Blockade Runners - carrying essential supplies to the Philippines by ship, submarine and aircraft

BLOCKADE RUNNERS
CARRYING ESSENTIAL SUPPLIES
TO THE PHILIPPINES
BY SHIP, SUBMARINE AND AIRCRAFT

General Brig. Gen. Patrick J. Hurley and Lt. Bobb B. Glenn were also involved - see the PDF by Bobb Glenn

By January 1942, the military forces in the Philippines had been compressed into the Bataan Peninsula and the island of Corregidor in Manila Bay. Significant plans were needed to transport food and medical supplies to the soldiers on Bataan and Corregidor. General Douglas MacArthur and General Wainwright were both insistent that the Japanese blockade must be broken to relieve the Philippine garrison. A program was established in Australia and the Netherlands East Indies to engage ships, aircraft and submarines to break the Japanese blockade. They became known as blockade runners. In late January 1942, Marshall ordered Patrick J. Hurley to Australia as a temporary Brigadier General representing the US Army in Australia prior to taking up an appointment as Minister to New Zealand. Hurley was allocated funds to hire commercial ships to send supplies to MacArthur. Hurley arrived in Australia in early February 1942. Hurley's stated orders were to cooperate with the Commanding General U.S. Army Forces in Australia (USAFIA) in expediting measures for the organization and dispatch of supplies to General MacArthur's command in the Philippines.

Lieutenant Bobb Glenn, previously aide to General George Brett and then General Julian Barnes, worked as Hurley's aide from 12 February 1942 until Hurley left Australia in April 1942 to take up his duties as Ambassador to New Zealand. Captain Bob Glenn then went on to be part of the Allied Intelligence Bureau eventually running supply operations at Camp Milton in Brisbane. On his arrival in Australia, Hurley immediately expedited the chartering of ships and inducing ship's captains and crews to take the dangerous journey to the Philippines. Some of the ships were required to travel via Java. Hurley received word that General Wavell's headquarters in Java had refused permission for the contracted ships in Java to be used as blockade runners. Hurley immediately decided to travel to Java to overturn this decision.

Hurley and Glenn flew out of Laverton Airfield on 12 February 1942 to Java via Sydney. They were diverted to Richmond Airfield after engine problems and after replacing a blown out spark plug they flew on to Brisbane where they stayed the night in Lennons Hotel. They flew out of Amberley Airfield in a C-47 the next morning for Darwin Airfield via Cloncurry. They boarded LB-30A Liberator AL521 piloted by Lt. Clyde B. Kelsay, of the 7th Bomb Group in Darwin late that night and landed at Malang in east Java at 6:30am the next morning. They had breakfast and took off again before an expected Japanese air raid. They arrived at Bandoeng by noon. They drove to the Savoy Hotel where Generals Brett and Brereton were waiting for them. Lt. Gen. Brett was Deputy Commander in Chief of Wavell's ABDA conmmand. They travelled to the Hotel Montagne at Lembang after lunch. The next morning, 15 February 1942, Glenn walked the short distance to Wavell's Headquarters. Glenn joined Wavell and Hurley for lunch.

After breakfast in 17 February 1942, Hurley informed Bobb Glenn that Wavell had agreed to release the ships in Java for blockade running operations. They flew out for Malang later that day in their LB-30A Liberator. Colonel Robenson who had come down from Surabaya, joined them for drinks at the Palace Hotel. Robenson was in Surabaya assisting with the acquisition of the blockade running ships. They stayed the night at the Hotel Splendid near the airfield. Very early the next morning they took off for Darwin, arriving there late that afternoon. They stayed the night in the Hotel Darwin on the Esplanade.

