force.”[61]

The success of Admiral Halsey’s carrier strikes against Formosa had considerably weakened the strength of Japanese carrier-based planes, and less than one half of the Army planes remained. The necessity of sending reinforcements to Formosa also weakened considerably the Japanese aerial defense of the Philippines. The enemy became almost completely dependent upon the remaining land-based planes.[62] Within their capabilities the Japanese had made their plans and readied their forces, as the American convoy steamed towards Leyte to do battle.

Securing the Channel Approaches

Landings of the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion

The forward part of the convoy, which was carrying the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion, commanded by Lt. Col. Henry A. Mucci, had experienced stormy weather since leaving Hollandia, but by dawn of the 17th the storm had slackened, though the ocean was still choppy. The transports carrying the reinforced 6th Ranger Battalion, preceded by three mine sweepers, entered Leyte Gulf.[63]

The USS Crosby, carrying Company D, arrived on schedule off Suluan Island, the outermost of the islands guarding Leyte Gulf. For twenty minutes the cruiser Denver shelled the island. Under lowering skies and in a driving rain which rendered impossible the anticipated air support,[64] Company D, under 1st Lt. Leslie M. Gray, disembarked from the transport and headed for the island in landing craft. The mission of the unit was to secure mine charts which were believed to be located in a lighthouse on the island. At 0805 the boats touched shore.

The landing was unopposed. The men immediately filed south 500 yards on a trail along the coast and then headed east toward the lighthouse. On the way, four buildings, one of which contained a Japanese radio, were found and set ablaze. The company then continued along the trail. Suddenly the enemy fired from a concealed position, killing one man and wounding another. When Company D went into attack formation, the enemy force disappeared into the heavy jungle bordering the trail. The march was resumed and the company reached its objective without further incident. The lighthouse, which had been damaged by naval bombardment, and adjoining buildings were deserted.[65]

In searching the documents found in the lighthouse, the company failed to turn up the hoped-for enemy mine charts.[66] It returned to the beachhead area and, finding that the landing boats had been hopelessly battered and broken up by the surf, formed a perimeter for the night.

As Company D was moving along the coast of Suluan Island, naval fire blasted away at the extreme northwest coast of Dinagat Island. At 0900 the first assault waves of the 6th Rangers, minus Companies D and B, started for the beach. Although coral reefs approximately one hundred yards offshore grounded the boats so that the men had to wade the remainder of the distance, the companies were all ashore by 1230. No Japanese were on the island and the troops accomplished their mission, the erection of a navigation light at Desolation Point to guide the movement of the main portion of the convoy.

Company B of the 6th Rangers was to have landed on Homonhon Island at the same time landings were made on Suluan and Dinagat. Its mission, too, was the emplacement of a navigation light, but bad weather and choppy seas kept the troops confined to the ship throughout the 17th.[67] On the morning of the 18th, the ship’s address system clanged out general quarters. The men went below, put on their gear, and checked their weapons. At 0900 the troops were told to prepare to disembark. They bolted up the ladders and spilled out over the deck to the davits.[68] The boats were lowered and the first wave started for the beach. At the same time the guns from the destroyer and frigate which had escorted the transport concentrated fire against the shore line for twelve minutes. Three minutes later, the boats grounded on a coral reef forty yards from the beach, and the men waded the remaining distance to shore. They encountered no resistance and at 1038 the company commander, Capt. Arthur D. Simons, notified the battalion commander, “Beachhead secured, supplies ashore. No resistance. No casualties.”[69] The company set up a channel light.

By 18 October, steady white lights were beaming from Dinagat and Homonhon Islands to guide the convoy in to Leyte Island. The one on Dinagat had a visibility of twelve miles and that on Homonhon a visibility of ten.[70]

PATROL OF COMPANY F, 6TH RANGERS, at Desolation Point (above), and investigating a native village on Dinagat Island (below).

Mine Sweeping

The mine-sweeping plans contemplated that the mine-sweeping group would arrive on 17 October simultaneously with the troops that were to storm Suluan, Dinagat, and Homonhon Islands. On 11 October the slow-moving mine sweepers lifted anchor at Manus and departed for the objective area. They rendezvoused near the Palaus with the Dinagat force, which had left Hollandia on 12 October. On 15 October they were joined by the carriers and the beach demolition and bombardment and fire support groups which had sortied from Manus on 12 October. On 14 October information was received from guerrilla sources that there were no underwater obstacles off the beaches between Abuyog and Tacloban. Although the northern Surigao Strait was mined, it was considered doubtful whether the same condition existed at the southern entrances of Leyte Gulf.[71] The mine-sweeping groups that had left Hollandia on 11 October arrived in Leyte Gulf during the storm of the evening of 16 October. Some of the mine sweepers had been delayed by the storm but were able to arrive in time to begin sweeping the channels.[72]

In the early dawn of 17 October the mine sweepers began their work on the channel approaches to Suluan Island.[73] By 0630 they had accomplished their task and then began to sweep the waters of the landing areas in Leyte Gulf until the storm forced them to suspend operations. At 1259 they resumed sweeping with great difficulty. Until A Day, intensive area and tactical mine sweeping continued. The sweepers started at dawn each day and worked continuously until nightfall. By 19 October it was known that the Japanese had heavily mined the approaches to Leyte Gulf but that there were no mines within the gulf itself. The northern part of the main channel into the gulf, however, was not considered safe.[74] By the same date sweeping had been completed in the southern half, 186 mines having been destroyed. At about 0135 on 19 October, the destroyer supporting the mine-sweeping units which were in the gulf struck a floating mine and while maneuvering away from the area struck another. The ship was disabled and retired from action. By A Day, a total of 227 mines had been destroyed and a passage approximately six miles wide had been cleared just north of Dinagat Island. All ships were therefore directed to enter Leyte Gulf through that portion of the strait.[75]

As the mine sweepers came close to the land, boats containing Filipinos moved out to welcome the advance party of liberators. The reception they met was not enthusiastic. Admiral Oldendorf, the commanding officer of the bombardment and fire support group, “suspected that some might have come seeking information so detained them aboard their respective ships.... Directed no further patriots be taken aboard ship.”[76]

Underwater Demolition Teams

The naval plans for the amphibious phase of the operation contemplated the use of seven underwater demolition teams—three to cover the northern coast beaches and four to cover the southern beaches. The teams, starting A minus 2 (18 October), were to locate underwater obstructions and detonate mines. On 18 and 19 October the underwater demolition teams made a reconnaissance of the landing areas, accompanied by destroyers which bombarded the shores. The two days’ reconnaissance disclosed no underwater obstacles or mines in the vicinity of the proposed landing beaches.

The Convoy Enters Leyte Gulf

By the evening of 19 October the preliminary operations were almost completed. The beaches had been surveyed and found suitable for landing; mines had been cleared from most of the main approach channel; and the entrances to Leyte Gulf had been secured.[77]

All ships were to be prepared to attach paravanes (mine-cable cutting devices) on signal at any time after noon on 19 October.[78] Since the mine sweepers had not sufficiently cleared the gulf, paravanes were attached preparatory to entering it. The mine sweepers were to have escorted the convoy into the area, but since they would not be ready for about two hours, the entry was ordered to be made without them. The convoy hugged the Dinagat shore line so closely that the distance from the center of the formation to the shore was only 3,800 yards.[79] Some of the ships did not see the signal light which had been placed on Dinagat Island by the 6th Rangers and were delayed on that account.

The convoy advanced without incident toward the target area. On the 18th Admiral Kinkaid radioed General MacArthur that the operations were going well, though the storm had somewhat delayed matters, and the General was made “welcome to our city.”[80] MacArthur in reply said that he was “glad indeed to be in your domicile and under your flag. It gives me not only confidence but a sense of inspiration,” and, probably thinking of the many arduous months of planning and amphibious operations, he added, “As Ripley says believe it or not we are almost there.”[81]

As the convoy came ever closer to the target, the atmosphere aboard the vessels became more and more tense. By 1800 on 19 October most of the vessels had arrived outside the gulf. The Far Shore was now near and could be seen vaguely in the distance. On board one of the vessels Protestant and Catholic evening prayers were broadcast over the address system. Some of the men felt that it gave them a lift, but many felt that they were being administered the last rites of their church.[82]

All vessels arrived on schedule. Because the mine barrier in the entrance had not been completely cleared, the ships entered the gulf somewhat to the south of the center of the entrance, avoiding the main channel and keeping close to the northern point of Dinagat Island. Fears that strong ebb tides might impede progress of the slower vessels through the entrance proved groundless. Paravanes were retained until arrival in the transport areas, but no mines were encountered.[83]

Naval plans called for bombardment of the enemy-held shores on A minus 2 (18 October), but because the water areas had not been completely swept for mines by that time, ships could not reach the bombardment area. On A minus 1, bombardment was chiefly for the purpose of providing effective support and coverage for the underwater demolition teams. However, many of the defenses and installations of the enemy on or near the landing beaches, including buildings and supply dumps, were neutralized or destroyed.

By the afternoon of 19 October, when it had become apparent to the Japanese that the Americans had returned to the Philippine Islands, General Suzuki put his defense plan into effect. He ordered the 16th Division to annihilate the American force, and, failing that, to interfere as much as possible with the use of Leyte airfields by the American Army. The mobile units, including two battalions from the 30th Division, were to speed to Leyte as fast as possible. Finally, the headquarters of the 35th Army was to move to Ormoc on the west coast of Leyte on the 23d or 24th of October.[84]

Through the night of 19–20 October, destroyers near the shore continued to shell the Japanese forces on land. The American forces were safely within Leyte Gulf—A Day had arrived.

[1] Opns Rpt CTF 78 to COMINCH, Ser 00911, 10 Nov 44. [↑]

[2] Rpt, Capt Ray Tarbuck, USN, 3 Nov 44, GHQ SWPA G-3 Jnl, 30 Oct 44. (Hereafter cited as Tarbuck Rpt.) [↑]

[3] Opns Rpt CTF 78 to COMINCH, Ser 00911, 10 Nov 44. [↑]

[4] 96th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 20. [↑]

[5] 7th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 2. [↑]

[6] XXIV Corps Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 4. [↑]

[7] 96th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 25. [↑]

[8] XXIV Corps Hist Rpt for 1944, Sec Histories, History of the Adjutant Generals Section from 8 April to 31 December 1944, pp. 10–11. [↑]

[9] Tarbuck Rpt. [↑]

[10] Ibid. [↑]

[11] CTF 77 Opns Rpt, Ser 00302-C, 31 Jan 45. [↑]

[12] CINCPAC and CINCPOA Rpt Opns in POA in Oct 44, Ser 002397, 31 May 45. [↑]

[13] USSBS, Employment of Forces Under the Southwest Pacific Command, p. 40. [↑]

[14] Japanese Studies in World War II, 14, Naval Air Operations in the Philippine Area, 1942–45, p. 18. (Monograph numbers cited in this volume are file designations used by OCMH.) [↑]

[15] GHQ SWPA Sum of Enemy Sit 894, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 2 Sep 44. [↑]

[16] Ibid. [↑]

[17] GHQ SWPA, Philippine Islands, G-2 Est of Enemy Sit 16, 3–9 Sep 44; 905, 13–14 Sep 44; 914, 22–23 Sep 44; 916, 24–25 Sep 44; and 907, 15–16 Sep 44; GHQ G-3 Jnl, 9–25 Sep 44. [↑]

[18] CINCPAC and CINCPOA Rpt on Opns in POA in Oct 44, Ser 002397, 31 May 45. [↑]

[19] Japanese Studies in WW II, 102, Philippine Area Naval Operations, Oct–Dec 44, Part II, The Battle of Leyte Gulf, pp. 4–11. (Hereafter cited as Philippine Naval Opns.) [↑]

[20] USSBS, Naval Analysis Div, The Campaigns of the Pacific War (Washington, 1946), p. 283. [↑]

[21] Philippine Naval Opns, pp. 5, 85–86. [↑]

[22] AAF SWPA Intel Sum, Ser 247, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 29 Oct 44. [↑]

[23] AAF SWPA Intel Sum, Ser 246, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 22 Oct 44. [↑]

[24] Rad, Com3rdFlt to CINCPAC-CINCSWPA, 170352 Oct 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 17 Oct 44. [↑]

[25] Rad, Com3rdFlt to CINCPAC and var., H 2692, 0321,15 Oct 44, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[26] Air Evaluation Bd SWPA Rpt, Leyte Campaign—Philippines, 1944, p. 16. [↑]

[27] Hist of FEAF, pp. 261–63, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[28] Air Evaluation Bd SWPA Rpt, p. 16. [↑]

[29] Rad, Com3rd Flt to CTG 38.1, 160216, 16 Oct 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 17 Oct 44. [↑]

[30] Tarbuck Rpt. [↑]

[31] CTG 77.4 Opns Rpt, Ser 00120, 15 Nov 44. [↑]

[32] Japanese Studies in WW II, 72, Hist of Army Section, Imperial General Headquarters, 1941–45, p. 131. (Hereafter cited as Hist of Army Sec, Imperial GHQ.) [↑]

[33] Ibid., pp. 131–32. [↑]

[34] Japanese Studies in WW II, 6, 14th Area Army Plans, 1944. (Hereafter cited as 14th Area Army Plans.) [↑]

[35] The organization of Japanese forces is discussed in detail in Hist of Army Sec, Imperial GHQ. [↑]

[36] Hist of Army Sec, Imperial GHQ, pp. 140–41. [↑]

[37] Interv, 2d Lt Stanley L. Falk with General Kuroda, at Sugamo Prison, Tokyo, 13 Jun 47, copy in OCMH. [↑]

[38] Ibid. [↑]

[39] Hist of Army Sec, Imperial GHQ, pp. 132–33, 135, 140, and errata sheet to above. [↑]

[40] Maj Gen Yoshiharu Tomochika, The True Facts of the Leyte Operation, p. 8, typescript of translation in OCMH. [↑]

[41] Ibid. [↑]

