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Location
Located in Quezon City, near Manila. Also known as 'Camp Murphy Airfield', 'Manila East Airfield' and 'Zablan Airfield'.
Construction
Prewar US Army airfield. Originally named Camp Murphy. The original runways were a pair of intersecting sod runways adjacent to the parade ground at Camp Murphy.
Prior to the war, it was turned over to the Philippine Army Air Corps (PAAC), where it based Boeing P-26 fighters. In 1935, while serving on MacArthur's staff, Major Dwight Eisenhower learned to fly through the PAAC at Zablan.
Naming Honors
Renamed 'Zablan Field' after Major Porfirio Zablan, who died in an airplane accident in the mid 1930s.
Japanese Usage
The Japanese enhance the airfield building two intersecting runways further to the south-east in an inverted L shape. One runway was E-W while the other was N-S.
Japanese Units based at Murphy
29th Sentai (Ki-44, Ki-84)
Postwar
After the war, it was renamed Camp Emilio Aguinaldo (first president of the Philippines). Since highway 54 (old name of EDSA) split the Camp Murphy reservoir, the other half located on the easter side of HIghway 54 was later named Camp Crame (after Brig Gen Rafael Crame, the first Filipino PC chief), where the Philippine Constabulary was headquartered. Now its the HQ of the Philippine National Police
Today
Renamed Zablan Airfield in honor of Major Porfirio Zablan, PAAC pilot who died in a plane crash. Disused as an airfield today, and known as Camp Aguinaldo. It is the national headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), located close to the national headquarters of the Philippine National Police (PNP).
The former Japanese runways forms the roads of White Plains Avenue and a portion of Katipunan Ave, just in front of White Plains subdivisions. If you happen to pass by Santolan Ave, the two concrete water towers fronting the entrance are original since the 1930s.
Tony Feredo adds:
"I have a photo of Zablan taken from the air which shows the entire compound and reservoir plus a sketch of the Japanese enhanced runways."
References
Thanks to Tony Feredo for additional information.
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