by Destroyer Squadron 2 with the light cruiser and destroyers , , , , , and , which was tasked with minelaying operations in San Bernardino Straits. Landing and aftermath The Kimura Detachment landed at Legazpi on the morning of 12 December without opposition, as the nearest American forces were over away. By 09:00 they were in control of both the airfield and the railroad. The following day, the Japanese naval covering force withdrew to Palau. The Philippine 51st Division sent an engineering battalion south into the Bicol Peninsula to destroy bridges and to prevent railroad equipment from falling into the hands of the Japanese. The first American counterattack was a strafing attack on 12 December by two fighter aircraft of the Far East Air Force on the newly captured airstrip at Legazpi, killing three Japanese. This was followed by an attack by three Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers, which destroyed nine Japanese aircraft on legazpi runway. However, only one of the B-17s made it back to its base at Del Monte Airfield. Once the city of Legazpi was secure, Kimura sent his forces north on Highway 1 to capture the city of Naga, the capital of Camarines Sur Province on 18 December. Continuing north from Naga and repairing bridges as they advanced, the Japanese reached the town of Sipocot on 19 December and Daet, capital of Camarines Norte Province on 21 December. General Parker ordered two companies of the 52nd Infantry to make a stand north of Sipocot, as the Bicol Peninsula is very narrow in that area, enabling a small force to considerably delay the Japanese advance. In the early morning of 22 December, a company from the Kimura Detachment engaged the Americans. However, the 52nd Infantry had a good geographic position, and was able to push the Japanese south. However, on 23 December, the Japanese made a landing at Atimonan, the capital of Quezon Province to the north of the American positions. Although thus encircled, a portion of the 52nd Infantry managed to make its way back to American lines. Consequences In retrospect, the advance landings by the Japanese in southern Luzon, including at Legazpi, largely accomplished its strategic objective of encircling the American forces in central Luzon, preventing both escape and reinforcement. Tactically, the air fields seized were small, and with the rapid advance of the Japanese into both central and southern Luzon, were soon unnecessary