Far East Shortly after word of the
attack on Pearl Harbor reached the Philippines on December 8, 1941, Brereton urged immediate air attacks against Japanese bases on
Formosa in accordance with the Rainbow 5 war plan and Brereton's own aggressive nature. Multiple Japanese landings on Luzon between December 10 and December 23 forced the defenders to withdraw into
Bataan peninsula. After the 14 surviving bombers of the B-17 force escaped to
Darwin, Australia just ten days into the war, and with only a handful of fighters remaining, FEAF was broken up as an organization on December 24 and moved by individual units into the peninsula. Brereton and his headquarters were ordered by MacArthur to evacuate south. With only two hours' notice, Brereton left Manila by
PBY Catalina for Java, where he was picked up by a B-17 and transported to
Batchelor Field, Australia, on December 29. The next day he dispatched 11 of the bombers to
Malang on Java to conduct operations. In early 1942, Brereton was named Deputy Air Commander, under
Royal Air Force Air Marshal
Sir Richard Peirse, of ABDAIR, a component of the short-lived
ABDACOM unified command of Allied forces in Southeast Asia and the Southwest Pacific. He also resumed active command of FEAF. Brereton arrived on Java on January 10, 1942, and except for a nine-day period at the end of January when he acted as commander of United States Army Forces In Australia, remained until February 23, despite requesting relief from command on February 8 over "honest differences" with Peirse and demoralizing criticism from the British commander of ABDACOM, Gen.
Sir Archibald Wavell. Brereton received a cable from Gen. George C. Marshall on February 22 giving him complete freedom of action in the evacuation of himself and his headquarters from Java, including choice of destination, and he left for
India via
Ceylon on February 24 before orders from Arnold to organize an air force in Australia could reach him. In June 1942, in response to the German threat to the
Suez Canal in North Africa, he was transferred to
Cairo with the best bomber aircraft and crews then in India.
Middle East In June 1942, Brereton was appointed commander of
United States Army Middle East Air Forces. He formed a provisional bomb group from 19
Consolidated B-24 Liberators of the
Halverson Detachment and the nine B-17s he had brought from India, but it was forced to fall back to
Lydda in
Palestine. With the arrival of B-24s of the
98th Bomb Group at the end of July 1942, USAMEAF began to attack German depots in
Libya, the chief of which was
Tobruk, and ship convoys as far away as
Navarino Bay in Greece. His small air force was reinforced by the
57th Fighter Group (P-40s) and
12th Bomb Group (
B-25s) in July and August, and Brereton drew heavily on the experiences of Coningham's
Western Desert Air Force. While the heavy bombers continued to operate from Palestine, the mediums and fighters moved forward as the battle line advanced. On October 22, 1942, the U.S. Desert Air Task Force was formed with Brereton in command to support the
British offensive at El Alamein and gain experience for arriving USAAF staff officers. By October 25, the small force under Brereton had flown 743 heavy bomber sorties and 259 medium bomber, dropping 806 tons of bombs. , August 1, 1943. The heavy bombers used the campaign as a proving ground for tactics, particularly pattern bombing against maneuvering ships. When the headquarters of the U.S.
Ninth Air Force was activated in Egypt on November 12, 1942, it replaced USAMEAF and all its temporary components, with Brereton still in command, and the heavy bombers returned to bases in Egypt. Beginning November 21, 1942, an advanced landing ground at
Gambut was used to stage strategic bombing missions against
Tripoli and
Naples. From January 31, 1943, Brereton had collateral duty as commanding general of the
U.S. Army Forces in the Middle East (USAFIME) when Maj. Gen.
Frank M. Andrews was reassigned following the
Casablanca Conference. Among the missions undertaken in 1943 by the heavy bomber units under Brereton's command was the minimum-altitude bombing of oil refineries at
Ploieşti,
Romania as part of
Operation Tidal Wave. Intelligence estimates predicted a 50% loss among the attacking B-24s, and in fact 30% (54 of the 178) were destroyed or written off after bad weather forced the pilots to fly at a higher altitude and into the path of German radar. The raid fell short of bomb damage expectations but the bombing was very accurate and heavy damage (but not decisive) was inflicted that would have been greater had not many bombs failed to explode. Since the refineries had not yet been operating at full capacity when they were bombed, the Germans were able to get it there quickly by putting the undamaged portions online. Air Force historian Dr. Roger G. Miller wrote:
Ninth Air Force In January 1943, the "
Combined Bomber Offensive" plan was approved by the
Combined Chiefs of Staff, calling for a force of 2,700 heavy bombers and 800 medium bombers based in England to attack German targets on the continent around the clock. In April, Maj. Gen.
