Chapter 10 Chapter 2 Filipino Famous Generals Showdown

Japan launched the "Southern Advance" operation to seize minerals in Southeast Asia, such as oil and rubber.As an island country, although the scenery of the Philippines is good, there is nothing Japan wants except coconut trees, bread trees, and flowers and butterflies.Those treasures are hidden in other countries in Southeast Asia, such as oil in Java and rubber in Malaysia. But Japan must take the Philippines, and it can’t do without it, because no matter whether it is going to Kalimantan Island or Malaysia, the Philippines cannot be bypassed on the route. A prominent geographical location is sometimes really not a good thing. The so-called "land that must be contested by military strategists" is not praising you, but cursing you.The Philippines is like Poland sandwiched between Germany and the Soviet Union. Either it will not fight, or it will be unlucky if it does.

While planning the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, Yamamoto decided to destroy MacArthur's air force, so as to assist and cover the army's landing in the Philippines after gaining air supremacy. Just as he was worried that Kimmel would discover his intentions, Yamamoto was also afraid that MacArthur would move ahead of him-there was no aircraft carrier to use in the Philippine battle, and he could only rely on Taiwan's air base, which was within reach of the outskirts of Manila. Airport.But if MacArthur had the foresight to move all the planes to the southern base, it would be too late and difficult to handle.

It is best to attack at the same time, that is, Pearl Harbor and the Philippines fight together, so that MacArthur will not even have the time and opportunity to hide the cat.The problem is that there is a time difference between Hawaii and Taiwan, and it will not be dawn until several hours after sunrise in Hawaii.Prior to this, pilots could not drop bombs in the dark, so although this idea is good, it is actually impossible. There is only one way to start the fight after Pearl Harbor, and try to defeat the opponent in the shortest time. According to intelligence, the U.S. military stationed in the Philippines has more than 200 combat aircraft.Yamamoto then concentrated more than 3,500 fighters to participate in the battle, thus forming an advantage of at least 2:1.

The combat mission was carried out by the 11th Air Fleet under Yamamoto, and the commander of the fleet was Tsukahara 243.Tsukahara kept the operation highly secret in advance. Except for himself and a few important staff around him, the rest of the officers and soldiers did not know the target of the operation.Even so, they knew that they were engaged in a major operation, so their faces were tense. After a busy night, the faces of Tsukahara and his subordinates became more tense—a thick fog suddenly enveloped the airport, and it became thicker and thicker, and no one could be seen within 5 meters.At this time, more than 500 pilots were sitting in the cabin waiting for the departure.

Tsukahara looked at the fog, his face turned green: "If we delay our departure, what consequences will it bring us?" All the planes are densely lined up on the airport, and each plane is full of bombs, but none of them can take off.Delaying the departure is a small matter. What if MacArthur comes to attack the airport? MacArthur came close to doing just that. After learning of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Far East Air Force Commander Brereton put forward a bold idea: to dispatch 18 B-17 "Flying Fortress" bombers to bomb the Japanese base in Taiwan. The B-17 is a four-engine heavy bomber developed by the Boeing Company of the United States. It has a solid body structure and cannons capable of repelling fighter jets, and its maximum range can reach a thousand miles.Just imagine, as long as the "Flying Fortress" drops a bomb, and the Japanese planes full of ammunition follow them, the entire base must be in flames.

But MacArthur rejected this proposal, of course, his refusal also has good reasons. Due to the long distance and the limited range of the fighter jets, it was impossible to cover the 18 bombers.Under the premise of lacking the protection of fighter jets, bombing heavily guarded bases, in MacArthur's view, is tantamount to an act of suicide.What's more, Washington has not officially authorized MacArthur to fight against Japan. By a strange coincidence, MacArthur missed an opportunity to kill his opponent. As time went on, the heavy fog at various bases in eastern Taiwan began to dissipate, allowing 32 Japanese bombers to take off first.They were spotted by radar as they approached Luzon.

Before World War II, although radar had been used for early warning, it was still a rarity. Even Pearl Harbor was not equipped. It was only when the Japanese army was expected to attack the Philippines first that the U.S. military installed a radar station on the island. Upon receiving the report, Brereton dispatched 36 P-40 "Tomahawk" fighter jets to intercept them, and at the same time ordered all bombers on Clark Airport to take off to avoid being attacked. The first batch of Japanese bombers were too small in number, so they could only play soy sauce when they came. After bombing a few small targets in the northern Philippines, they turned around and left in a hurry.

After experiencing this false alarm, Brereton once again suggested that MacArthur pre-emptively attack the Taiwan base: "Clark Airport is the main base of the Far East Air Force Brigade. Most of the planes take off and land here. If it is really taken by the Japanese, Wouldn't that be bad?" At this time, MacArthur had received the authorization to fight against Japan, but he still did not immediately agree to Brereton.His main concern is that there is a serious lack of intelligence, and he doesn't even have an aerial photo of the Taiwan base. In order to grasp the intelligence, MacArthur agreed to send three bombers to conduct reconnaissance.After 45 minutes, he called Brereton himself: "If the reconnaissance plane determines the target, we will attack the Taiwan base in the late afternoon."

It was a good decision, but unfortunately it was too late. The sky cleared up, and the thick fog that enveloped Taiwan had completely dissipated.The 192 planes of the 11th Air Fleet took off one after another and rushed towards Clark Airport.