Bobb Glenn was woken up the next morning, 19 February 1942, to the sound of Japanese bombs dropping on Darwin. This was the first of many air raids on Darwin. Hurley had been up earlier and was was hit in the shoulder by a rock that had crashed through an overhang of the hotel. Hurley was knocked to the ground. He was picked up by others and helped into the hotel lobby. After they stopped the bleeding on Hurley's shoulder, they drove towards the inner harbour and hid under a high set house on stilts. They travelled back to the hotel to collect their possessions to travel south. As they travelled to the airfield, the second Japanese raid on Darwin started. They stopped by the side of the road and hid in an abandoned school building.

After a tour of the downtown area to inspect the damage they resumed their journey to the Darwin Airfield. They were totally shocked when they arrived at the airfield. Their LB-30A Liberator AL521was now just four smoking engines laying on the ground. Hurley obtains a better bandage for his shoulder and they get some sandwiches at the Officer's Mess. They decide to travel south by road in a Dodge 1/2 ton Command Car. They drove south to Adelaide River where they encountered a road block. They were warned of bad road conditions south of Adelaide River at that time of the year. The road worsened and they were often forced to use the vehicle winch to pull themselves out of soft ground.

It was getting harder for them to see where the road was and they eventually noticed a railway line running beside them. Glenn recommended that they drive along the railway tracks. They started to travel along the railway tracks but after a few miles they started to encounter trestle bridges which presented a challenge to cross as some of the sleepers were broken or missing in some cases. They crossed 13 of those bridges before they eventually stopped for the night when they came upon five tiny shacks near the railway tracks just after midnight.

They knocked on the door of the first shack and woke up five employees of the North Australia Railroad company who were responsible for the maintenance of that section of track. They were excited to have an American General to entertain. They had not heard about the two air raids on Darwin. They stoked up the fire and placed a large cooking pot on the fire and soon served them some kangaroo tail soup. The local aborigines living nearby provided them with fresh Kangaroo meat they had killed with their boomerangs.

On 4 January 1942, General MacArthur suggested to General Marshall that a program for blockade running be developed immediately. At the time MacArthur was unaware that the War Plans Division of the General Staff had concluded the previous day that relief of the Philippines would require so large a force as to constitute "an entirely unjustified diversion."

"Some relief," MacArthur added, "might be obtained on use of submarine transportation." Funds to organise such a program had already been allotted to two officers who were on their way to Australia. When Admiral Hart was asked to send antiaircraft ammunition to MacArthur by submarine, Hart replied that no submarines were available.

On 17 January 1942, General MacArthur, sent a long message to General Marshall reminding him that his men had been on half rations for some time and that "the food situation here is becoming serious." He sent this message after failing to receive any strong support from Australia or the Netherlands East Indies. MacArthur's needs could be easily be met using small or medium-sized ships. MacArthur asked that attempts be made to send food both from the United States and the Netherlands Indies. "I am professionally certain," he declared, "that his [the enemy's] so-called blockade can easily be pierced. The only thing chat can make it really effective is our passive acceptance of it as a fact."

MacArthur declared "I am professionally certain that his [the enemy's] so-called blockade can easily be pierced. The only thing chat can make it really effective is our passive acceptance of it as a fact."

General Marshall wrote to the commander in Australia advising that the situation in the Philippines was most serious and that "comprehensive efforts" to run the blockade must be organised.

Similar instructions were sent to General Brett, General Wavell's deputy in the newly established ABDA Command.

On the same day, General Marshall ordered General Patrick J. Hurley, the former Secretary of War, to lend his "energetic support" to the scheme of blockade running, and made one million dollars available to General MacArthur to reward ship's captains in the Islands. Less than 24 hours after receiving MacArthur's message urging that a blockade running program be established, Marshall advised the USAFFE commander that two officers from Washington D.C. with "practically unlimited funds" and with instructions to organise blockade running "on a broad front" had already reached Australia with one million dollars to reward ships captains who break the Japanese blockade. Marshall also advised that General Patrick J. Hurley was leaving for Australia the following day.

