Article Korean War Usaf Timeline

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The U.S. Air Force's First War: Korea 1950-1953 Significant Events

PREFACE

In commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the Korean War, the U.S. Air Force (USAF) Historian commissioned the Research Division, Air Force Historical Research Agency (AFHRA), Maxwell Air Force Base (AFB), Alabama, to compile this significant events chronology of USAF military operations in the Korean Theater.

The chronology points out the relationship of these operations to the land battle, naval operations, and important political and diplomatic events. It also identifies such USAF historical firsts as the first all-jet air battle, the introduction of new weapons systems, and the initiation of tactics, techniques, or procedures that had a major impact on later air operations.

The chronology also identifies important people, such as key commanders, recipients of the Medal of Honor, and aces. Finally, it attempts to summarize those USAF events in Korea that best illustrate the air war and the application of airpower in the theater.

To present the information most effectively, the chronology offers narrative monthly summaries followed by daily entries of significant events. Each daily entry uses the local date, which in the theater is one day later than in the United States. Two dates separated by a hyphen indicates that the entry covers events from one date through the second date. Two dates separated by a slash indicate the the events occur during night hours. Each event includes an explanation of its significance or correlates to information in the monthly introduction. The appendices add data not easily encapsulated in a chronology but helpful either in understanding the monthly and daily entries or in establishing an overview of air operations in the war.

The information in the entries came mostly from primary sources available at the AFHRA, including organizational histories, intelligence summaries, digests, and operational statements of U.S. Far East Command (FEC), Far East Air Forces (FEAF), Fifth Air Force, FEAF Bomber Command, FEAF Combat Cargo Command (Provisional), and the 315 Air Division (Combat Cargo). Sometimes, wing and group histories provided additional information. The researchers also consulted numerous secondary sources, usually to confirm the most significant events of the air war in Korea.

 

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1950

June 1950
Communist North Korea unexpectedly invaded the Republic of Korea (ROK) across the line of demarcation, the 38th parallel, using superior numbers of tanks and troops to force South Korean defenders southward. The United Nations (UN) Security Council condemned the North Korean invasion, authorized UN members to aid the ROK, and requested that the U.S. government establish a United Nations Command under an U.S. officer. Despite USAF attacks, the invaders quickly captured South Korea's capital, Seoul, overran the port of Inchon, seized the airfield at Kimpo, and threatened the city of Suwon. Gen. Douglas MacArthur, USA, Commander, the U.S. Far East Command, ordered weapons and ammunition shipped to South Korea and prepared to move U.S. ground troops from Japan to Korea. At the same time, U.S. naval units approached the peninsula to enforce a blockade of North Korea, as ordered by U.S. President Harry S Truman.

June 25: Simultaneously with the invasion of South Korea, North Korean troops made an amphibious landing at Kangnung on the east coast just south of the 38th parallel. Meanwhile, North Korean fighter aircraft attacked Seoul and Kimpo airfields, destroying one USAF C-54 on the ground at Kimpo. John J. Muccio, U.S. Ambassador to South Korea, relayed to President Truman an ROK request for U.S. air assistance and ammunition. The UN Security Council unanimously called for a cease fire and withdrawal of the North Korean Army (NKA) to north of the 38th parallel. The resolution asked all UN members to support the withdrawal of the NKA and to render no assistance to North Korea.

Maj. Gen. Earle E. Partridge, USAF, Commander, Fifth Air Force, ordered wing commanders to prepare for air evacuation of U.S. citizens from South Korea. He also increased aerial surveillance of Tsushima Strait between Korea and Japan. The Twentieth Air Force placed two squadrons of 51 Fighter Interceptor Wing (FIW) on air defense alert in Japan.

June 26: The North Koreans captured Chunchon, Pochon, and Tongduchon, South Korea. The U.S. Seventh Fleet sailed north from the Philippines. The ROK requested ten F-51s from the U.S. Air Force to supplement the South Korean Air Force's AT-6s and liaison-type airplanes. In continued preparation for air evacuation of U.S. citizens from Korea, Far East Air Forces (FEAF) traded C-54s for C-47s from all over the Far East, because the latter could land on smaller airfields.

USAF SB-17 aircraft provided rescue cover for the initial evacuation by sea of U.S. citizens from Seoul. Beginning in the early morning, 682 people boarded the Norwegian merchant ship Reinholte, which finally left Inchon Harbor at 4:30 p.m., bound for Sasebo, Japan. F-82G Twin Mustang fighters of the 68th Fighter All Weather Squadron (FAWS) provided air cover for freighters, including the Reinholte, sailing from Inchon, South Korea, to Japan. The Fifth Air Force also flew escort and surveillance sorties, some over the straits between Japan and Korea, and some over the Seoul area.

June 27: The UN Security Council called on all UN members to aid South Korea. President Truman directed U.S. air and sea forces to assist the Republic of Korea, and General MacArthur ordered Far East Air Forces to attack North Korean units south of the 38th parallel. Lt. Gen. George E. Stratemeyer, USAF, Commander, Far East Air Force, who was in the United States when the war broke out, returned to Japan. Far East Air Forces used Kimpo Airfield near Seoul and Suwon Airfield some twenty miles south of the capital for emergency air evacuation of 748 persons to Japan on C-54s, C-47s,and C-46s. Cargo aircraft assigned to the 374th Troop Carrier Wing (TCW) and the UFEAF headquarters accomplished the airlift, escorted by F-82s, F-80 jet fighters, and B-26 light bombers.

Fifth Air Force embarked on a mission to establish air superiority over South Korea, partially to prevent the North Korean air force from attacking ROK forces and to protect evacuation forces. When North Korean aircraft appeared over Kimpo and Suwon Airfields, the USAF aircraft flying air cover engaged the enemy in the first air battle of the war. Major James W. Little, USAF, Commander, 339th FAWS, fired the first shot. Lt. William G. Hudson, 68th FAWS, flying an F-82, with Lieutenant Carl Fraser as his radar observer, scored the first aerial victory. In all, six pilots shot down over Kimpo seven North Korean propeller-driven fighters, the highest number of USAF aerial victories in one day for all of 1950.

Fifth Air Force B-26s, flying from Ashiya AB, Japan, attacked enemy targets in South Korea in the evening, but bad weather made the raids ineffective. Fifth Air Force established an advance headquarters at Itazuke and moved B-26s to Ashiya and RF-80s to Itazuke AB, Japan, for missions in Korea. The 8th Fighter-Bomber Wing (FBW) organized a composite unit of USAF and South Korean airmen at Taegu Airfield, South Korea, to fly F-51D Mustangs.

 

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June 28: North Koreans captured Seoul, forcing the ROK government to move to Taejon. Enemy forces also occupied nearby Kimpo Airfield and, on the east coast, Mukho Naval Base below Kangnung. North Korean Yaks strafed Suwon Airfield, destroying one B-26 and one F-82.

In the first USAF air strikes of the Korean War, more than twenty B-26s of the 3d Bombardment Group (BG) attacked Munsan railroad yards near the 38th parallel and rail and road traffic between Seoul and the North Korean border. One, heavily damaged by enemy antiaircraft fire, crashed on its return to Ashiya, killing all aboard. Flying from Kadena Air Base (AB), Okinawa, the 19th Bombardment Group, in the first B-29 medium bomber strikes of the Korean War, attacked a railroad bridge and targets of opportunity such as tanks, trucks, and supply columns along North Korean invasion routes. Bad weather over Japan limited Fifth Air Force sorties, but eighteen fighters flew close air support and interdiction missions. More than thirty F-80s from Itazuke escorted C-54s and B-26s flying between Japan and Suwon. 1 Lt. Bryce Poe II, in an RF-80A, flew the USAF's first jet combat reconnaissance mission, photographing the NKA advance elements and reporting clearing weather over the front in Korea. C-54s and C-47s flew out the last of 851 U.S. citizens evacuated by air from South Korea. FEAF transports airlifted 150 tons of ammunition from Tachikawa AB, Japan, to Suwon, about twenty miles south of Seoul.

June 29: North Korean forces captured Kapyong and massed on the north shore of the Han River. Heavy fighting raged in the Kimpo area. North Korean aircraft bombed and strafed Suwon airfield, destroying a C-54 on the ground. The 21st Troop Carrier Squadron (TCS) moved from Clark AFB in the Philippines to Tachikawa AB, Japan.

General MacArthur directed General Stratemeyer to concentrate air attacks on the Han River bridges and North Korean troops massing north of the river. B-26s attacked the bridges, and Fifth Air Force F-80s patrolled the Han River area. F-82s from the 86th FAWS, using jettisonable fuel tanks, attacked with napalm for the first time in the war. Pilots of the 35th and 80th Fighter Bomber Squadrons (FBS) shot down five North Korean airplanes that were attacking Suwon Airfield. Eight B-29s of the 19th BG attacked enemy-held Kimpo Airfield and the Seoul railroad station, reportedly killing a large number of enemy troops. As the medium bombers turned toward Kadena, Okinawa, enemy aircraft attacked the formation, enabling B-29 gunners to shoot down for the first time in the war one of the opponent's airplanes.
General MacArthur authorized FEAF attacks on airfields in North Korea. In the first USAF attack on North Korea, eighteen B-26s of the 3d BG attacked Heijo airfield near Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, claiming up to twenty-five enemy aircraft destroyed on the ground. The 8th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron (TRS) began photographic reconnaissance of North Korean airfields. Using RB-29 aircraft, the 31st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron (Photographic) also started operations over Korea from Yokota, Japan.

