 By 24 June 1944, the "43rd division" was reduced to four battalions of infantry and a half-battalion of artillery.27 June 1944, as the Mount Tapochau defences were failing rapidly, Yoshitsugu Saitō, the "43rd division" commander, radioed Tokyo asking for either reinforcements or evacuation by air.At that point, he estimated resistance could continue until 10 July 1944.