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The FReeper Foxhole Revisits - Remembering Task Force Smith - Korea 1950 - Jan. 10th, 2003
http://www.quartermaster.army.mil/oqmg/Professional_Bulletin/1996/Spring/tfsmith.html ^

Posted on 01/10/2004 4:29:25 AM PST by snippy_about_it

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General Douglas MacArthur ordered the Eighth Army’s 24th Infantry Division from Ford Wood, Japan, to Pusan, Korea, after President Harry S. Truman committed US ground forces to stop the North Korean invasion of South Korea. The July 1, 1950, operations order provided for a delaying force to go to Pusan, Korea, by air immediately. Named for its commander, LTC Charles B. "Brad" Smith, Task Force Smith was assembled June 30 and then trucked to C-54 aircraft at nearby Itazuke Air Base for flight beginning at 0845 on July 1. This initial commitment of US ground troops in the Korean War consisted of two understrength rifle companies, half a battalion headquarters company, half of a communications platoon, a 75-mm recoilless rifle platoon with two guns, and two 4.2-inch mortars. Also, the two rifle companies had six 2.36-inch bazooka teams and four 60-mm mortars. Each man carried 120 rounds of .30-caliber ammunition and two days of C-Rations.



Only five years after the end of World War II, less than one-sixth of Task Force Smith had combat experience. After the 406 men arrived at Pusan, Task Force Smith was trucked through cheering crowds to the train station for its trip north. This send-off in South Korea boosted the already high morale of the soldiers who thought that the North Koreans would stop in the face of the "invincible" US Army. LTC Smith chose an excellent infantry position three miles north of Osan to set up a road block for the first engagement on the morning of July 5, but he did not have the firepower to stop the Soviet-made T-34/85 tanks. General MacArthur had called this small, ill-equipped unit an "arrogant display of strength." Like everyone else, the general thought that the mere presence of US troops would "chill the enemy commander into taking precautionary and time-consuming" actions.



Today's Educational Sources and suggestions for further reading:

www.quartermaster.army.mil
1 posted on 01/10/2004 4:29:26 AM PST by snippy_about_it
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To: All
On June 25, 1950, communist North Korea invaded their southern neighbor, the Republic of Korea. After their artificial separation following World War II, both nations had contemplated reunification by way of invasion, and border clashes were common. Knowing this and underestimating the North Korean army, the United States refused to supply the South with heavy weapons, including tanks and artillery. The ROK Army initially offered stiff resistance, but it lost vital battles north of Seoul and lost many men and important equipment when a bridge over the Han was prematurely blown in Seoul.

US defense spending had reached a modern day low after World War. The military was ill-prepared and those in authority embaced questionable doctrines. The usefulness of the tank in World War II had been lost to those in charge, and the Army had only a single armored division. The weaponry of World War II had not been significantly improved upon. Aircraft carriers and amphibious warfare were thought obsolete in the nuclear age, and the A-Bomb was seen as a serious deterent to ANY enemy aggression.



In Japan, US occupation forces were prepared for quick shipment to Korea. A 540 man battalion sized task force of the 24th Infantry Division under Lt. Col. Charles Smith was rushed to Korea on transport planes and moved north through hordes of refugees and retreating ROK Army units to block the enemy advance. They were told the communists would flee at the sight of American soldiers.

Early on the morning of July 5th, Task Force Smith took up position a mile long just north of Osan on ridge 300 feet above the plain to the north. A platoon of B Company occupied a knob to the west of the road while the other two platoons as well as the two platoons of C Company occupied the ridge to the east. Two mortar platoons were 400 yards to the rear and five 105 mm howitzers were 2,000 yards to the rear.

At around 7:00 AM the approaching enemy was sighted, and at 8:16 the artillery began firing on the advancing enemy. Leading the North Korean advance was the 107th Armored Brigade equipped with T-34 tanks. Not bothering to deploy, the tanks advanced straight up the road toward the American position.

Fire from two American 75 mm recoilless rifles did not damage the advancing T-34s. No anti-tank mines had been brought along, and anti-tank guns, a vital part of World War II armies, were no longer used. As the tanks continued, the Americans opened up with the 2.36 inch bazookas. These weapons were quickly obsolete in World War II and predictably could not penetrate the T-34s' frontal armor. They were even of questionable use against the weaker areas of the tanks. One of the 105 mm howitzers fired HEAT rounds as the tanks crested the ridge, and the front two tanks were disabled. The remaining 33 tanks continued down the road, firing as they went. The tanks tore up the communications wire as they went and bypassed the howitzers, whose rounds stopped only three of the T-34s.



Before noon, 1,000 men in two regiments of the North Korean 4th Division supported by three tanks deployed to attack the ridge. The Americans held off attacks to their front, but the enemy began moving around both flanks. At 12:30 PM, the North Koreans occupied a hill overlooking the American position west of the road, so the American platoon fell back to the east side. Running low on ammunition and with the enemy around both flanks, Smith ordered a withdrawal at 2:30. The retreat was confused and the guns were abandoned. Although they had inflicted 127 casualties, the task force suffered 181 casualties and was so scattered it would be largely ineffective. Over the coming months, additional US troops were sent to Korea, and the battlelines finally stabilized at the Pusan Perimeter, where UN troops fought off desperate human wave attacks. In September, landings at Inchon would turn the tide in favor of the UN.


The battle at Osan is a low point in American history. It symbolizes the price in blood our troops pay for ill preparedness and inadequate defense spending. Has America learned this lesson? Other than Korean War veterans, how many people have heard of Task Force Smith?

2 posted on 01/10/2004 4:30:14 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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'Honor our brave soldiers of Task Force Smith -- and those who followed them to hold the line in Korea. They sacrificed and rendered selfless service in the cause of freedom. They deserve our respect as much as those who fought in Vietnam, World War Two, and World War One.'