June 30: President Truman ordered the use of U.S. ground troops in Korea and a naval blockade of North Korea. The 77th Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Squadron arrived in Korea to support the Fifth Air Force, to which it was subsequently attached. North Korean forces reached Samchock on the east coast and in the west crossed the Han River, threatening Suwon Airfield. Far East Air Forces began evacuation of the airfield and authorized improvement of Kumhae Airfield, eleven miles north-west of Pusan, to compensate for the loss of Kimpo and Suwon. The first Fifth Air Force tactical air control parties arrived at Suwon. B-26s from the 3d BG strafed, bombed, and rocketed enemy troops and traffic in the Seoul area. One flight hit a stalled enemy column. Fifteen B-29s attacked railroad bridges, tanks, trucks, and troop concentrations on the north bank of the Han River in the Seoul area.

 

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July 1950

NKA forces advanced relentlessly into South Korea despite the application of U.S. air and naval power north and south of the 38th parallel. The piecemeal introduction of inadequately prepared U.S. ground forces failed to stop them. By the end of July, the enemy had conquered the entire Korean peninsula except the area southeast of Hamch'ang and bordered by the Nakton River.

The USAF moved two additional B-29 groups to the Far East to join the one already there. Meantime, Gen. Hoyt S. Vandenberg, USAF, Chief of Staff, met in Tokyo with General MacArthur, now Commander of UN forces in the theater, to discuss the most efficient use of the B-29. MacArthur allowed General Stratemeyer to employ some Superfortresses in a campaign against strategic and deep interdiction targets, such as chemical plants, oil refineries, marshalling yards, docks, and key bridges in North Korea. The medium bombers also continued to hit enemy targets in South Korea, including Seoul's bridges over the Han River. In fact, General MacArthur insisted that the bulk of U.S. air power be employed tactically against the advancing enemy troops.

Far East Air Forces tasked Fifth Air Force to establish and maintain air superiority, provide UN ground forces with close air support, and interdict NKA supplies and reinforcements, thus isolating enemy forces on the front lines. The Fifth Air Force moved two fighter groups from the Philippines and Japan to South Korea and began replacing jet-powered F-80s with more fuel-efficient propellerdriven F-51 Mustangs. Compared to the F-80s, the Mustangs could loiter far longer in a target area and better endure the primitive conditions of South Korean air bases. By the end of the month, the World-War II era fighters were flying from Taegu and Pohang Dong, while C-47 transports used the Pusan Airfield. Fifth Air Force reserved a fourth South Korean airfield, Shachon, for emergency landings. B-26s of the 3d BG, based in Japan, often attacked bridges at night in enemy-occupied South Korea. Although the North Koreans shot down a few USAF airplanes, Far East Air Forces soon achieved air superiority over Korea.

July 1: North Korean forces occupied Suwon, denying Far East Air Forces use of its airstrip. The 374th TCW began airlifting the U.S. Army (USA) 24th Infantry Division, the first U.S. troops to enter Korea since the war began, from Itazuke AB to Pusan. Fifth Air Force gained operational control of the 77th RAAF Fighter Squadron.

July 3: Far East Air Forces continued to airlift U.S. Army troops to Korea but substituted smaller C46s and C-47s for C-54s, which damaged the Pusan runways. Pilots of four F-80s on the first mission with external rockets reported excessive drag that shortened their range.

July 5: A Joint Operations Center opened at Taejon to provide better close air support for U.S. ground forces, which near Osan battled for the first time North Korean troops.

 

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July 6: In the first strategic air attacks of the war, nine B-29s bombed the Rising Sun oil refinery at Wonsan and a chemical plant at Hungnam in North Korea. B-26s hitting advancing enemy armored columns reported six to ten tanks destroyed.

July 7: General Partridge resumed command of the Fifth Air Force. The UN Security Council established the UN Command, designated the United States as executive agent for prosecuting the Korean War, and requested that the U.S. President appoint a UN Commander. The 77th Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Fighter Squadron, representing Australia's contribution to airpower in the theater, was attached to Far East Air Forces.

July 8: President Truman designated General MacArthur as commander of UN forces in the Korean Theater. Far East Air Forces organized a provisional bomber command at Yokota, with Maj. Gen. Emmett O'Donnell, Jr., USAF, as commander. Lt. Oliver Duerksen and Lt. Frank Chermak, USAF, , provided from radio-equipped jeeps the first forward air control to direct air to ground attacks in the Korean War.

July 9: Forward air controllers began using L-5G and L-17 liaison airplanes to direct F-80 air strikes in support of ground forces.

July 10: Carefully timing air strikes to coincide with the departure of USAF counter-air patrols for refueling, four enemy Yaks bombed and strafed the USA 19th Infantry Regiment at Chongju. The Fifth Air Force began using T-6 trainer aircraft for forward air control missions, because liaison airplanes were not fast enough to elude enemy fire. F-80s caught an enemy convoy stopped at a bombed-out bridge near Pyongtaek. Along with B-26s and F-82s, they attacked the convoy and claimed destruction of 117 trucks, thirty-eight tanks, and seven halftracks.

July 12: Four Military Air Transport Service airplanes arrived in Japan from the United States carrying fifty-eight large 3.5-inch rocket launchers (bazookas) and shaped charges desperately needed to destroy North Korean tanks. Enemy fighters shot down one B-29, one B-26, and one L-4, the first North Korean aerial victories. In its first mission, the 92d BG, flying from its base at Yokota, Japan, bombed the Seoul marshalling yards.

July 13: Forty-nine FEAF Bomber Command B-29s from the 22d BG and the 92d BG bombed marshalling yards and an oil refinery at Wonsan, North Korea. 3d Air Rescue Squadron (ARS) began flying SB-17 aircraft off the Korean coast to drop rescue boats to downed B-29 crews. Advancing enemy troops forced the airborne control function to move southeastward from Taejon to Taegu. Lt. Gen. Walton H. Walker, USA, Commander, Eighth U.S. Army in Korea, assumed command of all U.S. ground forces in Korea.

July 14: The 35th Fighter Interceptor Group (FIG), moving from Japan to a new airfield (K-3) at Pohang, became the first USAF fighter group to be based in South Korea during the war. The 6132d Tactical Air Control Squadron, the first tactical air control unit in the war, activated at Taegu under Col. Joseph D. Lee, USAF. It provided forward, ground-based air control for aircraft providing close air support of UN forces. A Fifth Air Force-Eighth Army Joint Operations Center began to function at Taegu, and Fifth Air Force organized an advance headquarters at Itazuke AB, Japan.

July 15: Carrier aircraft on missions over Korea began to report to the Joint Operations Center at Taegu. The 51st Fighter Squadron (Provisional) at Taegu flew the first F-51 Mustang combat missions in Korea. A Fifth Air Force operation order assigned "Mosquito" call signs to airborne controllers in T-6 airplanes, and the name became the identifier for the aircraft.

July 17: Three B-29s accidentally bombed friendly civilians in Andong, South Korea, illustrating the dangers of using B-29s on close air support missions.

 

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July 18: The 19th BG modified some B-29s for the use of radio-guided bombs (Razon) to enable them to bomb bridges more accurately.

July 19: In a dogfight near Taejon, Fifth Air Force F-80s shot down three enemy Yaks, the highest daily number of aerial victories this month. In the campaign to establish air superiority in the theater, seven F-80s of the 8th Fighter-Bomber Group (FBG), led by Lt. Col. William T. Samways, destroyed fifteen enemy airplanes on the ground near Pyongyang.

July 20: Despite FEAF close air support, the North Korean Army took Taejon, forcing the remnants of the USA 24th Infantry Division to withdraw to the southeast. U.S. ground forces defending Taejon had suffered in seven days almost thirty percent casualties. Maj. Gen. Otto P. Weyland, USAF, arrived in the Far East to assume the position of FEAF Vice Commander for Operations. Fifth Air Force pilots in F-80s shot down two more enemy aircraft, the last aerial victories until November. Enemy air opposition by this time had virtually disappeared, a sign of UN air superiority.

July 22: The U.S. Navy (USN) aircraft carrier USS Boxer arrived in Japan with 145 USAF F-51s aboard. The 3d ARS deployed the first H-5 helicopter in Korea to Taegu.

July 23: The 6132d Tactical Air Control Group (Provisional) established a Tactical Air Control Center adjacent to the Joint Operations Center at Taegu, South Korea.

July 24: Fifth Air Force moved its advanced headquarters from Japan to Taegu, South Korea, locating it next to the Eighth U.S. Army Headquarters in Korea for ease of communication and coordination. Far East Air Forces established the advanced headquarters as Fifth Air Force in Korea. The UN Command was formally established in Tokyo, Japan, commanded by General MacArthur, who assigned responsibility for ground action in Korea to Lt. Gen. Walton H. Walker, USA, Commander, Eighth U.S. Army; naval action to Vice Adm. C. Turner Joy, Commander, Naval Forces, Far East; and air action to General Stratemeyer, Commander, Far East Air Forces.

July 28: The first amphibious SA-16 Albatross aircraft arrived in Japan for air rescue service off the Korean coast.

July 30: Forty-seven B-29s bombed the Chosen Nitrogen Explosives Factory at Hungnam on the east coast of North Korea.

July 31: As North Korean troops continued to advance, General Walker ordered UN forces to withdraw to a new defensive line along the Naktong River.

 

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August 1950

The North Koreans continued their offensive into South Korea, advancing on the UN's perimeter around Pusan from three directions: toward Masan from the west, toward Taegu from the northwest, and toward Pohang from the north. The communists even established bridgeheads over the Naktong River, along which UN forces held a defensive line. The United States launched its first ground offensive of the war, advancing from Masan westward toward Chinju to stabilize the southwestern end of the Pusan perimeter. The approach of enemy troops forced USAF units to evacuate Taegu and Pohang, where they had only recently arrived.

