End of March 1945 for the 11th Airborne Division

 

Luzon, 1945

22 March – The 187th Reg., the 674th and 675th Field Artillery units had completed their move from Tanauan to Cuenca, Luzon; taking over positions left by the 158th.

23 March – the Japanese stormed A Company’e outpost on San Jose Hill.    The outpost forced the enemy back but had lost Captain Hanna who had not remained in the safety zone with the rest of his unit.  The artillery forward observer was able to  call in artillery fire on the enemy locations and the following morning.

Col. Pearson dispatched G and F Companies to clean out the area.  Tanks battered down houses and the engineers deactivated land mines, but NW of the village, the enemy fired from concealed caves and stopped the attack.

117th Engineering Batt. searching for mines

24 March – the Japanese reentered the village of Dita during the night.  Four battalions of artillery and a squadron of P-47’s made several strikes and the F and G Companies followed up with house-to-house fighting through the streets.  The intensity of the Japanese machine-gun and mortar fire halted the attack.

27 March – following a mortar barrage from the 85th Chemical Battalion and airstrikes using napalm, the 1st Battalion dug in at Bukel Hill and the 2nd Battalion held position near Dita.  Thus began the bloodiest and toughest battle for the 187th to date. (The 187th still exists today.)

Banzai

28 March – in a perimeter south of the Dita schoolhouse, G Company had repulsed another banzai attack.  At 0500 hours, about 50 Japanese soldiers had attacked F Company and its guerrillas.

B-24s and fighter-bombers of the 5^th Air Force hit Balete Pass tracts and ridges, installations at Santa Fe, and ground support targets N of Laguna de Bay and in Cavite and Batangas Provinces and B-25s and A-20s attack troop concentrations at Baguio and Ilagan. Bombers hit the Cebu City area and pound airfields on Negros.  B-24s bomb Likanan Airfield. The 39th Troop Carrier Squadron, 317th Troop Carrier Group, moves from Leyte to Clark Field, Luzon with C-47s.

In spite of the shelling and air strikes, the enemy had been able to continue nightly banzai attacks.

Luzon, WWII

The 187th Regiment historian reported: “the Nips took a much heavier toll of the attached guerrillas who had the old-fashioned idea that tropical nights were made for sleeping.”  [11 were killed and 10 others wounded).

On Luzon, fighters from the 5th Air Force attack targets in the Cagayan Valley and north of Laguna de Bay, blasting bridges and gun positions over wide stretches.  B-25s, A-20s, and fighter-bombers hit Cebu targets, several of the strikes being flown in support of ground forces.

By 1 April 1945, the 187th had encircled the landward sides of Mount Macalod – it had not been easy.

Click on images to enlarge.

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Military Humor – 

 

 

 

 

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Farewell Salutes – 

James Armstrong – Tyler, TX; US Army WWII

Franklin Bissett – Morgantown, WV; US Army, Korea, 187th/11th Airborne Division

One of the cemeteries at Tarawa.

Anthony Cooper – Jamaica, NY; US Army, WWII, 1st Inf/British 8th Army / Korea, 101st Airborne (Ret. 23 y.)

Elroy Dragsten – Bookings, SD; US Navy, WWII, 2nd Lt.

Lyle Gray Regina, SK, CAN; RC Army, WWII, ETO

Richard Hall – Portland, ME; US Army, WWII, ETO, 36th Division

Jeffrey McDougall – W.AUS; RA Air Force # 82473

Edgel Oldroyd – Springville, UT; US Navy, WWII, PTO

Tossie Parker – Tuscaloosa, AL; US Army, WWII

Albert Yamolovich – MA; USMC, WWII, PTO, Cpl., Arisan maru (POW ship), KIA

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