The FReeper Foxhole Revisits The Start of the Korean War (6/25/1950) - June 25th, 2004

http://www.army.mil/cmh-pg/brochures/KW-Outbreak/outbreak.htm ^

[snippy_about_it]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.


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The FReeper Foxhole Revisits

The Outbreak
27 June-15 September 1950
Korea, a small country numbering 30 million people in 1950, lies at the point where three great Asian powers meet- Japan, China, and the former Soviet Union. Japan ruled Korea from 1910 to 1945. Following the defeat of Japan in World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union jointly occupied the country, the United States south of the 38th Parallel and the Soviet Union north. Preoccupied with Soviet intentions in western Europe, the United States attached little strategic importance to Korea in the late 1940s. America did assist the South Koreans in national elections and in formation of the Republic of Korea (ROK). The Soviet Union, on the other hand, took an active role in governing North Korea and in formation of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The United States Army withdrew its combat forces from South Korea in 1949 but left a military advisory group to assist the ROK Army. In early 1950 the Soviets supplied weapons to and assigned several thousand Russian soldiers as trainers for the North Korean People’s Army (NKPA). Armed clashes between North and South Korea were common along the 38th Parallel, but in June 1950 American observers did not anticipate an invasion of the South. Determined to unite Korea by force, the North Koreans invaded South Korea on 25 June. An initially hesitant United States decided that it must take a stand against this armed aggression. American military intervention was ineffective at first, but by September 1950 the combined efforts of the U.S. and ROK Armies, complemented by air and naval superiority, held the North Koreans in check at the Pusan Perimeter.

Strategic Setting

Korea is a mountainous peninsula jutting from the central Asian mainland with a shape that resembles the state of Florida. Water outlines most of this small country, which has more than 5,400 miles of coastline. The Yalu and Tumen Rivers define much of its northern boundary, while major bodies of water are located on its other sides: the Sea of Japan on the east, the Korea Strait on the south, and the Yellow Sea on the west. China lies above the Yalu and Tumen Rivers for 500 miles of Korea’s northern boundary as does the former Soviet Union for some eleven miles along the lower Tumen River.

Korea varies between 90 and 200 miles in width and 525 to 600 miles in length. High mountains drop down abruptly to deep water on the east where there are few harbors, but a heavily indented shoreline on the south and west provides many harbors. Summers are hot and humid, with a monsoon season that lasts from June to September, but in the winter cold winds roar down from the Asian interior. A rugged landscape, a lack of adequate roads and rail lines, and climatic extremes make large-scale modern military operations in Korea difficult. In 1950 the country’s population totaled about 30 million: 21 million south of the 38th Parallel, with 70 percent of the people engaged in agriculture, and 9 million north.



Japan annexed Korea in 1910 and ruled the country until the end of World War II. Unlike the Soviet Union, in 1945 the United States attached little strategic importance to Korea. At the Potsdam Conference Soviet authorities told American representatives that the Soviets would attack Korea after declaring war on Japan, but the collapse of Japan in August 1945 made a major assault unnecessary. As a line to divide Korea into Soviet and American areas for accepting Japanese surrender, the U.S. War Department selected the 38th Parallel, roughly splitting the country in half. The Soviets agreed to operate in the north, and the American forces would operate in the south.

Also in August 1945 the Joint Chiefs of Staff designated General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, as Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers, to receive the Japanese surrender. MacArthur selected Lt. Gen. John R. Hodge, XXIV Corps commander, to command the United States Army Forces in Korea (USAFIK), which administered South Korea on behalf of the United States. The foreign ministers of the United States, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union met in Moscow in December 1945 and developed a plan for a four-power trusteeship of Korea for up to five years. Many South Koreans wanted their independence immediately and protested violently. The Soviets had their own special plans, which involved strong support for the Korean Communist Party that assumed political power in the North under Kim Il Sung.

In August 1947 the United States, Great Britain, and China agreed to reconsider establishment of a four-power trusteeship to facilitate Korean unification, but the Soviet Union refused to cooperate. The United States then proposed that the United Nations (UN) supervise elections in both zones of Korea and that it oversee the formation of a national government. Elections took place in South Korea in May 1948, but the North Koreans neither participated in nor recognized the results of the elections.