The USAFIA headquarters in Australia responded to General Marshall's request and prepared a shipment of 3,000,000 rations, a sixty-day supply for 50,000 men, and a large quantity of ammunition to go the Netherlands East Indies, which would then be trans -shipped to the Philippines.

Col. John A. Robenson and six assistants along with large sums of money, were sent from Darwin in the Northern Territory to Java in the Netherlands East Indies with instructions to comb the Indies for food and small ships. General Marshall told General Brereton, then the commanding General in Australia, that time did not permit the shipment of food to the Indies for transshipment. Marshall directed that local resources in every port should be exploited by purchase, and agents with hard cash should be flown to every Dutch and British island in the area to acquire food and ships.

There were few vessels in Australia fast enough to run the Japanese blockade and large enough to carry sufficient cargo and fuel to make the round trip profitable. The general feeling was that any ship that took on the challenge may never return. Eventually about ten Philippine and Chinese coastal vessels were acquired in Australia. They were fitted with guns, dummy stacks, neutral or Axis flags, and "all imaginable types of deceit."

Colonel Robenson in Java found that the British and the Dutch would not release ships for the hazardous journey to the Philippines. He had been successful in acquiring rations and ammunition, but by the end of January 1942 he was still unable to find a ship to carry the supplies.

By 22 January 1942, General Brereton reported to General Marshall that a small Philippine freighter, the Don Isidro was being loaded with rations and ammunition in Brisbane in south east Queensland. It was intended that it would sail directly for the island of Corregidor. Another larger ship, the Mormacsun, was also being loaded in Brisbane. Orders from Washington advised that the Mormacsun was not to go further than the Netherlands East Indies where it would transfer its cargo to smaller ships for the journey to the Philippines.

Brereton told Marshall, that more rations and ammunition were being acquired in Australia for shipment to the Netherlands East Indies and then to be placed onboard small blockade-runners to travel to the Philippines. Brereton failed to advise that he had not yet succeeded in acquiring these small ships.

By the end of two weeks there were five ships en route or scheduled to sail for the Philippines. The Don Isidro had already left Brisbane with 700 tons of rations. The Coast Farmer, an Army freighter with speed of 10 knots, was being loaded in Brisbane and would sail soon. The 6,000 ton, Dona Nati, was also being loaded in Australia and was due to depart within the week.

The 2,500 ton Chinese ship, Anhui, was also being loaded. It would leave after the Dona Nati. General Barnes advised Marshall that the Mormacsun, was already loaded with 6,000 tons of rations and ammunition, but was delayed awaiting the location and charter of two smaller vessels to carry its cargo northward from the Netherlands East Indies.

General MacArthur on Corregidor was aware of the plans to break the Japanese blockade, but he felt that much more effort was required. On 4 February 1942, he messaged General Marshall, calling for a more aggressive strategy in the Far East to break the Japanese blockade and hoped that his views would be presented "to the highest authority."

In spite of detailed planning and the transfer of large sums of money, only three of the ships that departed for the Philippines successfully broke the Japanese blockade. The Don Isidro and the Coast Farmer left Australia on 4 February 1942. The Don Isidro took the long route and travelled around the bottom of Australia to Fremantle. It then sailed to Java to load ammunition. The Don Isidro met up with the Florence D., a Philippine freighter under U.S. naval control, in Java. Colonel Robenson offered the Filipino crew large bonuses. The captain was offered more than $10,000, and other crew members were offered lesser amounts, plus life insurance to the values of $500 to $5,000.

The Don Isidro and Florence D. left Java on 14 February 1942. They sailed east through the Timor Sea to Bathurst Island, then headed north. They were spotted by Japanese planes and bombed five days later.

The Don Isidro was badly damaged and was beached and the Florence D. suffered a worse fate and was sunk.The Coast Farmer berthed at a Mindanao port fifteen days after leaving Brisbane. The Dona Nati and the Anhui arrived at Cebu in mid March 1942. They were the only ships to successfully reach the Philippines. Between them they delivered more than 10,000 tons of rations, 4,000,000 rounds of small-arms ammunition, 8,000 rounds of 81mm ammunition, and miscellaneous medical, signal, and engineer supplies.