Ira C. Eaker, commanding the
Eighth Air Force, submitted a plan to the USAAF requesting creation of a new tactical air force within the Eighth AF of 25 medium and light bomb groups to carry out the medium bomber portion of the CBO plan. His proposal was investigated and endorsed by a committee from Headquarters USAAF under
Brig. Gen. Follett Bradley. At the same time but unrelated to the CBO, Gen.
Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed a consolidation of the Ninth and
Twelfth Air Forces in the
Mediterranean Theater, and suggested that Brereton be reassigned to become deputy commander of the Allied tactical air force commanded by Coningham. General
Henry H. Arnold instead offered Brereton a choice of assignments on July 31: a command in the United States, a position of responsibility in the Cairo headquarters of the new combined air force, or command of the new tactical air force being formed as part of Eighth Air Force. Brereton "with utmost eagerness" chose the new command in England. The
Quadrant Conference in August, however, called for a combined tactical air force initially based in England that would eventually support Allied ground operations on the continent, the
Allied Expeditionary Air Force. The AEAF would be distinct from strategic bombing and commanded by Air Marshal Sir
Trafford Leigh-Mallory. The
Ninth Air Force under Brereton would become the USAAF component of the new force while Coningham was brought back from Italy to command the RAF component,
Second Tactical Air Force. In October the air units of the Ninth in Africa were transferred to other air forces and the several command headquarters of the Ninth sent to England. The Ninth was re-activated on October 16 using the medium bomber component of the VIII Air Support Command as its nucleus, and Brereton made his headquarters at
Sunninghill Park, Berkshire. A temporary administrative "super-command" under Eaker ("USAAF in the UK", which in January was replaced by the
United States Strategic Air Forces) stood up at the same time to coordinate the administrative activities of the Eighth and Ninth, but when the AEAF was activated on November 1, Brereton took his operational orders from it. The Ninth Air Force was organized into three combat commands that employed all tactical functions of combat airpower: bomber, fighter and troop carrier.
IX Bomber Command was an amalgamation of VIII ASC's medium bombers and two headquarters elements from the "old" Ninth, including the previous IX Bomber Command.
IX Fighter Command was created out of the transferred headquarters of the Ninth AF and was basically a training organization for the subsequent tactical air commands.
IX Troop Carrier Command was activated in England under a caretaker commander to organize and train its new units for
airborne operations as they arrived in theater. Two tactical fighter commands,
IX and
XIX Air Support Commands, were added to the organization on November 29, 1943. From the start Brereton benefited from a strong command team for his diverse tactical commands. Brig. Gen.
Samuel E. Anderson took command of IX Bomber Command. Brig. Gen.
Elwood R. Quesada was assigned to command IX Fighter Command, and after Ninth Air Force moved to the continent, also IX TAC. On February 3, 1944, Brig. Gen.
Otto P. Weyland arrived in England to take command of XIX TAC. To handle the troop carrier command, Brereton acquired Brig. Gen.
Paul L. Williams, experienced in directing airborne operations in North Africa, Sicily and Italy, to take over IX TCC on February 25, 1944. By the end of May, its strength was nearly 185,000, the Ninth's
order of battle included 45 flying groups, 160 squadrons and 5,000 aircraft. Organizationally it had added an engineer command, an air defense command, and two tactical air commands, so that by
D-Day it had received and trained 11 medium bomb groups, 19 fighter groups, 14 troop carrier groups, and a photo-reconnaissance group. The number of personnel assigned to the Ninth Air Force was nearly 220,000, a total greater than that of the Eighth Air Force.
Operation Overlord Brereton was promoted to lieutenant general in April 1944 as his units began a campaign of planned attacks against airfields (April 1), railway centers and rolling stock (April 1), coastal batteries (April 13), and bridges (May 7) in France preparatory to
Operation Overlord, the invasion of
Normandy by the Western Allies on June 6, 1944. When Leigh-Mallory proposed that an "Allied Tactical Air Force" be created to command both tactical air forces after D-Day, and that Coningham command it in addition to 2TAF, Brereton objected on the basis that the Ninth would be made subordinate to its RAF counterpart. Instead Coningham was assigned to command a temporary Advanced Headquarters of AEAF on the continent active during the initial phase of the campaign, where he and Brereton made a formidable command team for tactical air operations during the buildup of the Allied bridgehead. The
American airborne landings in Normandy by IX Troop Carrier Command were the first United States combat operations of
Operation Neptune, (the assault operation for Overlord). 13,100 paratroopers of the U.S.