[42] Ibid., p. 9. [↑]

[43] Ibid., p. 8. [↑]

[44] Ibid. [↑]

[45] Statement of Lt Col Seiichi Yoshie, Circumstances Leading to the Relief of General Kuroda, 1 Oct 51, copy in OCMH. [↑]

[46] United States vs Tomoyuki Yamashita, Testimony of Yamashita, XXVIII, 3518–19, DRB AGO. [↑]

[47] Ibid., XXVIII, 3519–20. [↑]

[48] Ibid., Testimony of Muto, XXII, 2998. [↑]

[49] A. Frank Reel, The Case of General Yamashita (Chicago, 1949), pp. 18–19. [↑]

[50] USSBS Interrog 418, Interrog of Maj Gen Toshio Nishimura, 19–22 Nov 45, MS, OCMH. [↑]

[51] Tomochika, True Facts of Leyte Opn, p. 6. [↑]

[52] Ibid. [↑]

[53] Ibid. [↑]

[54] Japanese Studies in WW II, 11, 35th Army Operations 1944–45, pp. 14–20. (Hereafter cited as 35th Army Opns.) [↑]

[55] Tomochika, True Facts of Leyte Opn, p. 6. [↑]

[56] 16th Division Order 821, Tacloban, 17 October 1944, translation in App. C to Annex Y, 7th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, DRB AGO. [↑]

[57] Japanese Studies in WW II, 7, 14th Area Army Operations on Leyte, p. 4 (Hereafter cited as 14th Area Army Opns Leyte.) [↑]

[58] USSBS Interrog 506, Interrog of Maj. Gen. Yoshiharu Tomochika, Oct–Dec 44, p. 2, typescript copy in OCMH. [↑]

[59] Japanese Studies in WW II, 5, 4th Air Army Operations, 1944–45, pp. 1–50. (Hereafter cited as 4th Air Army Opns.) [↑]

[60] USSBS, Interrogations, I, 160. [↑]

[61] James A. Field, Jr., The Japanese at Leyte Gulf: The SHO Operation (Princeton, N. J., 1947), p. 8. [↑]

[62] USSBS, Interrogations, I, 219; II, 500–504. [↑]

[63] Unless otherwise noted the account of the activities of the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion is taken from the 6th Ranger Infantry Battalion Operations Report Leyte. [↑]

[64] Rad, CTG 77.2 to CTF 78, 17 Oct 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 17 Oct 44. [↑]

[65] Co D, 6th Ranger Inf Bn, Opns Rpt Leyte. [↑]

[66] Msg, CTG 78.4 to Tancier, 18 Oct 44, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 18 Oct 44. [↑]

[67] Rad, GHQ to CofS, 17 Oct 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 18 Oct 44. [↑]

[68] Co B, 6th Ranger Inf Bn, Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 1. [↑]

[69] Ibid. [↑]

[70] Rad, CTG 78.5 to CTF 77, 19 Oct 44, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 19 Oct 44. [↑]

[71] Rad, Parsons to CTF 77, 78, and 79, 14 Oct 44, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 14 Oct 44. [↑]

[72] CTF 77 to COMINCH, Opns Rpt Leyte, Ser 00302-C, 31 Jan 45, p. 8. [↑]

[73] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 31. [↑]

[74] Rad, CTG 77.5 to CTF 77, 19 Oct 44, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 19 Oct 44. [↑]

[75] Rpt, COMINCH, Amph Opns—Invasion of the Philippines, COMINCH P-008, pp. 1–3. [↑]

[76] CTG 77.2 to CTF 77, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 19 Oct 44. [↑]

[77] Rpt, CTF 77 to COMINCH, Amph Opn P-008, pp. 1–3. [↑]

[78] CTG 79.1 Movement Order, A173–44, 9 Oct 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 16 Oct 44. [↑]

[79] Opns Rpt CTG 79.1 to CTF 79, Ser 00454, 26 Oct 44, GHQ G-3 Jnl, 15 Nov 44. [↑]

[80] Msg, CTF 77 to CINCSWPA, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 18 Oct 44. [↑]

[81] Msg, CINCSWPA to CTF 77, Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 18 Oct 44. [↑]

[82] Tarbuck Rpt. [↑]

[83] Opns Rpt CTF 79 to Com7thFlt, Ser 00323, 13 Nov 44, p. 71. [↑]

[84] Japanese Studies 11, 35th Army Opns, p. 24. [↑]

CHAPTER V

A Day: 20 October 1944

Bombardment of the Shores of Leyte

The waters of Leyte Gulf were glassy calm as the convoys bearing the assault forces steamed into their appointed positions off the shores of Leyte in the very early morning hours of 20 October 1944.

There were three stages of the naval gunfire support: the pre-A-Day bombardment, A-Day bombardment, and close supporting missions to be delivered after H Hour and to continue until 24 October. A portion of the fire support group in support of the underwater demolition teams had bombarded the southern landing beaches and the town of Dulag on 18 October, a process which was repeated on the following day in support of the underwater demolition teams on the northern landing beaches.[1]

At 0600 on A Day, 20 October, the battleships assigned to the Southern Attack Force opened fire on the beaches. A lone Japanese plane appeared at 0612 over the northern beaches, circled the convoy, and despite gunfire from the Maryland and West Virginia disappeared unscathed.[2] At 0700 the battleships of the Northern Attack Force commenced firing. For two hours the six battleships, three to each attack force, fired on the beaches. Since no specific targets could be discerned or determined, the gunfire was directed at areas. Many enemy supply dumps and minor military installations were destroyed. An observer reported:

Gray smoke plumes are rising from the shores. Battleship Mississippi is now working on the northern beaches. She is joined by the Maryland whose fire has apparently caused a large shore explosion. Jap ack-ack is fired at spotting planes but the performance is weak.

Battleships move inshore and renew their constant thunder. Helldivers and Avengers from our CVE’s are heading toward the shore....[3]

At 0900 the battleships ceased their fire and the cruisers and destroyers moved in closer to the shore to deliver their scheduled bombardment.[4]

At 0850 gunfire was suspended in the vicinity of Catmon Hill, the most prominent coastal terrain feature near Dulag, in order to allow an air strike against installations in the interior by the planes from the CVE’s of the amphibious force. During the day a total of 500 sorties by more than 140 planes were flown in direct support. Twelve direct support missions were carried out, nine against selected targets requested by ground troops and three against targets of opportunity. Dawn and dusk fighter sweeps were made against airfields.[5] The aircraft from the carriers, which were beyond the range of the guns of enemy coastal defenses, did not attempt secondary missions upon the completion of a mission in the target area.[6]

CONVOY OFF LEYTE at dawn on A Day.

The principal bombing and strafing targets were revetments, dispersal areas, supply dumps, and bivouac areas, together with aircraft on islands near Leyte. Grounded planes were strafed and destroyed. The commander of the escort carriers made the surprising estimate that aircraft from his carriers had destroyed 125 planes on the ground and damaged an additional 90 more in the first three days of this “close support at a distance.”[7] Aircraft did not bomb the shore line, since gunfire from the vessels within the gulf was considered more effective.

At 0900 the cruisers commenced bombarding the beaches. They were joined at 0930 by the destroyers. At 0945 the cruisers and destroyers lifted their fire and directed it at the inland areas, at the flanks of the landing beaches, and at important roads and towns.[8]

At 0800 the first anchor chains of the vessels had rattled out; LCVP’s were quickly swung over the sides; boats circled mother ships and moved to their rendezvous areas.[9] The LCI mortar and LCI rocket ships took their places at the head of the assault waves. It was now 0945, fifteen minutes before H Hour. The LCI’s raced simultaneously to the shores of Leyte, raking the landing beaches with rocket and mortar fire. The bombardment grew heavier and more monotonous. Hundreds of small boats, flanked by rocket ships and destroyers, headed toward the beaches; thousands of rockets hit the beaches with the rumble of an earthquake. It was impossible to distinguish one explosion from another in the unbroken roar.[10] Over a smooth sea a hot, brilliant, tropical sun beat down. The American forces were ready to land.

X Corps Goes Ashore

Hours earlier reveille had sounded on board the transports and the troops had dressed by the red lights in the holds where they were quartered. There was very little talking. Many of the men sat on their bunks giving their weapons a final check. Others lay back and smoked in silence. A few sought the chaplains.[11]

Missions of Sixth Army Summarized

The Sixth Army had been ordered to seize and establish beachheads in the Dulag and Tacloban areas and to secure the airfields in order to provide naval and air bases; and to seize such objectives in the Panaon Strait area as would permit safe passage of naval forces through the strait to the Camotes Sea.[12] To carry out the operation General Krueger had assigned the 21st Infantry Regiment, 24th Infantry Division, to gain control of Panaon Strait; the XXIV Corps was to secure the Dulag area and its airstrip; and the 1st Cavalry Division of X Corps was to land in the Marasbaras area and, by advancing north, capture the Tacloban airdrome, the most important A-Day objective for the Sixth Army. At the same time, the 24th Division, less the 21st Infantry, of the X Corps was to seize Palo and advance rapidly to the northwest.[13] The seizure of these areas would secure the important coastal airstrips for future air operations, cut off any Japanese attempts at reinforcement from the southern Philippines through the Mindanao Sea and Sogod Bay, secure the important eastern entrances into the interior, and enable the American forces to control San Pedro Bay and San Juanico Strait.

The northernmost unit of X Corps, the 1st Cavalry Division, was to land in the vicinity of San Jose (also called San Ricardo and San Jose Ricardo) about three miles north of Palo, on White Beach. White Beach extended southward 2,000 yards from the Cataisan Peninsula. There was an interval of 1,500 yards between this beach and the northern limit of Red Beach, which was also 2,000 yards long.[14] The 24th Division, less the 21st Infantry, was to land in the vicinity of the town of Palo, on Red Beach. ([Map 5])

1st Cavalry Division

White Beach had a fairly good landing surface of white coral sand, but even at high tide it was suitable only for shallow-draft landing craft. Its average width was fifteen yards at low tide, at which time a small irregular bank two to three feet high appeared at the water’s edge. The underwater gradient was shallow, extending out half a mile in places. An irregular fringe of coconut trees ran the length of the beach. In the southern section this fringe was narrow, with very wet and swampy cleared land behind it. Highway 1 roughly paralleled the beach about a mile inland.[15]

LANDING BEACHES. White Beach is in the foreground, with Red Beach, bounded by the Palo River, beyond.

The roar of many guns could be heard as the 1st Cavalry Division prepared to disembark into landing boats, which were to rendezvous at the line of departure 5,000 yards from shore. A pall of lazily billowing yellow smoke obscured the shores of Leyte.[16]

The 1st Cavalry Division, commanded by Maj. Gen. Verne D. Mudge, was to land on White Beach with brigades abreast—the 1st Brigade on the left (south) and the 2d Brigade on the right (north)—and advance inland. The 1st Brigade, under Brig. Gen. William C. Chase, was to reconnoiter the hills on the west side of Tacloban Valley and establish observation posts which would command the entrances to the valley. The 2d Brigade, under Brig. Gen. Hugh F. Hoffman, had the most important mission of the day. It was to advance northwest, capture the Tacloban airdrome and seize the Cataisan Peninsula, reaching Cataisan Point, the northern extremity of the peninsula, by 1400. Col. William J. Bradley’s 8th Cavalry Regiment of the 2d Brigade was held afloat in division reserve and was to be prepared to reinforce either the 1st or 2d Brigade.[17]

MAP 5 C. A. Frost

X CORPS LANDINGS

20 October 1944

Flanked by rocket and gunboat LCI’s, and preceded by amphibian tanks, the 5th and 12th Cavalry Regiments, which formed the 1st Brigade, and the 7th Cavalry, which with the 8th Cavalry (in reserve) composed the 2d Brigade, raced for the shores of Leyte. The escorting rocket ships laid down a heavy barrage which covered the beach defenses to a depth of 1,800 yards inland and left the enemy incapable of organized resistance. As the boats neared shore, only small arms and machine gun fire opposed the landing.[18] As planned, the regiments landed abreast, the 7th Cavalry Regiment on the right (north), the 12th Cavalry Regiment in the center, and the 5th Cavalry on the left (south).

The 1st Squadron of the 7th Cavalry was to land north of the 2d Squadron on the northern end of White Beach, which at this point coincided with the narrow neck of land connecting the Cataisan Peninsula to the rest of the island, and then go directly north to secure the entire peninsula and the airstrip. On its left the 2d Squadron, 7th Cavalry, was to land on the right flank of White Beach, push inland, capture San Jose and a bridge across the Burayan River northwest of the town, and seize a beachhead line a thousand yards west of Highway 1 and three thousand yards from White Beach. The Cataisan Peninsula would then be sealed off.

Both squadrons landed on schedule, with only slight opposition, and immediately began to execute their assignments. The 2d Squadron, within fifteen minutes after landing, knocked out two pillboxes on the beach, killing eight Japanese in one and five in the other. It then organized rapidly and pushed on to secure its first objective, the town of San Jose. In the town the squadron engaged in a house-to-house search but found few Japanese. By 1230 twenty-four Japanese had been killed, San Jose was in American hands, and the Cataisan Peninsula was sealed off. The 7th Cavalry Regiment established its command post on the west side of the town at 1245. The troops of the 2d Squadron then set out in a northwesterly direction astride the hard-surfaced, narrow San Jose-Tacloban road, but they were slowed down by swamps and flooded rice paddies on either side.[19] At 1400 they crossed the Burayan River on a bridge which the 33d Infantry Regiment had attempted to destroy but had only damaged. The engineers strengthened the bridge so that the medium tanks could cross, and at 1420 the forward movement continued. By 1630 the squadron had reached its objective—a point 3,000 yards from White Beach—and immediately set up its night perimeter.

