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Air Battle of Luzon December 9 1941
Recovering from the blow
By late afternoon Chennault has managed to inform Krueger that General Frank is out of action and he has assumed command of USAAFE. General Krueger signs off on the command change and orders Chennault to fight with his forces as best he can, but also orders him to safeguard his remaining bombers and sufficient fighters to cover them. Reports are coming in from patrol planes that the Japanese are already landing in the Calayan Island group, only a few miles north of Luzon. Another fleet is approaching northern Luzon and will likely enter the Babuyan Channel on the 9th. Another Japanese fleet has been spotted leaving the Pescadores heading for Luzon, and behind it is a fleet with 2 battleships and numerous cruisers and destroyers clearly providing cover for it as well as Japanese forces attacking Malaya. B17s on their scouting mission into the Palau Islands has spotted yet another fleet on a course that will take it either to southern Luzon or potentially Samar or further into the central Philippine Islands.
Chennault flies to the various airfields aboard a Beech 18 to see what he has left. The 3rd Pursuit Squadron is down to 10 P40E so he orders it to fly to Del Monte to provide defense for his one remaining operational B17 airfield. Admiral Hart agrees to allow him to continue to control VMF112 for now, but only as long as least one squadron remains at Cebu to protect his patrol planes and surface ships at Cebu and Panay. Chennault moves the 6th Pursuit (PAAF) to Cebu, and Colonel George and all 3 squadrons of the 23rd Pursuit Group to Bataan, Mariveles and Rosales. He decides Iba is too vulnerable and he orders Del Carmen and Zablan Fields evacuated, with all remaining training aircraft evacuated to Bataan. The bombers he has left are sent to Del Monte (the B18s and B10s) to provide air search to cover the southern Philippines, while the PBYs continue to cover the northern islands and the B17s out of Del Monte prepare for a strike. Colonel Eubanks in Darwin reports that 18 of his B17Ds are ready to fly to Del Monte, and Chennault orders him to launch a strike at the fleet steaming from Palau on December 10. Chennault plans to hit the Japanese with the B17s and his A24s, in coordination with Admiral Hart's plan to attack the Japanese fleet.
Aside from fighters, no aircraft will remain stationed in Luzon. The remaining fields will be used only for airlift and staging as will Clark once the 4th Engineer Brigade (PA) makes a concerted effort to fill the numerous bomb craters and remove debris. Chennault expects that the Japanese will hit his airfields again tomorrow and his transports spend the afternoon and evening moving men and to Cebu, Bataan and Del Monte. As night falls, trucks supplied by Eisenhower continue to evacuate personnel and as much equipment as can be moved where it is sent to Manila where equipment and spares will be sent by barge and boat to Bataan. The other major movement is the hundreds of wounded that have to be evacuated from the fields hit today, and the burial of over 300 dead.
December 9
The Japanese are concerned about their losses but feel they have inflicted far worse on the Americans. The Army aircraft will be supporting the landing at Aparri. The Navy will had planned to spread out their attacks on the remaining American airfields but in light of losses on the 8th decides instead to concentrate on a massive raid on Cavite with half of the available fighters as close escort, and the other half to conduct a fighter sweep against the enemy airfields hoping to catch the Americans as they take off.
The Japanese raid takes off just after dawn from Formosa. The attack force consists of 60 Nell bombers, 15 of which are tasked to hit the Manila Hotel, 15 will hit Fort Santiago, and the other 30 to hit the Manila Docks. Japanese intelligence reports that both Krueger and Hart live at the hotel, and that many of their staff officers do as well while Fort Santiago is the headquarters of the Philippine Department. The rest of the attack force consists of 72 Betty bombers which will hit Cavite Naval Yard. Covering the two formations will be 2 groups of 27 fighters. Just ahead of the bombers will be 36 fighters in 4 groups of 9 aircraft each that will attack Iba, Del Carmen, Zablan and Baguio fields and American fighters as they take off.