The USAF moved two additional B-29 groups from the United States to the Far East, making a total of five in the theater. During August, the Superfortresses bombed marshalling yards, industrial targets, and port facilities in North Korea, marshalling yards in Seoul, and bridges in both North and South Korea, especially in the Seoul area. They also conducted one major carpet-bombing raid near the front.

The Fifth Air Force continued to raid enemy lines of communication, airfields, and close air support targets in South Korea. Fifth Air Force B-26s and F-82s conducted night raids south of the 38th parallel. The H-5 helicopters based at Taegu evacuated 124 casualties from the battlefields of South Korea.
During August, General MacArthur and his staff drafted plans for the invasion of Inchon, near Seoul, which would take place in September. In support of the planned UN offensive, Far East Air Forces devoted most air resources to the interdiction campaign. By mid-month, each North Korean division was receiving less than twenty-two tons of food, fuel, and ammunition, a mere trickle of what was needed to maintain enemy positions against a UN attack. To coordinate the growing airlift between Japan and Korea and to prepare for the coming invasion, Far East Air Forces organized a provisional Combat Cargo Command. General Stratemeyer failed to persuade MacArthur to give Far East Air Forces sole responsibility for all air raids over North Korea.

August 1: The 6147th Tactical Control Squadron, Airborne, was established at Taegu for forward air control operations with T-6 aircraft. Forty-six B-29s of the 22d and 92d Bombardment Groups bombed the Chosen Nitrogen Fertilizer Factory at Hungnam, the largest chemical plant in the Far East.

August 2-3: In response to an Eighth Army request, the 374 Troop Carrier Group (TCG) airlifted 300,000 pounds of equipment and supplies from Ashiya AB, Japan, to Korea in twenty-four hours, a new airlift record for the war.

August 3: The 18th FBG headquarters moved from Japan to Taegu, South Korea, for expanded F-51 operations. SA-16 amphibious rescue aircraft began flying sorties along the Korean coast to retrieve U.S. pilots forced down during operations.
August 4: B-29 attacks against key bridges north of the 38th parallel initiated FEAF "Interdiction Campaign No. 1."

 

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August 5: Maj. Louis J. Sebille, USAF, Commander, 67th FBS, dived his damaged F-51 into an enemy position. For this action he posthumously received the first Medal of Honor awarded to a USAF member. In the first SA-16 rescue operation of the war, Captain Charles E. Shroder led a crew in saving a Navy pilot who had crashed into the sea off the Korean coast.

August 6: Far East Air Forces began nightly visual reconnaissance of enemy supply routes.

August 7: The 98th BG flew its first mission in the Korean War shortly after twenty of its B-29s landed at Yokota, Japan. The 822d Engineer Aviation Battalion completed the first phase of new runway construction, which allowed expanded USAF operations at Taegu.

August 8: The enemy threat to Taegu forced the 18th FBG to evacuate to Ashiya, Japan. The 307th BG, newly based in Okinawa, flew its first mission.

August 10: The U.S. Air Force called up two Reserve units, the 437th TCW and the 452d Bombardment Wing (BW), for Korean War service. Forty-six B-29s of the 22d, 92d, and 98th BGs hit an oil refinery and railroad shops at Wonsan, North Korea.

August 11: C-119 Flying Boxcars began airlifting trucks from Tachikawa AB in Japan to Taegu, South Korea.

August 12: USN Task Force 77 stopped close air support and interdiction strikes in South Korea and moved up Korea's west coast to attack interdiction targets in North Korea, leaving all air attacks in South Korea to Far East Air Forces. More than forty B-29s attacked the port of Rashin in northeastern Korea, near the border of the Soviet Union.

August 13: Endangered by the NKA advance to Pohang, two squadrons of F-51s in the 35th FIG moved from nearby Yonil AB, South Korea, to Tsuiki AB, Japan.

August 16: Because of the enemy threat to Taegu, the advanced Fifth Air Force headquarters moved to Pusan. Ninety-eight B-29s carpet-bombed suspected enemy troop concentrations in a twentyseven-square-mile area near Waegwan northwest of Taegu. The Superfortresses dropped more than 800 tons of 500-pound bombs in the largest employment of airpower in direct support of ground forces since the Normandy invasion of World War II. Subsequent reconnaissance showed little destruction of enemy troops or equipment, because they had already left the area.

August 19: U.S. troops, aided by air strikes, drove North Korean forces in the Yongsan bridgehead back across the Naktong River, ending the Battle of the Naktong Bulge. Sixty-three B-29s attacked the industrial and port area of Chongjin in northeastern Korea. Nine Superfortresses of the 19th BG dropped fifty-four tons of one thousand-pound bombs on the west railway bridge at Seoul, called the "elastic bridge" because repeated air attacks had failed to bring it down. Thirty-seven USN dive bombers from two aircraft carriers followed up the USAF attack. Aerial reconnaissance the next day revealed that two spans had collapsed.

August 19-20: General Partridge moved the Joint Operations Center from Taegu to Pusan because of enemy advances.

August 22: Anti-aircraft gunners fired from across the Yalu River at RB-29s reconnoitering the border, the first hostile Chinese action against UN aircraft.

August 23: General MacArthur set September 15 as the date to invade Inchon. The 19th BG flew the first Razon mission, but with the exception of one bomb that hit the railroad bridge west of Pyongyang, the World War II-era control equipment failed to guide the bombs to the target.

August 25: Far East Air Forces directed Fifth Air Force to maintain constant armed surveillance of enemy airfields to prevent enemy build-up of air strength before the Inchon invasion.

August 26: Fifth Air Force organized the 47th and 48th Troop Carrier Squadrons (Provisional) at Tachikawa with C-46s from all over the Far East theater to augment FEAF airlift resources for UN offensives planned for September. At Ashiya, Japan, Far East Air Forces organized the 1st Troop Carrier Task Force (Provisional) as the nucleus of the new Combat Cargo Command (Provisional). Maj. Gen. William H. Tunner, USAF, architect of the "Hump" airlift of World War II and the Berlin airlift , 1948-1949, assumed command of Combat Cargo Command.

August 27: Two USAF Mustang pilots accidentally strayed into China and strafed an airstrip near Antung, mistaking it for a North Korean airstrip at Sinuiju. The Chinese exploited the incident to the fullest for propaganda and diplomatic purposes. The 92th BG sent twenty-four B-29s to Kyomipo to bomb the largest iron and steel plant in Korea. Far East Air Forces experimented with delayed action bombs to discourage enemy repairs on bridges.

August 30: Before dawn an experimental B-29 flare mission illuminated the Han River in the Seoul area for a B-26 strike on an elusive enemy pontoon bridge, but it could not be found. B-26s attacked the permanent bridge.

August 31: After a ten-day lull in the ground fighting, North Korean forces launched a coordinated offensive against the entire Pusan perimeter. Fifth Air Force provided close air support for the defending UN troops. Seventy-four B-29s bombed mining facilities, metal industries, and marshalling yards at Chinnampo in the largest strategic bombing mission of the month. Among the targets were aluminum and magnesium plants.

 

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September 1950

September witnessed the first major turning point in the Korean War. At the beginning of the month, North Korean forces were at the threshold of total victory, but by its end they were in full retreat across the 38th parallel.

A final desperate week-long communist offensive along the Pusan perimeter failed to drive UN and ROK forces out of Korea. Relentless air attacks exacted a terrible price on enemy forces, and by mid-September, with the Eighth Army prepared to go on the offensive, UN forces confronted a starving enemy who was short of ammunition and other essential supplies. At the same time, General MacArthur launched an amphibious invasion at Inchon, just west of Seoul and more than 150 miles northwest of the front lines. While U.S. Navy and Marine Corps aircraft covered the invasion area, the USAF cut enemy lines of communication and patrolled enemy-held airfields to keep them out of action. The Inchon invaders drove a wedge between the North Korean Army in the south and its main supply routes in the north, threatening to cut it off and squeeze it against advancing Eighth Army forces from the southeast. Hoping to escape the trap, the North Koreans retreated rapidly northward. By the end of September, U.S. forces from Inchon and Pusan had linked up near Osan. UN forces captured over 125,000 prisoners of war (POW). UN troops marched into Seoul and restored the ROK government there.

FEAF activities in Korea rose to a crescendo during September. Bomber Command pursued a major B-29 strategic bombing campaign to its conclusion, attacking North Korean industrial facilities and troop training centers in such cities as Wonsan, Hungnam, Hamhung, Pyongyang, Songjin, and Chonjin. Superfortresses also raided marshalling yards and railroad junctions in North Korea and flew interdiction and close air support missions in South Korea for the Eighth Army offensive. The Fifth Air Force moved fighter squadrons from Japan back to Korea and began basing jet fighters there. Fifth Air Force F-51s, F-80s, and B-26s destroyed large numbers of tanks and enemy troop concentrations, allowing UN and ROK forces to move northward to the 38th parallel. Combat Cargo Command, using newly recaptured airfields at Kimpo and Suwon, airlifted ammunition, rations, and other supplies to the fast-moving UN forces. Seventy C-119 flights airlifted a pontoon bridge from Japan to the Seoul area to span the Han River for UN troops. Flying Boxcars also dropped paratroops and supplies at the front, while C-54s, having delivered supplies to bases near Seoul, returned to Japan with casualties who had been airlifted from the battle area by H-5 helicopters.

September 1: Fifth Air Force strafed and dropped napalm and bombs on NKA troops and armored columns attacking along the Naktong River front. Carrier-based aircraft from USN Task Force 77 also provided close air support to the perimeter defenders. The 21st TCS dropped rations and ammunition to U.S. troops temporarily cut off by the enemy thrusts. General MacArthur directed General Stratemeyer to use all available FEAF airpower, including B-29s, to help the Eighth Army hold the "Pusan Perimeter," the southeast corner of the Korean peninsula that South Korea still controlled.

