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Russell Volckmann guerilla leader and US Army SF pioneer

A concept trailer about then US Army Major Russell Volckmann, who refused to heed the surrender of the Philippines in WW2. Instead he and Capt. Donald Blackburn headed on a 130 mile trek towards the mountains of Northern Philippines. Over a three year period from 1942-1945 he and Blackburn had to battle disease, starvation, bandits, traitors, collaborators, and other threats. Fortunately they eventually managed to contact General Douglas MacArthur in Australia by radio and got supplied by submarine. At its peak, their USAFIP-NL guerillas numbered almost 20,000 strong and covered almost 15,000 square miles, mostly in the rugged mountains of Northern Luzon. They were also instrumental in the battle that brought about the surrender of General Tomoyuki Yamashita, commander of all enemy forces in the Philippines. For his service, Volckmann was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) and the Distinguished Service Medal (DSM). After WW2, Volckmann and Blackburn were tapped to develop the US Army doctrine on special forces and unconventional warfare that eventually led to the formation of the US Special Forces. The John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School honors Russell Volckmann with Volckmann Hall, which houses the headquarters of 1st Special Warfare Training Group (Airborne), the Warrant Officer Institute, and the Special Forces Officer Course.