Colonel Jesus A. Villamor is an alumnus and had an Associate of Arts degree from De La Salle University in 1935.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia --
Jesus Antonio Villamor was a Philippine pilot who fought the Japanese in World War II.
One of seven children, Jesus studied commerce at De La Salle College (now DLSU-Manila) in Manila, hoping to pursue a business career. In 1936, he joined the Philippine Army Air Corps (PAAC) Flying School and was sent to the United States for training, and after three (instead of the usual four) years, he found himself in B-17 and B-22 cockpits as part of the US Air Force's Strategic Bombing Squadron.
After a variety of postings upon his return to the Philippines, Villamor was chosen to lead the 6th Pursuit Squadron (now 6th Tactical Fighter Squadron) shortly before the Japanese invasion of the Philippines in December 1941. In the skies above Zablan and Batangas Fields, against Japanese Zeros, his squadron of P-26 Fighters held their own against fierce enemy in dogfight after dogfight.
Capt. Villamor [second from left] prepares to receive the Distinguished Service Cross
from Gen. Douglas MacArthur.
He was twice cited by the United States Army for bravery, receiving the Distinguished Service Cross for actions on December 10, 1941 and an Oak Leaf Cluster in lieu of a second award of the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) for actions on December 12, 1941, making him the only Filipino to receive the DSC twice. After his squadron was destroyed, Villamor continued his war against
the Japanese as an intelligence officer. On December 27, 1942 Villamor
was part of a team inserted by the submarine USS Gudgeon (SS-211) into
the Philippines.
<< "Anyone happening to glance towards the American fleet-type submarine USS Gudgeon (SS-211) during the night of Sunday, 27 December 1942, as she lay moored to the dock at Fremantle, Australia, might have observed an unusual sight. Seven mess boys boarded the submarine, saluted the colors, and then immediately proceeded down the hatch. No sooner were they below decks than Gudgeon, captained by LCDR William Stovall, Jr., slid away from the dock and quietly maneuvered out to sea. The “mess boys” were in fact disguised Filipino soldiers and intelligence officers, led by Major Jesus Villamor, U.S. Army. Two days earlier, Gudgeon’s crew had loaded her with a ton of equipment specially ordered for the mission their passengers were about to embark upon. Gudgeon’s top- secret task: to deliver the soldiers and their
gear to Mindanao and Panay, two key Philippine islands, to help bolster the Philippine guerilla forces resisting the Japanese occupation, without being detected. After departing Fremantle, Gudgeon set out towards her destination on Mindanao, running on the surface but diving regularly only to maintain her trim and to avoid Japanese patrols. As they approached the archipelago, Major Villamor informed LCDR Stovall that there was a change in plans. Villamor had apparently received intelligence just before departing Fremantle that Japanese patrols had increased in the original landing area. The new destination was on the island of Negros. >>
The first night, high winds and seas prohibited approaching the original landing site, so the submerged Gudgeon moved quietly along the coast into the next day, scanning for a new location. That night, another likely choice was negated after a number of mysterious lights suddenly appeared on the beach. Subsequently, one of Villamor’s men identified them as Filipino night fishermen. Finally on the third night, 14 January 1943, a deserted beach was identified, and Villamor successfully loaded his men and supplies into the rafts and landed ashore." [From http://www.navy.mil/navydata/cno/n87/usw/issue_23/saviors.htm]
"One of the most historical records about (the Municipality of) Hinoba-an >>
(Negros Occidental) was the landing of Captain Jesus Villamor aboard US submarine 'Gudgeon' at Catmon Bay (on 14 January) 1943 which led to the liberation of the Philippines by the American forces." [From http://elgu.ncc.gov.ph/ecommunity/hinobaan-negoc]
Establishing a chain of direct communication from the Philippines with
General Douglas MacArthur in Australia, he coordinated the activities
of various guerilla movements in Luzon, Mindanao and the Visayas.
Villamor acted as the "clearing house" for information, which helped
the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) to map out a
strategy to liberate the Philippines.
<< "Manila, the Philippine Islands. In one of the last pictures (taken in)
the Philippines before Manila fell to the Japs, General Douglas
MacArthur (left) is shown pinning a Distinguished Service Cross on
Captain Jesus A. Villamor, of the Philippine Air Force, for heroism in
the air." [From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]
For his bravery as a pilot and ingenuity as an intelligence officer, President Ramon Magsaysay awarded Lieutenant Col. Villamor the Medal of Valor, the highest Philippine military bravery decoration, on January 21, 1954. The Philippine Air Force's
principal facility in Metro Manila [originally called Nichols Field
during the time of American occupation] was renamed Col. Jesus Villamor
Air Base in his honor.
"As early as 1922, Camp Nichols served as a base of the US Army. In 1949, a few years after World War II, Camp Nichols was renamed Nichols Air Base. Batas Pambansa No. 166 changed the name of Nichols Air Base to Villamor Air Base honoring a courageous Filipino pilot." [From the EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE 1999 ANNUAL AUDIT REPORT ON THE PHILIPPINE AIR FORCE]
From http://www.dlsu.edu.ph/offices/sps/rotc/activities.asp --Gawad Mag-aaral is a yearly event held in honor of the student leaders who have made remarkable contributions to the Lasallian community. In this assembly, credit is given not merely to those who have brought recognition to the University and to the country. Students who have rendered service to the various offices under the Student Personnel Services (SPS) are acknowledged together with those who have successfully demonstrated the Lasallian trademark of excellence in leading their respective organizations. For the members of the Corps of Midshipman Officers, the Colonel Jesus A. Villamor Award is the most significant because this award is especially intended for the Most Outstanding Student Military Leader.
COMMENT
From: ALAN CABALQUINTO
Date: Dec 9, 2006 1:46 PM
Col.