September 3: Task Force 77 withdrew its aircraft carriers from the Pusan area for replenishment at sea and movement north to strike communications targets, leaving all close air support responsibility with Far East Air Forces.

September 4: In the first H-5 helicopter rescue of a downed U.S. pilot from behind enemy lines in Korea, at Hanggan-dong Lt. Paul W. Van Boven saved Capt. Robert E. Wayne. Three squadrons of C-119 Flying Boxcars arrived at Ashiya AB in Japan for use in the Korean War.
September 6: As North Korean forces approached Taegu, Eighth Army headquarters withdrew to Pusan. Col. Aaron Tyler, airfield commander at Taegu, began moving the remaining aircraft, including the T-6 "Mosquitoes" of the 6147th Tactical Control Squadron, southward to Pusan.

September 7: FEAF Bomber Command attacked the iron works at Chongjin in the extreme northeast of North Korea, employing 24 B-29s of the 22d BG.

September 8: The 18th F BG, which had departed Korea a month earlier, returned from Japan, settling at Pusan East (Tongnae).

September 9: North Korean forces attacking southeast of Hajang reached a point only eight miles from Taegu, their farthest penetration on the western front. FEAF Bomber Command began a rail interdiction campaign north of Seoul to slow enemy reinforcements , which might counter the UN Inchon landing. In this campaign, the medium bombers combined attacks on marshalling yards with raids to cut rails at multiple points along key routes.

September 10: As a result of the USN Task Force 77's unexpected withdrawal from close air support of the Eighth Army on September 3, General Stratemeyer persuaded General MacArther to direct that all close air support requests must be routed through the Fifth Air Force. If Fifth Air Force lacked resources to meet the requests, they were to be forwarded to FEAF headquarters for coordination with the Commander, Naval Forces, Far East.

 

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September 13: Typhoon Kezia hit southern Japan, hampering FEAF operations and forcing some aircraft to move temporarily to Pusan and Taegu.

September 15: U.S. Marines invaded Wolmi-do in Inchon Harbor at dawn, occupying the island in less than an hour. The main U.S. X Corps landings at Inchon occurred at high tide, in the afternoon, after a forty-five-minute naval and air bombardment. USN and United States Marine Corps (USMC) aircraft from carriers provided air cover during the amphibious assault. At the same time, FEAF air raids in South Korea prepared the way for the planned Eighth Army advance from the Pusan perimeter.

September 16: U.S. forces secured Inchon and began moving toward Seoul. From the vicinity of Taegu, the U.S. Eighth Army launched its long-awaited offensive.

September 17: U.S. Marines captured Kimpo Airfield near Seoul. To support the Eighth Army offensive, Fifth Air Force F-51s and F-80s flew napalm attacks, reportedly killing over 1,200 enemy soldiers in Tabu-dong, Yongchon, and other strongholds near the Naktong River. Far East Air Forces began a week of dropping four million psychological warfare leaflets.

September 18: Forty-two B-29s of the 92d and 98th Bombardment Groups carpet-bombed two 500x5000-yard areas near Waegwan. The 1,600 bombs effectively destroyed enemy troop concentrations blocking the Eighth Army offensive.

September 19: FEAF Combat Cargo Command began an airlift to Kimpo, located near Seoul.. Thirty-two C-54s landed with equipment and supplies for ground troops. Supported by Fifth Air Force close air support missions, the 24th Infantry Division began crossing the Naktong River near Waegwan, and the 1st Cavalry Division broke through communist lines.

September 20: FEAF Combat Cargo Command expanded its airlift into Kimpo into an around-theclock operation by using night lighting equipment it had transported the previous day. U.S. Marines entered the outskirts of Seoul. To destroy enemy reinforcements, B-29s attacked three separate barracks areas in and near Pyongyang, North Korea.

September 21: USAF forward air controllers in T-6 Mosquitoes equipped with air to ground radios spotted about thirty enemy tanks preparing to ambush the advancing 24th Infantry Division. They called USAF aircraft and USA ground artillery, which destroyed fourteen enemy tanks and forced the rest to flee. FEAF Combat Cargo Command C-54s began airlifting supplies, including sixty-five tons of rations and ammunition to newly captured Suwon airfield south of Seoul. C-119s initiated airdrops of food and ammunition to front-line UN troops.

September 22: North Korean resistance crumbled all along the Pusan perimeter. Lt. George W. Nelson, a USAF pilot in a Mosquito aircraft, dropped a note to 200 enemy troops northeast of Kunsan demanding their surrender. They complied, moving to a designated hill to be captured by nearby UN ground troops. B-29s dropped flares over rail lines, allowing B-26s to attack enemy trains at night.

September 23: HQ Fifth Air Force in Korea moved from Pusan to Taegu. In the first recorded special operations mission of the war, SB-17 aircraft of the 3d Air Rescue Squadron made a classified flight in Korea.

September 25: Far East Air Forces flew flare missions over Seoul all night to allow USMC night fighters to attack North Korean troops fleeing the city. FEAF Combat Cargo Command landed a battalion of 187th Airborne Regiment paratroopers at Kimpo to guard the U.S. Army's X Corps' northern flank as it moved out from Inchon.

September 26: U.S. military forces from Inchon and Pusan linked up near Osan, while ROK troops with Fifth Air Force support moved northward along the east coast toward the 38th parallel. Twenty B-29s of the 22d BG bombed a munitions factory at Haeju, destroying the power plant and five related buildings. Other B-29s belonging to the 92d BG raided the Pujon hydroelectric plant near Hungnam. These attacks marked the end of the first strategic bombing campaign against North Korea. Fifth Air Force organized the provisional 543d Tactical Support Group at Taegu to manage tactical reconnaissance squadrons in Korea.

September 27: U.S. Marines drove enemy forces from Seoul and took control of the capital building. More than a hundred communist troops, each carrying a "safe conduct pass" that B-29s had dropped, surrendered to U.S. forces near Seoul.. The Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered General MacArthur to destroy the North Korean Army, which involved crossing the 38th parallel into North Korea. Only ROK troops were to be allowed by the UN Command in provinces bordering China and the Soviet Union. The Joint Chiefs of Staff also cancelled further strategic bombing of North Korea. FEAF Combat Cargo Command finished airlifting the 187th Airborne Regiment to Kimpo.

September 28: ROK troops advanced into North Korea for the first time. General MacArthur officially restored Seoul to ROK President Syngman Rhee. The first jet fighter squadron to operate from a base in Korea, the 7th FBS moved from Itazuke to Taegu. Three RB-45 Tornadoes, the first jet reconnaissance aircraft in the USAF inventory, arrived in the Far East.

 

[Charlie-G]

October 1950

By this month few organized units of North Korean soldiers remained in South Korea. General MacArthur prohibited further destruction of rail facilities south of the 38th parallel unless the enemy were actively using them. UN and ROK forces advanced steadily into North Korea, taking Pyongyang and Wonsan and driving toward the Yalu River, which ROK troops reached by the end of the month. During October, most Fifth Air Force subordinate combat organizations-four fighter groups and two reconnaissance squadrons-and much of the support infrastructure moved from Japan to Korea. UN forces captured North Korean airfields at Wonsan, Sinmak, Pyongyang, and Sinanju, all of which became available to Far East Air Forces and Fifth Air Force aircraft. A scarcity of strategic targets in North Korean permitted the return of the 22d and 92d Medium Bombardment Groups to return with their B-29s to the United States. The FEAF interdiction campaign against enemy bridges south of the Yalu River concluded, and as the daily number of fighter and bomber sorties declined, daily cargo sorties increased. During the month, FEAF aircraft transported 2,840 patients within Korea and 3,025 patients from Korea to Japan. To communicate a surrender ultimatum from General MacArthur, FEAF aircraft dropped 4,440,000 leaflets over parts of North Korea not yet in UN hands. Just as a united, non-communist Korea seemed within reach, over 180,000 Chinese Communist Forces (CCF) troops slipped over the Yalu River into North Korea.

October 2: In an effort to crush NKA reinforcements, twenty-two FEAF Bomber Command B-29s attacked a North Korean military training area at Nanam, destroying seventy-five percent of the buildings. The 8th TRS moved from Itazuke, Japan, to Taegu, Korea, to become the first USAF day reconnaissance squadron stationed in Korea.

October 3: In a message to the Indian ambassador, China warned that it would send troops to defend North Korea if non-Korean UN troops moved north of the 38th parallel.

October 4: Far East Air Forces gained operational control of all land-based aircraft in Korea, including USMC squadrons at Kimpo. Anticipating the acquisition of enemy air installations, Far East Air Forces stopped most attacks on airfields south of the 40th parallel. The 2d South African Air Force (SAAF) Fighter Squadron, theUnion of South Africa's contribution to UN airpower, arrived in the theater and was attached to Fair East Air Forces.

October 6: The U.S. Air Force took charge of Kimpo airfield, which the U.S. Marine Corps had commanded since its capture. Eighteen B-29s attacked an enemy arsenal at Kan-ni, North Korea. Far East Air Forces issued a new interdiction plan canceling attacks on bridges south of Pyongyang and Wonsan.

October 7: The UN General Assembly overwhelmingly approved a resolution authorizing General MacArthur to move into North Korea. For the first time, U.S. troops crossed the 38th parallel. USAF airplanes dropped food to a group of 150 former POWs who had escaped during the North Korean retreat.

