Post by VeeVee on Aug 25, 2008 17:15:50 GMT -5
Villamor Air Base recalls hero’s valor
www.philstar.com/index.php?Opinion&p=49&type=2&sec=25&aid=2008052384
ROSES & THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Just last month, Manette Manalang-Villamor, the widow of World War II hero and ace pilot, Col. Jesus Antonio Villamor, died in Catonville, Maryland, USA at the age of 85. She is survived by her children, Rita, Diana and Antonio. A contributing columnist to the influential Washington Post in Washington D.C., and a cum laude graduate at the Marquette University’s School of Journalism in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Mrs. Villamor was known for publishing the wartime memoirs of her husband in a book entitled “They Never Surrendered”. She also wrote a children’s book which honored the women who served in Vietnam. She was also a key supporter of the WWII Filipino war veterans in advocating for benefits granted by the American government.
Few people know that the Villamor Air Base was named in honor of her legendary Filipino pilot husband, Col Jesus A. Villamor, who fought during World War II. Historical accounts of the PAF details his heroic acts when, 12 hours after it bombed the Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Air Force attacked Clark Field, Pampanga, annihilating McArthur’s Far East Air Force, the second most powerful retaliatory force to Japanese aggression in Southeast Asia. All 18 P-40B fighter planes were set ablaze and all but three of the parked four-engined Flying Fortresses were destroyed by zero fighters. Overmatched in number, firepower, speed and quality of aircraft, Villamor’s gallant squadron-flying six obsolete Boeing P-26 fighters ‑ managed to stall the Japanese air offensive in two famous dogfights over Manila and Batangas, shooting down two enemy fighters and one bomber. All but one of the amazing Filipino pilots, 1st Lt. Cesar Basa, survived the epic aerial battle.
Villamor, who went on to do crucial intelligence work in preparation for the return of the Allied forces from Australia, would receive the Distinguished Service Cross; his men, the US Silver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster. General MacArthur’s official communiqué on the action was flattering: “In Batangas, six Filipino pilots, undaunted by the tremendous odds against them, attacked two enemy formations of 27 planes each, as they roared over the airfields of Batangas. Before the enemy aircraft broke formation and disappeared in the clouds, the Filipino pilots accounted for two planes. The six Filipino pilots who took part in the operations at Batangas included Captain Jesus Villamor and Lieutenants Antonio Mondigo, Godofredo Juliano, Geronimo Aclan, Manuel Conde and Cesar Basa.” After the war, on January 21, 1954, Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay awarded Lt. Col. Villamor with the Medal of Valor in Malacañang. This award is the equivalent of the highest American award, the Congressional Medal of Honor. The Gold Cross Award with the Bronze Anahaw Leaf were also bestowed on the valiant pilots of the 6th Pursuit Squadron.
In Wikipedia narrations, it was stated that Villamor continued his war against the Japanese as an intelligence officer. On December 27, 1942 Villamor was part of a team inserted by the submarine USS Gudgeon (SS-211) into the Philippines. Establishing a chain of direct communication from the Philippines with General Douglas MacArthur in Australia, he coordinated the activities of various guerilla movements in Luzon, Mindanao and the Visayas. Villamor acted as the “clearing house” for information, which helped the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) to map out a strategy to liberate the Philippines.
Col. Villamor died in the United States and is buried at our Libingan ng Mga Bayani. The airbase that was named after him is a major thoroughfare for transport and helicopter flights. It is also the military base that the Philippine president uses when departing for foreign or domestic trips abroad, though foreign departures are mostly done at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Col. Villamor’s name and heroic deeds will forever be remembered. His intelligence and courage provides a model for our soldiers of today.
www.philstar.com/index.php?Opinion&p=49&type=2&sec=25&aid=2008052384
ROSES & THORNS By Alejandro R. Roces
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Just last month, Manette Manalang-Villamor, the widow of World War II hero and ace pilot, Col. Jesus Antonio Villamor, died in Catonville, Maryland, USA at the age of 85. She is survived by her children, Rita, Diana and Antonio. A contributing columnist to the influential Washington Post in Washington D.C., and a cum laude graduate at the Marquette University’s School of Journalism in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Mrs. Villamor was known for publishing the wartime memoirs of her husband in a book entitled “They Never Surrendered”. She also wrote a children’s book which honored the women who served in Vietnam. She was also a key supporter of the WWII Filipino war veterans in advocating for benefits granted by the American government.
Few people know that the Villamor Air Base was named in honor of her legendary Filipino pilot husband, Col Jesus A. Villamor, who fought during World War II. Historical accounts of the PAF details his heroic acts when, 12 hours after it bombed the Pearl Harbor, the Japanese Air Force attacked Clark Field, Pampanga, annihilating McArthur’s Far East Air Force, the second most powerful retaliatory force to Japanese aggression in Southeast Asia. All 18 P-40B fighter planes were set ablaze and all but three of the parked four-engined Flying Fortresses were destroyed by zero fighters. Overmatched in number, firepower, speed and quality of aircraft, Villamor’s gallant squadron-flying six obsolete Boeing P-26 fighters ‑ managed to stall the Japanese air offensive in two famous dogfights over Manila and Batangas, shooting down two enemy fighters and one bomber. All but one of the amazing Filipino pilots, 1st Lt. Cesar Basa, survived the epic aerial battle.
Villamor, who went on to do crucial intelligence work in preparation for the return of the Allied forces from Australia, would receive the Distinguished Service Cross; his men, the US Silver Star with Oak Leaf Cluster. General MacArthur’s official communiqué on the action was flattering: “In Batangas, six Filipino pilots, undaunted by the tremendous odds against them, attacked two enemy formations of 27 planes each, as they roared over the airfields of Batangas. Before the enemy aircraft broke formation and disappeared in the clouds, the Filipino pilots accounted for two planes. The six Filipino pilots who took part in the operations at Batangas included Captain Jesus Villamor and Lieutenants Antonio Mondigo, Godofredo Juliano, Geronimo Aclan, Manuel Conde and Cesar Basa.” After the war, on January 21, 1954, Philippine President Ramon Magsaysay awarded Lt. Col. Villamor with the Medal of Valor in Malacañang. This award is the equivalent of the highest American award, the Congressional Medal of Honor. The Gold Cross Award with the Bronze Anahaw Leaf were also bestowed on the valiant pilots of the 6th Pursuit Squadron.
In Wikipedia narrations, it was stated that Villamor continued his war against the Japanese as an intelligence officer. On December 27, 1942 Villamor was part of a team inserted by the submarine USS Gudgeon (SS-211) into the Philippines. Establishing a chain of direct communication from the Philippines with General Douglas MacArthur in Australia, he coordinated the activities of various guerilla movements in Luzon, Mindanao and the Visayas. Villamor acted as the “clearing house” for information, which helped the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) to map out a strategy to liberate the Philippines.
Col. Villamor died in the United States and is buried at our Libingan ng Mga Bayani. The airbase that was named after him is a major thoroughfare for transport and helicopter flights. It is also the military base that the Philippine president uses when departing for foreign or domestic trips abroad, though foreign departures are mostly done at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
Col. Villamor’s name and heroic deeds will forever be remembered. His intelligence and courage provides a model for our soldiers of today.
