April-May 1944

Gen. Stilwell & Gen. Liao Yueh-shang, Cmdr of the 22nd Chinese Div. discuss plans.

During the first week of April, Gen. Stilwell’s New China Army was preparing to attack Gen. Tanaka’s men, but Stilwell’s own supply base was being threatened.  Urgent pleas were sent to Chiang Kai-shek to send his Nationalist Army to eastern Burma for assistance – but Chiang failed to respond.

FDR was notified of this lack of support and the president sent a cable to Chiang:  “If they [Nationalist Army] are not to be used in the common cause, our most strenuous efforts to fly in equipment and furnish instructional personnel have not been justified.”

map of Burma

This meant that Chiang’s Lend Lease was threatened and 10 days later, 72,000 Chinese troops marched to Burma.  Japan considered this action a break in their “silent” truce and the Imperial Staff ordered the launch of the ‘Ichi-Go’ operation.

Merrill’s Marauders had incured 50% casualty losses, Merrill himself suffered a heart attack and now air bases were threatened.  The Joint Chiefs of Staff approved Stilwell’s Operation End Run.  Merrill signed himself out of the hospital and rallied his 1,400 survivors, 2 Chinese regiments and a band of OSS – trained guerrillas to begin a trek through the jungle and over the 6,000′ Kumon Range to reach Myitkyina.  To add insult to injury (and disease), the monsoon season started early.

“The die is cast and it’s sink or swim,” Stilwell said.

At the beginning of 1944 Army Air Force units in CBI had about 1,500 airplanes, of which approximately 900 were in commission.  During the critical months of March, April, and May 1944, when the Allied forces gained air superiority in Burma, American aircraft strength in India, Burma, and China ranged between 1,700 and 2,500. In 1945 the number of aircraft varied as indicated by the following table:

	31 Jan.	31 Mar.	30 Apr.	30 June	31 July	31 Aug.
Fighters	1,238	1,254	1,236	1,316	1,410	1,356
Bombers (M)	387	387	386	389	431	419
Bombers (H)	158	184	189	182	156	133
Reconnaissance	160	209	204	206	171	167
Transports	1,213	1,301	1,325	1,436	1,444	1,475
Training and Liason	536	540	538	513	487	485
Gliders	367	310	211	121	79	57
TOTAL	4,059	4,187	4,089	4,163	4,178	4,092

As these figures and those in table above emphasize, fighter and transport aircraft played the most important roles in CBI.  Among fighters, the old P-40 gave way to P-38’s, P-47’s, and especially to P-51’s.

Tawi-Tawi location

The Japanese Imperial Staff finalized the A-Go plan.  And the newly organized Japanese First Mobile Fleet under VAdm. Ozawa, that was anchored at Singapore, headed for Tawi Tawi [Portal to the Philippines] under Toyoda’s orders.

Click on images to enlarge.

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Military Humor – from: ‘CBI Round Up’

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Farewell Salutes – 

Paul Bogin – Dayton, OH; US Army, Korea, Sgt., Bronze Star

Reuben Cooke – Regina, CAN; WWII, RC Army, Red Deer Army Corps/Regina Rifles

Francis Barnbrook Erikson – Fort Plain, NY; US Army Nursing Corps, WWII, ETO

Estelle Hullihan – W.Palm Bch, FL & NYC; Civilian, Radio Free Europe

Herbert Jenkins – Whangarei, NZ; NZ Expeditionary Force # 243124, WWII, 2nd Division Cavalry

Earl J. Keating – New Orleans LA; US Army, WWII, PTO, 126th/32nd Infantry Division, Pvt., KIA (Buna-Gona)

John H. Klopp – New Orleans, LA; US Army, WWII, PTO, 126th/32nd Infantry Division, Pvt. KIA (Buna-Gona)

Frank Papernic – Lynbrook, NY; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 711 Ordnance/11th Airborne Division

Thomas Tucker – Huntsville, AL; US Army, Lt.Colonel (Ret.)

Fergus Warren – Victor Harbor, AUS; RA Air Force # 071854, WWII

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