 General Douglas MacArthur was appointed as the Supreme Commander , Southwest Pacific Area , on its creation on 18 April 1942 . He created five subordinate commands : Allied Land Forces , Allied Air Forces , Allied Naval Forces , United States Army Forces in Australia ( USAFIA ) , and the United States Army Forces in the Philippines . The last command disappeared when Corregidor surrendered on 6 May 1942 , while USAFIA became the United States Army Services of Supply , Southwest Pacific Area ( USASOS SWPA ) . In 1943 , United States Army Forces in the Far East was reformed and assumed responsibility for administration , leaving USASOS as a purely logistical agency . Both were swept away in a reorganisation in 1945 . The other three commands , Allied Land Forces , Allied Air Forces and Allied Naval Forces , remained until SWPA was abolished on 2 September 1945 . 
