 By seniority he was also made base commander of Clark Field, where the 28th BS was stationed.On March 13, 1941, he was promoted to lieutenant colonel and command of the 28th BS passed to a more junior officer, but Maitland remained base commander at Clark.Shortly after, the Army extended the tours of all Air Corps personnel in the Philippine Department by an additional year, fearing aggressive Japanese moves against the Philippines, and ordered their dependents to return to the United States.