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The 5th AF participated in the defense of the Philippines after Pearl Harbor. Netherlands Indies. The 5th AF participated in operations in Papua, New Guinea, Netherlands East Indies, and the liberation of the Philippines.
Visit our 5th Air Force Honor Project with rosters of servicemen who served in the groups of the 5th.
19th Bombardment Group
22nd Bombardment Group
2d Combat Cargo Group
312th Bombardment Group
317th Troop Carrier Group
345th Bombardment Group
348th Fighter Group
35th Fighter Group
374th Troop Carrier Group
375th Troop Carrier Group
380th Bombardment Group
38th Bombardment Group
3rd Air Commando Group
3rd Bombardment Group
417th Bombardment Group
433rd Troop Carrier Group
43rd Bombardment Group
475th Fighter Group
Air Forces 1941-1947
Constituted as Philippine Department AF on 16 Aug 1941. Activated in the Philippines on 20 Sep 1941. Redesignated Far East AF in Oct 1941, and Fifth AF in Feb 1942. This air force lost most of its men and equipment in the defense of the Philippines after 7 Dec 1941. Later in Dec 1941 headquarters and some crews and planes moved to Australia, and in Jan 1942 they were sent to Java to help delay Japanese advances in the Netherlands Indies. The Fifth did not function as an air force for some time after Feb 1942 (the AAF organizations in the Southwest Pacific being under the control of American-British-Dutch-Australian Command and later Allied Air Forces). Headquarters was remanned in Sep 1942 and assumed control of AAF organizations in Australia and New Guinea. The Fifth participated in operations that stopped the Japanese drive in Papua, recovered New Guinea, neutralized islands in the Bismarck Archipelago and the Netherlands East Indies, and liberated the Philippines. When the war ended in Aug 1945 elements of the Fifth were moving to the Ryukyus for the invasion of Japan. After the war the Fifth, a component of Far East Air Forces, remained in the theater, and from Jun 1950 to Jul 1953 it was engaged in the Korean War.
Commands. V Bomber: 1941-1946. V Fighter: 1942-1946.
Stations. Nichols Field, Luzon, 20 Sep 1941; Darwin, Australia, Dec 1941; Java, Jan-Feb 1942; Brisbane, Australia, 3 Sep 1942; Nadzab, New Guinea, 15 Jun 1944; Owl, Schouten Islands, 10 Aug 1944; Leyte, c. 20 Nov 1944; Mindoro, Jan 1945; Clark Field, Luzon, Apr 1945; Okinawa, Jul 1945; Irumagawa, Japan, c. 25 Sep 1945; Tokyo, Japan, 13 Jan 1946; Nagoya, Japan, 20 May 1946; Seoul, Korea, 1 Dec 1950; Taegu, Korea, 22 Dec 1950; Seoul, Korea, 15 Jun 1951; Osan-Ni, Korea, 25 Jan 1954; Nagoya, Japan, 1 Sep 1954-.
Commanders. Brig Gen Henry B Clagett, 20 Sep 1941; Maj Gen Lewis H Brereton, Oct 1941-Feb 1942; Lt Gen George C Kenney, 3 Sep 1942; Lt Gen Ennis C Whitehead, 15 Jun 1944; Maj Gen Kenneth B Wolfe, 4 Oct 1945; Maj Gen Thomas D White, 16 Jan 1948; Lt Gen Earle E Partridge, 6 Oct 1948; Maj Gen Edward J Timberlake, 21 May 1951; Maj Gen Frank F Everest, 1 Jun 1951; Lt Gen Glenn O Barcus, 30 May 1952; Lt Gen Samuel E Anderson, 31 May 1953; Lt Gen Roger M Ramey, 1 Jun 1954-.