The South Koreans chose representatives for the National Assembly of the new Republic of Korea, which then elected Syngman Rhee as its chairman. In July 1948 the assembly produced a constitution and elected Rhee as president of the republic. USAFIK’s governmental authority then came to an end. In September 1948 the North Koreans formed their own government, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea under the leadership of Kim Il Sung, that claimed jurisdiction over all of Korea. The National Security Council recommended that all U.S. combat troops leave Korea by the end of June 1949, and President Harry S. Truman approved the recommendation.


General MacArthur discusses the military situation with Ambassador John J. Muccio at ROK Army headquarters, 29 June 1950.(National Archives)

Attempts to build a native defense force in South Korea began shortly after the end of World War II. In January 1946 the Joint Chiefs of Staff authorized General MacArthur to form a Korean police force and, despite problems with equipment and training, the Korean Constabulary grew to 20,000 men by the close of 1947. Washington asked MacArthur about the advisability of creating a South Korean army. MacArthur proposed instead in February 1948 an increase of the Constabulary to 50,000 men. President Rhee asked in November for an American military mission, and the Provisional Military Advisory Group established by MacArthur in August 1948 was redesignated in July 1949 the United States Military Advisory Group to the Republic of Korea (KMAG) and authorized 472 soldiers.

In November 1948 South Korea passed the Armed Forces Organization Act, which created a department of national defense. By March 1949 the South had converted its Constabulary brigades into an Army of 65,000 men assigned to eight tactical divisions—the 1st, 2d, 3d, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and Capital Divisions. In June 1950 the ROK armed forces consisted of the following: Army, 94,808; Coast Guard, 6,145; Air Force, 1,865; and National Police, 48,273.

In the early summer of 1950 four ROK divisions held positions along the 38th Parallel: the 1st, 6th, 7th, and 8th. The 17th Regiment of the Capital Division was on the western extreme in the Ongjin Peninsula. The other four divisions were scattered about the interior and southern parts of the country. The headquarters of the Capital Division was located at Seoul, the 2d near Taejon, the 3d at Taegu, and the 5th at Kwangju in southwest Korea. When U.S. Armed Forces in Korea withdrew from South Korea in 1949, it transferred equipment to the ROK Army sufficient for 50,000 men. The weapons of the ROK divisions stationed along the 38th Parallel included the American M1 rifle, .30-caliber carbine, 60-mm. and 81-mm. mortars, 2.36-inch rocket launchers, and the M3 105-mm. howitzer.

The South Korean armed forces had no tanks, no medium artillery, and no fighter aircraft or bombers. In October 1949 the ROK minister of defense had requested M26 Pershing tanks from the United States, but the KMAG staff concluded that the rough Korean terrain and inadequate roads would not allow efficient tank operations. In June 1950 the ROK Army possessed some 2,100 serviceable U.S. Army motor vehicles—830 21/2-ton trucks and 1,300 1/4-ton trucks (jeeps). The ROK Air Force consisted of twelve liaison-type aircraft and ten advance trainers (AT6). The ROK Navy had a sprinkling of small vessels that included patrol craft along with mine layers and sweepers.


General Walker (left) is greeted on arrival at Taejon by General Dean. (National Archives)

The North Korean People’s Army was officially activated in February 1948. The Soviets exercised close control over its organization and training, and Soviet advisers worked directly with units. At that time 150 Soviets were assigned to each division; the number dropped to 20 per division in 1949 and to a lesser number by 1950 as trusted North Korean officers were developed. By June 1950 the NKPA and the Border Constabulary numbered about 135,000. The primary tactical units consisted of eight full-strength infantry divisions of 11,000 men each, two more infantry divisions at half strength, a separate infantry regiment, a motorcycle-reconnaissance regiment, and an armored brigade. The NKPA benefited from some 20,000 North Koreans who were veterans of the Chinese civil war of the late 1940s, which gave its units a combat-hardened quality and efficiency.