82nd Airborne and
101st Airborne Divisions made night parachute drops early on D-Day, followed by nearly 4,000 glider troops flown in by day in six missions. The divisions were assigned to support the
U.S. VII Corps in capturing
Cherbourg (to provide the Allies with a port of supply) by blocking approaches threatening the amphibious landing at
Utah Beach, capturing exits off the beaches, and to establishing crossings over the
Douve River to assist the merging the two American beachheads. The assault did not succeed in blocking the approaches to Utah for three days. Numerous factors played a part, most of which dealt with excessive scattering of the drops. Despite this, German forces were unable to exploit the chaos. Many German units made a tenacious defense of their strongpoints, but all were systematically defeated within the week. A follow-up operation was scheduled in which one wing of IX TCC would deliver the
British 1st Airborne Division to
Évrecy on June 14 to support a breakout attempt by British armored forces (
Operation Wild Oats) but was so perilous that airborne and troop carrier commanders agreed to it only reluctantly. Crews were being briefed on June 13 when a strong
German counterattack at Villers Bocage forced cancellation of the drop. Seven fighter groups moved to the continent shortly after the invasion, and by August all of the Ninth's fighter groups were operational in beachhead. Brereton had learned from Coningham and the Western Desert Air Force, and made a slogan of the Ninth that all units must "Keep Mobile".
Operation Cobra In mid-July 1944, the
First United States Army became stalled in its operations in the Norman
bocage. Gen. Omar Bradley implemented
Operation Cobra, a plan to end the near-stalemate by using massive air power to punch a hole in the strong German defenses near
Saint-Lô, allowing the VII Corps to break through into the French interior. The key to the plan, at the insistence of Leigh-Mallory, was the use of heavy bombers to
pattern bomb a small area of the defenses immediately before the start of the offensive, preceded by fighter-bomber attacks of IX TAC, and followed by attacks in the German rear by 11 groups of medium and light bombers of the Ninth Air Force. At a conference at AEAF headquarters at
Stanmore on July 19, air commanders expressed serious reservations about the safety of U.S. troops, particularly their proximity to the target area, resulting in tactical compromises that ultimately proved inadequate. Poor weather delayed the attack until July 24, and a request for postponement another 24 hours was denied. After the aircraft began taking off, Leigh-Mallory vacillated before recalling the mission, and while some fighter-bombers completed their missions, the medium bombers did not take off from their English bases. The heavy bombers, however, were already in the air and did not receive the recall. Finding a severe ground haze over the target, most returned to base as instructed in their field orders, but others attacked, resulting in the bombing of American troops. The next day, July 25, Operation Cobra was finally launched as planned with a "maximum effort" by the air forces that included 559 sorties by fighter-bombers and 480 by medium and light bombers of the Ninth Air Force. Fighter-bomber attacks of the immediate front lines by eight groups of IX TAC, to a depth of , were generally excellent, but as air planners had predicted, created smoke and dust that obscured aiming points for the bombers at higher altitudes. The second day of heavy bomber attacks also resulted in further accidental bombings of American troops, particularly the
47th Infantry of the
9th Infantry Division and the
120th Infantry of the
30th Infantry Division. The latter was also attacked by B-26 bombers of the Ninth that dropped their bombs short of the German lines. In both days of bombing, approximately 3% of bombs fell within American lines, Although not apparent at first, the air attacks succeeded in their objective of disrupting German formations and destroying their communications, facilitating the breakthrough. Brereton was awarded the
Legion of Merit for his performance in commanding the Ninth AF during 1944. Eisenhower nominated Brereton on July 16 to command the organization, based on his extensive and diverse combat command experience at the air force level, over Lt. Gen.
Frederick Browning, commanding the
British I Airborne Corps, despite Browning being four months senior. After first suggesting (and having rejected) that the airborne troops be made a part of Ninth Air Force, Brereton accepted the command and was appointed August 2, 1944, as commander of the "Combined Airborne Headquarters", reporting directly to
SHAEF. He turned over command of Ninth Air Force to Maj. Gen.
Hoyt S. Vandenberg on August 8 and made his new headquarters at
Sunninghill Park. Brereton recommended that the organization be called the
First Allied Airborne Army and despite personal friction between them, Browning became his deputy. On August 25 the IX Troop Carrier Command was assigned to the Airborne Army.
