was in the harbor. Unaware of this, on 8 December the Japanese launched an attack on Davao, with 13 dive bombers and 9 fighters launched from the aircraft carrier , with the destroyers , , and making a high speed run for the entrance to Davao harbor to catch any escaping vessels. The raid was somewhat of a fiasco, as the Japanese pilots did not even recognize William B. Preston as a warship and only managed to destroy two of her PBYs (the other was away on a mission at the time). Landing and aftermath The Japanese invasion force under the overall command of admiral Raizo Tanaka departed Palau on 17 December in 5 transports, escorted by the light cruiser and six destroyers (, , , , and ), with the aircraft carrier Ryūjō and the seaplane carrier , and the cruisers , and providing distant cover. On the afternoon of 19 December, Ryūjō launched aircraft to destroy the radio station at Cape San Augustin, and the Chitose launched reconnaissance aircraft, which flew over Davao. The Japanese transports arrived at Davao by midnight, and landing commenced from 0400 hours, with the Miura Detachment landing to the north, and the Sakaguchi Detachment landing to the southwest of the city. The only opposition was a single machine gun squad, which attacked the Miura Detachment before it was destroyed by a direct hit by a shell fired from a Japanese destroyer. However, since the Miura Detachment suffered casualties, Sakaguchi was forced to commit reserve forces he was holding back for the Jolo portion of the operation. By 1030, Col Hilsmen pulled his men out of the city northwest into the hills. By 1500 hours, the city and airfield were in Japanese hands, and by evening a seaplane base was established to the south of the urban area. On 20 December, as Sakaguchi was reorganizing his forces into nine transports for the landing on Jolo Island, he was attacked by a force of nine USAAF Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers which had launched from Darwin, Australia. Visibility was poor, and the bombers caused little damage. The Jolo invasion force departed Davao of 23 December, reaching its destination on the afternoon 24 December. Jolo, the capital of the former Sultanate of Sulu, was defended by only 300 members of the Philippine Constabulary. The Japanese landed on the morning of 25 December with no resistance. Consequences