October 8: Two F-80s accidentally strafed a Soviet airfield near Vladivostok, USSR, on the coast northeast of the Korea border. General Stratemeyer removed the group commander, reassigning him to FEAF headquarters, and instituted a court martial of the two pilots. Razon bomb missions resumed after more reliable radio-guided bombs arrived from the United States. The 162d TRS moved from Itazuke, Japan, to Taegu, becoming the first night reconnaissance squadron stationed in Korea.

October 10: A 3d ARS H-5 crew administered, for the first time while a helicopter was in flight, blood plasma to a rescued pilot. The crewmembers received Silver Stars for this action.

October 12: FEAF Combat Cargo Command began an airlift of ROK military supplies to Wonsan, which ROK forces had captured two days earlier. It also began transporting 600 tons of bridge sections to Kimpo airfield.

October 14: Two communist aircraft raided Inchon harbor and Kimpo airfield. Far East Air Forces suspected they had come from Sinuiju, North Korea, on the Chinese border. CCF troops began to enter North Korea from Manchuria.

October 15: General MacArthur, in a meeting with President Truman on Wake Island, predicted that the war would be over by Christmas and China would not intervene. CCF antiaircraft artillery for the first time shot down an F-51 over the Yalu River near Sinuiju. Headquarters Fifth Air Force in Korea opened in Seoul.

October 17: Just one day after the capture of Sinmak, less than fifty miles southeast of Pyongyang, North Korea, FEAF Combat Cargo Command began airlifting fuel and rations there to sustain a UN offensive toward the North Korean capital. The command also began aeromedical evacuations from Sinmak to Kimpo.

October 18: An RB-29 reconnaissance crew spotted more than seventy-five fighters at Antung's airfield in China, just across the Yalu River from North Korea, suggesting that Communist China might intervene in the war.

October 19: After a battle at Hukkyori, some ten miles south of the North Korean capital, UN forces entered Pyongyang. Fifth Air Force fighters provided crucial air support to U.S. 1st Cavalry Division troops during this battle.

October 20: FEAF Combat Cargo Command dropped the USA 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team thirty miles north of Pyongyang. Seventy-one C-119s and forty C-47s participated in the operation, dropping more than 2,800 troops and 300 tons of equipment and supplies at Sukchon and Sunchon. The command also began airlifting Eighth Army supplies to Pyongyang.

October 21: UN forces from Pyongyang linked up the with 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team in the Sukchon and Sunchon area. H-5s of the 3d ARS evacuated some thirty-five paratroopers in the first use of a helicopter in support of an airborne operation. H-5s also evacuated seven American POWs from the area. A C-47 equipped with loudspeakers persuaded some 500 enemy troops hiding in houses south of Kunmori to surrender. Combat Cargo Command began aeromedical evacuations from Pyongyang.

October 23: The cargo command concluded its fourth consecutive day of airlift for the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team. The Flying Boxcars had airdropped almost 4,000 troops and nearly 600 tons of materiel, including jeeps, trucks, and howitzers.

October 24: General MacArthur removed restrictions on how far U.S. troops could move into North Korea, giving them permission to go all the way to the Chinese border.

October 25: FEAF Bomber Command temporarily quit flying combat missions for lack of B-29 targets in Korea. Far East Air Forces removed all restrictions on close air support missions near the Yalu River, allowing fighter operations all the way to the Chinese border. FEAF Combat Cargo Command set a new daily record by airlifting 1,767 tons of equipment within Korea.

October 26: ROK forces reached the Yalu River along the Chinese border at Chosan in northwest Korea. Chinese forces severely savaged a ROK battalion near Onjong. ROK and UN troops captured the first CCF prisoners. FEAF Combat Cargo Command C-119s dropped supplies to friendly ground troops cut off in North Korea, delivering twenty-eight and a half tons of ammunition, fuel, and oil near Unsan, some fifty miles south of Chosan.

October 27: Chinese soldiers moving into Korea attacked the ROK 6th Infantry Division near the Yalu River. The 452d BG flew its first B-26 combat mission in the Korean War, less than a month after it was called to active duty in the United States.

October 29: C-47s made aeromedical flights from newly captured Sinanju, North Korea, the northernmost Korean airfield FEAF aircraft ever used. Sinanju was located at the mouth of Chongchon River, some forty miles north of Pyongyang.

 

[Charlie-G]

November 1950

As UN forces occupied most of North Korea, Superfortress strikes on enemy ports and bridges over the Yalu River failed to shut off the flow of Chinese forces to North Korea. Even if FEAF bombers had been able to destroy every fixed bridge over the Yalu, the Chinese could have crossed on pontoon bridges or on thick ice that covered sections of the river by the end of the month. Unable to overfly Manchuria, B-29s attacked the bridges by following the course of the river. Fighter escorts could only fly on the Korean side of the bombers. Enemy fighters and antiaircraft guns based in China threatened the Superfortresses and persuaded Far East Air Forces to restrict their flights in the area. FEAF Bomber Command B-29s dropped incendiary bombs on enemy ports and supply and communications centers close to China. Following General MacArthur's orders, the command initiated in early November a two-week campaign of incendiary attacks on North Korean cities and towns to destroy supplies and shelter for enemy troops.

For the first time since July, USAF pilots shot down enemy aircraft in Korea, reflecting an intensification of the air war. Soviet-built MiG-15 swept-wing jet fighters, faster than any USAF aircraft in the theater, entered the war, flying from Chinese sanctuaries. During the month, USAF F80s shot down a few MiGs, although some USAF fighters suffered heavy damage in these encounters. The United States transported F-84 and F-86 fighters to the Far East by sea, but by the end of the month the had not yet entered combat. At the request of General Partridge, Commander, Fifth Air Force, FEAF Combat Cargo Command diverted airlift resources from the logistical support of ground forces to move three F-51 fighter groups from South Korea to bases in North Korea.

The three RB-45 aircraft, which finally received proper photographic equipment after more than a month in the theater, began flying missions. But snow covered the North Korean landscape, hiding enemy installations, equipment, and troops.

Eighth Army units concentrated along the southern bank of the Chongchon River in northwest North Korea to prepare for a final offensive. General MacArthur launched his attack the last week in November, but the Chinese Communist Forces responded with an almost immediate counteroffensive that ended hopes of sending U.S. troops home by Christmas.

November 1: Three Yak fighters attacked USAF airplanes, including a B-26, over northwestern North Korea. The B-26 crew claimed one Yak, and two F-51 pilots shot down the other two enemy aircraft, scoring the first aerial victories since July. F-80s attacked Sinuiju airfield, destroying several Yak fighters on the ground, but antiaircraft artillery located across the Yalu River shot down a FEAF jet. Later that day, six MiG-15 jets appeared for the first time in the war and fired on a T-6 and a flight of F-51 Mustangs in the Yalu River area. A regiment of the USA 1st Cavalry Division experienced a strong CCF attack in the first encounter of the war between U.S. and Chinese forces.

November 2: Far East Air Forces flew the first RB-45 Tornado jet reconnaissance mission in the war.

November 3: In the face of strong CCF attacks, General Walker ordered the bulk of the Eighth Army to withdraw to the Chongchon River for regrouping and resupply.

November 4: B-26s providing close support for the Eighth Army attacked enemy troops near Chongju, killing an estimated 500 soldiers and providing hard-pressed U.S. troops some relief.

November 5: Bomber Command began incendiary bomb attacks on North Korean cities and towns. Twenty-one B-29s of the 19th BG dropped 170 tons of fire bombs on Kanggye, located less than twenty miles south of the Chinese border. The attack destroyed sixty-five percent of the town's center.

November 8: In the largest incendiary raid of the Korean War, seventy Superfortresses dropped some 580 tons of fire bombs on Sinuiju on the Chinese border. Other B-29s attacked bridges over the Yalu River for the first time. When MiG-15s challenged F-80s flying in the same area, Lt. Russell J. Brown, USAF, 16th Fighter Interceptor Squadron (FIS), shot down a MiG to score the first jet-to-jet aerial victory in history.

November 9: A 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron gunner, Sgt. Harry J. Levene, scored the first B-29 jet victory of the Korean War, destroying an attacking MiG-15. The damaged RB-29 limped back to Japan, but five crewmen died in the crash landing.

November 10: MiG-15s near the Yalu River shot down a B-29 for the first time. The crew, assigned to the 307th BG, parachuted behind enemy lines to become POWs. Less than thirty-six hours after its arrival in Japan, the 437th TCW began airlifting cargo on C-46s to Korea.

November 13: UN forces of X Corps, based in Hungnam, North Korea, began moving northward, with a regiment of the 1st U.S. Marines Division advancing into the Changjin Reservoir area.

November 14: Fifteen MiG-15s attacked eighteen B-29s bombing the bridges at Sinuiju and damaged two.

November 18: For the first time, a USAF fighter group moved to North Korea. The 35th FIG, which had also been the first fighter group based in South Korea, settled at Yonpo Airfield, near Hungnam.

November 19: In the first massed light bomber attack of the Korean War, fifty B-26s from Japan dropped incendiary bombs on Musan, North Korea, on the Tumen River border with China. The attack destroyed seventy-five percent of the town's barracks area.

November 20: FEAF Combat Cargo Command airdropped rations and gasoline at Kapsan, some twenty miles south of the Yalu River, to supply the 7th Infantry Division, the U.S. ground unit advancing the farthest north during the war.

November 24: To support the UN offensive beginning this day, B-29s attacked North Korean communications and supply centers and Yalu River bridges, while Fifth Air Force fighters intensified close air support missions, and FEAF Combat Cargo Command air-dropped ammunition to front-line troops.

November 25: Chinese Communist forces launched a major offensive and, with almost double the number of MacArthur's U.S. troops, stopped the UN offensive completely. The Royal Hellenic Air Force Detachment, a C-47 transport unit representing Greece's airpower contribution to the war, arrived in the Far East and was attached to Far East Air Forces.

