Engineer Aviation Units in the Southwest Pacific Theater During WWII

The thesis of this research is that the U.S. Army aviation engineer units played a crucial role in the success of General Douglas MacArthur’s island hopping campaign in the Southwest Pacific Theater at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels. Allied victory depended on seizing lightly defended enemy territory and neutralizing enemy strongpoints from Australia to the Philippines through the following pattern: conduct air and naval bombardment, land the assault forces, defeat any Japanese units in the area, and construct airfields and base facilities. This research demonstrates that aviation engineer units rapidly constructed these airbases and provided the necessary facilities for land-based aircraft so that carrier-based aircraft could focus on protecting the navy’s fleet.