Q&A · 3:22:06-3:22:35

Saving Philippine air power buys only weeks

Preserved aircraft can delay the campaign and disrupt logistics without overturning the wider balance in the Philippines.

Question

How much longer could the Philippines hold if US air power were not destroyed on the ground?

Short answer

Probably only a couple of additional weeks, although surviving bombers could still damage Japanese logistical areas.

Notes

Saving the aircraft from destruction on the ground would extend the Philippines campaign only modestly, perhaps by a couple of weeks. The B-17 could damage Japanese logistical areas but would not provide a decisive solution. Air power would improve local resistance and impose additional costs. It would not solve the Philippines' larger operational position.