The Task Force 34 message that left the strait open

A Third Fleet dispatch described a battleship, cruiser, and destroyer force as being formed and then announced that the fleet was heading north against the Japanese carriers. Seventh Fleet inferred that Task Force 34 remained at San Bernardino Strait, but the force did not exist there. Kinkaid's request for confirmation was not received by Halsey until hours later, when a useful answer was already too late. Reporting problems and the withdrawal of Independence's night-search aircraft compounded the ambiguity, allowing the Japanese Center Force to emerge against escort carriers already fighting for survival.