Villamor is buried in the Libingan ng Mga Bayani in Fort Bonifacio.
All deceased Medal for Valor awardees are interred in a section of the
Libingan reserved for these heroes who earned the Philippines' highest
decoration for bravery in action. Nichols Air Base which is the
Headquarters of the Philippine Air Force was renamed Colonel Antonio
Villamor Air Base in his honor, I just don't know the exact date. To
challenge the Japanese Zero fighter, which in 1941 could outmaneuver
the best US fighter with a P-26 fighter which was circa 1930s was
courageous already. Despite this disadvantage, Capt Villamor managed
to shoot down two Zeros before his squadron was destroyed in the air
and on the ground when some of them landed after running out of fuel or
ammunition. This heroic action was accomplished by the Filipino pilots
whereas some American squadrons were not even able to take off from
Clark Air Base. The whole squadron of B-17 bombers in Clark was
destroyed on the ground, parked side by side as if on display. The
Filipino base was then in Zablan Airfield, in what is now Corinthian
Gardens up to SM Megamall.
"General MacArthur Salutes at Zablan Airfield. The photograph was taken in July 1941 during a Philippine Army and Philippine Army Air Corps (PAAC) ceremony. Zablan Airfield, then known as Murphy Field, was a prewar US Army airfield used by the Philippine Army and Philippine Army Air Corps, where it based its Boeing P-26 fighters. No longer used as an airfield today, a portion of Zablan Airfield is located in present day Camp Aguinaldo."From: ALAN CABALQUINTO
Date: Mar 9, 2007 11:00 AM
Subject: Jesus Villamor
The following are excerpts from the book "Filipino Heroes of World War II" by Col. Uldarico S. Baclayon.
The air actions on the 10th (Dec 1941) provided the first occasion
for a demonstration of Filipino courage and heroism. The intrepid
Filipino pilots met the enemy bomber formation and engaged its fighter
escorts in a dog fight. After losing two aircraft, the Japanese
formation turned tail. For his "conspicuous example of courage and
leadership at a great personal hazard beyond the call of duty," the Distinguished Flying Cross was awarded to Captain Jesus Villamor, the first Filipino to be decorated in World War II.
As a result of the air battles over Batangas and Manila, the
Philippine Army Air Corps was cited by General MacArthur for "excellent
performance in interception missions against heavy odds." For their
actions on the 12th, Captain Jesus Villamor and Lt Jose Gozar were each
the recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross. (This was Villamor's second medal).
On 21 January 1943, Lt Col Jesus Villamor landed on Negros with
the first infiltration party to be sent to the Philippines by General
MacArthur. Lt Col Villamor hastened the consolidation of the guerrilla
forces and, with the reestablishment of the military districts, assumed
command of the 7th Military District. Although already a war hero
because of his exploits as a fighter pilot, Lt Col Villamor raced to
greater glory by contacting and encouraging the organization of more
guerrilla units in the Philippines. This particular activity of his
came to the knowledge of the Japanese and made him the target of
several enemy expeditions in Negros. Only by his smart maneuvers and
by the furious resistance put up by the Negros guerrillas were the
Japanese prevented from capturing him. for his most outstanding
service in the resistance movement in the Philippines, Lt Col Villamor
was given the highest award, the Medal of Valor. His invaluable contribution to the resistance movement is well described in the following citation:
"With the fall of Bataan and Corregidor to the Japanese
Imperial Forces early in the summer of 1942, radio communication with
other parts of the Philippines by General MacArthur's Headquarters in
Australia, was rendered impossible. But the few men who escaped from
the Philippines and were able to reach Australia brought the welcome
news that the guerrillas were operating against the Japanese which was
among the first organized in the Philippines. He led the people of
Negros to support the resistance movement. His excellent performance
and devotion to duty in the face of insurmountable odds encountered in
the early days of the resistance movement and the efforts of the
Japanese to capture him and nip in the bud the resistance all over the
Philippines. Although by then, General Headquarters, Southwest Pacific
had begun to receive messages from Philippine guerrillas, MacArthur was
not sure that the messages actually came from them. To clear all
doubts, MacArthur decided to get in touch with members of the
resistance movement in the Philippines and for this purpose he enlisted
the services of Lt Col Villamor to return to the islands.
Notwithstanding the knowledge that such a mission was fraught with
danger and hardships, Villamor volunteered to lead the first Allied
Intelligence Bureau mission to the Philippines as of 27 December 1942
aboard the US submarine "Gudgeon." Despite the heavy hand of the
Japanese all over the country at that time, Villamor successfully
established an intelligence and secret service net throughout the
islands. He established a chain of communications, both local and to
Australia, many of whom were still in direct with Gen MacArthur's
Headquarters during the Philippine landings in 1944; coordinated with
guerrilla leaders and as a result, an eventual escape route to
Australia to accommodate evacuation of selected individuals to
Australia, in the interest of future planning, was arranged, while
petty differences among guerrilla leaders were settled amicably, was
able to develop and train a potent organization for subversive
activities, propanganda, limited resistance and sabotage against the
Japanese, established the rudiments of the intelligence and service net
upon the "Cell" system for mutual protection, and successfully made an
intelligence survey throughout Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao to obtain
information about Japanese political, military and civil intentions,
strength, and dispositions. Altogether, these accomplishments of Lt
Col Villamor had enabled General MacArthur's Headquarters to map out
the strategy that was to be employed later in the liberation of the
Philippines from the enemy. In accomplishing these tasks of
incalculable strategic importance, Lt Col Villamor had once again
manifested daring resourcefulness and long-sustained courage in the
face of tremendous odds that had characterized his exploits in the
Philippine skies during the early phase of the war." (General Orders No. 499, Headquarters, National Defense Force 21 January 1954).