Campaigns. World War II: Philippine Islands; East Indies; Air Offensive, Japan; China Defensive; Papua; New Guinea; Northern Solomons; Bismarck Archipelago; Western Pacific; Leyte; Luzon; Southern Philippines; China Offensive. Korean War: UN Defensive; UN Offensive; CCF Intervention; 1st UN Counteroffensive; CCF Spring Offensive; UN Summer-Fall Offensive; Second Korean Winter; Korea Summer-Fall, 1952; Third Korean Winter; Korea Summer-Fall, 1953-
Decorations. Distinguished Unit Citations: Philippine Islands, 8-22 Dec 1941; Philippine Islands, 7 Dec 1941-10 May 1942; Papua, [Sep] 1942-23 Jan 1943. Philippine Presidential Unit Citation.
Insigne. On an ultramarine blue disc, the Southern Cross consisting of five stars in white between a flaming comet, the head consisting of a white five pointed star, charged with a red roundel, within a blue disc outlined in white, its tall consisting of three white streamers; all surmounted by an Arabic numeral "5," golden orange. (Approved 25 Mar 1943.)
Data from Air Force Combat Units of World War II By Maurer, Maurer, Published 1986
a. Status, readiness, and supply of US armed forces
Fifth Air Force's origin story is itself a stark readiness case study: activated in the Philippines barely three months before Pearl Harbor as the Philippine Department Air Force, it was catastrophically outmatched by the Japanese onslaught that began December 8, 1941 (local date), losing most of its aircraft and personnel within weeks and effectively ceasing to function as an organized air force for much of early 1942. Its September 1942 remanning in Australia represents a genuine institutional rebuilding from near-total loss, and its subsequent transformation into one of the Pacific War's most effective tactical air forces over the following three years illustrates how dramatically American aircraft production, personnel replacement, and logistics capability expanded across the war's middle years.
b. Development of fighting men and command structures
Fifth Air Force's operational command structure, built around V Bomber Command and V Fighter Command, matured considerably under General Kenney's leadership beginning in September 1942, incorporating the innovative low-level attack tactics and close air-ground coordination that became hallmarks of Southwest Pacific air operations. The command's steady westward progression, from Australia and New Guinea bases through Nadzab, the Schouten Islands, Leyte, Mindoro, and ultimately Clark Field and Okinawa, tracked the broader Allied advance and required continuous redevelopment of forward operating infrastructure, aircrew logistics, and command relationships as the theater's geography shifted dramatically over three years of sustained offensive operations.
c. Prominent personnel and their role with the organization
General George C. Kenney stands as the central figure in Fifth Air Force's wartime history, rebuilding the command from its near-destruction in the Philippines into one of the most tactically innovative air forces of the war, closely coordinated with General MacArthur's ground campaign strategy. General Ennis C. Whitehead, who assumed command in June 1944 after extensive prior service as Kenney's deputy, carried this operational philosophy through the campaign's climactic final phase, the liberation of the Philippines and preparations for the planned invasion of Japan. Fifth Air Force's continued postwar existence and service in the Korean War further underscores the lasting institutional significance of the command structure and operational lessons built during its World War II Pacific campaign.
Q1: When was the Fifth Air Force established?
A1: Fifth Air Force originated as the Philippine Department Air Force, activated September 20, 1941, redesignated Far East Air Force in October 1941, and finally Fifth Air Force in February 1942.
Q2: What happened to Fifth Air Force in the defense of the Philippines?
A2: Fifth Air Force lost most of its men and equipment defending the Philippines after the December 7-8, 1941 Japanese attacks, with remaining headquarters and crews evacuating to Australia and then Java.
Q3: Who commanded Fifth Air Force for most of the war?
A3: Lieutenant General George C. Kenney commanded Fifth Air Force from September 1942, later succeeded by Lieutenant General Ennis C. Whitehead in June 1944.
Q4: What major campaigns did Fifth Air Force fight?
A4: Fifth Air Force fought in the Philippines, the East Indies, Papua, New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, and the liberation of the Philippines, later serving in the Korean War as well.
Q5: What unit citations did Fifth Air Force earn?
A5: Fifth Air Force earned Distinguished Unit Citations for its defense of the Philippine Islands in December 1941 and for the Papua campaign of 1942-43, plus a Philippine Presidential Unit Citation.
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