The 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry, landed in amphibian tractors on the north end of White Beach a few minutes after initial assault waves of the 2d Squadron, 7th Cavalry, had cleared the beach. It moved west off the beach 100 yards, pivoted to the right, and began to move up the Cataisan Peninsula. The squadron was expected to secure the peninsula and the airstrip with great speed. Engineer units had landed just behind it and were waiting to start work on the airstrip as soon as it was seized. The 1st Squadron met with only light enemy opposition, the chief obstacles being the swamps, unoccupied pillboxes—each of which had to be checked—and the numerous Filipino shacks that afforded possible protection to the enemy. By 1600 the squadron had secured the airstrip and the Cataisan Peninsula.[20] Later in the afternoon the squadron, less Troop A, was withdrawn from the peninsula.

TROOPS OF THE 1ST CAVALRY DIVISION wade through a swamp to their A-Day objective.

The 5th and 12th Cavalry Regiments landed on White Beach without incident at exactly 1000. Immediately beyond the narrow landing beach was a deep swamp through which the regiments must move to reach Highway 1. The morass was often waist deep, in places even up to the armpits, and men of the advancing line of troops cursed heartily as they floundered toward the highway.[21] Under such circumstances it was impossible for the men to carry all of their personal equipment, and they had to make three trips in order to complete the crossing of certain areas. At 1100 a reconnaissance platoon of the 5th Cavalry Regiment made physical contact with elements of the 34th Infantry, 24th Division, on its left. By 1500 both cavalry regiments were on Highway 1. They pushed westward immediately toward the next objective—the foothills west of the highway.[22] Col. Royce E. Drake, the commanding officer of the 5th Cavalry Regiment, went forward with a patrol from F Troop. At 1900, about three quarters of a mile south of Caibaan, the patrol made contact with the enemy. In the ensuing fight ten Japanese and one American were killed and two Americans wounded. At 1915 the 12th Cavalry Regiment closed in on its A-Day objective and formed its night perimeter.[23] The 5th Cavalry Regiment formed its night perimeter at 2135, a few hundred yards short of the objective.[24]

The first elements of the 8th Cavalry Regiment, 2d Cavalry Brigade, the corps reserve, moved to White Beach at 1040, and by 1130 the entire reserve regiment was ashore. The regiment continued in corps reserve throughout the day and spent its first night in the Philippines on the western edge of San Jose.[25]

At 1400 General Mudge assumed command ashore of the 1st Cavalry Division and by 1630 had established the divisional command post at San Jose.[26] Preceded by a ground reconnaissance of the unit commanders, all of the 1st Cavalry Division artillery landed on White Beach at 1330 and immediately established a position in the vicinity of San Jose. Before nightfall all battalions had registered and were prepared to fire, and beginning at 2115 the 61st Field Artillery Battalion throughout the night delivered harassing fire on the hills south of Tacloban.[27] By the end of the day the division had secured the Cataisan Peninsula and the Tacloban airstrip and, after crossing Highway 1, had made physical contact with the right flank of the 24th Infantry Division.[28]

24th Infantry Division[29]

In the southern part of the X Corps zone, to the left of the 1st Cavalry Division, the 24th Infantry Division (less the 21st Infantry), under Maj. Gen. Frederick A. Irving, was to land on Red Beach on the morning of A Day.[30] Although there were no underwater obstacles, mines, or barbed wire along Red Beach, the water was too shallow to permit vessels the size of LST’s to come in and make a dry landing. Red Beach was narrow but consisted of firm sand. Back of it was flat, marshy ground covered with palm trees and jungle growth, extending inland in a southwesterly direction from the northern end of the beach. General Makino had converted a small stream bed in this area into a wide and deep tank trap which paralleled the beach for 1,500 yards. Several large, well-camouflaged pillboxes, connected by tunnels and constructed of palm logs and earth, were scattered throughout the area. Between the swamp and a low range of hills one and a quarter miles inland were open fields and rice paddies. The most prominent terrain feature was Hill 522 just north of Palo. This hill commanded the beach area, the town of Palo, and Highway 2, leading into the interior. It was partly wooded, and the 33d Infantry Regiment had interlaced it with tunnels, trenches, and pillboxes.

From the beach a single deeply rutted and muddy exit road ran south to the Palo River, where it turned westward to Highway 1. The river was just north of the town of Palo and roughly paralleled Highway 2, which ran in a northwesterly direction from Palo into the interior, between the hills dominating this entrance to Leyte Valley.

The 24th Division was to occupy Palo, advance with regiments abreast into the interior in a northwesterly direction,[31] occupy the Capoocan-Carigara-Barugo area, and secure Highway 1 between Palo and Tanauan. The 19th Infantry on the left (south) was to establish an initial beachhead, advance to the west and south, seize Hill 522, and move on and capture Palo. The 34th Infantry on the right (north) was to establish an initial beachhead, then move westward into the interior and be prepared to assist the 19th Infantry in the capture of Hill 522.[32]

The assaulting forces, having been transferred to landing craft, met at the line of departure 5,000 yards from shore. After grouping, they dashed for the landing beaches, each regiment in column of battalions. The division landed at 1000 with regiments abreast according to plan. The Japanese allowed the first five waves to land, but when the other waves were 3,000 to 2,000 yards offshore, they opened strong artillery and mortar fire against them.[33] A number of the landing craft carrying the 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry, were hit and four of them sunk. There were numerous casualties: the commanding officer of Company C was killed; a squad of the Ammunition and Pioneer Platoon was almost wiped out; and the Cannon Company suffered the loss of two section leaders, a platoon leader, and part of its headquarters personnel.

Among the vessels hit by Japanese artillery were four LST’s, one of which was set on fire. Of the five remaining, two were driven away and three did not get in until much later. The enemy fired upon the retiring LST’s, which carried with them the artillery and most of the tanks. The commanding officer of Headquarters Company and the division quartermaster, together with the latter’s executive officer, were wounded. Many of the division headquarters personnel were killed or wounded.

The first elements of the 3d Battalion, 34th Infantry, inadvertently landed 300 yards north of the assigned area and were immediately pinned down by heavy machine gun and rifle fire. The commanding officer of the regiment, Col. Aubrey S. Newman, arrived on the beach and, noting the situation, shouted to his men, “Get the hell off the beach. Get up and get moving. Follow me.”[34] Thus urgently prompted, the men followed him into the wooded area.

Company I was able to advance, but Company K ran into a defensive position of five pillboxes along a stream about seventy-five yards from the beach. It successfully stormed these pillboxes with rifles, BAR’s, and hand grenades. The 3d Battalion then halted for reorganization. Company L, the reserve company, moved into the line south of Company K to close the gap between the 19th and 34th Infantry Regiments, a gap created when part of the 34th landed too far north.

By 1215 the 34th Infantry had cleared the beach area of the enemy, and the 3d Battalion was ready to advance across an open swamp to a line of trees 150 yards away. A preparatory concentration by 81-mm. mortars, tanks, and heavy machine guns was first laid down. At 1230 the 3d Battalion moved in. Although the going was rough and the mud waist deep, the troops reached the trees at 1300 and waited for the mortars and machine guns to arrive. The 3d Battalion then pushed on an additional 250 yards.

The 2d Battalion, 34th Infantry, passed through the 3d Battalion, crossed Highway 1 at 1550, and dug in for the night 100 yards west of the highway.[35]

The 34th Infantry established contact with the 1st Cavalry Division on the right and the 19th Infantry on the left. The 1st Battalion, 34th Infantry, remained in the beachhead area.

To the south the 19th Infantry, with the 3d Battalion in the lead, had also struck heavy opposition on its sector of the beach. Through error the first waves of the regiment landed almost directly behind the 34th Infantry and 800 yards north of the proposed landing point. The later waves landed at the planned spot.

Company K did not land on schedule, because its command boat broke down. Going in under heavy fire, the company had all its officers except one killed or wounded. One of its platoons was unable to make contact with the rest of the company until the following day.

Company L, on the right, met little opposition on landing, established contact with the 34th Infantry, and reached the initial phase line 500 yards in from the beach. Company I, on the left, encountered stiff resistance fifty yards off the beach. The defenses of the 33d Infantry Regiment in this sector consisted of a tank ditch and light automatic weapons, mortars, 75-mm. guns, and light and heavy machine guns in prepared positions. Company I hit a group of pillboxes and knocked out several of them as well as a 75-mm. gun. In this action Pfc. Frank B. Robinson played a spectacular role. Crawling behind a pillbox, he dropped three grenades into it and then reached down and pulled the machine gun barrel out of line. After a further advance of 200 yards, when a flame thrower aimed at a pillbox failed to ignite, he threw a bundle of lighted papers in front of the pillbox. The operator of the flame thrower then fired through the blaze and the charge was ignited. By openly exposing himself to fire from a third pillbox, Robinson enabled tanks to locate its position.[36]

During the next few hours platoons and squads fought independently. The 3d Battalion, 19th Infantry, drove into the interior about 500 yards, where it reorganized, made contact with adjacent units, and then established its perimeter on Highway 1.[37]

The 1st Battalion, 19th Infantry, had come in under intense fire in which several boats were hit, and numerous casualties occurred. The battalion landed 300 yards north of its selected area, moved in 200 yards, and then made a left, oblique turn in order to reach its predetermined assembly area. Company B suffered several casualties when it ran into strong rifle and pillbox fire, which pinned it down. The company was ordered to break off fighting and move to the northern edge of the Japanese positions. Lt. Col. Frederick R. Zierath, the commanding officer of the battalion, ordered the self-propelled guns to be brought up. They successfully neutralized the pillbox and a supporting position behind it. Company C, landing on the left flank of the battalion, was immediately pinned down by hostile fire. Zierath ordered it to disengage and proceed to the designated assembly area. Company A, which was split by enemy fire, regrouped inland and reached the assembly area just ahead of Company C.

The 2d Battalion, 19th Infantry, arrived at the beach just as the 1st Battalion was bypassing the initial resistance. By noon its first defense was formed around the beachhead. At 1245 Company E, with a rocket launcher, silenced a 75-mm. gun which had been firing on the LST’s. In its advance the company located two more 75-mm. guns which had been abandoned. Company G relieved Company E and prepared to move along the beach road southwest toward Palo. As the point started to move out at 1300 it was attacked by approximately a platoon from the 33d Infantry Regiment which attempted to retake the gun positions. The Japanese were repulsed by rifle fire, leaving eleven dead.

75-MM. M8 SELF-PROPELLED HOWITZERS move in to support the infantrymen in their advance from the beach.

At 1430 Company G, in resuming its advance, ran at once into a series of mutually supporting pillboxes about 500 yards inland, where the beach road turns to meet Highway 1. A stiff rifle fire fight followed, in which the Americans suffered fifteen casualties. Since darkness was approaching, the battalion broke off the action and dug in along the road for the night.

While the 2d Battalion, 19th Infantry, was proceeding cautiously forward the 1st Battalion was working toward Hill 522. This hill, which rose directly from the river’s edge north of Palo, overlooked the landing beaches and its upward trails were steep and winding. Hill 522 presented the most significant terrain feature which would have to be overcome before the American forces could push into the interior from Palo and it constituted one of the chief objectives for A Day. Three months earlier General Makino had started to fortify it, impressing nearly all of the male population of Palo for the work. By A Day they had constructed five well-camouflaged pillboxes of rocks, planking, and logs, covered with earth. Numerous tunnels honeycombed the hill; the communications trenches were seven feet deep.

During the preliminary bombardments the Navy had delivered some of its heaviest blows on the hill, and the bombardment was continued by Battery B of the 13th Field Artillery Battalion and Battery A of the 63d Field Artillery Battalion. The 1st Battalion of the 19th Infantry sent reconnaissance parties to locate a northern route to the hill. The plan had been to move inland from the extreme south of the beachhead, but that area was still in Japanese hands. At 1430, when scouts reported finding a covered route on the northern side of the hill, the 1st Battalion immediately moved out in a column of companies. The column had barely started when Company A, in the lead, was held up by enemy fire from the five pillboxes. The remainder of the battalion moved north around Company A, and, skirting the woods, attacked Hill 522 from the northeast, with Company C on the right and Company B on the left.

MAJ. GEN. FRANKLIN C. SIBERT

(left), X Corps commander, confers with Maj. Gen. Frederick A. Irving, commander of the 24th Division, at a forward command post.

The men, although tired from the day’s activity and strain, made steady progress up the slope. As the troops moved upward, American mortars started to shell the crest of the hill. It was thought that this was artillery fire and a request was made that it be lifted. It came, however, from the chemical mortars. After a short delay the firing ceased. At dusk Company B reached the first crest of the hill and was halted by fire from two enemy bunkers. The company thereupon dug in.

At the same time scouts from Company C reached the central and highest crest of the hill and espied about two platoons of Japanese coming up the other side. They shouted for the remainder of the company to hurry. Company C got to the top of the hill barely ahead of the Japanese, and a sharp engagement took place in which about fifty Japanese were killed. Company C held the highest crest of the hill. During this attack, 1st Lt. Dallas Dick was struck in the leg and his carbine was shot from his hands, but he continued to command his unit until his evacuation forty-eight hours later.

During the night the Japanese made frequent but unsuccessful attempts to infiltrate the company area and in the darkness they carried away their dead and wounded. During the action to secure Hill 522, fourteen men of the 1st Battalion were killed and ninety-five wounded; thirty of the latter eventually rejoined their units. General Irving, who had assumed command of the 24th Division ashore at 1420, later said that if Hill 522 had not been secured when it was, the Americans might have suffered a thousand casualties in the assault.

By the end of A Day, the division had crossed Highway 1 and established physical contact with the 1st Cavalry Division on its right flank. In spite of strong opposition on its left flank, the 24th Division had secured Hill 522, which dominated the route into the interior and overlooked the town of Palo, the entrance point into Leyte Valley. Furthermore, the X Corps had now secured a firm beachhead area averaging a mile in depth and extending over five miles from the tip of the Cataisan Peninsula to the vicinity of Palo, and had captured the important Tacloban airstrip on the Cataisan Peninsula.