The Soviet Union supplied much of the materiel for the NKPA. Of primary importance was the T34 medium tank, a mainstay of the Soviet armored force in World War II that weighed 32 tons and mounted an 85-mm. gun. The Soviets also supplied artillery support that resembled the weaponry of the older Soviet division of World War II: 76-mm. and 122-mm. howitzers, 45-mm. antitank guns, and 82-mm. and 120-mm. mortars. At the outset of the war North Korea had about 180 Soviet aircraft- 60 YAK trainers, 40 YAK fighters, 70 attack bombers, and 10 reconnaissance planes. Like the ROK Navy, the North Korean naval forces had only a few small vessels- sixteen patrol craft and several coastal steamers.

U.S. strategic planning after World War II centered on the Soviet Union and its satellite nations. In 1950, as the single most powerful nation in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, America gave first claim for its military resources to the defense of western Europe. Not only did the United States give priority to Europe over the Pacific and Far East, in April 1948 President Truman had approved a policy that no problems within Korea could become a casus belli for the United States. In January 1950, in a speech to the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., Secretary of State Dean G. Acheson announced an American defensive strategy in the Far East that excluded both Korea and Formosa.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff had designated General MacArthur as Commander in Chief, Far East Command (FEC), effective January 1947. The boundaries of FEC were not specific, but MacArthur commanded forces in Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and other island groups. He was responsible for the American occupation of and for general emergencies in those areas. Along with United States Army Forces, Far East, MacArthur also controlled Far East Air Forces and Naval Forces, Far East.


A 3.5-inch rocket launcher on a battlefield, 20 July 1950 (National Archives)

In June 1950 the active United States Army had an authorized strength of 630,201 with an actual strength of about 591,000 and ten combat divisions. Some 360,000 troops were at home, while the remaining 231,000 were in overseas commands with 80,000 in Germany and 108,500 in the Far East. The force designated to handle the Army’s emergency assignments was the General Reserve, which consisted mainly of five combat divisions stationed in the United States: 2d Armored Division, 2d and 3d Infantry Divisions, and the 11th and 82d Airborne Divisions. The Far East Command had four tactical divisions and a regimental combat team (RCT)- the 1st Cavalry Division, the 7th, 24th, and 25th Infantry Divisions, and the 29th RCT- that operated under the command of the Eighth U.S. Army in Japan.

Each division was short of its authorized war strength of 18,900 by nearly 7,000 men and had major shortages in artillery batteries and equipment. The FEC had received no new vehicles, tanks, or other equipment since World War II. Army personnel stationed in Japan had performed primarily occupation duties, and no serious effort had been made to attain combat efficiency at battalion level or higher. Convinced that a purely occupational mission was no longer needed, MacArthur issued a policy directive in April 1949 that called for an intensified training program for ground, naval, and air units in FEC. By May 1950 Eighth Army’s divisions had reportedly reached combat readiness levels that ranged from 65 to 84 percent.

As early as 1947 the North Korean Communists employed propaganda and even armed violence to instigate the overthrow of the South Korean government. On 3 May 1949, the North Koreans launched their first open attack across the 38th Parallel in the vicinity of Kaesong, but ROK units repulsed them. Hundreds of small-scale assaults occurred across the parallel during the first half of 1950; however, some encounters inflicted heavy casualties on both sides. A series of guerrilla uprisings on the island of Cheju-do spread to the mainland by late 1948, but by June 1950 the ROK Army had virtually eliminated them, claiming to have killed about 5,000 insurgents.

By late 1949 talk of a North Korean invasion was almost routine in intelligence circles, but it went unnoticed against the background of threatening Communist activities in other parts of the world- Southeast Asia, western Europe, and the Middle East. In the early summer of 1950 senior American observers discounted the likelihood of a North Korean invasion. Both Maj. Gen. Charles A. Willoughby, the FEC G-2 (intelligence officer), and the American embassy in Seoul opined that an attack was unlikely and that the North Koreans would continue to employ guerrillas and psychological warfare. The officers of the KMAG felt that an attack by North Korea was not imminent and, if it happened, they thought that the South Koreans could repel it. Since the United States had no plan to counter an invasion, any debate about an American intelligence failure regarding the North Korean attack was academic.

