In July 1961, an 81-year-old General MacArthur made a ten-day farewell trip to the Philippines to mark the fifteenth anniversary of Philippine independence. President John F. Kennedy was delighted to see MacArthur honored in this way and helped facilitate the trip by putting a Boeing 707 from the Military Air Transport Service at MacArthur’s disposal. It was a particularly moving visit and in Manila alone, millions of people turned out to greet MacArthur. Only papal visits have exceeded the welcome MacArthur received. To mark the 60th anniversary of this trip, Amanda Williams and Jim Zobel sat down to discuss MacArthur's itinerary and the Cold War context of the trip.
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