[Lake]

>>Red China was shelling Formosa (Taiwan)

Shelling Taiwan? With what? Do you have any idea how far Taiwan is from the Mainland?

[Roy Tucker]

Dumpster is right. Quemoy and Matsu--two sets of islands just off the coast of China still controlled by Taiwan. Heavily bombed in the 50's by the Red Army. Quemoy and Matsu

[Dumpster Baby]

My bad. The commies didn't shell Formosa, they shelled the Nationalist island outposts on Quemoy and Matsu, close to the mainland. The US Navy sailed up and down flying CAP missions 24/7 for years to keep the commies at bay, and to fry them if they did the bad thing to Formosa. I remember newsreels about the shelling being shown at the movie theaters and on TV, and still have a 1958 National Geographic that has a big story about life underground during such heavy shelling, as much as 10,000 rounds per day.

Do a Google search on "formosa shelling".

[edpc]

From GlobalSecurity.org........

During the First Taiwan Straits Crisis the Peoples Liberation Army launched heavy artillery attacks on the offshore island of Quemoy after the US lifted its blockade of Taiwan, making possible Nationalist attacks on mainland China. The Truman Administration had resisted calls by hard-liners to "unleash Chiang Kai-shek." But shortly after his inauguration, on 02 February 1953 President Eisenhower lifted the US Navy blockade of Taiwan which had prevented Chiang's force from attacking mainland China. During August 1954 Chiang moved 58,000 troops to Quemoy & 15,000 to Matsu. Zhou En-lai declared on 11 August 1954 that Taiwan must be liberated. On 17 August 1954 the US warned China against action against Taiwan, but on 03 September 1954 the Communists began an artillery bombardment of Quemoy, and in November, PLA planes bombed the Tachen Islands. On 12 September 1954 the US Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) recommended the possibility of using nuclear weapons against China. And on 23 November 1954 China sentenced 13 US airmen shot down over China in the Korean War to long jail terms, prompting further consideration of nuclear strikes against China. Despite domestic political pressure, President Eisenhower refused to bomb mainland China or use of American troops to resolve the crisis. At the urging of Senator Knowland, the United States signed the Mutual Defense Treaty with the Nationalist government on Taiwan on 02 December 1954.

[Dumpster Baby]

A 1957 photo of CV-19 Hancock in the Pacific, with several very rarely seen North American AJ-2 Savage nuclear bombers on the deck. The AJ-2 had two propeller engines and a turbojet engine in the tail, making it one of only three types of bombers that were equipped with both piston and jet engines. The others were the B-50 (upgraded B-29) and the B-36.

The next year after this pic was taken the Hancock was back out there, only this time with Douglas A-3 Skywarrior jet nuclear bombers. My dad's squadron was equipped with Douglas AD Skyraider single seat attack aircraft. They went out on patrol with a nuke attached to the centerline hardpoint in lieu of a fuel tank, and they were to deliver the nuke by loft bombing. Goog thing they never had to find out if a prop plane could loft a nuke and get away in time!