Operation Market Garden After alerts and cancellations of several airborne drops to cut off retreating German forces, Eisenhower on September 10 tasked Brereton with planning Operation Market Garden. A previous smaller airborne operation called Comet had been developed but then cancelled by Montgomery. Brereton developed a large three-division airborne assault in the
Netherlands to be called
Operation Market, coordinated with a simultaneous ground offensive called
Operation Garden. The objective of the combined
Operation Market-Garden was to seize a bridgehead across the
Rhine River at
Arnhem. The anticipated date of the operation (dependent on good flying weather) was September 14. Because that date was so close at hand, the plans of a large cancelled drop,
Operation Linnet, were revived and adapted to Market. Brereton, however, made key changes to the Linnet plan, first in restricting glider missions to "single-tows", that is, one tug aircraft towing one glider, whereas Linnet had contemplated a double-tow mission. A combination of poor weather, extensive resupply missions to the pursuing Allied armies, and anticipation of last-minute airborne drops cancelled virtually all training for IX TCC in August, as a consequence of which Brereton believed that untried and unpracticed double-tows were too hazardous. Brereton also decided that the operation, protected by massive air support from the RAF and the AAF, would take place in daylight, to avoid the dispersion experienced during both the
British and American airborne landings in Normandy in June. His decision was finalized when weather and other delays pushed back D-Day for the operation to September 17, which was the
dark moon. Finally, the shorter hours of daylight in September caused Brereton to refuse authorization for two lifts per day, and as a result of the limited number of troop carrier aircraft, the air movement of the Army required three consecutive days to complete. Weather intelligence had indicated four consecutive days of clear weather, but after the first day, operations were delayed or postponed because of fog, low clouds, haze, and other conditions of poor visibility over the bases in England, the planned routes to the Netherlands, and the drop/landing zones. Airborne operations on the first two days had been successful to an unexpected degree, but nevertheless the overall operation had begun to fall seriously behind schedule, and only grew worse as the weather deteriorated. The cancellation of a reinforcement lift of an
American glider infantry regiment and a
Polish paratrooper brigade on September 19 proved crucial to failure of the operation.
Operation Varsity On October 17, 1944, after the completion of Market Garden, the staff of the First Allied Airborne Army learned that Gen. Bradley hoped to cross the Rhine River at
Wesel, Germany, and on November 7 completed a study for an airborne operation by two divisions,
Operation Varsity, to support the endeavor. A number of factors delayed the target date to January 1, 1945, and the
Battle of the Bulge further disrupted the schedule. After the Allied counter-offensive in January, Eisenhower planned an assault over the Rhine in the same area, and Operation Varsity was revisited on February 10 with few changes in the outline plan. Its objective was to seize the low wooded heights overlooking the Rhine to prevent German artillery from disrupting bridging operations. , FAAA deputy, and American officers of the Allied Air staff watching a large scale exercise by the
British 6th Airborne Division in the West Country. The Anglo-Canadian
21st Army Group, commanded by
Field Marshal Sir Bernard Montgomery, would cross the Rhine in
Operation Plunder. Varsity would support the crossings by landing two airborne divisions of the Airborne Army's
US XVIII Airborne Corps by parachute and glider behind the Rhine, near Wesel and
Hamminkeln. A second U.S. airborne division was added to the original plan, but when it became apparent that the Airborne Army barely had enough troop carriers for two divisions, the third division was placed in reserve and then released altogether from the operation on March 6. The consequences of the poor weather during Operation Market led Brereton to plan for the delivery of both divisions in a single lift. On February 18, to establish a command post for the operation, Brereton moved the headquarters of First Allied Airborne Army to
Maisons-Laffitte, near Paris. In late February Montgomery set the date for Plunder/Varsity as March 24, which SHAEF approved on March 8. On the afternoon of March 23, Brereton and Coningham, commanding all the cooperating air forces, made the final decision to launch Varsity when weather officers predicted clear weather the next day. Although the Germans had anticipated the assault and prepared positions for 10,000 defending troops, the unprecedented size of the airborne operation overwhelmed the defense. Using 300 double-tow glider sorties, a troop carrier group of 72
Curtiss C-46 Commandos, and three parallel ingress lanes, nearly 17,000 troops were concentrated in the objective area in less than four hours, using 540 planeloads of paratroopers and 1,348 gliders. ==Post-war career and legacy==