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U.S. Heavy Bombers in WWII: Caught on the Ground
Questions linger concerning the deployment of U.S. heavy bombers on the first day of World War II.
by Sam McGowan
Ever since word of the disaster in the Philippines reached the rest of the world, there has been much speculation about what would have happened if the B-17s had been launched against the Japanese airfields on Formosa immediately after word of the attack on Pearl Harbor reached the islands.
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Many, including his biographer, William Manchester, have accused General Douglas MacArthur of being personally responsible for the failure to mount an attack. But those who make
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This article reads like another attempt to salvage MacArthur’s reputation, cherry-picking an issue to redirect attention from his massive failures in the defense of the Philippines.
MacArthur was told of the Pearl Harbor attack at 3am; at 4am Gen. George Marshall cabled him to follow thru with the established war plans. At 5am Gen. Brereton of the USAAF began several attempts to get MacArthur’s approval for offensive operations. This was finally given over 5 hours later. To judge whether or not an attack could have succeeded is indeed Monday morning quarterbacking. In fact, the Japanese on Formosa fully expected to see our B-17s coming, and Mac knew our war plans called on him to use all his weapons to confront the enemy.
His dithering for over five precious hours led to the timing and results this article describes. Instead of being court marshalled for trying to obey two masters, (he was also employed by the Philippine government as a military trainer and supervisor) he was later awarded a medal for his “spirited” defense of the Philippines.