XXIV Corps Goes Ashore

While the X Corps was engaged in seizing a beachhead and capturing the Tacloban airfield, the XXIV Corps was carrying out its mission more than fourteen miles to the south. ([Map 6]) It was to land in the Dulag-San Jose area and establish a beachhead between Dulag and Tanauan. The Dulag airstrip was the primary objective. The 7th and 96th Divisions—the 7th on the left (south) and the 96th on the right (north)—made the landings. The most prominent terrain feature near the shore line is a short, finger-like hill range between the mouth of the Labiranan River and the village of Pikas. Ranging from 400 feet at its southern extremity, known as Labiranan Head, to 1400 feet at Catmon Hill, southeast of Pikas, this hill mass dominates the surrounding plain for miles around. (The entire hill mass will hereafter be referred to as Catmon Hill.)

The 9th Infantry Regiment, less one battalion, was guarding the Catmon Hill area while the 20th Infantry Regiment, less one battalion, was defending the Dulag area.[38]

Immediately northwest of Dulag and just off the beach was a swamp,[39] and along the coast were coconut groves interspersed with rice fields. Many streams and rivers cut across the coastal plain.[40] Between Dulag and Labiranan Head was a good section of firm sand beach, backed by a broad alluvial plain extending ten miles inland.

96th Infantry Division

In the early morning hours of 20 October the Southern Attack Force moved to a location off the shores of Leyte near the town of Dulag. The 96th Division was to land with regiments abreast in the area between the Calbasag River and the town of San Jose—the 382d Infantry on the left (south) and the 383d Infantry on the right (north). The southern half of the division’s beachhead area was designated Blue Beaches 1 and 2, and the northern half was known as Orange Beaches 1 and 2. The beaches had an average length of about 525 yards. The northern extremity of Orange Beach was about ten miles from the southernmost beach of the 24th Division in the X Corps sector.

MAP 6 R. Johnstone

XXIV CORPS LANDINGS

20 October 1944

The order to “land the landing force” of the 96th Division came at 0845, and LVT’s immediately began to spill out of the LST’s and head for the line of departure. By 0930 the assault waves, preceded by the amphibian tank wave, had arrived at their appointed position 4,500 yards offshore.[41] At the head of the column were LCI gunboats which were to give fire support and act as guides for succeeding waves. The assault waves then headed for Blue and Orange Beaches.

When the landing craft were within 100 yards of the shore, the LCI’s fired into the interior and to each side of the landing beaches. Thereupon the amphibian tanks began to fire directly beyond the beaches, in front of the advancing assault forces. The 382d Infantry under Col. Macey L. Dill landed at 0950 on Blue Beach, and the 383d Infantry under Col. Edwin T. May landed ten minutes later on Orange Beach.

The 383d Infantry landed with two battalions abreast—the 2d Battalion on the left and the 1st Battalion on the right. By 1045 both battalions had landed all of their assault troops and had advanced 1,200 yards inland, encountering no resistance except intermittent mortar fire from the 9th Infantry Regiment in the vicinity of Catmon Hill.[42] Immediately beyond the highway the two battalions reached an unsuspected swamp. The amphibian tanks bogged down at 1045 and were unable to catch up with the assault troops during the rest of the day. Intermittent Japanese fire continued to fall on the beach area. The 2d Battalion crossed the swamp without encountering the enemy and established its night perimeter 2,600 yards inland from the landing beaches.

The 1st Battalion, 383d Infantry, pushed northwest through the barrio of San Jose, which was on the beach, and along the marshy ground and swamps on the south bank of the Labiranan River for 2,200 yards. It crossed the river at 1610. Company C placed a roadblock at the point where Highway 1 crossed the Labiranan River. After advancing 400 yards farther northwest the battalion ran into fire from elements of the 9th Infantry Regiment. At 1900 the battalion, still under enemy fire, dug in for the night. At the close of the day’s action it was at the base of Labiranan Head in a position which would permit an attack to be launched on that terrain feature from the west.

The 3d Battalion, which had been held afloat in regimental reserve, came ashore at 1045. It mopped up in the rear of the 1st and 2d Battalions and established its night perimeter 800 yards away from the 1st Battalion on the south bank of the Labiranan River. During the day the 383d Infantry Regiment, slowed by the terrain, had advanced 2,600 yards inland.[43]

As heavy enemy artillery and mortar fire fell on the beach, the 382d Infantry also landed with two battalions abreast—the 2d Battalion to the right (north) at Blue Beach 2 and the 3d Battalion to the left (south) at Blue Beach 1. The 2d Battalion, though momentarily stopped by debris on the shore, was able to advance quickly and by 1025 had penetrated 300 yards inland. This gain was increased to 700 yards by 1115. The battalion crossed Highway 1 before it encountered the first defensive positions of the 9th Infantry Regiment, a series of zigzag deserted trenches roughly paralleling the beach. Although the 2d Battalion met no enemy opposition, the intense heat and the swampy ground made progress slow. At 1630, when the battalion formed a perimeter for the night, it had pushed inland approximately 2,500 yards.

BEACH AREA as seen from Hill 120.

The amphibian tractors carrying the 3d Battalion, 382d Infantry, were held up by the tank barriers of coconut logs and debris on the beach, and the troops were forced to debark at the water’s edge. Several hundred yards off the beach this battalion began to receive heavy fire from Hill 120, which was about 600 yards from the beach. The hill dominated the regimental beach area[44] and was the A-Day objective for the battalion. The fire pinned down the battalion, which thereupon called for mortar support and naval gunfire. The resulting barrage forced the Japanese out of their positions, and at 1040 the battalion advanced and captured Hill 120.

The 1st Battalion, 382d Infantry, which had been in floating reserve, landed on Blue Beach 1 and moved to the foot of Hill 120 to support the 3d Battalion. Immediately beyond the hill there was a small meadow rimmed by a deep swamp. The enemy fired upon the hill throughout the day but could not dislodge the 3d Battalion. This steady fire and the presence of the swamp limited the A-Day advance of the 3d Battalion to 1,300 yards inland from the landing beach.

At the end of the day, despite the swampy terrain and the harassing fire of the Japanese, the 382d Infantry had advanced approximately 2,500 yards on the northern flank and 1,300 yards on the southern flank. Contact had been established at 1600 with the 32d Infantry, 7th Division, on the left flank, and the 383d Infantry, 96th Division, on the right flank.[45]

At 1630 the assault forces of the 96th Division consolidated their positions and set up defense perimeters for the night. During the day the division had captured the barrio of San Jose, established control over both sides of the Labiranan River, captured Hill 120 overlooking the beach area, and progressed well inland. Although all units of the division fell considerably short of the objective for A Day, this delay was due fully as much to the swampy and difficult terrain as it was to enemy resistance. The 381st Infantry Regiment remained in Sixth Army floating reserve throughout the day.[46]

Maj. Gen. James L. Bradley arrived ashore at 1750, and at 1800 he assumed command of the 96th Infantry Division. The three light artillery battalions of the division had landed and were in position by 1800.

7th Infantry Division

Concurrently with the landings of the 96th Division, the 7th Division, on the left, was establishing a beachhead in its zone of action just south of the 96th Division. At 0800 the assault troops of the 7th Division began to clamber down the nets of their transports into landing boats which were to carry them in the dash for the shore.[47] By 0815 they were boated and at the line of departure.

The 7th Division was to land on Violet and Yellow Beaches. Violet Beach extended 785 yards north from the northern edge of Dulag. The northern half of Yellow Beach, called Yellow Beach 2, which was south of Violet Beach and contiguous to it, was 400 yards long. Between the northern and southern halves of Yellow Beach was a swamp. The southern half of Yellow Beach, Yellow Beach 1, was approximately 425 yards in length and was located south of Dulag and north of the Daguitan River mouth.

The 7th Division was to go ashore between the Calbasag and Daguitan Rivers with regiments abreast—the 32d Infantry on the right (north) and the 184th Infantry on the left (south); the 17th Infantry, less its 3d Battalion, was in reserve. The principal A-Day objectives were the barrio of Dulag and its airstrip. The 3d Battalion, 17th Infantry, was to swing south and secure the bridge and the crossing of the Daguitan River at Dao and the crossing of the Talisay River.

The 32d Infantry, under Col. Marc J. Logie, was to land on the northern and southern portions of Violet Beach, drive into the interior, and protect the right flank of the division. The 184th Infantry, commanded by Col. Curtis D. O’Sullivan, was to land on Yellow Beach 1 and Yellow Beach 2 and then drive inland, directing its main effort toward an early seizure of the airfield west of Dulag. It was also to seize and secure the crossings of the Daguitan River.

After the landing waves had formed at the line of departure, the landing craft started for the beaches, preceded by the 776th Amphibian Tank Battalion. As it got ashore, the tank battalion received hostile mortar and small arms fire that came from a tank barrier of coconut palm logs near the water’s edge. The battalion overcame this opposition fifteen minutes after landing and advanced a distance of 200 yards inland to positions from which it could support the infantry.[48] According to plan, the 32d and 184th Infantry Regiments followed abreast. The 32d Infantry landed with two battalions abreast—the 2d on the right and the 3d on the left. The regiment encountered minor resistance at the beach, consisting of light rifle fire and sporadic artillery and mortar fire. By 1023 the 3d Battalion had landed all its assault troops and by 1030 seven assault waves of the 2d Battalion had reached the shore. As the two battalions proceeded inland, they met opposition from the enemy.

The 2d Battalion landed on the edge of a cemetery in which were small groups of the enemy very much alive. By 1100 these were subdued by rifle fire and the battalion was able to advance without difficulty into the interior. At about 1300 the 2d Platoon of Company F, after advancing some 600 yards, ran into fire from three pillboxes concealed in the tall cogon grass on the right flank. Tanks were brought up to knock out the enemy pillboxes. The advance then continued. By 1315 the 2d Battalion made physical contact with elements of the 96th Division on the right. Shortly after 1400 the 2d and 3d Battalions of the 32d Infantry made contact and reached Highway 1.[49]

Companies L and K of the 3d Battalion, 32d Infantry, landed abreast. Company L, on the left, ran into heavy fire from Japanese machine gunners who had waited until the leading elements of the company exposed themselves. The Japanese were entrenched in bunkers emplaced in hedgerows and banana groves. The pillboxes, which were mutually supporting, were located at the ends of the hedgerows and occasionally in the middle of an open field. Each pillbox had machine guns and antitank guns. Company L suffered a number of casualties and was pinned down. The enemy gunners then turned to Company K and stopped its forward movement. In the space of fifteen minutes two officers and six men of the 3d Battalion were killed, and one officer and eighteen men wounded. Of the medium tanks that had come ashore at 1030, three were sent to support Company L and two to support Company K. The latter two were knocked out before they could adjust their fire on the pillboxes. The leading tank sent in support of Company L was knocked out by a direct hit from an antitank gun. With two tanks remaining, it was decided to hit the flanks of the entrenched pillboxes at 1345. A platoon of Company K went to the right and another platoon from the company to the left. Simultaneously the remaining elements of the two companies, coordinating with the tanks, assaulted the pillboxes. The heavy volume of fire kept the enemy guns quiet until they could be finished off with grenades. The pillboxes were knocked out without further casualties.

Paralleling the route of advance of Company L were several hedge fences, behind which were enemy machine guns and mortars. Although under heavy fire, the company was able to break through the first barriers with the aid of the tanks. At 1630, since the enemy fire continued in volume, the 32d Infantry withdrew and established a defensive position for the night. During the day the 32d Infantry had reached a general line along Highway 1. The 2d Battalion had advanced 400 yards beyond the highway and the 3d Battalion 100 yards.[50]

The 184th Infantry landed at 1000, two battalions abreast—the 1st on the southern half of Yellow Beach and the 3d on the northern half. They encountered surprisingly little resistance on either beach and were able to push inland at a much greater speed than had been anticipated. The 3d Battalion drove through the town of Dulag, which lay directly in its path, to the Dulag-Burauen Highway. The 1st Battalion pushed inland and reached the highway at 1210, just fifteen minutes after the 3d Battalion. At 1530 the two battalions established physical contact and maintained it throughout the day as they continued their advance along the highway. At 1255 the 2d Battalion, 184th Infantry, landed on Yellow Beach and went into regimental reserve on the regiment’s southern flank. As the advance of the 32d Infantry on the right slowed up, Company G, 184th Infantry, was committed to fill the gap which had developed between the two regiments. At 1835 the 184th Infantry, although it had failed to secure the Dulag airstrip, formed its night perimeter along the edge of the strip.[51] At the end of the day the regiment had no battle casualties, but three men had been overcome by the heat. Eleven Japanese had been killed in the regiment’s zone.[52]

The 17th Infantry, less its 3d Battalion, was kept in 7th Division reserve. The 3d Battalion of the 17th had come ashore at 1500 on the southern end of Yellow Beach. The battalion pushed west and south through light opposition, seizing the bridge over the Daguitan River at Dao, and by 2100 had established a bridgehead south of the river and made contact with the 184th Infantry on the right. At the end of the first day’s fighting the 7th Division had gained possession of the Leyte shore in its zone and penetrated inland 600 yards on the right and nearly 2,300 yards on the left. It had also reached the edge of the Dulag airstrip. By nightfall the XXIV Corps had established a firm beachhead line extending along the coast from San Jose on the north to just below Dao on the south.

Seventy miles to the south the 21st Infantry Regiment of the 24th Division, which was detailed to land in the vicinity of Panaon Strait on 20 October at 0930, half an hour before the launching of the great offensive, and to secure control of that entrance to Sogod Bay, successfully accomplished its mission. It encountered no Japanese.

Thus at the end of A Day the Sixth Army had succeeded in landing assault forces all along the eastern coast of Leyte and was in control of Panaon Strait. Its casualties amounted to 49 men killed, 192 wounded, and 6 missing in action. There remained a gap of nearly ten miles between the X and XXIV Corps. The Tacloban airstrip on the Cataisan Peninsula had been secured and the American forces were on the edge of the airstrip at Dulag. Nearly as important as the capture of the airstrip was the seizure of Hill 522, which commanded the entrance to the broad Leyte Valley at Palo. The advance echelon of General Headquarters had opened on Leyte Island at 1200.[53] On the following day, when adequate communication facilities had been established, Generals Krueger, Sibert, and Hodge assumed command ashore of the Sixth Army, X Corps, and XXIV Corps, respectively.

