At the outbreak of war with Japan, the USS "Quail" was in the Philippines. During the defense of Corregidor in the Battle of Corregidor (1942), Lieutenant Thomas James Eugene “Jimmy” Crotty, Coast Guard Academy Class of 1934, served as the executive officer of the "Quail". She shot down enemy aircraft and swept mine fields to keep open a channel providing access to the South Harbor at Corregidor. This enabled U.S. submarines to safely pass and surface at night, delivering goods and removing critical personnel from Corregidor. After the "Quail" was gutted of arms, her crew then went ashore to aid in the defense of the island and Crotty commanded a force of Marines and Army personnel manning 75mm beach guns firing down on enemy forces landing on Corregidor's beaches.