November 26: USAF B-26s flew their first close air support night missions under tactical air control party (TACP) direction. The 3d BG flew 67 B-26 missions along the Eighth Army's bomb line in a five hour period. Still, the enemy drove the Eighth Army in northwest Korea and the X Corps in northeast Korea southward.

November 28: The FEAF Combat Cargo Command began a two-week airlift of supplies to U.S. troops, whom the Chinese had surrounded in the Changjin Reservoir area. From Yonpo, North Korea, the 35th FIG flew intense close air support missions for the encircled forces. For the first time, B-26s, using a more accurate radar than previously, bombed within 1,000 yards of the front line,. A small communist aircraft bombed U.S.-held Pyongyang Airfield, badly damaging eleven P51 Mustangs on the ground. General MacArthur informed Washington that he faced "an entirely new war."

 

[Charlie-G]

December 1950

Pressured by overwhelming numbers of CCF troops, the U.S. Eighth Army withdrew from western North Korea. Far East Air Forces aided this withdrawal by a "reverse airlift" that allowed U.S. forces to take out most of their equipment and supplies. FEAF Combat Cargo Command airlifted food and ammunition to encircled elements of the X Corps and evacuated their sick and wounded troops. The X Corps' units concentrated at Hungnam, so that the UN forces could leave eastern North Korea by sea. By the end of the month, the UN line had fallen back to near the 38th parallel, and most of North Korea was back in communist hands.

Three USAF fighter groups withdrew from North to South Korea, reducing Fifth Air Force's ability to provide air support for both Eighth Army and X Corps at the same time. Nevertheless, effective Fifth Air Force attacks on Chinese Communist Forces forced them to abandon daytime movements. FEAF Bomber Command conducted almost daily B-29 raids against North Korean cities that served as enemy supply or communications centers, including Sinanju, Anju, Kanggye, Pyongyang, and Wonsan. Far East Air Forces embarked on a new interdiction plan that divided North Korea into ten zones. The zones made target destruction more systematic and allowed Far East Air Forces and U.S. Navy aviation to coordinate their missions better. FEAF F-86s and F-84s entered combat in North Korea to challenge communist MiG-15s flying from Manchurian sanctuaries.

The newly organized Boat Section of the 6160th Air Base Group (ABG) received one 104-foot boat, one sixty-three-foot boat, and two 24-footers, with which it conducted fifty-one search and rescue missions.

December 1: The USS Cape Esperance arrived in Japan with F-86 fighters of the 4th FIW. Fifth Air Force headquarters moved from Nagoya, Japan, to Seoul, South Korea, and its newly activated 314th Air Division assumed responsibility for the air defense of Japan. In the first prolonged MiG attack of the war, six MiG-15s engaged three B-29s for six minutes, damaging them considerably despite the F-80 escorts. FEAF Combat Cargo Command evacuated about 1,500 UN casualties from the Pyongyang area.

December 3: U.S. troops from the Changjin Reservoir area fought their way to Hagaru-ri, while a relief column from Hungnam fought its way toward them, reaching Koto-ri, about seven miles away. Communist troops prevented the two groups from linking and encircled them both, forcing them to rely on airlift for resupply.

December 4: MiG-15s shot down one of the three USAF Tornado reconnaissance aircraft in the theater, making the first successful jet bomber interception in airpower history.

December 5: UN forces abandoned Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, which they had held since October 19. Greek C-47s joined the FEAF Combat Cargo Command airlift to supply UN troops surrounded in northeastern Korea. The command evacuated 3,925 patients from Korea to Japan in the biggest day of the war for aeromedical airlift. Transports flew most of these from a frozen airstrip at Hagaru-ri. The U.S. Air Force suspended attacks on the Yalu River bridges, because enemy forces were crossing the frozen river on the ice.

December 6: The 27th Fighter Escort Wing (FEW), a Strategic Air Command unit from Bergstrom Air Force Base, Texas, began flying combat operations from Taegu, South Korea, introducing F-84 ThunderJet fighters to the war.

December 7: FEAF B-29s bombed North Korean towns in the Changjin Reservoir area to relieve enemy pressure on U.S. Marine and Army units attempting to break out from Hagaru-Ri and KotoRi. Troops in those two locations finally linked and built crude airstrips that allowed FEAF Combat Cargo Command airplanes to land food and ammunition and to evacuate casualties. Eight C-119s dropped bridge spans to the surrounded U.S. troops so that they could cross a 1,500-foot-deep gorge to break the enemy encirclement. This was the first air-dropped bridge in history of warfare.

December 10: A two-week FEAF Combat Cargo Command airlift for surrounded U.S. troops in northeastern Korea concluded after delivering 1,580 tons of supplies and equipment and moving almost 5,000 sick and wounded troops. Participating airlift units conducted 350 C-119 and C-47 flights.

December 11: The X Corps began loading on ships in Hungnam Harbor.

December 14: As Chinese forces approached, FEAF Combat Cargo Command began an aerial evacuation from Yonpo Airfield near Hamhung. A FEAF airplane dropped the first tarzon bomb to be used in Korea on a tunnel near Huichon, with limited effectiveness. The tarzon bomb was a sixton version of the razon bomb, but generally it did not live up to expectations.

December 15: The 4 FIG inaugurated F-86 Sabrejet operations in Korea. FEAF Bomber Command launched its first mission in a new zone interdiction plan. ROK forces completed their withdrawal from Wonsan, North Korea, and the Eighth U.S. Army withdrew below the 38th parallel.

December 17: Lt. Col. Bruce H. Hinton, USAF, 4th FIG, scored the first F-86 aerial victory over a MiG-15 on the first day Sabres encountered communist jets. FEAF Combat Cargo Command abandoned Yonpo Airfield to communist forces, having transported in four days 228 patients, 3,891 other passengers, and 20,088 tons of cargo.

December 20: Twelve C-54s of the 61st TCG airlifted 806 South Korean orphans from Kimpo to Cheju-Do off the South Korean coast in Operation CHRISTMAS KIDLIFT.

December 22: One USN and five USAF pilots shot down six MiG-15s, the highest daily FEAF aerial victory credit total for the month, and the highest since June. A MiG-15 shot down an F-86 for the first time. Headquarters Fifth Air Force, Eighth U.S. Army in Korea headquarters, and the Joint Operations Center moved from Seoul to Taegu.

December 23: Three H-5 helicopter crews with fighter cover rescued eleven U.S. and twenty-four ROK soldiers from a field eight miles behind enemy lines. General Walker, Commander, Eighth U.S. Army, died in a vehicle accident north of Seoul.

December 24: X Corps completed the sea evacuation of Hungnam. More than 105,000 troops and 91,000 civilians had departed since the exodus began on December 11. USAF B-26s and U.S. Navy gunfire held the enemy at bay during the night as the last ships departed. The 3d ARS flew thirtyfive liberated prisoners of war from enemy territory.

December 25: Chinese forces crossed the 38th parallel into South Korea.

December 26: Lt. Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway, USA, took command of the U.S. Eighth Army in Korea, as it absorbed X Corps.

December 29: From Taegu, RF-51 aircraft began flying tactical reconnaissance missions in Korea for the first time. They had longer ranges than their RF-80 predecessors.

December 31: Chinese Communist forces in Korea launched an offensive against UN troops south of the 38th parallel. General Ridgway ordered Eighth Army troops to a new defensive line seventy miles farther south.

 

[Charlie-G]

Well thats 1950 covered, I know its long winded but I think anybody interested in the Korean War will have use for it
Just 1951 / 1952 / 1953 to format but I think I will remove my eyes and soak them in salt water overnight before I carry on

 

[Bombardier]

I think I will remove my eyes and soak them in salt water overnight before I carry on

Funny that
Must have taken you a while to put all that together. Great work I have skip read it for now but will enjoy reading it in detail later. Thanks for yoiur effort with this and for sharing it.

 

[BravoZulu]

Great work @Charlie-G immense work mate BZ!

 

[Charlie-G]

Great work @Charlie-G immense work mate BZ!

Thanks @BravoZulu but all I did was format it all from a PDF I had, then posted it. The text is not mine but as far as I know is Public Domain.

 

[Charlie-G]

1951

Jan. 1: As almost half a million CCF and North Korean troops launched a new ground offensive, 5th Air Force embarked on a campaign of air raids on enemy troop columns.

Jan. 2: For the first time, a C-47 dropped flares to illuminate B-26 and F-82 night attacks on enemy forces. The flares also deterred enemy night attacks on US troops. Fifth Air Force withdrew forward-based F-86s assigned to the 4th FIW from enemy-threatened Kimpo airfield near Seoul to the wing's home station at Johnson AB, Japan.

Jan. 3: As massive numbers of Chinese troops crossed the frozen Han River east and west of Seoul, Eighth Army began evacuating the South Korean capital. The South Korean government began moving to Pusan. In one of the largest Bomber Command air raids, more than 60 B-29s dropped 650 tons of incendiary bombs on Pyongyang. UN forces burned nearly 500,000 gallons of fuel and 23,000 gallons of napalm at Kimpo in preparation for abandoning the base to the advancing enemy. FEAF flew 958 combat sorties, a one-day record.

Jan. 4: For the third time in six months, Seoul changed hands as CCF troops moved in. The last USAF aircraft left Kimpo airfield.

Jan. 5: Fifty-nine B-29s dropped 672 tons of incendiary bombs on Pyongyang. The 18th FBG staged its final missions from Suwon. US ground troops burned the buildings at Suwon's airfield before withdrawing.