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FReeper Foxhole Armed Services Links

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Mayor. Enjoying Aeronaut's sunrise and your coffee today.

[Valin]

On this Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on June 25:
1373 Johanna II, Queen of Naples (1414-35)
1813 William Hugh Keim, Brig General (Union volunteers), died in 1862
1823 James Dunwody Bulloch, Capt (Confederate Navy), died in 1901
1852 Antonio Gaud¡ Spanish architect (Sagrada Familia, Barcelona)
1864 Walther Hermann Nernst Prussian physical chemist (Nobel 1920)
1865 Robert Henri US painter, leader of the Ashcan school
1886 Henry (Hap) Arnold commanding general, US Army Air Force in WW II
1887 George Abbott Forestville NY, producer (Damn Yankees, Pajama Game)
1894 Hermann Oberth Germany, founded modern astronautics
1900 Lord Louis Mountbatten of Burma, royal relative
1903 George Orwell England, satirist/author (Animal Farm, 1984)
1907 J Hans D Jensen Germany, physicist (atomic nuclei-Nobel 1963)
1924 Sidney Lumet Phila, director (Group, Pawnbroker, Fail Safe)
1925 Clifton Chenier blues singer (Bayou Blues, Bon Ton Roulet)
1925 June Lockhart NYC, actr (Lassie, Lost in Space, Petticoat Junction)
1925 Robert Venturi US, architect (Levittown NY, Las Vegas)
1933 Gary Crosby Calif, actor (Bill Dana Show, Adam 12, Chase)
1942 Patrick Michael Mitchell Ottawa, one of FBI's most wanted
1942 Willis Reed basketball hall-of-famer center (NY Knicks)
1945 Carly Simon NYC, singer (Anticipation, You're So Vain)
1949 Jimmie Walker Bronx NY, comedian (JJ-Good Times, At Ease)
1949 Phyllis George-Brown Denton Tx, Miss America (1971)/sportscaster
1963 George Michael England, rocker (Wham-I Want Your Sex)
1963 Mike Myers Canada, comedian (SNL-Wayne's World)
1979 Brandi Lynn Burkhardt, Miss Maryland Teen USA (1997)

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Deaths which occurred on June 25:
1142 Gulielmus of Vercelli, Italian hermit/monastery founder/saint, dies
1212 Simon de Montfort a leader of the crusades, dies at 67
1483 Edward V, king of England (Apr 9-Jun 25, 1483), murdered
1876 Boston Custer, brother of George Custer, dies at Little Bighorn
1876 George A Custer, US general (Little Bighorn), dies at 36
1876 John Patton, trumpeter, dies at Little Bighorn
1876 Lame White Man, Cheyenne, dies at Little Bighorn
1876 Myles Keogh, US officer, dies at Little Bighorn
1876 Thomas W Custer, brother of George Custer, dies at Little Bighorn
1906 Architect Stanford White shot dead atop Madison Square Garden which he designed by Harry Thaw jealous husband of Evelyn Nesbit
1956 Alfred C Kinsey, US zoologist/sexologist, dies at 62
1956 Ernest J King, US fleet admiral/Chief of Naval Operations, dies at 77
1959 Charles Starkwether executed
1960 Walter Baade astronomer, dies
1962 Ephraim Lisitsky, Hebrew poet, dies
1976 Johnny Mercer, US songwriter (That old Black Magic), dies at 66
1988 Axis Sally, [Mildred E Gillars], US nazi propagandist (WW II), dies
1995 Warren Earl Burger, Supreme Court Justice, dies of heart failure at 78
1997 Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Fren oceanographer, dies of heart attack at 87
1997 William Lyle Woratzeck, convicted killer, executed in Ariz at 51

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION
1965 MONGILARDI PETER JR.---HALEDON NJ.
[REMAINS RETURNED ACCORDING TO SON 1994]
1966 MARIK CHARLES W.---OAKLAND MO.
1972 SHUMWAY GEOFREY RAYMOND---SKANEATELES NY.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

