USAFFE
United States Army Forces
in the Far East 1941

Actual 1941 TO&E

by Greg Novak

Having seen what they were to look like on paper, the reality at the start of the war looked far different. The outbreak of the war caused units to be called up that were neither trained nor equipped. It was easier to just run the actual TO&E rather than attempt to list all of the notes for it, here it is:

1st and 2nd Division, Trained; Morale: 8
All other divisions, Green; Morale: 7

Headquarters, with 1 command stand, 1 command car and 1 staff telephone truck
2-3 Infantry Regiments, each with:

    Regimental Headquarters, with 1 command stand and 1 command car
    Regimental Mortar Company, with 1 3" Stokes mortar stand (ds)
    Regimental AT Company, with 1.50 HMG (ds)
    Regimental Supply Company, with 1 support stand and 1 supply truck with field kitchen

    2-3 Infantry Battalions, each with:

      Battalion Headquarters, with
        1 command stand
        1 support stand
        1 supply truck with field kitchen

      3 Rifle Companies, each with 3 infantry stands
      Machinegun Company, with: 2 MMG stands

1 Artillery Regiment, with:

    Regimental Headquarters, with:
      1 command stand
      1 command car
      1 staff telephone truck
      1 support stand

    1-2 Battalions, each with:

      Battalion Headquarters, with
        1 command stand
        1 spotter stand
        2 command cars
        1 support stand
        1 supply truck with field kitchen

      1-2 Batteries, each with

        1 gun crew stand (ds)
        1 medium truck
        1 75L33 field guns

    0-1 Battalion, with

      Battalion Headquarters, with:
        1 command stand
        1 spotter stand
        2 command cars
        1 support stand
        1 supply truck with field kitchen

      1-2 Batteries, each with: 1 gun crew stand (ds) 1 medium truck 2.95" mountain guns

1 Engineer Battalion, with:

    1 command engineer stand
    4-5 engineer stands
    1 medium supply truck

1 Quartermaster Company, with

    1 command stand
    2 support stands
    4 medium supply trucks

Notes

1. The 2nd Philippine Infantry Division was formed from the Philippine Constabulary, the island's paramilitary polical force. Its infantry regiments were the 1st, 2nd, and 4d Constabularies.

2. The following table is designed to show, as well as one can, the size of the Philippine Army on Luzon as raised in 1941. For infantry, the left number is the number of regiment formed of that type with the division, the right hand number is the number of battalions. For artillery, the left number is the number of battalions formed by the division the right hand number is the total number of batteries present.

DivisionInfantryArtillery
1st Regular2/6*0/0
2nd Regular3/90/0
11th2/62/4
21st3/93/6
31st3/91/2
41st3/93/6
51st3/91/2
71st2/6*1/2
91st2/6*1/2
One regiment of each of these divisions remained on the southern islands.

3. After their first combat and subsequent regrouping, upgrade the Philippine Army units one quality level.

4. Reduce the HE effect of the Stokes mortar stand to 2.

5. In addition to the elements of the divisions mentioned above, there were a number of odier units. These include the following:

201st and 202nd Combat Engineer Battalions (Green; Morale: 7), each with:

    1 command engineer stand
    5 engineer stands
    1 medium supply truck

301st Field Artillery Regiment (Regular; Morale: 9), with:

    1 Artillery Regiment, with:
      Regimental Headquarters, with
        1 command stand
        1 command car
        1 staff telephone
        1 support stand
        1 medium supply truck
      2 Battalions, each with:
        Battalion Headquarters, with:
          1 command stand
          1 spotter stand
          2 command cars
          1 support stand
          1 baggage supply truck
          1 supply truck with field kitchen

        2 Batteries, each with:

          1 gun crew stand (ds)
          1 tractor
          I 155L36 field gun

Notes

1. This regiment was formed from the cadre which was to have sailed south to form the 101st Artillery Regiment, but which was prevented from doing so by the start of the war. Additional gunners were drafted from the regulars of the Philippine Army, and the 92nd Coastal Artillery (PS).

The remainder of the USAFFE was made up of the already listed units of the Philippine Departinent, as well as additional units sentoutfrom the United States. (As the the Philippines were still officially the property of the United States, at least until July 4,1946, units of the National Guard could be sent to serve there.) In early September, MacArthur was offered the National Guard's 41st Infantry Division, but he declined the offer, preferring to use the shipping space for other items. However, it is very amazing to see the number of National Guard units that deployed to the Philippines from September to November of 1941, as well as those which were on the way when the war started.

The Philippine Division, like all American Army units at this time, was caught in the changeover as the organizations and weapons of World War I were being replaced with the newer weapons and organizations needed to fight World War Il. The new M-1 rifle had been issued to all of the Infantry elements of the division, and 60mm mortars had arrived for the new weapons platoons. The 81mm mortar was showing up in limited numbers to replace the old Stokes, and the 37L53 AT guns equipped the regimental AT companies of all three infantry regiments.

On the down side, while the needed number of 60mm mortars had arrived for the Philippine Division, ammunition for this new weapon had not (and indeed never) arrived in the islands. The supply of 81mm mortar ammunition was liniited, and all too often 3" Stokes ammunition had to be used in its place. The division's greatest problem was it's lack of manpower.

As of July 31, 1941, when the official strength of an infantry regiment was to number 3,340 officers and men, the three infantry regiments of the division only numbered 6,644 officers and men in total. The organization of all three regiments in terms of CD would be:

Philippine Division Infantry Regiment, 1941
with: 31st Infantry Regiment, Regular; Morale: 9
45th & 57th PS, Experienced; Morale: 9

Regimental Headquarters, with:

    1 command stand
    1 command car
    1 staff radio truck
    1 band
    1 light truck

Regimental AT Company, with

    1 gun crew stand
    1 37L53
    1 light truck

Regimental Supply Company, with:

    3 support stands
    1 general supply truck
    1 baggage supply truck
    1 supply truck with field kitchen

3 Infantry Battalions, each with:

    Battalion Headquarters, with
      1 command stand
      1 command car
      1 support stand
      1 baggage supply truck
      1 supply truck with field kitchen

    3 Rifle Companies, each with:

      1 command infantry stand
      1 infantry stand
      1 MMG stand

    Machinegun Company, with

      2 MMG stands
      1 81mm/3" mortar stand (ds)

Notes

1. The 81mm/3" mortar stands treat 81mm mortar ammunition as a special ammunition type. When firing 3" mortar rounds, reduce the HE effect to 2.

2. The 31st Infantry/Philippine Scouts use the following firing data:

TypeROFEff. Range
Infantry/Cavalry110"
LMG210"
MMG2 15"
Support
Gun Crew		14"

3. The 1st Battalion, 43rd Infantry (PS) was the title given to cover two detachments of the Scouts that did not serve as part of the Philippine Division. Organization was as above.

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© Copyright 1993 by Greg Novak.
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