24^th Infantry Division

The 24th Infantry Division entered combat in April 1944 during the Hollandia operation, the 19th Infantry Regiment and 21st Infantry Regiment landing at Tanahmerah Bay on April 22 while the 34th Infantry Regiment came ashore at Humboldt Bay. Despite torrential rains and marshy terrain, the 21st Infantry overran the Hollandia airdrome and linked up with the 41st Infantry Division on April 26, securing key airfields that advanced the Allied position along the New Guinea coast while bypassing major Japanese concentrations farther east. The 34th Infantry was later detached to Biak Island, where it seized the Boroke and Sorido airdromes on June 20.

The Victory Division took part in the Leyte landings on October 20, 1944, the 21st Infantry landing in the Panaon Strait area while the 34th Infantry assaulted the Pawing area. The 34th Infantry withstood a fierce Japanese counterattack the following day, and both regiments pushed inland into the Leyte Valley by October 26. The 21st Infantry then took over Breakneck Ridge from the 34th, carrying the crest on November 12 after fighting through a raging typhoon.

In January 1945, the division landed at Lingayen Gulf on Luzon before being reassigned to Mindanao. On April 17 it landed at Parang and drove inland along Highway 1, with operations spreading along multiple axes including advances toward Davao and along the Mindanao River basin.

The division continued offensive operations across Mindanao through the summer, overcoming scattered but determined resistance. Its campaign reflected the shift to wide-ranging operations aimed at destroying remaining Japanese forces in the southern Philippines.