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On this day...
0253 St Lucius I begins his reign as Catholic Pope
1096 1st Crusade slaughter Jews of Werelinghofen Germany
1139 Battle of Ourique: Afonso I defeats Moors
1178 5 Canterbury monks report something exploding on Moon
1580 Book of Concord, standards of Lutheran Church, 1st published
1630 Fork introduced to American dining by Gov Winthrop
1638 A lunar eclipse becomes the 1st astronomical event recorded in US
1672 1st recorded monthly Quaker meeting in US held, Sandwich, Mass
1667 Dr Jean-Baptiste Denys, French doctor, performs 1st blood transfusion
1749 General fast because of drought in MA
1788 Virginia becomes 10th state to ratify US constitution
1798 US passes Alien Act allowing president to deport dangerous aliens
1835 1st building constructed at Yerba Buena (now SF)
1862 Day 1 of the 7 Days begins with fighting at Oak Grove
1863 US General George Meade replaces General Hooker to be more aggressive
1864 Petersburg Campaign-Federals begin digging tunnels under Reb lines
1868 FL, AL, LA, GA, NC & SC readmitted to US
1870 The opera Die Walküre is produced (Munich)
1876 Custer & 7th Cavalry wiped out by Sioux & Cheyenne at Little Big Horn
1888 Republican Convention, in Chicago, nominates Benjamin Harrison
1903 Yanks & White Sox end deadlocked at 6-6 in 18
1910 Mann Act passed (no women across state lines for immoral purposes)
1919 1st advanced monoplane airliner flight (Junkers F13)
1921 Jack Hutchinson becomes 1st American to win golf's British Open
1924 K Reinmuth discovers asteroid #1023 Thomana
1929 Pres Hoover authorizes building of Boulder Dam (Hoover Dam)
1934 NY Yankee Lou Gehrig hits for the cycle beating White Sox 11-2
1935 Joe Louis defeats Primo Carnera at Yankee Stadium
1937 Cub Augie Galan becomes 1st player to switch hit HRs in a game
1938 Federal minimum wage law guarantees workers 40 cents per hour
1940 Adolf Hitler views Eiffel tower and grave of Napoleon in France
1941 FDR issues Executive Order 8802 forbidding discrimination
1942 British RAF staged a 1,000 bomb raid on Bremen Germany (WW II)
1948 Joe Louis KOs Jersey Joe Walcott in 11 to reatain championship
1950 Israeli airline El Al begins service
1950 Korean conflict begins; N Korea invades S Korea
1951 1st color TV broadcast-CBS' Arthur Godfrey from NYC to 4 cities
1953 1st passenger to fly commercially around the world < 100 hours
1953 86ø F in Anchorage Alaska
1956 51 die in collision of "Andrea Doria" & "Stockholm" (Cape Cod)
1961 Iraq announces that Kuwait is a part of Iraq (Kuwait disagrees)
1961 Yankee's Roger Maris hits his 40th of 61 HRs
1962 Supreme Court rules NY school prayer unconstitutional
1966 Beatles' "Paperback Writer," single goes #1 & stays #1 for 2 weeks
1966 Kosmos 122, 1st Soviet weather satellite, launched
1967 Mohammed Ali (Cassius Clay) sentenced to 5 years
1967 400 million watch Beatles "Our World" TV special
1968 Bobby Bonds hits a grand slam in his 1st major league game (Giants)
1969 Longest tennis match in Wimbeldon history, Pancho Gonzalez beats Charles Pasarell in 112 game (5hr12m) marathon
1972 Berenice Gera becomes 1st female umpire in pro baseball
1973 John Dean begins testimony before Senate Watergate Committee
1975 Mozambique gains independence from Portugal (National Day)
1977 Roy C Sullivan of Va is struck by lightening for 7th time!
1981 Supreme Court upholds male-only draft registration, constitutional
1982 Porn star John Holmes acquitted on murder charges
1982 Sec of State Alexander Haig Jr resigns, replaced by Schultz
1983 Udo Beyer of East Germany sets record for shot put, 22.22 m
1987 Pope John Paul II receives Austrian Pres Kurt Waldheim
1989 1st US postmark dedicated to Lesbian & Gay Pride (Stonewall, NYC)
1990 120ø F in Phoenix Arizona
1990 NBC decides to air episodes of "Quantum Leep" for 5 straight days
1991 Slovenia & Croatia declare independence from Yugoslavia
1997 Montserrat's Soufriere Hills Volcano, after lying dormant for 400 years, erupted, wiping out two-thirds of the Caribbean island.
2001 Pope John Paul II, on a visit to Ukraine, offered a prayer for Holocaust victims at Babi Yar.