LT. GEN. WALTER KRUEGER AND COL. RUPERTO K. KANGLEON of the guerrilla forces head for the beach (above). Krueger talks with men of the 7th Division on the beach near Dulag (below).

Most of the 16th Division had withdrawn during the naval and air bombardment which took place just prior to the landing. The immediate invasion of the troops after this pounding enabled the Americans to secure most of the coastal defenses before the enemy could regroup and return. As a consequence, the only Japanese forces encountered were those left behind to fight a delaying action. The meeting with the enemy in force was yet to come.

Bringing in Supplies

While the assault forces were securing the beaches of Leyte, supplies were being poured in to support the operation. Within an hour after the first assault wave hit the hostile shores, rations, equipment, and other supplies were being rushed to the beaches. Each man going ashore carried a change of clothing in his pack, two days’ supply of emergency rations, one day’s supply of D rations, and two filled canteens, in addition to his gas mask, weapons, and ammunition.

The Navy was responsible for transporting the troops and supplies to the target area. Ships’ companies unloaded the cargo from the cargo vessels and transported it in small craft to the beaches. Many of the ships had been improperly loaded for the journey to Leyte. The cargo should have been so loaded that articles first needed would be the last put on board; instead it had been stowed haphazardly, with little attention given to the problem of unloading.

As a result of the faulty stowage of supplies on the ships, many badly needed items were at the bottoms of the holds, and articles that would not be needed until later in the operation were piled on top of them. The supplies were set ashore in random fashion and then were carelessly thrown on trucks and other vehicles. This sort of handling resulted in a loss of carrying capacity, in slow removal of the loads, and in a consequent delay in the return of vehicles to the landing beaches.

The LSM’s were used to very good advantage in the unloading of the APA’s and AKA’s. Vehicles and supplies could be loaded on them without difficulty, and in addition, two hatches on the LSM’s could be worked at the same time. On each of the APA’s, AKA’s, and LST’s which carried troops, a labor crew was detailed to remain on board to assist in the unloading.[54]

At the beach, the Army took over the cargo and moved the supplies to prearranged dumps. On the northern beaches in the X Corps sector, the Army shore party was composed of the 532d and 592d Engineer Boat and Shore Regiments of the 2d Engineer Special Brigade. After landing, these units facilitated the movement of troops, vehicles, and supplies across the beaches and controlled all unloading operations.[55] The 1122d and 1140th Engineer Combat Groups supervised the unloading in the XXIV Corps sector. They were assisted by naval beach parties from the VII Amphibious Force, which brought the cargo ashore.

UNLOADING SUPPLIES AT DULAG on A Day (above), and (below) general view of the beach area on 22 October 1944.

The beachhead areas at which the supplies were unloaded varied in quality and depth. Most of the beaches on which the 7th and 96th Divisions landed were very good,[56] as contrasted with those in the X Corps area where the 24th Infantry Division and 1st Cavalry Division came ashore. The greatest difficulty was encountered along Red Beach, where the 24th Division landed. This stretch of coast line was ill adapted to the unloading of supplies, having poor exits and offering few dispersal areas ashore.[57]

LST’s approaching Red Beach were under intense enemy fire. Four of them received direct hits.[58] Nearly all of the LST’s were grounded 100 to 200 yards from the beach. Only one of them was able to come within forty to fifty yards of the beach, and it succeeded in unloading its cargo of heavy equipment only with considerable difficulty.[59] Another put off a bulldozer, which disappeared in seven feet of water. With difficulty the other LST’s withdrew and returned to the transport area.[60]

The shore parties on both Red and White Beaches (X Corps sector) did not land early enough to effect a proper organization before the cargo began to come in. Although the parties worked hard, they were undermanned, and it was necessary to augment them by “volunteers” in order to unload the large volume of cargo.[61] It had been planned to establish temporary beach dumps at the point of unloading of each LST, but since at Red Beach the LST’s could not get ashore, the plans had to be changed. These craft were diverted to the 1st Cavalry Division’s White Beach 2,000 yards north. The LSM’s and LCM’s were able to discharge their vehicles in three or four feet of water. Many of these, being poorly waterproofed, stalled and had to be pulled ashore. Once there, the heavily loaded vehicles churned up the sand, and many of them sank so deeply that they had to be pulled out.[62]

The strong resistance of the Japanese and the difficult terrain limited the depth of the 24th Division’s beachhead and prevented the establishment of division dumps beyond the beachhead areas. As a result, most of the supplies and nearly all supporting and service troops had to be concentrated on the first three or four hundred yards of the beachhead. Fortunately there was no bombing or strafing of the area, and although the development of exit roads was slow, the congestion on the beach was cleared before trouble developed.[63]

The diversion of the 24th Division’s LST’s to the beaches of the 1st Cavalry Division naturally strained the facilities of the beach and shore parties on White Beach. The southern end of White Beach also proved unsuitable for landing LST’s, which consequently were shifted to the northern end.[64] However, the Army shore parties organized White Beach immediately upon landing. A two-way road was cleared along the beach with military police directing traffic. Dump areas were marked off by white ribbons, and sign posts were erected. The supplies were unloaded from the landing craft by roller conveyors and “fire brigade methods” directly onto the waiting trucks and trailers.[65] After the ships had been unloaded the shore parties consolidated all of the supplies into dumps as rapidly as possible. The rations and ammunition, which were loaded on fifteen LVT’s, were kept mobile to the rear of the troops.[66]

When Leyte was substituted for Yap as the target, it had been decided that the 96th Division should unload troops and supplies at Leyte as rapidly as possible. Consequently, supplies were unloaded with little regard for the order in which items would be needed ashore.[67]

There was no general unloading on the beach in the XXIV Corps area until the late afternoon of A Day, when water, rations, and ammunition were sent ashore. For about an hour the unloading proceeded satisfactorily, but the beach soon became congested. The beach parties brought in the supplies faster than they could be handled by the shore parties.[68] At one time more than eighty loaded boats waited over five hours before they could be unloaded. The slowness of the shore parties in unloading the boats was not entirely their fault. Many of the boats were improperly loaded with mixed cargo, a situation which caused the boats to ship water. They were forced to come in to the beach or sink. The shore parties were also handicapped by a lack of workers. A shore party of 250 men included headquarters personnel, military police, and communications men, leaving only fifty or sixty workers. The unloading was further retarded by lack of sufficient mechanical equipment and failure to make full use of available transportation.[69]

Loose cargo piled up on the beaches faster than it could be taken to the dump sites.[70] A deep swamp, 250 yards inland and parallel to Blue Beach, also limited the extension of dumps in that area. The congestion was relieved the next day, when the supplies were taken to selected dump sites nearly as fast as they could be removed from the boats.

In the Dulag area, the organization of the shore party and its operations were well co-ordinated.[71] In the initial phase the 7th Division employed the “drugstore system” whereby DUKW’s carried the supplies directly to the front-line consumers of the division from specially loaded LST’s which had been anchored off the landing beaches.[72] By using this method the division was able to deliver critical supplies to the combat troops within an hour after the request was received. At the same time, other supplies and equipment could be put ashore without interruption.

In the wake of the initial assault waves, the engineer troops landed and began at once to clear the beaches, prepare dump sites, and build access roads. The men worked around the clock in six-hour shifts.[73]

Within four hours the 7th Division’s shore party was prepared to start full-scale operations, and two hours later began to issue supplies to the assault forces. Since the cargo came ashore in nets, it was possible to use cranes and bulldozers to good advantage. The cargo was initially moved over the landing beaches to regimental beach dumps 500 yards inland, and as vehicles landed they were driven to temporary assembly areas or directly to their organizations.[74] Six hours after the first assault wave hit the beaches the 7th Division abandoned the floating drugstore system, since by that time sufficient supplies had been brought ashore to fill requisitions directly from the dumps.[75]

During the day a total of 107,450 tons of supplies and equipment were discharged over the beaches of the Sixth Army. Although the beaches in some instances were extremely congested, steps had been initiated to relieve the situation.

News of the success of the American forces in establishing a beachhead on Leyte—the first foothold in the Philippine Islands—was joyfully received by the American nation. The President radioed congratulations to General MacArthur and added, “You have the nation’s gratitude and the nation’s prayers for success as you and your men fight your way back....” [76]

[1] CTF 79 Opns Rpt, Ser 00323, 13 Nov 44. (All naval records cited are in the Office of Naval Records and Library.) [↑]

[2] COMBATDIV4 Opns Rpt, Ser 0322, 28 Dec 44. [↑]

[3] Tarbuck Rpt. [↑]

[4] COMBATDIV 4 Opns Rpt, Ser 0322, 28 Dec 44. [↑]

[5] COMINCH P-008, pp. 2–8. [↑]

[6] Com3dAmph Force Opns Rpt, Ser 00317, 11 Nov 44. [↑]

[7] CTG 77.4 (Com Escort Carrier Group), Opns Rpt, COMINCH P-008, 30 Apr 45, Part 2, pp. 9, 10. [↑]

[8] CTF 78 Opns Rpt, Ser 00911, 10 Nov 44. [↑]

[9] 24th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 4. Unless otherwise stated all records of tactical units are in DRB AGO. [↑]

[10] Tarbuck Rpt. [↑]

[11] 24th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 4. [↑]

[12] GHQ SWPA Opns Instns 70, 21 Sep 44. [↑]

[13] Sixth Army FO 25, 23 Sep 44. [↑]

[14] CTF 77 Opns Rpt, Ser 00911, 10 Nov 44. [↑]

[15] CTF 78 Opns Plan 101–44, 3 Oct 44. [↑]

[16] 1st Cav Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 17. [↑]

[17] 1st Cav Div FO 1, 2 Oct 44. [↑]

[18] Unless otherwise stated the material on the 1st Cavalry Division is taken from 1st Cav Div G-3 Jnl, 20 Oct 44, and 1st Cav Div Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 2–4. [↑]

[19] 7th Cav Regt Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 2–4. [↑]

[20] Ibid. [↑]

[21] 1st Cav Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 17. [↑]

[22] 1st Cav Brig Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 2. [↑]

[23] 12th Cav Regt Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 1–2. [↑]

[24] 5th Cav S-3 Periodic Rpt 1, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[25] 8th Cav Regt Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 5. [↑]

[26] 1st Cav Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 19. [↑]

[27] 1st Cav Div Arty Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 3, 1st Cav Div Arty Unit Jnl, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[28] 1st Cav Div Msgs to X Corps, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[29] Unless otherwise stated information in this subsection is taken from 24th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 2–10, and 24th Div G-3 Jnl, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[30] X Corps FO 1, 30 Sep 44. [↑]

[31] Ibid. [↑]

[32] Ibid. [↑]

[33] 19th Inf Regt Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 1. [↑]

[34] 24th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 7. [↑]

[35] 34th Inf Unit Rpt 1, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[36] Private Robinson was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. [↑]

[37] 19th Inf Unit Rpt 1, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[38] 35th Army Opns, p. 27. [↑]

[39] CTF 79 Opns Rpt, Ser 00323, Encl A, 13 Nov 44. [↑]

[40] 383d Inf Regt FO 6A, App. A, 30 Sep 44. [↑]

[41] CTG 79.2 Opns Rpt, Ser 0032, 4 Nov 44. [↑]

[42] 383d Inf Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 1. [↑]

[43] Ibid. [↑]

[44] 382d Inf Unit Jnl, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[45] 382d Inf Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 2. [↑]

[46] 96th Div Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 33–37. [↑]

[47] Unless otherwise stated, the part of this subsection dealing with the 7th Infantry Division is taken from the following: 7th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 3–5; 7th Inf Div G-3 Jnl, 20 Oct 44; and 7th Inf Div FO 9, 1 Oct 44. [↑]

[48] 776th Amph Tank Bn Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 4. [↑]

[49] 32d Inf Unit Jnl, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[50] 32d Inf Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 4. [↑]

[51] 184th Inf Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 2. [↑]

[52] 184th Inf Jnl, 20 Oct 44. [↑]

[53] Rad, GHQ SWPA to CG Sixth Army, Sixth Army G-3 Rear Jnl, 21 Oct 44. [↑]

[54] Extracted Report of Landing on Leyte in the Philippine Islands by an Australian Officer Attached to the Northern Assault Force Landing at Red Beach. Copy in OCMH. [↑]

[55] 2d ESB Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 1. [↑]

[56] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, Engr Rpt, p. 232. [↑]

[57] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, G-4 Rpt, p. 218. [↑]

[58] Ltr, CG 2d ESB to CG Sixth Army, 22 Oct 44, 2d ESB Jnl and Jnl File. [↑]

[59] CTU 78.1.7 Opns Rpt, COMINCH P-008, Part 5, p. 2. [↑]

[60] Ltr, CG 2d ESB to CG Sixth Army, 22 Oct 44, 2d ESB Jnl and Jnl File. [↑]

[61] CTU 78.2.1 and 78.2.3 Opns Rpt, COMINCH P-008, Part 5, p. 3. [↑]

[62] Lts, CG 2d ESB to CG Sixth Army, 22 Oct 44, 2d ESB Jnl and Jnl File. [↑]

[63] Maj F. W. Doyle to Brig Gen L. J. Whitlock, Rpt of Observations, KING II Opn, 4 Nov 44, GHQ G-4 Jnl, AGO KCRC. [↑]

[64] 2d ESB Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 6. [↑]

[65] Maj Doyle to Gen Whitlock, Rpt of Observations, KING II Opn, 4 Nov 44, GHQ G-4 Jnl. [↑]

[66] 7th Cav Opns Rpt Leyte, Supplementary Annex, p. 3. [↑]

[67] 96th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 73. [↑]

[68] Rpt of Sup Off to CO Funston, 23 Oct 44, in CO USS Frederick Funston Opns Rpt, Ser 0101, 31 Oct 44. The boat crews and beach parties had been fortified with a lunch consisting of turkey salad, ham and cheese, hot steak sandwiches, ice cream, and cold fruit juices. The Army assault troops carried K rations. [↑]

[69] Com3dAmph Force Opns Rpt, Ser 00317, 11 Nov 44. [↑]

[70] 96th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, pp. 73–75. [↑]

[71] CTG 79.1 Opns Rpt, COMINCH P-008, Part 5, p. 15. [↑]

[72] 7th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, G-4 Rpt. [↑]

[73] CTG 71.1 Opns Rpt, COMINCH P-008, Part 5, p. 15. [↑]

[74] 7th Inf Div Opns Rpt Leyte, G-4 Rpt. [↑]

[75] 1140th Engr Const Gp Shore Party Opns Rpt Leyte. [↑]

[76] The New York Times, October 20, 1944. [↑]

CHAPTER VI

The Japanese Reaction

The Japanese undertook the defense of Leyte with serene assurance. Their pilots had erroneously reported the naval battle off Formosa as a great victory and declared that only remnants of the once strong American Navy remained. The defeatist attitude of the summer of 1944 vanished.

