Central Bureau

The Central Bureau was one of two Allied Signals intelligence (SIGINT) organisations in the South West Pacific area (SWPA) during World War II. Central Bureau was attached to the Headquarters of the Allied Commander of the South West Pacific area, Douglas MacArthur. The other unit was the joint Royal Australian Navy/United States Navy Fleet Radio Unit, Melbourne (FRUMEL), which was subordinate to the Commander of the United States Seventh Fleet. Central Bureau's role was to research and decrypt intercepted Imperial Japanese Army (land and air) traffic and work in close co-operation with other SIGINT centres in the USA, United Kingdom and India.

General Douglas MacArthur had his own signals intelligence unit, Station 6, while he was in command in the Philippines before the War started, and was not fully dependent on the U.S. Navy for that type of information. However, most of the signals intelligence he received was from the Navy unit, Station CAST, originally at Cavite in the Manila Navy Yard, and evacuated to Corregidor Island after Japanese successes. Prior to the war, it had to be sent by courier, which caused some delay and annoyance.

General MacArthur escaped from Corregidor in the Philippines in a PT boat to Mindanao and flew to Australia from Del Monte on a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. He made his way to Melbourne, arriving there on 22 March 1942.

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