The two British registered Chinese ships that were chartered to carry the Mormacsun cargo left Fremantle in Western Australia in February 1942, however when Japanese waters were reached, the crews refused to proceed and the two ships returned back to Darwin in the Northern Territory where they were unloaded.

On 14 February 1942, the Dutch authorities approved the release of four old freighters to Colonel Robenson for him to use to carry supplies to the Philippines. Robenson offered large bonuses and other financial inducements, to persuade the Chinese crew of one of these freighters to make the voyage to the Philippines. This freighter left on 26 February 1942 with a cargo of 720,000 rations. Unfortunately it went missing and was never heard from again. The other three freighters never left their moorings.

The three ships that made it through to the Philippines had their cargo unloaded but it was still a long way from the battle weary troops. The supplies still had to be shipped northwards to Manila Bay from Mindanao and Cebu. Fast inter-island boats were used for this journey which would be done at night, at locations rarely visited by the Japanese air and surface patrols. American officers were placed onboard each of the three boats with orders to vigorously run the Japanese blockade and to scuttle the boat rather than let them be captured by the Japanese.

As part of the plan, food that could be obtained locally, for example rice, sugar, fruits, coffee, and meat was to be transported to Corregidor. Two 400-ton motor ships in Manila Bay picked up the food collected by agents in southern Luzon and shipped it across the bay to Corregidor. These two ships made several round trips, raising the total quantity of rice stocks by 1,600 tons. However most of the ships and supplies came from Cebu where the US Army Transport Service and the Cebu Advance Depot were located. The Cebu Advance Depot became the central collection point for supplies to be shipped to Bataan and Corregidor. It was originally established to issue supplies received from Luzon.

Large quantities of material were gathered in procurement offices that had been set up in the Visayas and in Mindanao. The food and equipment arriving from Australia were added to these procurement offices. By 10 April 1942, when the Japanese had occupied Cebu City, the Cebu Advance Depot had available a 12 month supply of food for the troops on Cebu and Panay and at least a 6 month supply for the men on the other islands.

There was another 12,000 tons of food, medicine, gasoline, and other supplies in the hills and in scattered warehouses. No more than a few thousand tons of the supplies gathered in the south ever reached Manila Bay. The 1,000 ton Legaspi, was the first of the inter island ships to safely make the journey. On 22 January 1942, Legaspi brought a cargo of rice and other food from Panay to Corregidor, and in February 1942 she completed another trip. On 1 March 1942, she was sunk on her third trip by a Japanese gunboat off the north coast of Mindoro and her crew were captured.

Late in February 1942, the Princessa travelled from Cebu to Corregidor with a cargo of 700 tons of food. At Mindanao, the 2,500 tons of rations and 2,000 rounds of 81mm ammunition from the Coast Farmer were transferred to the Elcano and Lepus. The Elcano got through to Manila Bay, but the Lepus was captured off Palawan on 28 February 1942. The cargoes of the Dona Nati and Anhui were loaded for trans-shipment at Cebu, but the two ships failed to break through the Japanese blockade. Ten of the inter-island ships were sunk by the Japanese or scuttled by their crews, resulting in the loss of 7,000 tons of food, petroleum, and other miscellaneous supplies.

The blockade-running program from Australia and the Netherlands East Indies was a dismal failure based on the quantity of supplies that were delivered to the battlefield. Of the 10,000 tons of rations which reached Mindanao and Cebu only about 1,000 tons, a four-day supply for the 100,000 soldiers and civilians on Bataan, reached Manila Bay. The other issue was the condition of the food when it finally reached the men on the battlefield. The food containers had broken open and the holds of the ships contained a miscellaneous pile of canned goods. It all had to be sorted and repacked before it could be issued to the troops. Most of the paper labels on the cans were destroyed so the food could not be identified without opening the cans. Flour and sugar sacks were broken open and the contents were spread amongst the cans. Shovels had to be used to get the supplies back into new sacks. Rotten onions and potatoes had to be destroyed. This all lead to delays in unloading and and a considerable loss of food.