During the summer there had been disagreement among the Japanese military leaders. Imperial General Headquarters felt that the decisive battle should be fought on Luzon and only delaying actions taken in other areas. To this the 14th Area Army agreed. The Southern Army, on the other hand, believed that it would be impossible to wage a successful battle on Luzon if other areas, especially the Visayan Islands, were allowed to fall into American hands. Since these islands, if captured, could be used as Allied air bases, the decisive battle should be fought whenever and wherever the Americans attacked.[1]

Confident that the U. S. fleet had suffered grievously in the battle off Formosa, the Japanese closed ranks and all the commands agreed that the time was most opportune to deliver the coup de grâce. The foolhardy Americans would take a severe drubbing, and Japan, after a long series of humiliating and costly defeats, would regain the initiative. It was therefore a jubilant Imperial General Headquarters that ordered its armed forces to do battle with the Americans.

The essence of the Imperial General Headquarters plan was simple. The American convoys and carriers were to be given complete freedom in their journey to the Philippine Islands. When they were sufficiently close to make retreat difficult, the main strength of the Japanese Army, Navy, and Air Forces would descend upon them and deliver a knockout blow. If the operation were launched too early, the Americans could annihilate the inferior Japanese air strength before the battle could be fought; if too late, the Americans could escape and the objective would be lost. Imperial General Headquarters, therefore, was “patiently waiting” for the opportune moment.[2]

The Air Forces

On the evening of 17 October the 4th Air Army, upon receiving word that the U. S. forces were in the vicinity of Suluan Island, ordered the entire 2d Air Division to attack the Americans. The main strength of the fighter units was to be concentrated in the central and southern Philippines areas. Although bad weather prevented a reconnaissance, the increase in American air raids on the central and southern Philippines made it imperative for the Japanese to attack with their main air force. The 2d Air Division was ordered to move from Clark Field on Luzon to Bacolod on Negros Island. It was unable to do this because of the bad weather, and it was therefore unable to forestall the American landings. The commander of the 4th Air Army decided on 21 October, as a result of the American landings, to use the entire air force under his command, employing the 7th Air Division and the 30th Fighter Group, in addition to the 2d Air Division. The 12th Air Brigade of the 30th Fighter Group had just arrived in the Philippines from Japan, via Shanghai, and it was necessary to employ this brigade immediately because of the impending battle in Leyte Gulf.

All the various units were to launch an attack against the American land forces and shipping by the evening of 23 October. On 24 October there was to be a series of aerial attacks, the first early in the morning with the entire force; the second consisting of two waves; the third by the entire force in the evening; and during the night by waves of heavy and light bombers and assault planes.[3]

The Americans anticipated increased aerial activity over Leyte, and therefore the number of fighters was increased on 24 October to 36, on call from 0545 till dark, with an additional 16 fighters ready for immediate action upon request. Twenty-eight of the 36 were assigned to the attack force commanders and 8, retained by General Krueger, patrolled the beachhead area and provided additional fighters when and where they were needed.

The Leyte area was subjected to a heavy air assault on the same day, 24 October, when an estimated 150 to 200 enemy planes (mostly twin-engined bombers) approached northern Leyte. Sixty-six were definitely shot down and eighteen others were probably shot down.[4] On the American side, forty combat air patrol and ten direct supporting planes participated in this engagement. Three American aircraft crash-landed—two on the Tacloban airstrip and one in the water.[5] Only a small percentage of the American air activity was directed toward the neutralization of the enemy air force, as most of the available aircraft were attacking the Japanese fleet. The Japanese were determined to “make Leyte the decisive air battlefield as well as the decisive ground and naval battlefield of the Philippines.”[6] For the first time since the Allied counteroffensive in the Pacific had started rolling, the Japanese, for an extended period, risked aircraft in great numbers in daylight raids as well as at night. The shipping off Tacloban and Dulag and the Tacloban airfield were the principal targets, though other air installations on the island were hit. An example of the enemy’s dogged determination occurred during the evening and night of 27 October. At twilight, twelve enemy fighters and dive bombers dropped 100-pound bombs in the vicinity of Tacloban and tried repeatedly but unsuccessfully to strafe the Tacloban airstrip. After a lull, the Japanese aircraft renewed the aerial assault just before midnight and continued almost uninterruptedly until dawn. Between 2332 and 0125, there were nine raids of two to four planes each; between 0340 and 0450, three raids of two to four planes each; and between 0454 and 0555 five additional planes made an attack on the area.[7] The Tacloban airstrip frequently was “well illuminated” by burning aircraft.[8]

JAPANESE AIR ATTACKS on shipping (above) and supply dumps (below) were a constant threat during the early days of the invasion.

The 2d Air Division assaulted American shipping from 24 through 28 October, but because of the increasing necessity for giving air cover to the convoys the main strength of fighters of the 4th Air Army was used to protect the transportation of reinforcements of the 14th Area Army of Leyte. From 25 October on, the Bacolod airfield and the air forces protecting the Japanese convoys going to Leyte were attacked by American bombers and suffered serious losses. Since it had to participate in every phase of the action, the losses of the 4th Air Army were heavy.[9]

After 1 November the Japanese increasingly felt the American air power through attacks upon their air bases and shipping. Their fighter units, which had suffered considerable losses in protecting the convoys, were ordered to counterattack. They were not successful. At the same time the 4th Air Army received orders to protect the reinforcement convoys in the Manila area. By this time the Japanese air forces’ wings had been clipped and “what had once been a formidable weapon was transformed into a sacrificial army of guided missiles.”[10] The suicidal kamikaze pilot became the sole hope of the Japanese air forces.

The Battle of Leyte Gulf

Japanese Naval Plans

On 21 July the chief of the naval general staff, Imperial General Headquarters, issued a directive for subsequent “urgent operations.”[11] The operational policy to be followed by the Combined Fleet was as follows:

1. Make utmost effort to maintain and make advantageous use of the strategic status quo; plan to smash the enemy’s strength; take the initiative in creating favorable tactical opportunities, or seize the opportunity as it presents itself to crush the enemy fleet and attacking forces.

2. Co-operate in close conjunction with the Army, maintain the security of sectors vital to national defense, and prepare for future eventualities.

3. Co-operate closely with related forces to maintain security of surface routes between Japan and vital southern sources of materials.[12]

On 26 July the chief of the naval general staff informed Admiral Toyoda, Commander in Chief, Combined Fleet, that the future “urgent operations” were to be known as the SHŌ (Victory) Operations. There would be four SHŌ Operations. The first was to cover the defense of the Philippine Archipelago.[13] It was essentially the last chance for Japan to remain in the war. Said Admiral Toyoda of the situation at the time of the battle of Leyte Gulf:

Since without the participation of our Combined Fleet there was no possibility of the land-based forces in the Philippines having any chance against your forces at all, it was decided to send the whole fleet, taking the gamble. If things went well, we might obtain unexpectedly good results; but if the worst should happen, there was a chance that we would lose the entire fleet. But I felt that that chance had to be taken.... Should we lose in the Philippines operations, even though the fleet should be left, the shipping lane to the south would be completely cut off, so that the fleet, if it should come back to Japanese waters, could not obtain its fuel supply. If it should remain in southern waters, it could not receive supplies of ammunition and arms. There would be no sense in saving the fleet at the expense of the Philippines.[14]

Since their carrier force was weak, the Japanese had developed a plan based upon the main gunnery strength of the fleet and upon the land-based air forces. Battleships and cruisers from a southern base were to approach Leyte from the south, fight their way to the landing beaches, and destroy Allied assault shipping. A decoy force was to attempt to lure the U.S. carrier task force away from the main action. Shore-based air forces were to inflict maximum damage on the American carrier forces whenever and wherever possible, but once the invasion came they were to conserve their strength until the day of the landings, when all the Allied assault shipping would be concentrated off the beaches and when their attacks on the U.S. carriers would assist the advancing Japanese fleet. The plan was designed to get the Japanese naval gunnery force into a position where it could do the greatest damage. Little attention was paid to getting it out. “The war had reached a point where the Japanese fleet, hopelessly outnumbered and, as imminent events would prove, even more hopelessly out-classed, could not risk the fleet action it had previously desired but was forced to expend itself in suicidal attack upon the United States transports.”[15]

Upon receiving information on 17 October that American vessels were off the shores of Suluan Island, Admiral Toyoda immediately alerted his forces. On 18 October Toyoda, after intercepting American messages dealing with the landings on the island approaches to Leyte Gulf, activated his plan for the defense of the Philippine Islands. The target date (X Day) for the fleet engagement was set for 22 October but logistical difficulties caused a series of delays and on 21 October Admiral Toyoda changed X Day to 25 October. “From the far corners of the shrinking Empire the whole combatant strength of the Japanese Navy converged on Leyte Gulf.”[16]

The Naval Battle[17]

The strongest Japanese naval force—the 1st Diversion Attack Force—moved from the south, reached Brunei Bay in northwest Borneo on 20 October, and after refueling split into two parts and proceeded on its way two days later. The main strength of the 1st Diversion Attack Force, under Admiral Kurita, sailed northeast up the west coast of Palawan (one of the Visayan Islands), and then turned eastward through the waters of the central Philippines to San Bernardino Strait, while the smaller unit commanded by Vice Adm. Shoji Nishimura moved eastward through the Sulu Sea in order to force an entrance at Surigao Strait. The 2d Diversion Attack Force, commanded by Vice Adm. Kiyohide Shima, after leaving the Pescadores on 21 October, sailed south, past western Luzon, and after refueling in the Calamian Islands, just south of Mindoro, proceeded to follow and support the southern part of the 1st Diversion Attack Force in forcing Surigao Strait.

The Main Body, consisting chiefly of partially empty carriers with a destroyer escort, departed on the 20th, and on the evening of the 22d turned southwest toward Luzon. It was commanded by Vice Adm. Jisabuto Ozawa. The Main Body was to act as a decoy to draw off the main American strength. The Japanese submarines off Formosa were ordered south toward the eastern approaches to the Philippine Archipelago and the 2d Air Fleet, shortly before 23 October, began to arrive on Luzon.[18]

There were two American fleets in Philippine waters—the Seventh Fleet under Admiral Kinkaid, whose superior was General MacArthur, and the Third Fleet under Admiral Halsey, whose superior was Admiral Nimitz. The Seventh Fleet, which consisted of 6 old battleships, 16 escort carriers, 4 heavy cruisers, 4 light cruisers, 30 destroyers, and 10 destroyer escorts, had escorted the convoy to Leyte and now stood by to protect it as it unloaded. The Third Fleet was composed of Task Force 38 under Admiral Mitscher. It consisted of four task groups which averaged 23 ships each, divided about as follows: 2 large carriers, 2 light carriers, 2 new battleships, 3 cruisers, and 14 destroyers. The task force was to secure air supremacy over the Philippines, protect the landings, and apply unremitting pressure on Japan. If the opportunity to destroy the major portion of the Japanese fleet should arise or could be created, that destruction was to be its primary task.

The Japanese had 4 carriers, 7 battleships, 19 cruisers, 33 destroyers, and 2 battleship-carriers which carried no aircraft; there were 108 planes on the carriers and about 335 shore-based planes in the Luzon area.[19]

On 23 October two American submarines, the Dace and the Darter, encountered the 1st Diversion Attack Force and sank two heavy cruisers, the Atago and Maya, off the western coast of Palawan. The former was Kurita’s flagship; its sinking forced the Japanese admiral to transfer hurriedly to another vessel. The submarines also seriously damaged another heavy cruiser.

Upon receiving information that the Combined Fleet was steaming toward the Philippines, Admiral Oldendorf’s fire support group of the Seventh Fleet moved to the southern end of Leyte Gulf and formed a battle line across the mouth of Surigao Strait while motor torpedo boats patrolled within the strait and about its southern entrance. Halsey’s Third Fleet moved toward San Bernardino Strait. The escort carriers from Kinkaid’s Seventh Fleet cruised off Leyte Gulf.[20]

On the 24th, after receiving a report from the submarine, the carriers of the Third Fleet sent aircraft to search to the west and southwest. These aircraft sighted the main part of the 1st Diversion Attack Force south of Mindoro, and sighted and attacked the smaller force under Admiral Nishimura off Negros, slightly damaging a battleship and a destroyer. The aircraft of the carriers from their position off San Bernardino Strait struck repeatedly at Kurita’s force while the smaller Nishimura force was left to the battleships in the gulf. One Japanese battleship of the 1st Diversion Attack Force was sunk, one heavy cruiser rendered impotent, and minor damage was inflicted on other battleships. The Japanese were forced temporarily “to reverse course to westward.”[21]

The aircraft from the Japanese 2d Air Fleet attempted to aid the naval forces which were moving eastward through the Philippines. In co-operation with some aircraft from the Main Body, which was now about 100 miles east of Luzon, they attacked the northernmost unit of the American carriers. Halsey’s airmen sighted and reported the sacrificial Japanese Main Body in the afternoon. Not knowing that this force consisted mainly of empty carriers and believing that the 1st Diversion Attack Force had been severely damaged, Admiral Halsey withdrew the battleships and carriers of his Third Fleet and steamed north to meet the new threat, leaving San Bernardino Strait wide open. At midnight Kurita’s 1st Diversion Attack Force moved unmolested through San Bernardino Strait and turned south toward Leyte Gulf. The Japanese strategy had worked.

