New information panels mark 80th anniversary of 'The Big Drop' between Welford and Boxford in 1944 newburytoday.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from newburytoday.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
In 1945, U.S. Paratroopers Rescued 2,000 Prisoners From a Japanese Internment Camp
Carried out in a virtually flawless manner, the daring Los Baños Raid is remembered as a textbook operation.
Here s What You Need to Know: Almost 50 years after the raid, General Colin Powell, while chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sent a letter to the 11th Airborne Division association stating, “I doubt that any airborne unit in the world will ever be able to rival the Los Baños prison raid. It is the textbook airborne operation for all ages and armies.”
On January 9, 1945, after almost three years, General Douglas MacArthur and the United States Army returned to the Philippine island of Luzon, landing at Lingayen Gulf on the northwest coast. After establishing a fortified beachhead and moving inland a few miles, MacArthur formed two “flying columns” of cavalry, armor, and artillery and ordered them to go toward the Philippine capital of Manila.