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Chapter 14: “What Is the Matter with the Enemy?”
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PartIV 382 C H A P T E R 1 4 “WhatIstheMatterwiththeEnemy?” H igh over Luzon’s west coast in his C5M2 observation plane, Lt. Masami Miza was heading north to hisTainan base accompanied bythepilotsoffourdamagedZerosfromhisTainanKūwithwhom hehadjoinedupatabout1:30p.m.attherendezvouspoint.Hefelt fortunatethatnoenemyfighterswerechasingthem.Inoneofthe damaged ships, FPO2c Ryokei Shinohara was flying back with blood onhisface.HisZerohadbeenhitinthewindscreenbyantiaircraftfire whilestrafingClarkField.Theshipofhisshōtaichō,Lt.MasaoAsai,was alsoreturningindamagedcondition,havingtakenthreehits.InLt.Akira Wakao’shard-hitchūtai,athirdpilot,FPO1cKeishuKamihirahadsustained twelvehitsduringtheClarkattack.Hisshōtaileader,WOYoshimitsu Harada,receivedtenhitsduringtheClarkstrafing.1 NicholsField,Luzon 3p.m.,December8,1941 AtNicholsField,eighteen17thPursuitSquadronP-40Eswerecoming intolandatabout3p.m.Thepilotswerealljustaboutoutofgas afterhavingpatrolledforalmosttwoandone-halfhoursoverManilaBay. Noneofthemhadseenenemyactivityofanykind.Whentheyreported to the 17th Pursuit’s operations section, they received some upsetting news.AbouttwentyminutesaftertheyhadtakenofffromClarkField,two groupsofbombersandseveralflightsofsingle-enginefightershadpractically destroyedthebase.Theradiostationhadbeenstrafed,causingittogo offtheair,whichexplainedwhytheyhadnotreceivedanymessagesfrom QA-1,thecallsignof24thGroupoperations.Theywonderedhowthey couldhavecircledovertheManilaareathroughoutthefifty-minuteraid andnotknownanythingofwhatwashappeningjustforty-fivemilesto thenorth.ItlookedlikearepeatoftheTarlacpatrolearlierthatmorning. ch14 4/2/03,1:07PM 382 Chapter14 383 The17thPursuitpilotswerea“tiredandbewilderedbunch”asthey stoodaroundtheoperationsofficehearingthenews.“Wehadbeenflying alldayandhadseennothing,yetdisasterhadstruckallaroundus,” DaveObertrecordedinhiswartimediary.“Butwhatnow?”Obertand theotherdispiritedyoungofficerswondered.Itwassinkinginthatthe 17thwastheonlyintact,fullyequippedpursuitsquadronlefttodefendthe Philippines.2 19thBombGroupOperations ClarkField,Luzon Midafternoon,December8,1941 AtClarkField,Lt.Col.EugeneEubankwantedtoknowwhatremained ofhis19thBombGroup.Heassigned1stLt.LeeCoatsthejobofsurveying thedamagetohisB-17forceandfindingoutwhatplanescould beputbackincommission.Checkingoutthesituation,Coatsfoundthat threewerestilloperable.Eubank’sownB-17D(40-3100)wasonlyslightly damaged,whileAlMueller’sB-17C(40-2072),hiddenundertreesatthe edgeofthefield,hadescapedseriousdamage.Earlier,1stLt.JohnCarpenter hadbroughthisB-17D(40-3063)insafely. Laterintheafternoon,EubankandhismensawanotherFlyingFortress comingintoland.TheyfigureditmustbeWheless’s40-3070,which hadbeenoutsincemorningpatrollingtothenorth.Theywatchedasthe B-17Ddescendedsolowonitsapproachtothelandingstripthatitstail wheelcaughtonawirefencethatmarkedtheairfield’sboundaryandtore outaboutahundredfeetofbarbedwire.Itslowedthebigbomberdown considerably,allowingittomake“afancyshortlanding.”Theshipcame toahaltbeforerollingontothecrateredsectionofthefieldbeyond.A pleasedLieutenantColonelEubankwastheretogreetWhelessandhis crewastheydisembarked.Nowhehadatleasttwoflyableships.3 EubankandCoatstotaledupthenumbersforthegroup.Ofthe19B-17s theyhadatClarkFieldthatmorning,12hadbeendestroyed,3weredamaged butrepairable,2wererepairedandputincommissionbytheendofthe day,1(Carpenter’s)landedattheendoftheattack,and1(Wheless’s)hadjust comein,undamaged. When Frank Kurtz reported to Lieutenant Colonel Eubank after inspecting...