Monday, April 24, 2023

Ever heard of Squadron 201? Also known as the Aztec Eagles, who were 33 hand picked Mexican pilots and 270 support personnel who arrived in Manila Bay in April 1945, 4 months before VJ day





the Aztec Eagles flew P47 missions alongside the U.S. Air Force during the liberation of the Philippines in 1945.

https://lonestarflight.org/events/aztec-eagles-hangar-talk/ and  https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/117449/museum-remembers-aztec-eagles says 795 combat sorties, and 2000 hours combat air time, and dropped 1,457 bombs on the Japanese

In early July 1945, 58th Fighter Group members deployed to Okinawa, Japan, and Escuadron 201 members assumed responsibility for air operations in their area. The airmen provided close-in-ground support to the advancing U.S. 25th "Tropic Lightning" Division and Philippine Army units on Luzon, and seven-hour long-range fighter strikes on strategic Japanese targets on the island of Taiwan.

The following report of Missions completed by the 201st Mexican Fighter Squadron was supplied by MEAF pilot E. Alfonso Velasco Jr.: 53 ground support missions flown in support of American troops in Luzon from 4 June to 4 July 1945; 37 training missions from 14-21 July 1945 (including missions of transporting new aircraft from Biak Island, New Guinea); 4 fighter sweeps to the island of Formosa, 6-9 July 1945; 1 dive bombing mission against the Port of Karenko, Formosa, 8 August1945; 1 convoy escort mission in the Sea North of the Philippines, 26 August 1945.


Though that was not more than a note in a history book, compared to most other countries involved in the European or Pacific theaters of war defending the European countries, and Pacific islands, and preventing the Germans and Japanese from conquering neighboring countries and expanding their empires, Mexico provided more strategic resources to the United States than any other Latin American nation, including vital minerals such as copper, zinc, mercury, cadmium, graphite and lead. To do this, it underwent a period of industrial and economic development during and after the conflict that became known as the “Mexican Miracle.”

I'm unaware of what the central and South American countries did during WW2, or how any of them assisted in the effort or maybe even stayed out of the war, I know that for the longest time the USA was staying out of it on the European front, and provoked Japan into attacking Pearl Harbor (by depriving them of international trade/natural resources is the way I heard it, oil, steel, the sorts of things a country needs to begin an offensive war on it's neighbors, Korea and Manchuria I think it was)




It remains Mexico's only official military unit in the history of Mexico to engage in combat outside of its national borders. Pancho Villa's raids into Arizona were not sponsored by the govt of Mexico, and the helicopter incursion in 2014 that shot at USA Border Patrol was officially ignored https://www.businessinsider.com/mexican-helicopter-fires-border-patrol-arizona-2014-6 because neither govt wanted that shit show kicked off into a battle over the USA Mexico border. https://time.com/2933940/mexico-us-border-patrol-helicopter/

1 comment:

  1. I rate them as one of the coolest squadrons name, Aztec Eagles. And thank's Gods they did not name it Quetzalcoatl, I'm just unable to say that.

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