The Japanese invasion of the Netherlands East Indies and Allied naval defeats in late February and early March of 1942 lead to Japanese naval and air forces patrolling the seas just north of Australia. This saw an end of the plans to run the Japanese blockade from Australia. General Hurley reported back to Marshall that it was almost impossible to send supplies to MacArthur in the Philippines.

On 2 March 1942, the Japanese captured Batavia and the Netherlands East Indies Government fled to the mountains. Generals Brett and Hurley agreed that it was no longer possible to continue the blockade running operations. They advised Marshall in a joint message.

They recommended that the Philippines be supplied from the United States via Hawaii through open sea areas in which the chance of reaching their destination was much greater than through narrow channels between island and blockade areas of the Southwest Pacific Area. As it turned out the War Department was already investigating this option following a strong message from General MacArthur on 22 February 1942.

MacArthur had pointed out, that the Coast Farmer had had no difficulty in penetrating the Japanese blockade, thus proving that the blockade was ineffective, a view he had held for some time. He suggested other routes be considered including one across the central Pacific from Hawaii. He requested that the whole operation be controlled from Washington rather than Australia where the commanders, "however able they may be, have neither the resources nor the means to accomplish this mission."

On the receipt of MacArthur's message, the supply experts in the War Department in Washington quickly investigated the problem. Maj. Gen. Brehon B. Somervell, then G-4, made his recommendations to General Marshall on 22 March 1942. Somervell declared that direct supply of the Philippines from Honolulu was "practical and desirable,". Somervell recommended that three WWI destroyers, converted to cargo vessels with a capacity of 1,500 tons each, be assigned to the blockade running mission. One destroyer could be sent straight away from New Orleans to Mindanao, and the other two could follow in early March 1942.

Somervell recommended that another three converted destroyers located in the Caribbean should be taken over by the US Army. Supplies were quickly sent to New Orleans and the extra destroyers were acquired. General Marshall advised the President and MacArthur of the extra efforts being organised to ship supplies across the Pacific directly to the Philippines.

A schedule was devised which included six sailing from the United States. The first destroyer was scheduled to leave New Orleans on 28 February 1942, and the last was to leave on 22 March 1942. Unfortunately there were delays in organising the cargoes and in determining the most suitable routes for the destroyers to travel to the Philippines.

The US Navy was unable to provide gun crews for the destroyers which delayed their departure until gun crews could be found. The first destroyer, which was originally due to leave on 28 February 1942, left New Orleans on 2 March 1942. The other two destroyers left during the rest of March 1942. They sailed through the Panama Canal to Los Angeles and then on to Honolulu. Three other converted destroyers left the west coast of the USA between 16 March and 11 April 1942. Once at sea it became clear that they could not reach the Philippines before the campaign ended and they were diverted to other areas.

This was the end of the program to run needed supplies through the Japanese blockade by surface ships. Submarines and aircraft had also been used to bring supplies to the Philippines. Ten submarines attempted to reach the Philippines. One submarine loaded with ammunition, was sent by Admiral Hart on Admiral King's instructions. A second submarine, with a cargo of 3-inch anti-aircraft ammunition, left Hawaii on 12 January 1942. General MacArthur advised that the two submarines arrived safely in February 1942. The second submarine reached the Philippine Islands from Hawaii on 3 February 1942. During the night of 4 February 1942, submarine USS Seadragon made it into Manila Bay and docked at Corregidor. Twenty one naval personnel were taken onboard. The submarine slipped out in the early morning of 5 February and set forth for Java. The evacuees disembarked at Surabaya on 11 February 1942, and the next day boarded a train for Bandung. The 21 naval personnel eventually made it through to Melbourne, Australia and became part of Fleet Radio Unit Melbourne FRUMEL, an Allied signals intelligence unit which operated from "Monterey" Apartments in Queens Road. One of the naval personnel was Lieutenant Rudolph J. Fabian, who became the Commanding Officer of FRUMEL.