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Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Gibraltar : Spring Bank Holiday
Mozambique : Independence Day (1975)
Virginia : Ratification Day (1788)
US : Take Your Dog To Work Day
National Sheriff's Week (Day 5)
Leon Day/Samtsirhc Day (Leon and Christmas spelled backwards)/6 mos opposite Xmas/people named Leon
Own Your Share of America Month

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Religious Observances
Christian : Feast of St Prosper
RC : Commemoration of St William, abbot
Luth : Commemoration of the Augsburg Confession
Luth : Commemoration of Philipp Melanchthon, renewer of the Church

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Religious History
1115 St. Bernard founded a monastery in Clairvaux, France. It afterward became a strategic center for the Cistercians, a religious order that flourished up until the Reformation.
1580 The German 'Book of Concord' was published, containing all the official confessions of the Lutheran Church. (English translations of the entire work were not available before 1851.)
1744 The first Methodist conference convened, in London. This new society within Anglicanism imposed strict disciplines upon its members, formally separating from the Established Church in 1795.
1865 English pioneer missionary J. Hudson Taylor founded the China Inland Mission. Its headquarters moved to the US in 1901, and in 1965 its name became Overseas Missionary Fellowship (OMF) International.
1957 During a convention in Cleveland, Ohio, the United Church of Christ (UCC) was formed by a merger of the Congregational Christian Church and the Evangelical and Reformed Church.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

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Thought for the day :
"Most passport pictures are good likenesses, and it is time we faced it."

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Things To Do If You Ever Became An Evil Overlord...
When you employ people as advisors, occasionally listen to their advice

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The World's Shortest Books...
Mike Tyson's Guide to Dating Etiquette

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Dumb Laws...
Tylertown Mississippi:
It is unlawful to shave in the center of main street.

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Top ten things you never hear in church...
9. I was so enthralled, I never noticed your sermon went 25 minutes over time.

[The Mayor]

That is a beautiful sunrise!

[SAMWolf]

Good morning PE.

[SAMWolf]

God sure knows how to paint scenery

< There's none better. :-)

[Johnny Gage]

Air Power
Republic F-84 "Thunderjet"

The F-84, conceived as a jet successor to the P-47, was the USAF's first post-war fighter. The prototype's initial flight was on February 28, 1946, and by the time production ceased in 1953, approximately 4,450 "straight-wing" F-84s (in contrast to the swept-wing F-84F) had been built. Many were supplied to allied nations under the Mutual Assistance Program. During its service life, it became the first USAF jet fighter capable of carrying a tactical nuclear weapon. The Thunderjet pioneered aerial refueling for fighter aircraft when aircraft from the 31st Fighter Escort Wing flew nonstop from Turner AFB, Georgia, to the Far East as part of Operation Fox Peter One in 1952.

The Thunderjet earned distinction as the USAF first post WWII fighter and the first single-seat fighter-bomber with nuclear capability. The F-84 gained its reputation during the Korean War where it performed low level interdiction missions. The Thunderjet displayed a wingspan of 36 feet five inches, a height of 12 feet one inch, a length of 38 feet six inches, and a weight of 15,227 pounds. The $212,000 Thunderjet reached a top speed of 620 MPH with a range of 1,485 miles and a top ceiling of 43,240 feet.

The Thunderjet saw extensive use during the Korean War, primarily for ground attack and interdiction missions. Almost daily, the F-84s attacked enemy railroads, bridges, supply depots and troop concentrations with bombs, rockets and napalm.

