Island Infernos: The US Army's Pacific War Odyssey, 1944

by John C. McManus

For General MacArthur, the Philippines now beckoned like the Emerald City of Oz. But no matter how much he yearned to be done with New Guinea, alas, New Guinea was nowhere near done with him. Though the success of Operation Reckless sped up his Philippines timetable, it did not ameliorate the necessity for subsequent operations both east and west of his growing Hollandia and Aitape bases. What was more, the myriad challenges of operating on the sprawling tropical island, and its many islet adjuncts, remained considerable. Devoid of any infrastructure, engineers and Seabees had to build from scratch every mile of road, every square foot of airfield or warehouse or building or dock, all the while making liberal use of local coral, sand, gravel, and lumber.