Another three submarines travelled to the Philippines in February 1942. USS Swordfish arrived in the Philippines on 19 Feb 1942 to evacuate President Quezon. On 20 February 1942, USS Swordfish submerged in the entrance of Mariveles, Luzon, during daylight and then when it was safe to do so, she surfaced after dark to take on board the President Manuel Luis Quezon and his family and then sailed through the minefield and safely arrived at San Jose, Panay, Philippines, where the President and his party were transferred to a motor tender. USS Swordfish departed and went back to Manila Bay and embarked with the Vice President Osmena, the Chief Justice Santos and the High Commissioner Joaquin Elizalde of the Philippines, and USS Swordfish then set sail for US Navy Submarine Base in Fremantle, Australia and arrived there on the 9 March 1942.

USS Sargo carried one million rounds of 30-caliber ammunition to Mindanao and returned to Soerabaja with twenty four Boeing B-17 specialists from Clark Field.

They took on board 36 - 40 naval peresonnel, a group of code breakers who were capable of translating intercepted Japanese military communications. These code breakers apparently knew beforehand, the position of the Japanese destroyers that had earlier depth-charged the USS Permit a few days later, but did not tell the captain of USS Permit for fear that his taking another route to avoid them would reveal that the US had broken the Japanese code. 8 out of the 15 men from PT 32 left USS Permit for Corregidor. This may have been to make more room for the code breakers. USS Permit departed at 0345 hrs on 16 March 1942. The naval personnel made it back to Melbourne, Australia and became part of Fleet Radio Unit Melbourne FRUMEL.

In March 1942 only two submarines reached the Philippines. USS Seadragon was ordered to Cebu to carry load of rations to Corregidor. USS Seadragon was only able to unload only one fifth of her cargo of 34 tons or rations and almost 12,000 gallons of petroleum before being ordered out. On 8 April 1942, USS Seadragon picked up 20 naval personnel from Corregidor who made it through to Melbourne, Australia and became part of Fleet Radio Unit Melbourne FRUMEL.

USS Snapper, which was on the same mission as USS Seadragon, succeeded in unloading 46 tons of food and 29,000 gallons of diesel oil before leaving.

USS Swordfish made another trip leaving Fremantle on 1 April 1942 with a cargo of 40 tons of food. Unfortunately USS Swordfish was diverted and after a short patrol returned to Fremantle and unloaded her cargo. USS Searaven left Fremantle a day after USS Swordfish with 1,500 rounds of 3-inch antiaircraft ammunition. Unfortunately she was also diverted and did not deliver any of the ammunition to Corregidor.

USS Spearfish was on patrol off Lingayen Gulf at the start of May 1942, when it picked up twenty-five men and women, just before the surrender to the Japanese. The first US Navy Nurse to escape Corregidor and arrive in Australia was Ensign Ann Bernatitus who was one of a group of thirteen American women and other high ranking Navy and Army Officers and two stowaways who escaped in US Navy submarine USS Spearfish on Sunday 3 May 1942, approximately 48 hours before Corregidor fell to the Japanese. They arrived in Fremantle, Western Australia on 20 May 1942. Ensign Bernatitus was the only US Navy Nurse to escape to Bataan with Navy doctor Lieutenant Commander Carey M. Smith, a surgeon who she frequently worked with in the operating theatre.