Under protective cover from the air, U.N. land forces withdrew successfully to a defensive line across Korea south of the 38th Parallel. A new military strategy was then adopted--maintain superiority in the air while inflicting maximum damage to the enemy on the ground, thereby making war so costly that he would request an armistice.

Much of the success of this new strategy depended upon close air support to U.N. troops. Daily, USAF fighters attacked every conceivable type of target on the front lines and in rear areas with machine guns, rockets, high explosive bombs, and fire bombs. At the same time, they pounded the North Korean rail and road networks to isolate Communist troops from their supply sources, attacks so devastating that traffic in North Korea could move only at night.

The first combat use of air-to-air refueling of USAF fighter airplanes took place on May 29, 1952 when twelve F-84E's of the 159th Fighter-Bomber Squadron flew a bombing mission from Itazuke Air Base in Japan against targets at Sariwon, North Korea.

The planes were refueled by KB-29 tankers after they had bombed their targets and were homeward bound. By July 4, 1952, three more of these "Operation Hightide" missions had been flown. The F-84Es had probes sticking out in front of their tip tanks for use with drogues trailing on hoses from the KB-29s.

Specifications:
Contractor: Republic
Purpose: Air support and low-level interdiction missions
Crew: One
Engine: One Allison J35 jet engine with 4,900 lbs. of thrust
Cost: $212,000

Dimensions:
Wing Span: 36 feet, 6 inches
Length: 38 feet, 6 inches
Height: 12 feet, 7 inches
Weight: 15,227 lbs.

Performance:
Maximum speed: 620 mph
Cruising speed: 485 mph
Range: 1,485 miles
Service Ceiling: 43,240 feet

Armaments:
Six .50-caliber machine guns
Eight 5-inch rockets or 2,000 lbs. of bombs

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All photos Copyright of Global Security and other websites

[SAMWolf]

1876 Custer & 7th Cavalry wiped out by Sioux & Cheyenne at Little Big Horn

<===Mash this

THE 7TH IS MADE UP OF PHANTOMS - 12/06/63
Written by: Rod Serling
Director: Alan Crosland, Jr.
Cast: Ron Foster, Warren Oates, Randy Boone, Robert Bray, Wayne Mallory, Greg Morris, Jeffrey Morris, Lew Brown

[CholeraJoe]

Those of us in the USAF who were fortunate enough not to be stationed in Korea, loved to visit there. Great shopping, great bars, great women. Those who were stationed there were not as fortunate. Blazing hot in the summer, freezing in the winter, raw sewage in the ditches, kimchee (fermented cabbage) everywhere.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks Johnny.

[SAMWolf]

Morning CholeraJoe.Blazing hot in the summer, freezing in the winter, raw sewage in the ditches, kimchee (fermented cabbage) everywhere.

Except for the kimchee, you described almost any US overseas military base. ;-)

[CholeraJoe]

I dunno. At Shemya, Alaska (Westernmost of the Aleutian islands,) the sewage freezes instantly before it can stink.

[SAMWolf]

At Shemya, Alaska (Westernmost of the Aleutian islands,) the sewage freezes instantly before it can stink.

I don't even want to know how cold that is. BBRRRRRRRR

[Valin]

When I was going to photography school I had to tun in 10 rolls of film with contact sheets and 3 photos. I was allowed 1 sunrise/sunset, reason, they are almost always good.

[Valin]

http://www.military.com/Content/MoreContent1?file=segment_smith
Task Force Smith:

General MacArthur intended Task Force Smith as "an arrogant display" of American military power. Numbering only 540 troops, most with little training and no combat experience, Task Force Smith was destroyed by NKPA troops who commanded a considerable advantage in numbers and armor.
For the next month, NKPA troops crushed small and inadequately prepared American troops and forced their retreat south. Despite the shocking losses of both men and morale, the U.S. contingent bought sufficient time for a troop buildup around the port of Pusan in the southeastern corner of the peninsula.