In the early morning hours, Admiral Oldendorf’s warships destroyed the Nishimura force as it sailed into Surigao Strait. Of two battleships, one heavy cruiser, and four destroyers, only the cruiser and one destroyer escaped from the strait, and the cruiser, which had been damaged, was sunk by aircraft from the U. S. carriers the next morning.[22] Admiral Shima’s 2d Diversion Attack Force, entering the same strait thirty minutes after Nishimura’s force, suffered damage to a light cruiser that was hit by American torpedo boats. Shima’s force then made an abortive attack, during which its flagship was damaged by collision, and withdrew without having engaged. The Third Fleet far to the north fell upon the decoy forces, sank all four carriers of the Main Body and thus “wrote an end to the Japanese carrier air force.”[23]

Admiral Kurita’s 1st Diversion Attack Force “for which so much had been sacrificed”[24] encountered Kinkaid’s carriers and destroyers off the coast of Samar. Admiral Kinkaid was ill prepared to meet the main thrust of the Japanese Navy, since his carriers were protected only by destroyers and destroyer escorts. His “handling of the exceedingly difficult situation” was “superb.”[25] The aircraft from his carriers under Rear Adm. Clifton A. F. Sprague rose to the occasion and gave a “magnificent performance,”[26] continually attacking the much stronger 1st Diversion Attack Force. Kurita’s forces sank one carrier, two destroyers, and one destroyer escort but lost three heavy cruisers and had one crippled. The American fighting strength was greatly diminished at the very time it was needed to protect the amphibious shipping that had carried the Sixth Army, and which still lay near the shores of Leyte Gulf. Just as it appeared inevitable that Kurita would move in and deliver the coup de grâce, he suddenly broke off the engagement and retired toward San Bernardino Strait. After the war he stated in justification of this strange move: “The conclusion from our [the Japanese] gunfire and anti-aircraft fire during the day had led me to believe in my uselessness, my ineffectual position, if I proceeded into Leyte Gulf where I would come under even heavier aircraft attack. I therefore concluded to go north and join Admiral Ozawa for coordinated action against your northern Task Forces.”[27]

Said Admiral Sprague: “The failure of the enemy main body and encircling light forces to completely wipe out all vessels of this Task Unit can be attributed to our successful smoke screen, our torpedo counterattack, continuous harassment of enemy by bomb, torpedo, and strafing air attacks, timely maneuvers, and the definite partiality of Almighty God.”[28]

The battle for Leyte Gulf was over. It had ended in a resounding victory for the Americans, whose losses of 1 light carrier, 2 escort carriers, 2 destroyers, and 1 destroyer escort were small in comparison with the Japanese losses of 3 battleships, 1 large carrier, 3 light carriers, 6 heavy cruisers, 4 light cruisers, and 9 destroyers.[29]

As the Japanese retreated throughout the 25th and 26th of October, carrier- and land-based aircraft struck at the enemy vessels and inflicted fresh injuries upon them.

The Sixth Army summarized its view of the probable consequences if the battle had gone against the U. S. Navy as follows:

Had the [Japanese] plan succeeded the effect on the Allied troops on Leyte in all likelihood would have been calamitous, for these troops would have been isolated and their situation would have been precarious indeed. If it had been victorious in the naval battle, the Japanese fleet could have leisurely and effectively carried out the destruction of shipping, aircraft, and supplies that were so vital to Allied operations on Leyte. An enemy naval victory would have had an adverse effect of incalculable proportions not only upon the Leyte Operation, but upon the overall plan for the liberation of the Philippines as well.[30]

The Sixth Army, however, was depicting the worst of all possible contingencies. Admiral Halsey’s conclusion is quite different:

That Kurita’s force could have leisurely and effectively carried out the destruction of shipping, aircraft, and supplies in Leyte Gulf was not in the realm of possibilities.... Kurita would have been limited to a hit-and-run attack in the restricted waters of Leyte Gulf. He would further have been subjected to the attack of the cruisers present in Leyte Gulf. He would have been limited to minor damage.... The statement that an enemy naval victory would have an effect of incalculable proportions not only on the Leyte operation, but upon the overall plan for the liberation of the Philippines as well, can only be premised on the thought that our naval forces would be almost totally destroyed. The prognostication of such a condition could be reasoned on none of the facts existing during this three days’ engagement.[31]

The Japanese Reinforce the Leyte Garrison

The Japanese felt that the honors of the battle were evenly divided and consequently continued with their program of making Leyte the decisive battle of the Philippines. Although the American fleet had soundly whipped the Japanese Navy, the Japanese were still able to send reinforcements in great numbers to their Leyte garrison. Because of the lack of sufficient aerial strength, the Americans were unable to check the steady flow of troops into the port of Ormoc.

American Aerial Retaliation

The carrier strikes of the Seventh and Third Fleets up to and through A Day had been most successful in forestalling any concentrated effort on the part of the Japanese against the American shipping in Leyte Gulf and the troops on the coastal strand. Thereafter, the Japanese unleashed a furious air assault on the American forces and shipping.[32]

At the same time, American aircraft from the carriers struck at the Japanese troops and their installations in close support of the ground troops. The first called-for air strike was at 0834 on 21 October against bridges over streams that were not fordable along the road leading from Ormoc to Carigara, in order to prevent enemy movement along this road.[33] A total of 121 missions were flown in support of ground units during the first four days, of which only 33 had been requested by the air liaison parties. The targets for these missions included artillery and mortar positions, fuel and supply dumps, bridges, pillboxes, and other installations, together with trucks, armored vehicles, and tanks.[34]

During the initial stages of the campaign, Navy flyers gave efficient close support to the ground forces.[35] The average time required to carry out each of these support missions was approximately one hour, though the usual difficulties of locating friendly troops and pinpointing the target were present. Enthusiastic reports on the effectiveness of this co-operation from naval air were made by the 7th Division. Members of this division, which formerly had been supported by Army and Navy air forces, found Navy air support in the first days on Leyte far more satisfactory than that which the Army Air Forces had been able to provide in the past. They believed that this superiority was due to the system that the Navy had worked out for directing strikes at close-in targets without endangering friendly ground forces, and to the Navy’s use of rehearsals with ground units to establish mutual understanding and confidence.[36]

The Battle of Leyte Gulf interfered greatly with the close support rendered by the Navy, since the carrier-based planes had to be withdrawn. The combat air patrol assignments were also disrupted because of surface engagements and the repairing of the CVE’s.[37]

At this time the Japanese had about 432,000 men in the Philippines, including air force and construction units. Most of them believed that they were well prepared to meet the Americans. In fact a staff officer of the 14th Area Army, upon hearing that the Americans had landed on Leyte, is reported to have jumped up and exclaimed: “Good, they have picked the place where our finest troops are located.”[38] It was also thought that the American troops on Leyte were “having a difficult time.”[39] Nevertheless, General Yamashita, who had succeeded Kuroda as the commanding general of the 14th Area Army, sent the 1st Division and other units to Leyte. The Japanese felt that “if the decisive battle in Leyte results in failure, it will upset the entire operation in the Philippines and the decisive battle in Luzon will be lost.”[40]

By the 25th of October a battalion of the 55th Independent Mixed Brigade and one of the 57th Independent Mixed Brigade from Cebu, together with two battalions of the 30th Division, had arrived on Leyte to reinforce the 16th Division. Shortly after the Sixth Army landed, the 35th Army commander, General Suzuki, received orders from General Yamashita to undertake an all-out offensive against the Americans. All Japanese air, naval, and land forces were to participate.[41]

On 22 October the 14th Area Army asked the 35th Army how the 26th Division and 68th Independent Mixed Brigade were to be utilized if the Japanese decisively won the pending naval battle. The 35th Army stated that if the Japanese Navy were victorious, the units were to prevent the landing of more Americans at Leyte Gulf, but if it were unsuccessful the troops were to be landed at Carigara Bay. The optimism of the Japanese was high. Said Maj. Gen. Yoshiharu Tomochika, Chief of Staff, 35th Army: “We were determined to take offensive after offensive and clean up American forces on Leyte Island.... We seriously discussed demanding the surrender of the entire American Army after seizing General MacArthur.”[42] Then came the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

Despite the setbacks caused by this disastrous sea battle, the Japanese continued to send troops to Leyte through Ormoc. The reinforcement of Leyte consisted of moving five major units, in nine echelons: the 35th Army moved as many of its units as possible from Mindanao, Cebu, and Panay; the 1st Division was sent down from Luzon on 1 November; then the 26th Division, the 68th Independent Mixed Brigade, and one third of the 8th Division were sent from Luzon in the order given.[43]

On 27 October the Fifth Air Force took over the mission of supporting the Sixth Army. As the airstrips were not in serviceable condition, only a small detachment—the 308th Bombardment Wing—could be sent in. Aircraft from the carriers continued to give support. The Fifth Air Force felt that it could best check the Japanese reinforcement program, and at the same time give more lasting support to the ground troops, by attacking the Japanese convoys before they arrived in Leyte. The Fifth Air Force intended also to attack large movements of land troops, concentrations, and supply areas. Army Air Forces doctrine assigned close support as the third priority mission of tactical air forces.[44] Since there were always insufficient aircraft for the missions assigned to the air forces, close support of ground troops suffered.

AIR STRIKES AGAINST JAPANESE INSTALLATIONS included on Bacolod Airfield, Negros Island (above), and on shipping in Zamboanga harbor, Mindanao (below).

The Allied Air Forces, which had been given the mission of supporting the Leyte operation, directed its main efforts against airfields in bypassed areas. Two fighter groups were on Morotai, one heavy bomber group was on Noemfoor, off the north coast of New Guinea, and two heavy bomber groups were on Biak; they completed 175 sorties in strikes against airfields on Mindanao and the Visayan area. The main targets of attack were on Mindanao and Cebu and in the Negros area.[45] The XIII Bomber Command, which carried the burden of this assault, was to neutralize targets previously hit and protect the southwestern flank of the American forces in the Philippines. The 42d Bombardment Group (medium bombers) in October flew the greatest number of sorties in the history of the group up to that time.[46]

The heavy bombers (B-24’s) of the 868th Bombardment Squadron, operating from Noemfoor, had as their main target enemy shipping in the Makassar Strait. At the same time, the B-24’s that were within range of the Sulu Sea struck at the Japanese Southern Fleet as it retreated after its engagement with the Seventh Fleet. The fighters and medium bombers, which had been used to strike at targets on Mindanao, were alerted to strike any enemy naval vessels that came within range.[47]

While protecting the southwestern flank of the American forces in the Philippines, the XIII Bomber Command was extraordinarily busy on 26 October. Part of the Japanese naval task force, consisting of three battleships, five cruisers, and four destroyers, had withdrawn from the Leyte area and was in the Sulu Sea when sighted by the 307th Bombardment Group. Twenty-eight B-24’s of the bombardment group made their principal targets two of the battleships—one of the Kongo class and the other of the Yamato class. Three of the planes were shot down as the Japanese skillfully and evasively maneuvered their vessels so that none was sunk. At the same time B-24’s from the 5th Bombardment Squadron sighted and sank an enemy light cruiser at a different location in the Sulu Sea.[48]

General MacArthur had originally allocated the attack of all land targets in the Philippines to the Allied Air Forces,[49] and although subsequent events occasioned a modification of this order the Fifth Air Force officially established its advance units on Leyte at 1600 on 27 October and assumed operational control of land-based aircraft.[50] The 308th Bombardment Wing, the advance echelon of the Fifth Air Force, had two major duties included in its mission. It was to obtain air superiority over the Philippines and to isolate the Japanese forces on the battlefield of Leyte. In addition to these two principal tasks it was to render maximum close support to the ground forces, establish night fighter patrols and a system of courier aircraft, and provide maximum protection to Allied naval vessels.[51] Among the Army flyers of the 49th Fighter Group, an advance party of the Fifth Air Force that arrived on 27 October, was Maj. Richard I. Bong, of the 9th Fighter Squadron, the leading ace of the Army Air Forces. He celebrated his arrival by shooting down an enemy plane.[52] On 28 October the Army flyers of the 7th Fighter Squadron got their first enemy airplane on Leyte. Since there were “only” three enemy air raids during the night, the men were able to get some much needed sleep.[53]

ANTIAIRCRAFT GUN in action at Tacloban airstrip, 27 October 1944.

The 29th of October, however, was a day of heavy action for the Army flyers, as described in a report of the 7th Fighter Squadron:

The 29th was a day that will be long remembered.... Two more Nips were added to the unit’s score;... the 49th Group’s 500th victory. But more important at that time was the fact ... [that] the ... road between the strip and the camp collapsed under army traffic.... The already long hours were lengthened still more as pilots and men were forced to arise between three and four o’clock in the morning, make their way to the barge at Tacloban, cross to the strip by water and then sweat out the pre-dawn raids. At night, the planes landing at dusk had hardly hit the runway before ... BOFORS [40-mm. antiaircraft guns] went off and the lights went out. Then down to the end of the strip near the gas dumps, and another session of sweating beneath A/A [antiaircraft] awaiting the barge for the trip back to Tacloban and then to camp. Supper was served as late as 10 o’clock ... a few brave individuals tried an alternate road to the south, swinging out east to White Beach above Dulag and then north along the beach to Tacloban Strip. Japanese snipers soon put a stop to this travel during the hours of darkness.