Jan. 6: Combat Cargo Command concluded a multiday airlift of supplies to the US 2nd Infantry Division, which was fighting to prevent a break in the UN defensive line across South Korea. C-47s from 21st TCS landed 115 tons of cargo at Wonju, in central Korea, and C-119s of the 314th TCG dropped 460 tons of supplies to the division.

Jan. 8: When blizzards forced USN Task Force 77 carriers to suspend close air support missions for X Corps, 5th Air Force took up the slack. Superfortresses cratered Kimpo airfield to prevent its use by enemy aircraft. US forces in central Korea withdrew to new positions three miles south of Wonju.

Jan. 10: Continued severe winter weather forced 5th Air Force to cancel close air support missions, and FEAF flew the lowest daily total of sorties since July 1950. Brig. Gen. James E. Briggs, replaced O'Donnell as commander of Bomber Command. From now on, Strategic Air Command changed commanders of Bomber Command every four months to provide wartime experience to as many officers as possible.

Jan. 11: With improved weather, 5th Air Force and Bomber Command resumed close air support missions for X Corps in north central South Korea.

Jan. 12: After Wonju fell to Communist forces, 98th BG sent 10 B-29s to attack the occupied city. For the first time, B-29s dropped 500-pound general purpose bombs fused to burst in the air and shower enemy troops with thousands of steel fragments. The innovation slowed the enemy advance. To improve bombing precision, FEAF installed shoran (a short-range navigation system) on a B-26 for the first time.

Jan. 13: FEAF flew the first effective tarzon mission against an enemy-held bridge at Kanggye, dropping a 6-ton radio-guided bomb on the center span, destroying 58 feet of the structure.

Jan. 14: Chinese Communist Forces reached their furthest extent of advance into South Korea with the capture of Wonju.

Jan. 15: The enemy began a limited withdrawal in some areas of South Korea.

Jan. 17: A 4th FIG detachment began operating from Taegu, restoring F-86 operations in Korea. For the first time, the Sabres flew in the air-to-ground role as fighter-bombers, conducting armed reconnaissance and close air support missions. FEAF temporarily suspended tarzon bombing missions because of a shortage of the radio-guided bombs. Only three, earmarked for emergencies, remained in the theater.

Jan. 17-18: Combat Cargo Command flew an extraordinary 109 C-119 sorties to drop more than 550 tons of supplies to front-line troops in Korea.

Jan. 19: FEAF launched a 13-day intensive air campaign, by fighters, light bombers, and medium bombers, to restrict to a trickle the supplies and reinforcements reaching enemy forces in the field.

Jan. 20: After weeks of almost unbroken absence, MiGs appeared again over Korea, resulting on this date in the first encounter between USAF F-84s and CCF MiG-15s.

Jan. 21: Large numbers of MiG-15s attacked USAF jets, shooting down one F-80 and one F-84. Lt. Col. William E. Bertram of the 27th FEW shot down a MiG-15 to score the first USAF aerial victory by an F-84 Thunderjet.

Jan. 23: No other day in January saw as much air action. Thirty-three F-84s staging from Taegu attacked Sinuiju, provoking a furious half-hour air battle with MiG-15s from across the Yalu. The Thunderjets shot down three MiGs, the highest daily USAF aerial victory credit total for the month. While 46 F-80s suppressed Pyongyang's anti-aircraft artillery, 21 B-29s cratered the enemy capital's airfields.

Jan. 25: FEAF replaced its Combat Cargo Command (Provisional) with the 315th Air Division (Combat Cargo), which reported directly to FEAF and did not depend on 5th Air Force for administrative and logistical support.

Jan. 25-Feb. 9: Eighth Army executed Operation Thunderbolt, the first UN offensive of the year. The objectives were to clear the area south of the Han River and recapture the port of Inchon and the airfield at Suwon. To sustain this offensive, 68 C-119s in five days dropped at Chunju 1,162 tons of supplies, including fuel, oil, sleeping bags, C rations, and signal wire.

Jan. 26: FEAF flew its first C-47 "control aircraft," loaded with enough communications equipment to connect by radio all T-6 Mosquitoes, TACP, and the Tactical Air Control Center. This was the harbinger of today's warning and control aircraft.

Jan. 30: The first USAF aircraft to land at the recaptured Suwon airfield were C-54s of the 61st TCG, delivering 270 tons of supplies for the advancing UN forces.

Jan. 31: In the first such mission recorded during the Korean War, a special operations unit of the 21st TCS dropped a UN agent behind enemy lines near Yonan, on the west coast just south of the 38th parallel.

Feb. 4: Fifth Air Force modified some B-26s to drop flares because the flare-dropping C-47s that had accompanied B-26 night raiders had trouble keeping up with the fast bombers.

Feb. 5: As part of Operation Roundup, designed to disrupt enemy preparations for a new offensive, X Corps advanced with strong air support near Hoengsong, northeast of Wonju. Maj. Arnold Mullins, 67th FBS, in an F-51 Mustang, shot down a Yak-9 seven miles north of Pyongyang to score the only USAF aerial victory of the month. Capt. Donald Nichols was transferred from Office of Special Investigations to the intelligence section of 5th Air Force to work directly on special and clandestine operations.

Feb. 6: B-26 crews proved that the new MPQ-2 radar equipment, which provided the aircrew better definition of targets, increased the accuracy of night bombing raids. To clear up a backlog of medical patients at Chungju, 315th Air Division C-47s airlifted 343 patients to Pusan. Eight C-54s airlifted a 40-ton, 310-foot treadway bridge, in 279 pieces, from Tachikawa AB, Japan, to Taegu. In a onetime effort to demoralize CCF troops, six C-119s dropped 32 booby-trapped boxes, designed to blow up when opened, on an enemy troop concentration at Kwangdong-ni. The 91st SRS performed its first night photographic mission.

Feb. 8: FEAF, using B-29s, B-26s, and fighters, launched an all-out attack on rail lines in northeastern Korea between Hoeryong and Wonsan. Brig. Gen. John P. Henebry replaced Tunner as commander of the 315th Air Division and airlift operations in the Korean War.

Feb. 9: US troops reached the Han River seven miles east-southeast of Seoul.

Feb. 10: UN forces captured the port of Inchon and the important nearby airfield at Kimpo. Air raids had cratered the field so badly that it required extensive renovation before USAF aircraft could use it. On the east coast, South Korean troops crossed the 38th parallel and entered Yangyang.

Feb. 11/12: In central Korea some 50 miles east of Seoul, Chinese and North Korean forces attacked the South Korean 3rd and 8th Divisions north and northwest of Hoengsong and in two days captured the town, forcing the UN forces toward Wonju, a few miles to the south.

Feb. 12: FEAF cargo aircraft air-dropped supplies to the X Corps command post airstrip at Wonju. A leaflet-dropping C-47 aircraft, hit by enemy anti-aircraft fire, crash-landed at Suwon. FEAF decided to launch subsequent C-47 leaflet drops at night. While B-26s attacked enemy positions at night behind the battle line by the light of air-dropped flares, two enemy aircraft used the same flare light to attack UN positions.

Feb. 13: The 315th Air Division airlifted more than 800 sick and wounded US troops from forward airstrips, such as that at Wonju, to Taegu and Pusan. This airlift used so many C-47s that they were not available for other airlift demands.

Feb. 13-16: Three CCF divisions surrounded UN troops, including members of the US 23rd Infantry Regiment and a French battalion, at a crucial road junction at Chipyong-ni in central Korea. Despite heavy enemy ground fire, 93 transports dropped some 420 tons of food and ammunition to the encircled troops. Twenty C-119s dropped supplies at night over a zone marked by burning gasoline-soaked rags. Also, H-5 helicopters delivered medical supplies to the troops and evacuated more than 40 wounded. The 5th Air Force flew close air support missions for the surrounded troops, who held out until relieved by a friendly armored column.

Feb. 16: For the first time, the US Army began using its own aircraft, the L-19 Bird Dog, for forward air control, artillery spotting, and other front-line duties, relieving 5th Air Force of demands for these types of missions.

Feb. 17/18: B-26s flew the first night bombing mission using shoran, a short-range navigation system employing an airborne radar device and two ground beacon stations for precision bombing.

Feb. 20: FEAF activated a "Special Air Mission" detachment under 315th Air Division to provide air transportation for important officials and for psychological warfare missions, for example, aerial broadcasting and leaflet drops.

Feb. 21: Eighth Army launched Operation Killer to destroy large numbers of enemy troops while moving the UN line northward to the Han River.

Feb. 23: Bomber Command flew the first B-29 mission with the more accurate MPQ-2 radar, bombing a highway bridge seven miles northeast of Seoul.

Feb. 24: The 315th Air Division dropped a record 333 tons of cargo to front-line troops, using 67 C-119s and two C-46s.

Feb. 28: UN ground forces eliminated the last Communist presence south of the Han River.

March 1: Bomber Command B-29s launched the first mission of a new interdiction campaign. Twenty-two F-80s sent to escort 18 B-29s over Kogunyong, North Korea, arrived ahead of the Superfortresses and returned to base because they were running low on fuel. MiGs attacked the unescorted B-29s, damaging 10, three of which had to land in South Korea. One B-29 gunner brought down a MiG.

March 3: A new shipment of tarzon bombs arrived in the Far East, allowing FEAF to resume raids, suspended since Jan. 17, with the large guided weapons.

March 4: Fifty-one C-119s dropped 260 tons of supplies to the 1st Marine Division in the largest airdrop of the month.

March 6: The 334th FIS used Suwon as a staging base from which F-86 Sabres began raiding the Yalu River area after being absent for months.

March 7: UN forces launched a new offensive called Operation Ripper to cross the Han River in central Korea east of Seoul, destroy large numbers of enemy troops, and break up preparations for an enemy offensive. Fifth Air Force flew more close air support missions to support the operation.