The first Japanese fighters hit Iba Field at 0830 hours only to find it empty of aircraft. Unwilling to waste ammunition these fighters join up with Raid 1, which is 60 Nell Bombers and 27 fighters, increasing the escort to 36 aircraft. Chennault has moved his headquarters to Subic Bay, where the Marines have an operational radar and good signals equipment. Meanwhile General Eisenhower is in the field overseeing the continued movement of everything that can be moved for the USAAFE to Bataan and as the raid crosses the coast is at Fort Stotsenburg a few hundred yards from Clark Field with one of the few radio trucks. Admiral Hart and General Krueger are at the Manila Hotel in a conference when word reaches them that Japanese bombers are crossing the coast but certain that the enemy will hit the airfields continue their conference.
Cavite Naval Yard October 1941
Reports reach Chennault of the enemy strike and he orders his squadrons to assemble over Mount Arayat at 24,000 feet to wait for orders. Still convinced that the enemy is heading for his fields, Chennault has that view further confirmed as Japanese fighters strafe Baguio, Zablan and Del Carmen where 8 PT17s are destroyed as they were grounded due to mechanical problems. Casualties are light however, as the bases had mostly been evacuated and only 23 men are killed and 45 wounded as many are caught by surprise before they can reach cover.
Radar finally picks up the Japanese bombers as they fly just south of Subic Bay and cross the coast at Bataan on before splitting into Raid 1 (Manila) and Raid 2 (Cavite). Realizing that the Japanese have tricked him, Chennault orders his squadrons to hit the enemy. However the Japanese have a head start and will hit their targets before the American fighters can reach them.
Raid on Cavite and Manila
The Japanese bombers are flying well above American flak, and 72 bombers convert the base into burning wreckage in 15 minutes. Bombs sink the submarine Sealion, while a bomb hits the yard lighter and barge with over 200 torpedoes aboard, destroying at a single blow most of the torpedo supply for the Asiatic Fleet. This formation then turns over Laguna de Bay and prepares to make a second run to finish the job. At that moment 32 P40B Warhawks of the 74th and 75th Pursuit squadrons hit the Japanese escort of 36 Zeros, while the 30 Warhawks of 17th Pursuit and VMF112 hit the Japanese bomber formation of 72 bombers.
Cavite Naval Yard December 12, 1941
However, as the air battle erupts Japanese Raid 2 is attacking Manila effectively unopposed. Japanese bombing is against outstanding, scoring several hits on the Manila Hotel effectively destroying it as it erupts into flames, while nearly every bomb blasts apart the interior of Fort Santiago and more bombs sink several merchant ships and start fires in the port area. Civilian casualties are severe, with post attack estimates of at least 2,000 civilians killed or missing and at least 5,000 injured. The military losses are also severe, with over 200 Army and Navy casualties including General Krueger who is evacuated unconscious and badly burned, and Admiral Hart who is killed (and only identified by his his class ring). In a few minutes the Philippine Department and Asiatic Fleet have been decapitated.
Raid 2 turns north heading directly over the Luzon Plain for its planned exit for home and is unopposed on its way out.
The Americans get a measure of revenge however on Raid 1. Using the dive and zoom tactics that Chennault has taught and Dyess has proven the previous day, the American fighters destroy 6 fighters and 8 bombers in their attack before diving away. However the Japanese do manage to catch the trailing elements as they attack, and several P40s are damaged and the 74th and 75th lose 2 fighters each. The arrival of 18 more Zeroes that have been called to link up from strafing attack however provides urgently needed reinforcements and having orders to hit and then run, the American fighters break off. The Japanese make their second bomb run, but at their maximum speed and their bombing is far less effective this time, not that it matters much as the naval yard is already badly damaged and enough bombs hit the target to finish the job. At least 500 American and Filipino civilian and military personnel are killed, and many hundreds more are injured. The only good news is that aside from the submarine hit in the initial attack, no other naval vessels or ships are hit. But Cavite is finished as a functional base.
Chennault orders his fighters to regroup and hit the enemy again on their way out. The Americans pursue but every available Japanese fighter turns to meet them. In all 60 Japanese fighters attack the American fighters and prevent them from reaching the fleeing bombers, and the Japanese manage to down 6 more American fighters but lose 8 of their own. Both sides then break off and head for their bases as ammunition and fuel are spent.
