Landing at Saidor - Conclusion

Conclusion

Krueger reported that " Task Force tried hard to block these escape routes. But the torrential rain, the ruggedness of the country with its impenetrable rain forests and jungles and impassable rivers, and the resistance of enemy troops pushed forward from Madang to guard the trails leading eastward, made this effort fall short of success". Australian commanders were critical. In a letter to Blamey, Berryman, who had visited Krueger in an attempt to ensure that the Japanese would not escape, wrote that "about 8,000 semi-starved, ill-equipped and dispirited Japanese bypassed Saidor. It was disappointing that the fruits of victory were not fully reaped, and that once again the remnants of the 51st Division escaped our clutches." Lieutenant General Sir Leslie Morshead of New Guinea Force reported to Blamey that Task Force appeared not to have made "any appreciable effort" to cut off the retreating Japanese. Sadly for the men of the 32nd Infantry Division, many of these Japanese would later have to be fought again under less advantageous circumstances in the Battle of Driniumor River. Krueger officially terminated Operation, of which was a part, on 10 February 1944. All that remained now was the final act of the Huon Peninsula campaign: the capture of Madang.