Amateur colour film shot by British journalist ( Sunday Times, Sunday Chronicle, Daily Graphic) William Courtenay showing scenes in the Philippines and the landings at Labuan Island, 'Operation Oboe Six', Brunei Bay, British North West Borneo 10 June 1945 with units of the 9th Australian Division.

US sailors in the Philippines (San Fernando?). Street scenes showing sailors counting cash and local boys waving a Japanese flag. General street scenes with US troops, civilians and various forms of transport (including horse drawn). A Philippino family look out from their home. Sign below a large church 'Farmacia San Fernando'. A large aircraft dump, containing mostly unidentifiable (Japanese) wreckage. A train leaves a station.

A number of take-offs and landings are seen, whose locations are not identifiable. Early morning at an airfield, with B 24 Liberators on the runway. Inside cockpit and air-to-ground shots. Aircraft lands at unknown airfield. Exterior of Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer with a flat tyre. The wing is jacked up. Various CU shots of the ground crew. Wrecked Japanese aircraft around the airfield. In the air again showing the (dark) interior of aircraft (a Liberator) with gunners at gun ports . Air-to-ground views of sea and islands. The film returns briefly to the airfield scene with the ground crew. The Liberator takes off, its port wheel is seen being raised. More scenes of islands, the aircraft flying much lower. A long plume of black smoke is seen coming from a small vessel (Japanese landing craft?) off one of the islands, as the waist gunner fires towards it, the tracers clearly seen. The aircraft passes low across the now fiercely burning vessel. A small bay with similar vessels pulled up on the shoreline, smoke billowing from several as the aircraft circles and the waist gunner fires towards them. Black smoke, flames and oil are seen coming from the various vessels. The aircraft flies low over a large-ish urban district - almost certainly Manila in the Philippines.

Coming into land Philippine Islands (?). Various airfield scenes showing US airforce personnel and two Consolidated B-32 Dominator bombers. Personnel crowd around 'Hobo Queen II' (as nose art). 'The Lady is Fresh' taxis in and the crew disembark. In the air again, very low level flying over sea and islands. Small sailing vessels and various village buildings are clearly visible. Back on the ground with a PB4Y-2 Privateer and its aircrew in CU. B-32 bombers lined up on the airfield. Further examples of nose art. CU of tiger's head on B25. Camera aboard unkown aircraft, eventually overflying a large city (probably Manila) and an extensive harbour showing shipping at anchor and wrecked. Aircraft lands. Sequence cuts to telephone linesmen suspended above a bridge (in Manila). A boat tour around the many sunken ships in the large harbour , likely to be Manila Bay. CU of a Rear Admiral US Navy with a Japanese poster having a US eagle superimposed on it - he places it above a sign reading, 'Admirals Country Keep Off'. A large group of locals walk across the airfield. Australians and locals play cards.

On board ship and Australians play cards on deck. With the assembled convoy at Morotai. A USN officer speaks to a group of sailors and other personnel. Assembled ships under way. MCU of William Courtenay on deck. MCU of ship-to-ship mail bag transfer to the Flagship, amphibious assault command ship USS Rocky Mount. The camera surveys the extensive convoy. Dawn in Brunei Bay NW Borneo. Ships open fire and extensive ship-to-shore barrage is seen, with explosions clearly visible all along the shoreline. The intense barrage continues with rocket and tracer fire, as landing craft assemble. The Landing Craft Support LCS 60 is seen giving support fire. Signal rockets are fired and landing craft (LCVPs and LVTs) move towards shore (the first wave headed ashore at 0906 hours 10 June) LS of beached landing craft with thick vegetation rising up behind. CU of three-man gun crew with 20mm Oerlikon AA gun on board ship. Camera on board landing craft (LCVP) looking towards bows. The craft manoeuvres around stern of LCI 34 and heads towards shore. As the craft nears shore, numerous landing craft pass to and fro and an LST is seen disembarking troops onto the beach. The camera craft beaches and the front ramp is lowered, presumably on Labuan. Ashore with soldiers of 9th Australian Infantry Division.

Notes

The PB4Y-2 Privateer and B-32 Dominator aircraft are relatively rare aircraft, both being deployed only in the closing phases of the Pacific War. Only fifteen of the B-32s saw action with one Philippine-based bomber group.

See MGH 4388 for further scenes on Labuan; MGH 4387 for Tarakan; MGH 4389 for Balikpapan.