The morning December 9 raids are a devastating blow. In a few short minutes both US major commands have lost their commanders and many key staff officers, while Cavite naval yard is completely ruined. Along with this damage 10 more American fighters have been lost, along with 4 pilots killed in action. However for the Japanese it has been another costly day, with 14 fighters and 8 bombers lost and another 20 bombers have suffered damage sufficient to require repair that will keep them out of action for at least a day. The air commanders on both sides are are forced to examine the fact that they have lost nearly 25% of their fighters in a mere two days of air combat. For Chennault he has the painful knowledge that there will be no replacements, while commander of 11th Air Fleet, Vice Admiral Takenaka has the knowledge that replacements for his losses are still a trickle and none can be expected for several days.
For this reason Chennault is forced to note helplessly the destruction of Iba Field by an afternoon raid as the Japanese bombers return and convert the airstrip into a moonscape. His own fighters are kept on that ground at Bataan or ordered to patrol over Manila in case of another attack on the city.
Change of Command
It is not until nearly 1600 hours that Eisenhower is finally informed that General Krueger is severely wounded and no longer capable of command. He also learns of the heavy casualties in Manila and that Admiral Glassford is now acting commander of the US Asiatic Fleet. He sends a courier to Panay to learn if Glassford plans to continue to his planned attack on the Japanese fleet approaching either southern Luzon or the central Philippine Islands. For now nothing will change.
Glassford meanwhile orders his support ships and combat ships out of Manila Bay, regardless of their state of repair and along with the Philippine Coast Guard transports to pick up the Marines. To assist in covering this he sends 4 destroyers to meet them at Subic Bay, leaving him with 2 heavy cruisers, 1 light cruiser and 8 destroyers. By dawn on the 10th the American ships are at Subic Bay, where they can be covered by American fighters from Bataan.
Meanwhile the Japanese make plans to hit the American airfields on the 10th as distant support for landings planned for the next two days.
By late afternoon Chennault has managed to inform Krueger that General Frank is out of action and he has assumed command of USAAFE. General Krueger signs off on the command change and orders Chennault to fight with his forces as best he can, but also orders him to safeguard his remaining bombers and sufficient fighters to cover them. Reports are coming in from patrol planes that the Japanese are already landing in the Calayan Island group, only a few miles north of Luzon. Another fleet is approaching northern Luzon and will likely enter the Babuyan Channel on the 9th. Another Japanese fleet has been spotted leaving the Pescadores heading for Luzon, and behind it is a fleet with 2 battleships and numerous cruisers and destroyers clearly providing cover for it as well as Japanese forces attacking Malaya. B17s on their scouting mission into the Palau Islands has spotted yet another fleet on a course that will take it either to southern Luzon or potentially Samar or further into the central Philippine Islands.
Chennault flies to the various airfields aboard a Beech 18 to see what he has left. The 3rd Pursuit Squadron is down to 10 P40E so he orders it to fly to Del Monte to provide defense for his one remaining operational B17 airfield. Admiral Hart agrees to allow him to continue to control VMF112 for now, but only as long as least one squadron remains at Cebu to protect his patrol planes and surface ships at Cebu and Panay. Chennault moves the 6th Pursuit (PAAF) to Cebu, and Colonel George and all 3 squadrons of the 23rd Pursuit Group to Bataan, Mariveles and Rosales. He decides Iba is too vulnerable and he orders Del Carmen and Zablan Fields evacuated, with all remaining training aircraft evacuated to Bataan. The bombers he has left are sent to Del Monte (the B18s and B10s) to provide air search to cover the southern Philippines, while the PBYs continue to cover the northern islands and the B17s out of Del Monte prepare for a strike. Colonel Eubanks in Darwin reports that 18 of his B17Ds are ready to fly to Del Monte, and Chennault orders him to launch a strike at the fleet steaming from Palau on December 10. Chennault plans to hit the Japanese with the B17s and his A24s, in coordination with Admiral Hart's plan to attack the Japanese fleet.