Battle of Osan: They told us to get out of there
http://www.military.com/Content/MoreContent1?file=smith_osan
Clarence Mehlhaff, 24th Division, 63rd Field Artillery, Camp Okata, Japan
July 5, 1950
Osan

Took us 12 hours to get to Pusan. From Pusan, they put us on flat cars. From there, we left and we went to Taejon. When we got to Taejon, we had to get all of our equipment off the train, off the flat cars, and we had to move the vehicles up the road until we got up the next morning, which was on the 5th of July, to Osan.

That's where we put in two howitzers on the side of the roads, artillery howitzers. Some of us, I believe it was Wilson and myself, with two other guys -- the first sergeant gave us the bags of bazooka shells and the bazooka to go out a couple of hundred yards out in the front to see if and when the tanks were coming and if there was any infantry out there. We spent half a day out there until we got called back. The infantry was coming back at the same time. They told us to get out of there because they couldn't hold three division of North Koreans.

So we came back to a little village which had a school house. We spent the night at the school house. The next day, we moved on to P'yong Tek. That's where the real battle really started, Pyong Tek. We lost ten men the first night; they were FO [forward observer] parties. We moved back, we kept moving back because we couldn't hold them, until we got to the Kung river. We set up there. We were in that position three days, firing our howitzers. I'll tell you, they were hot. Not only the howitzers were hot -- the guys were all hot because the temperature was 120 degrees, and in fox holes and all that. We were there three days.

And then the enemy came across. The infantry could not hold because they had lost so many men already ... All the guys got slaughtered that way. This is why they started after us, being the artillery. We didn't know they were coming at us until it was too late. They hit us on two sides. Like I said, I was a machine gunner that day. I had two other guys with me. It was like an outpost. The guys across, over on the other hill -- it wasn't really a hill, it was just a bank, where the water flowed past the side of them there -- they had a hole dug there to set up their machine gun. That's where they hit those guys over there, when they swept around the whole company. When they hit, it wiped out quite a bit. They hit not only the howitzers; all the ammunition trucks were blowing up at the same time. It killed some of our men, and also it was killing the enemy. Because they really had come in too close. They threw mortars in and they blew up all the trucks. They went through A Battery and B Battery, and Headquarters; part of Headquarters and Service got out better than A and B Batteries. Because they had a better chance of getting out from where they were at.

... Col. Dawson was battalion commander at that time. The day before this happened, he got blood poisoning in his hand or something. They evacuated him, and Col. Dressler took over the battalion. When we got hit, he jumped into a foxhole and there was another corporal that jumped in from his CP right behind him. They both got killed in that battle.

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning everyone.

[SAMWolf]

Hi Feather!

[stand watie]

a GIANT WOO HOO for beachn!!!!!!!!

she sent Sarah many tapes & DVDs for our wounded troops at Walter Reed Army Hospital arrived yesterday afternoon.

Sarah is taking them today or tommorrow to the day room, when she goes to therapy!!!!!

the wounded GIs will be ESTATIC to have something to watch!!!!

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

a GIANT WOO HOO for beachn!!!!!!!!

she sent Sarah many tapes & DVDs for our wounded troops at Walter Reed Army Hospital arrived yesterday afternoon.

Sarah is taking them today or tommorrow to the day room, when she goes to therapy!!!!!

the wounded GIs will be ESTATIC to have something to watch!!!!

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

a GIANT WOO HOO for beachn!!!!!!!!

she sent Sarah many tapes & DVDs for our wounded troops at Walter Reed Army Hospital arrived yesterday afternoon.

Sarah is taking them today or tommorrow to the day room, when she goes to therapy!!!!!

the wounded GIs will be ESTATIC to have something to watch!!!!

free dixie,sw

[stand watie]

a GIANT WOO HOO for beachn!!!!!!!!

she sent Sarah many tapes & DVDs for our wounded troops at Walter Reed Army Hospital arrived yesterday afternoon.

Sarah is taking them today or tommorrow to the day room, when she goes to therapy!!!!!

the wounded GIs will be ESTATIC to have something to watch!!!!

free dixie,sw