The other women who were rescued by USS Spearfish were eleven US Army Nurses and Mrs. Margaret Janson, wife of a Naval officer. The nurses lived in a lateral tunnel off the main tunnel on Corregidor. They slept in three-decker beds welded together and had to leave the tunnel to get fresh air or to have a cigarette. The Army nurses included:-

When US Navy Nurse Ann Bernatitus arrived in Fremantle, she only had slacks, a shirt and a pullover. The Naval Officers who escaped on board USS Spearfish with Ann Bernatitus were:-

Commander Sackett was the commander of USS Canopus, a submarine tender and repair ship. Cdr. Deewal was senior ADC to Captain Hoeffel, Navy Commander in the Philippines. Cdr. Wilson was in command of the Navy's Civil Engineering Corps. Lt. Cmdr. Knoll was a meteorological officer with the Asiatic Fleet.

The US Army Officers to escape with US Navy Nurse Ann Bernatitus on board USS Spearfish were:-

The two stowaways on board USS Spearfish were Chester Judah and RM1c Bill Scott, USN. Chester Judah was formerly a Lieutenant in USNR who had been demobilised in Manila by verbal orders just prior to the evacuation of the city. He escaped to Corregidor and served with the US Army Transportation Service.

Another submarine from Hawaii tried to reach Corregidor with a cargo of 100 tons of medical supplies but was diverted when Bataan fell.

Submarines were only able to deliver the following supplies to the Philippines:-

A more substantial quantity of supplies was flown into the Philippines by aircraft from Australia and the Netherlands East Indies but it was limited to smaller items. There were ten air shipments, between 26 January 1942 and 3 May 1942. The first shipment was carried by an LB-30 Liberator and a B-24 Liberator. They carried 10,000 morphine tablets, other medical supplies, and ammunition. General MacArthur advised Marshall in February 1942 of the safe arrival of these two aircraft at Del Monte Airfield in Mindanao. One more shipment including 50,000 quinine tablets was made by air, before the Japanese bombed the hangar at Darwin Airfield, where the various supplies for the Philippines were stored. After the successful Japanese bombing raid, air transport operations to the Philippines were delayed until other supplies could be accumulated at Bachelor Airfield south of Darwin.

During March 1942, three more shipments by air were made to Mindanao on 11th, 16th, and 26th March 1942. Four B-17 Flying Fortresses left Australia on 11 March 1942, but only one managed to reach Mindanao with a cargo of 1,600 pounds of medical supplies, some signal equipment, and anti-aircraft spare parts. The group of B-17 Flying Fortresses that made the flight on the 16 and 17 March 1942 brought back General MacArthur, his family, and his senior staff to Australia. On 26 March 1942, 5,000 pounds of critical signal equipment and 1,160 pounds of medical supplies (including 1,000,000 quinine tablets) were flown into the Philippines by B-17 Flying Fortresses. They returned to Australia carrying President Quezon, his family and staff.

During April 1942, a large quantity of medical, signal, and ordnance equipment was flown into Mindanao. On 3 May 1942, the pilot of the last flight discovered that the airfield was held by the Japanese and he quickly turned around.

The air shipments from Australia led to a large quantity of critically needed supplies arriving on Mindanao. Some of these supplies made it to Corregidor by air, in much small aircraft which land at night on the navy airfield on the tail of the island. However the majority of the supplies could not be moved northward from Mindanao where they were urgently needed. Only a very small amount of the precious air shipments ever reached the men in the trenches.

After General MacArthur was evacuated towards the end of March 1942, General Wainwright assumed command in the Philippines. A determined effort was made to get more food, vitamin concentrates, and medicine to the men in the Philippines. Desperate and urgent messages were sent to Washington. Wainwright reported to Washington that he had 90,000 men on Bataan. Washington were in disbelief of this number and General Marshall asked for more specific figures. Washington had no idea that there were that many men on Bataan. Wainwright reported back that on Bataan and Corregidor alone, there were 110,000 troops which included naval elements and civilians subsisted by the Army.

