Alamo Scouts

The Alamo Scouts, formally known as the U.S. 6th Army Special Reconnaissance Unit, played a significant role during World War II, operating in the Pacific Theater. This unit, associated with the Sixth United States Army, is particularly renowned for their heroic liberation of American POWs from the Japanese Cabanatuan POW camp in the Philippines in January 1945.

Origins

Activated on Fergusson Island in New Guinea on 28 November 1943, the Alamo Scouts were set up to execute reconnaissance missions and raider operations deep within enemy territories in the Southwest Pacific Theater. Lieutenant General Walter Krueger, the head of the U.S. Sixth Army, personally oversaw this unit. Concerned with previously received inaccurate intelligence, Krueger envisioned the Alamo Scouts as an elite, volunteer-driven group capable of diving deep behind enemy lines to source information crucial to the Sixth Army. The intriguing name, "Alamo Scouts", ties back to General Douglas MacArthur's christening of Krueger's command as "Alamo Force". Moreover, Krueger's personal connection to San Antonio, Texas – home to the historic Alamo Mission – likely influenced the unit's name. Unlike regular units, the Alamo Scouts operated without a defined table of organization & equipment (TO&E).

Training and Achievements

Over the course of their two-year operation, the Alamo Scouts were recognized for their commendable feat of freeing 197 Allied prisoners in New Guinea. Their assignments in the New Guinea Campaign were primarily short-term intelligence and reconnaissance tasks. But, as the Allies made headway into the Philippines, the unit’s responsibilities broadened. They began organizing large-scale guerrilla operations, observing roads, hunting Japanese flag officers, and partaking in direct-action operations, with the Cabanatuan POW Camp liberation being a hallmark mission. In this endeavor, alongside the 6th Ranger Battalion and Filipino guerrilla factions, the Scouts were instrumental in rescuing 513 POWs during a brave night onslaught. They masterfully conducted preliminary reconnaissance and offered tactical assistance during this raid. Two members even ingeniously posed as Filipino rice farmers to covertly monitor the camp from a close distance, evading Japanese detection. The Alamo Scouts also took 84 Japanese soldiers as POWs in this operation, suffering only two of their men being wounded.

Remarkably, outside of their standard operations, Alamo Scouts also served as General Krueger's personal bodyguards. They were tasked with the dire responsibility of eliminating the general if capture seemed inevitable.

Although the Alamo Scouts were prepping for the invasion of Japan by the end of the war, operations ceased with the war's conclusion. Their exemplary track record boasts 110 missions behind enemy lines without a single fatality.

The Alamo Scouts disbanded in Kyoto, Japan, in November 1945.

Legacy

In a nod to their outstanding wartime services, the Alamo Scouts were bestowed the Special Forces Tab in 1988, integrating them into the current United States Army Special Forces lineage.

The Cabanatuan raid, executed in collaboration with the Rangers and Filipino guerrillas, has been captured in cinematic renditions. Edward Dmytryk's 1945 film "Back to Bataan" and John Dahl's 2005 film "The Great Raid" are both centered around this historic event.

To honor the Alamo Scouts and the US Army Rangers, the Philippine Army in 1950 named their elite force the "Scout Ranger Regiment".