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25
March 45
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RCT
alerted for a probable jump at Alicante Airfield, Negros to secure town
of Saravia and link-up with 185th RCT (40th Div.) in vicinity of Imbang
River Bridge.
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5
April 45
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FO#
10 issued and then jump cancelled the same day.
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6-7
April 45
|
3rd~Bn.,
2nd Bn. and units of 462nd PFA
and 161st Parachute Engineers moved from Mindoro by plane and boat to
Negros. The 1st Bn., C Btry and elements of D Btry, 462nd PFA
remained on Mindoro. The 503d PRCT on Negros was now under the command
of Ma General Rapp Brush, commanding general of the 40th Inf Div.
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8
April 1945
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Major
General Rapp Brush assigned the 503d's zone of operation and the primary
mission of destroying all hostile forces within its sector and to
protect the north (left) flank of the 185th Infantry RCT. These
operations are to be conducted in the portion of Negros known as Negros
Occidental:
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9
April 1945
|
503d
assault forces crossed the initial point at 0800 with 11 officers and
1670 enlisted men. PHASE I (as designated in the following account of
the Negros mission) began as the 503d began to sweep E and SE from Silay
along the Tokaido Road. This phase, which would last approximately 32
days, was marked by assault after assault on Japs who were dug in
deep in well prepared defenses. The fighting developed across terrain
which began as rolling plains of grassland and ended in sparsely vegetated
high ridges and deep valleys. The Japanese "held the high ground"
at all times.
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25
April 1945
|
The
1st Bn. joins the 2nd Bn. and 3rd Bn on Negros. The author presumes that
the remaining Btrys of the 462nd PFA did the same.
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12
May 1945
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PHASE
I ends. The 3rd Bn., 503d PRCT is placed under the tactical control of CO
of the 185th RCT.
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13
May 1945
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PHASE
II begins and will continue for approximately 27 days. 503d RCT activity
is directed NE and E from Murcia and begins in a steamy, hot and humid
rain-forest terrain and ends in a forested terrain on top of a cold,
clammy and wet mountain. Disease is the major enemy during this phase.
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26
May 1945
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3rd
Bn. 503d RCT returned to control of CO of the 503d PRCT.
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9
June 1945
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PHASE
II ends.
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10
June 1945
|
PHASE
III begins and will continue for approximately 28 days. The 2nd Bn. will
be stretched out over 60 miles from Pulupundan in the southwest to
Fabrica in the north. Major duties will be to guard bridges, ammo dumps
and other installations. There will be some motorizing patrolling. The
3rd Bn. is located in and around the town of Fabrica in the northern
section of Negros Occidental. During this phase the 1st Bn. will be
piece-meal shifting its operations to the eastern part of Negros
Occidental with initial action around San Carlos and then expanding operations
southward to Dumaguete in Negros Oriental.
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8
July 1945
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PHASE
III ends.
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9
July 1945
|
PHASE
IV begins with concentration of 2nd and 3rd Bns. of the 503d PRCT
in northern part of Negros in vicinity of Fabrica. This phase
will consist of continuous patrolling in strength, many times over a
time frame of several days. These operations will be conducted east of
the mountains towards which we had been pushing in PHASE I.
In-depth patrolling will be carried out of the valleys whose
rivers flowed in to Himaagon River.
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6
August 1945
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Atomic
bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan.
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9
August 1945
|
Atomic
bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan.
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15
August 1945
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PEACE
DECLARED
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30
August 1945
to
14
Sept. 1945
|
Almost
7,000 Japanese troops on Negros surrender at different locations across
the island of Negros. PHASE IV ends.
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