Marshall knew that there was not the slightest chance that enough food for even a fraction of these 110,000 troops could be sent to the Philippines. However Marshall told Wainwright not to hesitate to ask for any assistance that was practicable. Wainwright advised General Somervell:- "Our desperate needs at the moment, are subsistence and limited medical supplies, particularly quinine sulphate."

In a separate message to the War Department Wainwright spoke of the high incidence of malaria and other diseases on Bataan and he asked for a month's supply of various drugs essential for the health of his men. Two days later he told Marshall that disaster was imminent unless supplies arrived in the near future. Wainwright advised that there was only enough food on Bataan to last until 15 April 1942. He advised that if supplies did not arrive by 15 April "the troops there will be starved into submission."

General MacArthur, by now in Melbourne, Australia, told Wainwright that he was confident that plans being made to break the Japanese blockade would ensure the arrival of enough food to last for an indefinite period and he categorically rejected any suggestion of surrender. "I am utterly opposed, under any circumstances or conditions to the ultimate capitulation of this command. If food fails." He directed Wainwright, "you will prepare and execute an attack upon the enemy."

In messages to Australia and Hawaii, General Marshall ordered that every means possible be used to send aid to the Philippines. All War Department supply agencies were advised of the urgency to get supplies through to the Philippines. The US Navy was requested to make submarines available. Lieutenant General Delos C. Emmons, the Hawaiian Department commander, was directed to send a ship loaded with 3,600 tons of concentrated food to Manila Bay as soon as possible. Marshall ordered "Spare no effort to push this movement. You are authorized to pay crew liberal bonus."

Within the week, a ship manned by a US Navy crew and loaded with 1,000,000 rations, 340 tons of meat, 20 tons of cigarettes, 158 tons of milk, 200 tons of rice, and 548 tons of ammunition left Honolulu for the Philippines. The journey was planned to take twenty two days, which turned out to be sixteen more than the Japanese were to allow the Bataan garrison.

MacArthur was asked to send small boats capable of running the Japanese blockade between Mindanao and Corregidor. Marshall told MacArthur to immediately send as much quinine as he could locate by air to Mindanao. US Navy Submarines would carry other supplies. Marshall directed that MacArthur "Report date of initial shipment by plane, type, and quantity of items." MacArthur advised that he had already sent all the quinine and vitamin concentrates that he was able to gather on short notice. MacArthur also advised that he was planning to send another shipment by air in the near future and he would station the aircraft in Mindanao to fly supplies northward.

On 30 March 1942 General Marshall asked Lt. Gen. Joseph W. Stilwell in China to investigate if he could send food to the Philippines by ship. Stilwell advised that he could not send any ships, but would try to send food on aircraft if he could. Bataan fell before Stilwell could implement a plan.

On 27 March 1942, Wainwright suggested to MacArthur, that a surprise attack be carried out against Japanese naval forces in Visayan waters and in Subic Bay using medium or heavy bombers flown from Australia to Mindanao. Wainwright believed that this would temporarily disrupt the blockade so that some of the food held at Cebu could be brought to Corregidor.

Wainwright suggested that ten B-17 Flying Fortresses be based at Del Monte Airfield and, "by making a round trip each day, deliver a few days reduced ration for Bataan troops."

MacArthur told Wainwright he would send the bombers at some time in the future. Within a few days Wainright had two 500 ton ships, one loaded with food and the other with fuel, waiting at Cebu and Iloilo. Other ships were standing by waiting to be loaded and ready to sail when the first B-17s attacked. During the voyage to Corregidor, the two ships would be covered by three P-40 Warhawks that were being assembled at Mindanao.

MacArthur told Wainwright on 4 April 1942 that the bombers were being readied and they would "be available sometime the following week."
Wainwright had eight ships fully loaded with rations and medicine, and laying at anchor at Cebu and Iloilo, waiting for the bombers that never arrived. The Japanese captured Cebu on 10 April 1942. The B-17s finally arrived at Mindanao the following day, too late to be able to help the soldiers on Bataan.

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