Aside from fighters, no aircraft will remain stationed in Luzon. The remaining fields will be used only for airlift and staging as will Clark once the 4th Engineer Brigade (PA) makes a concerted effort to fill the numerous bomb craters and remove debris. Chennault expects that the Japanese will hit his airfields again tomorrow and his transports spend the afternoon and evening moving men and to Cebu, Bataan and Del Monte. As night falls, trucks supplied by Eisenhower continue to evacuate personnel and as much equipment as can be moved where it is sent to Manila where equipment and spares will be sent by barge and boat to Bataan. The other major movement is the hundreds of wounded that have to be evacuated from the fields hit today, and the burial of over 300 dead.
December 9
The Japanese are concerned about their losses but feel they have inflicted far worse on the Americans. The Army aircraft will be supporting the landing at Aparri. The Navy will had planned to spread out their attacks on the remaining American airfields but in light of losses on the 8th decides instead to concentrate on a massive raid on Cavite with half of the available fighters as close escort, and the other half to conduct a fighter sweep against the enemy airfields hoping to catch the Americans as they take off.
The Japanese raid takes off just after dawn from Formosa. The attack force consists of 60 Nell bombers, 15 of which are tasked to hit the Manila Hotel, 15 will hit Fort Santiago, and the other 30 to hit the Manila Docks. Japanese intelligence reports that both Krueger and Hart live at the hotel, and that many of their staff officers do as well while Fort Santiago is the headquarters of the Philippine Department. The rest of the attack force consists of 72 Betty bombers which will hit Cavite Naval Yard. Covering the two formations will be 2 groups of 27 fighters. Just ahead of the bombers will be 36 fighters in 4 groups of 9 aircraft each that will attack Iba, Del Carmen, Zablan and Baguio fields and American fighters as they take off.
The first Japanese fighters hit Iba Field at 0830 hours only to find it empty of aircraft. Unwilling to waste ammunition these fighters join up with Raid 1, which is 60 Nell Bombers and 27 fighters, increasing the escort to 36 aircraft. Chennault has moved his headquarters to Subic Bay, where the Marines have an operational radar and good signals equipment. Meanwhile General Eisenhower is in the field overseeing the continued movement of everything that can be moved for the USAAFE to Bataan and as the raid crosses the coast is at Fort Stotsenburg a few hundred yards from Clark Field with one of the few radio trucks. Admiral Hart and General Krueger are at the Manila Hotel in a conference when word reaches them that Japanese bombers are crossing the coast but certain that the enemy will hit the airfields continue their conference.
Cavite Naval Yard October 1941
Reports reach Chennault of the enemy strike and he orders his squadrons to assemble over Mount Arayat at 24,000 feet to wait for orders. Still convinced that the enemy is heading for his fields, Chennault has that view further confirmed as Japanese fighters strafe Baguio, Zablan and Del Carmen where 8 PT17s are destroyed as they were grounded due to mechanical problems. Casualties are light however, as the bases had mostly been evacuated and only 23 men are killed and 45 wounded as many are caught by surprise before they can reach cover.
Radar finally picks up the Japanese bombers as they fly just south of Subic Bay and cross the coast at Bataan on before splitting into Raid 1 (Manila) and Raid 2 (Cavite). Realizing that the Japanese have tricked him, Chennault orders his squadrons to hit the enemy. However the Japanese have a head start and will hit their targets before the American fighters can reach them.
Raid on Cavite and Manila
The Japanese bombers are flying well above American flak, and 72 bombers convert the base into burning wreckage in 15 minutes. Bombs sink the submarine Sealion, while a bomb hits the yard lighter and barge with over 200 torpedoes aboard, destroying at a single blow most of the torpedo supply for the Asiatic Fleet. This formation then turns over Laguna de Bay and prepares to make a second run to finish the job. At that moment 32 P40B Warhawks of the 74th and 75th Pursuit squadrons hit the Japanese escort of 36 Zeros, while the 30 Warhawks of 17th Pursuit and VMF112 hit the Japanese bomber formation of 72 bombers.
