On April 21, 1944, Lieutenant General Joseph W. Stilwell created the End Run Task Force to make a surprise attack on the Japanese airfield two miles west of Myitkyina, Burma. Myitkyina was the key to North Burma. The Japanese used it as a staging field for fighters attacking American transports flying the “Hump” airlift. Capturing the airbase would allow these transports to fly a lower, safer route from India to China. Furthermore, roads and trails from Myitkyina connected with the old Burma Road into China. Capturing the town would bring Stilwell within reach of reopening a ground route to China. In the spring of 1944, however, the capture of Myitkyina seemed a dim prospect. The monsoon season was only weeks away and Stilwell’s Chinese troops were bogged down attacking Kar Maing. The End Run Task Force would have to travel over one hundred miles, on foot, behind enemy lines, to reach Myitkyina. With the airfield in hand, Stilwell could fly in enough reinforcements to take the town. The core of the task force was the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional), also known as Galahad or Merrill’s Marauders. The Marauders were a battle-hardened ranger unit trained to operate in the harsh jungle of North Burma. But they were exhausted and under half strength after the brutal siege of Nphum Ga. To augment them, Stilwell selected Chinese troops from the veteran 22nd Division and the 50th and 30th divisions, as well as local Kachin guerrillas recruited and trained by the OSS. On April 27, less than a week after its formation, the task force moved out into the jungle. No one would hear from them for almost three weeks.