To add to the “big day”—29 October—the weather observers reported a 50 knot gale on the way. Working after dark, pilots and linemen minus the regular tie downs and using tent ropes and anything available secured the airplanes to jeeps, trucks, trailers and tractors. At night, in camp, the small typhoon hit and with it went three or four tents, occupants of which awoke to find themselves thoroughly drenched and at odds with the world, Leyte in particular.[54]

LOCKHEED P-38 after Japanese raid on Tacloban airstrip.

Although 29 October was the most difficult day on Leyte for the men of the 7th Fighter Squadron, they were again disheartened the following day, when one of the squadron’s pilots was shot down by friendly antiaircraft.[55]

During the first week of November, offensive operations by the Fifth Air Force were primarily against targets in Ormoc Valley and enemy shipping in Ormoc Bay. The barrios of Ormoc, Valencia, and Palompon were the first land targets. Most of the strikes, however, were against Japanese shipping in Ormoc Bay and in the vicinity of the Camotes Islands.[56]

By 4 November a number of P-38’s had been destroyed by bombs and strafing, some of which were completely burned up. To cut down the aircraft losses, it was decided to have planes of some of the squadrons use the Bayug airstrip in the Dulag area. But since this was a poor airfield which soon became overcrowded and subject to Japanese air attacks, it was finally abandoned.[57]

On 3 November fifteen P-38’s of the 49th Bomber Group struck “one of the most lucrative strafing targets of their history.”[58] In an early morning search for enemy shipping in Ormoc Bay the bombers found nothing, but on their return they sighted a ten-mile-long convoy of trucks, artillery, and tanks extending from Ormoc to Valencia. The convoy was strafed and dispersed, leaving twenty to thirty-five trucks destroyed and many other vehicles, including two tanks, in flames.[59] However, two American planes were shot down by enemy antiaircraft fire, four came in on single engines, and all showed many bullet holes. The bombers made no further strikes against the convoy, “as all aircraft received extremely heavy and accurate ground fire.”[60]

The airmen of the Fifth Air Force continued to hit shipping in Ormoc Bay and in the Camotes Islands, and they also achieved success against bridges, airfields, troops, camp areas, and transportation.[61] Although the number of Japanese air raids had diminished by 6 November, the Americans could not yet feel that they were “out of the rough.”[62] There was insufficient direct air support for the ground troops throughout the operation and the Japanese continued to send troops into Ormoc. The constant stream of Japanese reinforcements coming into Leyte augured ill for the success of the operation.

The TA Operation

The TA Operation, by which name the Japanese program for the reinforcement of Leyte was known, continued from 23 October through 11 December. The numerical weakness of the U. S. land-based aircraft enabled the Japanese to land many thousands of troops and tons of supplies on Leyte. Nine convoys in all were sent to the port of Ormoc, on the west coast.[63] As a whole, however, the operation was “literally gruesome” to the Japanese, since their transports and escort vessels were struck again and again by American aircraft.

The first Japanese convoy had three echelons. The first consisted of a landing barge and an auxiliary sailing vessel carrying about 300 troops of the 102d Division. The second echelon, whose composition was identical with the first, carried about 150 troops of the same division. Both safely discharged their troops on 23 and 25 October, respectively. The third echelon was made up of 2 destroyers, together with 4 transports carrying about 2,000 men of the 30th Division. The transports safely unloaded their passengers on 26 October, but American airmen later sank the destroyers and all but one of the transports. The remaining vessel was damaged.

The second convoy consisted of three echelons, composed of 3, 1, and 4 transports respectively. The escorting vessels of the third echelon, the only one that had an escort, consisted of 6 destroyers and 4 coast defense vessels. The escort vessels carried the troops of the 1st Division: the first wave about 1,000 men, the second about 100 headquarters men, and the third approximately 10,000 troops and about 9,000 ship tons of provisions and ammunition. All vessels safely debarked their troops on 1 and 2 November.

JAPANESE CONVOY UNDER ATTACK in Ormoc Bay. A destroyer escort is blown apart by a direct hit (above), and a large transport is straddled by bomb bursts (below).

The 5 transports of the third convoy carried about 2,000 troops of the 26th Division and approximately 6,600 tons of supplies. The convoy sailed from Manila on 9 November and was escorted by 1 submarine chaser, 1 torpedo boat squadron, and 4 destroyers. On 10 November, when the convoy reached the mouth of Ormoc Bay, American airmen destroyed all of the escort vessels and transports before they could unload their troops and cargo.

Each of the two echelons of the fourth convoy had 3 transports, but only the first one had an escort—6 destroyers and 4 coast defense vessels. The first echelon carried approximately 10,000 troops of the 26th Division and about 3,500 tons of supplies, including provisions, ammunition, and four long-range guns. The second echelon carried about 1,000 men of the 1st Division. Both discharged their troops safely on 9 November, a day earlier than the anticipated arrival of the third convoy, but because of American air action, they were able to get only a limited part of the supplies ashore.

The fifth convoy was organized on the same pattern as its predecessor, but the first wave had a submarine chaser as an escort while the second had a destroyer. This convoy, which left Manila between 11 and 25 November with an unknown number of troops and quantity of supplies, was completely destroyed en route to Leyte.

The sixth convoy, composed of 2 transports, 2 submarine chasers, and 1 patrol boat, carried approximately 2,500 tons of provisions and ammunition. It entered Ormoc harbor on 28 November and had completed most of its unloading when the vessels were either sunk or set afire by U.S. aircraft and motor torpedo boats.

There were four echelons in the seventh convoy. The composition of the first two is unknown, but it is known that the first echelon completed unloading at Ipil just south of Ormoc on 30 November. The third and fourth echelons, consisting altogether of 3 transports and 2 destroyers, also carried an unknown number of troops and quantity of supplies. As they were unloading at Ormoc on 2 December, the vessels were attacked by American airmen who sank one of the destroyers and damaged the other. The transports and the damaged destroyer returned to Manila.

The 4 transports of the eighth convoy, escorted by 3 destroyers and 2 submarine chasers, carried about 4,000 troops—the main body of the 68th Independent Brigade—and an unknown quantity of provisions and ammunition. It unloaded some of its troops and a part of the cargo at San Isidro on the west coast of Leyte on 7 December; but immediately thereafter, American aircraft sank the transports and heavily damaged the destroyers.

There were two echelons in the ninth convoy. The first echelon, which consisted of 5 transports, 3 destroyers, and 2 submarine chasers, carried approximately 3,000 troops of the 5th Infantry Regiment, 8th Division, and about 900 tons of provisions and ammunition. In unloading at Ormoc on 11 December, 1 destroyer was sunk and 1 destroyer and 1 transport were damaged. The remaining vessels then moved to Port Palompon on the west coast of Leyte and completed unloading. The second echelon consisted of only one transport and carried an unknown number of troops and quantity of supplies. It was able on 11 December to elude the American airmen and complete its unloading.[64]

After the war, General Nishimura, who had been on the staff of the 14th Area Army, made the amazing statement that nearly 80 percent of the vessels sent to Ormoc were sunk en route. Although most of the vessels went down close enough to the Leyte shore for the troops to swim ashore, the equipment lost could not be replaced.[65] It is estimated that the Japanese landed more than 45,000 troops and something over 10,000 tons of matériel.[66]

Even though the Japanese had not succeeded completely in their reinforcement program, General Krueger was faced with a far stronger foe than had been anticipated. The Leyte Campaign was to be long and costly and was to upset the timetable for the impending Luzon operation. At the end of A Day the American assault forces had firmly established themselves on the shores of Leyte, but the battle for the island was yet to come.

[1] Japanese Studies in WW II, 21, Hist of Southern Army, 1941–45, OCMH. [↑]

[2] Hist of Army Sec, Imperial GHQ, p. 139. [↑]

[3] 4th Air Army Opns, pp. 38–43. [↑]

[4] Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 24 Oct 44. [↑]

[5] Sixth Army G-2 Jnl, 24 Oct 44. [↑]

[6] Hist of V Bomber Command, Ch. 4, Jul-Dec 44, p. 73, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[7] Ibid., pp. 73–75. [↑]

[8] Hist of 7th Fighter Sq, 49th Fighter Gp, 86th Fighter Wing, V Fighter Comd, Fifth Air Force, Nov 44, p. 1, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[9] USBSS, Campaigns of the Pacific War, p. 285. [↑]

[10] Ibid. [↑]

[11] Ibid. [↑]

[12] Ibid., App. 87, p. 292. [↑]

[13] Ibid., App. 88, p. 294. [↑]

[14] USSBS, Interrogations, II, 317. [↑]

[15] USBSS, Campaigns of the Pacific War, p. 281. [↑]

[16] Ibid., p. 284. [↑]

[17] It is not within the scope of this history to deal with the ensuing battle between the Japanese and American Navies. A full discussion of the “greatest naval battle of the Second World War and the largest engagement ever fought on the high seas” would require a volume. Such a study is being prepared by Samuel Eliot Morison in his series of studies on the U.S. Navy’s part in the war. Two excellent accounts—James Field’s The Japanese at Leyte Gulf, and C. Vann Woodward’s The Battle for Leyte Gulf (New York, 1947)—have already appeared. The present volume attempts to present only those facts needed to understand the effect of the battle on land operations. (Quotation is from Woodward, Battle for Leyte Gulf, p. 1.) [↑]

[18] USSBS, Campaigns of the Pacific War, p. 284. [↑]

[19] Admiral Frederick C. Sherman, Combat Command: The American Aircraft Carriers in the Pacific War (New York, 1950), p. 286. [↑]

[20] Field, Japanese at Leyte Gulf, pp, 81–82. [↑]

[21] USBSS, Campaigns of the Pacific War, p. 285. [↑]

[22] Ibid. [↑]

[23] Ibid. [↑]

[24] Ibid. [↑]

[25] Ltr, Gen Krueger to Maj Gen Orlando Ward, 12 Sep 51, OCMH. [↑]

[26] Ibid. [↑]

[27] USBSS, Interrogations, I, 44. [↑]

[28] CTU 77.4.3 Opns Rpt, Ser 00100, 29 Oct 44, Incl B, p. 2. [↑]

[29] Woodward, Battle for Leyte Gulf, p. 229. [↑]

[30] Sixth Army Opns Rpt Leyte, p. 43. [↑]

[31] Ltr, Adm Halsey to Gen Ward, 6 Jul 51, OCMH. [↑]

[32] Hist of V Fighter Comd, Ch. 4, Jul-Dec 44, p. 73, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[33] Sixth Army G-3 Wasatch Jnl, 21 Oct 44. [↑]

[34] Opns Rpt, CSA Seventh Flt to Comdr Seventh Flt, no ser, 2 Nov 44. [↑]

[35] AAF Evaluation Bd POA Rpt 3, The Occupation of Leyte, Philippine Islands, pp. 27 and 15. This report was prepared by Brig. Gen. Martin F. Scanlon, who accompanied the XXIV Corps to Leyte as an air observer for the Army Air Forces in the Central Pacific. By close support is meant operating to the immediate front of the first-line troops. [↑]

[36] AAF Bd POA Rpt 3, p. 15. [↑]

[37] Opns Rpt, CSA Seventh Flt to Comdr Seventh Flt, no serial, 2 Nov 44. [↑]

[38] USSBS Interrog 418, Interrog of Maj Gen Toshio Nishimura, 19–22 Nov 45, p. 6, OCMH. [↑]

[39] 14th Area Army Opns Leyte, pp. 2–3. [↑]

[40] Ibid., p. 6. [↑]

[41] 10th I&HS, Eighth Army, Stf Study of the Japanese 35th Army on Leyte, Part I, pp. 3–4, copy in OCMH. [↑]

[42] Tomochika, True Facts of Leyte Opn, p. 13. [↑]

[43] 14th Area Army Opns Leyte, pp. 17–18, 37, 52, 59, 93, 94, and 99. [↑]

[44] FM 100–20, 21 Jul 43, Command and Employment of Air Power, p. 16. [↑]

[45] AAF Evaluation Bd, SWPA Rpt, Leyte Campaign, p. 32, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[46] Hist of XIII Bomber Comd, Oct 44, p. 5, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[47] Ibid. [↑]

[48] Jane’s Fighting Ships, 1947–48 (New York), pp. 473–78; Hist of XIII Bomber Comd, Oct 44, p. 4, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[49] Rad, GHQ to CG Sixth Army et al., Sixth Army G-3 Rear Jnl, 28 Oct 44. [↑]

[50] Rad, CG Allied Air Forces to CG Fifth Air Force, 27 Oct 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 1 Nov 44. [↑]

[51] Hist of 308th Bombardment Wing, Ch. 3, p. 4, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[52] Hist of 9th Fighter Sq, Oct 44, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[53] Hist of 7th Fighter Sq, Oct 44, pp., 5–6, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[54] Ibid., pp. 6–7. [↑]

[55] Ibid., p. 7. [↑]

[56] Hist of Fifth Air Force, Ch. V, pp. 42–43, AAF Hist Archives; Rad, Sixth Army to GHQ, 3 Nov 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 3 Nov 44. [↑]

[57] Ibid. [↑]

[58] Hist of V Fighter Comd, Jul-Dec 44, Ch. 4, p. 64, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[59] Rad, COMAF5 to Sixth Army, 4 Nov 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 5 Nov 44. [↑]

[60] Msg, 308th Bomb Wing to G-2 Sixth Army, 3 Nov 44, Sixth Army G-3 Jnl, 3 Nov 44. [↑]

[61] Hist of Fifth Air Force, Ch. 5, pp. 42–45, AAF Hist Archives. [↑]

[62] OPD 319.1, Sec VII, Case 248, DRB AGO. [↑]

[63] Activities of the Japanese Navy During the Leyte Operation, p. 94, A715 SWPA, Doc 2543. [↑]

[64] Trans of Data on Reinforcement and Support of the Leyte Island Campaign, ATIS Doc 16946. [↑]

[65] USSBS Interrog 506, Interrog of Maj. Gen. Yoshiharu Tomochica et al., MS, OCMH. [↑]