Cavite Naval Yard December 12, 1941
However, as the air battle erupts Japanese Raid 2 is attacking Manila effectively unopposed. Japanese bombing is against outstanding, scoring several hits on the Manila Hotel effectively destroying it as it erupts into flames, while nearly every bomb blasts apart the interior of Fort Santiago and more bombs sink several merchant ships and start fires in the port area. Civilian casualties are severe, with post attack estimates of at least 2,000 civilians killed or missing and at least 5,000 injured. The military losses are also severe, with over 200 Army and Navy casualties including General Krueger who is evacuated unconscious and badly burned, and Admiral Hart who is killed (and only identified by his his class ring). In a few minutes the Philippine Department and Asiatic Fleet have been decapitated.
Raid 2 turns north heading directly over the Luzon Plain for its planned exit for home and is unopposed on its way out.
The Americans get a measure of revenge however on Raid 1. Using the dive and zoom tactics that Chennault has taught and Dyess has proven the previous day, the American fighters destroy 6 fighters and 8 bombers in their attack before diving away. However the Japanese do manage to catch the trailing elements as they attack, and several P40s are damaged and the 74th and 75th lose 2 fighters each. The arrival of 18 more Zeroes that have been called to link up from strafing attack however provides urgently needed reinforcements and having orders to hit and then run, the American fighters break off. The Japanese make their second bomb run, but at their maximum speed and their bombing is far less effective this time, not that it matters much as the naval yard is already badly damaged and enough bombs hit the target to finish the job. At least 500 American and Filipino civilian and military personnel are killed, and many hundreds more are injured. The only good news is that aside from the submarine hit in the initial attack, no other naval vessels or ships are hit. But Cavite is finished as a functional base.
Chennault orders his fighters to regroup and hit the enemy again on their way out. The Americans pursue but every available Japanese fighter turns to meet them. In all 60 Japanese fighters attack the American fighters and prevent them from reaching the fleeing bombers, and the Japanese manage to down 6 more American fighters but lose 8 of their own. Both sides then break off and head for their bases as ammunition and fuel are spent.
The morning December 9 raids are a devastating blow. In a few short minutes both US major commands have lost their commanders and many key staff officers, while Cavite naval yard is completely ruined. Along with this damage 10 more American fighters have been lost, along with 4 pilots killed in action. However for the Japanese it has been another costly day, with 14 fighters and 8 bombers lost and another 20 bombers have suffered damage sufficient to require repair that will keep them out of action for at least a day. The air commanders on both sides are are forced to examine the fact that they have lost nearly 25% of their fighters in a mere two days of air combat. For Chennault he has the painful knowledge that there will be no replacements, while commander of 11th Air Fleet, Vice Admiral Takenaka has the knowledge that replacements for his losses are still a trickle and none can be expected for several days.
For this reason Chennault is forced to note helplessly the destruction of Iba Field by an afternoon raid as the Japanese bombers return and convert the airstrip into a moonscape. His own fighters are kept on that ground at Bataan or ordered to patrol over Manila in case of another attack on the city.
Change of Command
It is not until nearly 1600 hours that Eisenhower is finally informed that General Krueger is severely wounded and no longer capable of command. He also learns of the heavy casualties in Manila and that Admiral Glassford is now acting commander of the US Asiatic Fleet. He sends a courier to Panay to learn if Glassford plans to continue to his planned attack on the Japanese fleet approaching either southern Luzon or the central Philippine Islands. For now nothing will change.
Glassford meanwhile orders his support ships and combat ships out of Manila Bay, regardless of their state of repair and along with the Philippine Coast Guard transports to pick up the Marines. To assist in covering this he sends 4 destroyers to meet them at Subic Bay, leaving him with 2 heavy cruisers, 1 light cruiser and 8 destroyers. By dawn on the 10th the American ships are at Subic Bay, where they can be covered by American fighters from Bataan.
Meanwhile the Japanese make plans to hit the American airfields on the 10th as distant support for landings planned for the next two days.
- galveston bay
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