--Lt. Col. Thomas J. Vance, USAR

'No more Task Force Smiths.'

--Gordon R. Sullivan, Army Chief of Staff


3 posted on 01/10/2004 4:30:33 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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To: All
Special Certificate of Valor
TASK FORCE SMITH
United States Army


awarded to:

This is to cite the individual members and to officially recognize and pay tribute to a gallant organization, whose heroic achievements have added luster to the annals of American arms.

Composed of 406 Infantrymen of the 1st Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment, Task Force Smith landed at Pusan, Korea, on 1 July 1950, and was joined by 134 Artillerymen of the52nd Field Artillery Battalion near Pyongtack on 4 July, with the mission of delaying the main body of the enemy driving into South Korea. Gaining contact with an estimated 20,000 enemy troops in the vicinity of Osan on 5 July, this force exhibited valor on the battlefield worthy of the highest traditions of the Combat Soldier. Faced by a fanatical foe greatly superior in numbers, and penetrated by enemy armor, it coiled in defense and with stubborn determination and exemplary fortitude registered devastation on the enemy. With ammunition almost spent and its position in imminent danger of being completely surrounded, a hazardous but masterly withdrawal was effected. Rushed forward to arrest this massive onslaught alone, the intrepidity and skill of these defenders of the ground can best be gauged by their outstanding success in stemming the enemy advance during this critical period.

The members of Task Force Smith, who fought so nobly on this occasion, have earned the eternal gratitude of the freedom-loving people of the world, and the wholehearted pride and commendation of the United States Army.

Frank Pace, Jr.
Secretary of the Army

4 posted on 01/10/2004 4:31:57 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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To: StayAt HomeMother; Ragtime Cowgirl; bulldogs; baltodog; Aeronaut; carton253; Matthew Paul; ...



FALL IN to the FReeper Foxhole!



Good Saturday Morning Everyone

If you would like added to our ping list let us know.

5 posted on 01/10/2004 4:33:08 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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To: All
Rank Location Receipts Donors/Avg Freepers/Avg Monthlies
26 Oregon 325.00
10
32.50
218
1.49
85.00
5

Thanks for donating to Free Republic!

Move your locale up the leaderboard!

6 posted on 01/10/2004 4:35:13 AM PST by Support Free Republic (Your support keeps Free Republic going strong!)
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To: snippy_about_it

Today's classic warship, Montana (BB-51)

South Dakota class battleship
Displacement. 43,200 t.
Lenght. 684' 0""
Beam. 105' 0"
Draft. 33' 0"
Speed. 23.0 k.
Armament. 12 16"; 16 6"

Montana, a 43,200-ton South Dakota class battleship, was laid down at the Mare Island Navy Yard, California, in September 1920. Her construction was suspended in February 1922, under the terms of the Washington Naval Limitations Treaty, and she was subsequently formally cancelled. Stricken from the Navy List and sold in October-November 1923, her hull was scrapped on the building ways.

Battleship trivia: Montana is the only one of the 48 contiguous states for which no commissioned battleship has been named.

7 posted on 01/10/2004 4:51:49 AM PST by aomagrat (IYAOYAS)
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To: snippy_about_it
Good morning, Snippy and everyone at the Foxhole.
8 posted on 01/10/2004 4:58:31 AM PST by E.G.C.
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To: snippy_about_it
Good morning Snippy.


9 posted on 01/10/2004 5:05:15 AM PST by Aeronaut (In my humble opinion, the new expression for backing down from a fight should be called 'frenching')
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To: snippy_about_it
Good Morning FRiends

Coffee's on


10 posted on 01/10/2004 5:21:26 AM PST by GailA (Millington Rally for America after action http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/872519/posts)
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To: snippy_about_it
Good Morning Snippy.


11 posted on 01/10/2004 5:32:19 AM PST by SAMWolf (Ted Kennedy's Bumper Sticker: My other car is underwater.)
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To: aomagrat
Morning aomagrat.

Chances are really good we'll never get to see a BB Montana. ;-)
12 posted on 01/10/2004 5:33:36 AM PST by SAMWolf (Ted Kennedy's Bumper Sticker: My other car is underwater.)
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To: E.G.C.
Morning E.G.C. I guess we need to look out for a Trojan that's going around as a phoney Microsoft E-mail.
13 posted on 01/10/2004 5:35:20 AM PST by SAMWolf (Ted Kennedy's Bumper Sticker: My other car is underwater.)
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To: Aeronaut
Morning aeronaut
14 posted on 01/10/2004 5:35:44 AM PST by SAMWolf (Ted Kennedy's Bumper Sticker: My other car is underwater.)
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To: GailA
Biscuits and gravy again!!! You're gonna spoil me!!
15 posted on 01/10/2004 5:36:23 AM PST by SAMWolf (Ted Kennedy's Bumper Sticker: My other car is underwater.)
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To: SAMWolf
Yes, Microsoft doesn't send patches through e-mails so I'd be watchful about that.
16 posted on 01/10/2004 5:40:49 AM PST by E.G.C.
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To: SAMWolf
Awwww. Thank you Sam. You're up early!
17 posted on 01/10/2004 5:44:49 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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To: aomagrat
Good morning aomagrat.
18 posted on 01/10/2004 5:47:43 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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To: E.G.C.
Good morning EGC.
19 posted on 01/10/2004 5:48:19 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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To: Aeronaut
Hi Aeronaut. Thanks for the flyby.
20 posted on 01/10/2004 5:49:07 AM PST by snippy_about_it (Fall in --> The FReeper Foxhole. America's History. America's Soul.)
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