Note 19 — Chapter XVII · Battle of the Airstrips

At 0600, the 287th Field Artillery Observation Battalion, northwest of Burauen, saw elements of the Japanese 16th Division crossing the main road south of the battalion’s position and heading east toward the Buri field. The battalion immediately relayed this information to the XXIV Corps headquarters.19 After crossing the road, the enemy moved into the swamp near the airfield. One Japanese unit of about 15 men, armed with a machine gun, stationed itself at a Filipino shack 300 yards west of the highway in order to cover the road.20