March 14: Communist forces abandoned Seoul without a fight after Ridgway's troops seized high ground on either side of the city north of the Han River. At night B-26s began dropping specially designed tetrahedral tacks on highways to puncture the tires of enemy vehicles. They were more effective than the roofing nails dropped earlier.

March 15: UN forces entered Seoul, the fourth time the city had changed hands since the war began.

March 16: FEAF flew 1,123 effective sorties, a new daily record.

March 17: An F-80, flown by Lt. Howard J. Landry of the 36th FBS, collided with a MiG-15. Both went down with their pilots. Fifth Air Force lost no other aircraft in aerial encounters during the month.

March 20: Fifteen F-94B all-weather jet fighters arrived in the Far East for eventual service as night escorts for B-29s.

March 23: Operation Tomahawk, the second airborne operation of the war and the largest in one day, involved 120 C-119s and C-46s, escorted by 16 F-51s. The 314th TCG and the 437th TCW air transports flew from Taegu to Munsan-ni, an area behind enemy lines some 20 miles northwest of Seoul, and dropped the 187th Airborne Regimental Combat Team and two Ranger companies-more than 3,400 men and 220 tons of equipment and supplies. Fifth Air Force fighters and light bombers had largely eliminated enemy opposition. UN forces advanced quickly to the Imjin River, capturing 127 Communist prisoners. Some of the prisoners waved safe-conduct leaflets that FEAF aircraft had dropped during the airborne operation. Helicopters evacuated only 68 injured personnel from the drop zone. One C-119, possibly hit by enemy bullets, caught fire and crashed on the way back. On the same day, 22 B-29s of the 19th and 307th BGs, protected from MiGs by 45 F-86s, destroyed two bridges in northwestern Korea.

March 24: For the first time, FEAF used an H-19, a service test helicopter, in Korea for the air evacuation of wounded troops. The H-19 was considerably larger and more powerful, with greater range, than the H-5s.

March 24, 26-27: Fifty-two C-119s and C-46s dropped an additional 264 tons of supplies to troops at Munsan-ni, because they could not depend on surface lines of communication for supplies.

March 29: With fighter escorts, B-29s returned to the Yalu River to bomb bridges, which had become important targets again as the river ice thawed. Fifth Air Force light bombers and fighters, which had handled interdiction in the area during the winter, could not destroy the larger Yalu River bridges.

March 31: Flight Lt. J.A.O. Levesque, Royal Canadian Air Force, flying with the 334th FIS, scored the first aerial victory since 1950 of an F-86 over a MiG-15. Elements of Eighth Army moved northward across the 38th parallel. The 3rd ARS used the H-19 to retrieve some 18 UN personnel from behind enemy lines, the first use of this type helicopter in a special operations mission. The 315th Air Division grounded its C-119s for modification and reconditioning.

 

[Charlie-G]

1951

April 3: The service-test YH-19 helicopter with the 3rd ARS picked up a downed F-51 pilot southeast of Pyongyang, receiving small-arms fire during the sortie.

April 12: As of this date in the war, the heaviest concentration of B-29s against a single bridge encountered the largest and most determined enemy counterair effort, resulting in the largest jet air battle so far in the war. Forty-six B-29s attacking the Yalu River bridge at Sinuiju and 100 escorting fighters encountered between 100 and 125 MiGs, which shot down three bombers and damaged seven others. However, B-29 gunners destroyed seven MiGs, and F-86 pilots downed four more, the highest daily MiG tally thus far. The bridge, despite numerous direct hits, remained standing. At President Truman's direction, Eighth Army commander Ridgway replaced MacArthur, who had several times publicly criticized the Administration's Korean War and foreign policies.

April 14: Lt. Gen. James A. Van Fleet assumed command of Eighth Army.

April 16-20: Bomber Command flew a daily average of 10 B-29 sorties against Pyongyang, Kangdong, Yonpo, and other North Korean airfields.

April 17: President Truman signed an executive order extending US military enlistments involuntarily by nine months, an indication of the manpower shortage facing the military services during the war. An intelligence operation behind enemy lines resulted in the recovery of vital components of a crashed MiG-15. In Operation MiG, a YH-19 helicopter transported a US and South Korean team to the crash area south of Sinanju. Under friendly fighter cover, the party extracted MiG components and samples and obtained photographs. On the return flight southward the helicopter came under enemy ground fire and received one hit. The successful mission led to greater technical knowledge of the MiG.

April 18: H-5 helicopters from the 3rd ARS evacuated 20 critically wounded US soldiers from front-line aid stations to the nearest field hospital. Five of the 10 sorties encountered enemy fire.

April 19: The first modified and reconditioned C-119 returned to service.

April 21: An SA-16, 3rd ARS, attempted to pick up a downed enemy Yak pilot near Chinnampo for intelligence purposes. The aircrew landed and put out a raft but had to take off because of intense enemy fire, leaving the Yak pilot behind.

April 22/23: Enemy ground forces launched a massive spring offensive.

April 23: FEAF flew some 340 close air support sorties, one of the highest daily totals prior to 1953. The 336th FIS began operating from Suwon, so that its F-86 aircraft could operate for longer periods in MiG Alley near the Yalu River.

April 23-26: FEAF daily flew over 1,000 combat sorties, inflicting enemy casualties and destroying supplies needed to sustain the offensive.

April 24: On separate pickups, an H-5 helicopter from the 3rd ARS rescued first the pilot then the navigator of a downed B-26 near Chorwon, about 15 miles north of the 38th parallel, in the central sector. The navigator, suffering a broken leg, had been captured by two enemy soldiers. But he managed to seize a gun belonging to one of the enemy, causing them to run for cover. Friendly fighters kept them pinned down, while the helicopter made the pickup.

April 26/27: At night, over the western sector, a B-29 close air support strike against enemy troops forming for an attack on the US Army IX Corps broke up the assault.

April 30: Fifth Air Force set a new record of 960 effective sorties. On separate sorties, two H-5 helicopters each picked up a downed UN pilot behind enemy lines. Small-arms fire damaged one helicopter. The first indication of enemy radar-controlled anti-aircraft guns came with the loss of three out of four F-51s making an air-to-ground attack against a target at Sinmak.

May 5: An H-5 helicopter from the 3rd ARS rescued a downed F-51 pilot north of Seoul, encountering small-arms fire in the area.

May 8: Another H-5 helicopter picked up two US soldiers north of Seoul, encountering small-arms fire in the area.

May 9: In one of the largest counterair efforts so far, 5th Air Force and 1st Marine Air Wing fighter-bombers flew more than 300 sorties against Sinuiju airfield in extreme northwestern Korea.

May 15/16: As anticipated, the Communists launched the second phase of their spring offensive against the South Korean corps in the east, a last vain attempt to drive UN forces from the Korean peninsula. The enemy limited its tactical assaults to night because of FEAF daytime aerial attacks.

May 16-26: In a maximum effort, 315th cargo aircraft flew an average of more than 1,000 tons of supplies daily from Japan to Korea to support UN ground forces seeking to halt the Communist offensive.

May 17-22: Bomber Command B-29s flew 94 (mostly nighttime) sorties against enemy ground forces, far more close air support missions in a similar period than previously in the war. The B-29s flew few other type missions during this time.

May 19: An H-5 helicopter rescued a downed F-51 pilot southwest of Chorwon in the central sector, sustaining damage from small-arms fire during the pickup.

May 20: Capt. James Jabara, 334th FIS, destroyed his fifth and sixth MiGs in aerial combat, thereby becoming the world's first jet-to-jet ace. Eighth Army successfully blunted the Communist offensive, leaving the enemy overextended and under constant aerial attack. Stratemeyer, FEAF commander, suffered a severe heart attack.

May 21: Partridge assumed command of FEAF. Maj. Gen. Edward J. Timberlake took his place as 5th Air Force commander.

May 22: In close air support sorties, 5th Air Force fighter-bombers inflicted some 1,700 casualties on enemy forces, one of the highest daily totals thus far.

May 23: Brig. Gen. Robert H. Terrill assumed command of Bomber Command, replacing Briggs.

May 24: The 136th FBW, one of two Air National Guard organizations sent to Korea, flew its first combat sorties of the war.

May 27-28: Unit 4/Special Air Mission C-47s flew leaflet-drop/voice-broadcast sorties encouraging the enemy to surrender to elements of the US Army's IX Corps. Some 4,000 enemy soldiers surrendered, many carrying leaflets. The captives reported morale problems among the enemy because of UN aerial attacks.

May 31: Fifth Air Force began Operation Strangle, an interdiction campaign against enemy supply lines in North Korea.

June 1: One flight of F-86s from the 336th FIS, escorting B-29s, engaged 18 MiG-15s, destroying two. A flight of 343rd BS B-29s defended itself against 22 MiG-15s in the vicinity of Sonchon. The MiGs destroyed one B-29 and damaged another, while the defenders destroyed two enemy jets. Special Air Mission C-47s dropped 15 Koreans into enemy-held territory to retrieve parts from a crashed MiG-15. Unfortunately, Communist forces captured all 15. Maj. Gen. Frank F. Everest, assumed command of 5th Air Force, replacing Timberlake.

June 3: UN anti-aircraft artillery destroyed two 315th C-119s while the aircraft were attempting a resupply airdrop. This fratricide incident led to the adoption of new procedures for Identification, Friend or Foe during air-drop operations.

June 7-10: B-26 and B-29 aircraft undertook radar-directed area attacks against the Iron Triangle-the vital Chorwon-Kumhwa-Pyongyang communications and supply area-at night, raining 500-pound bombs set to explode over the heads of the enemy troops. These operations were in preparation for UN ground forces' assaults.

June 10: The airfield at Chunchon, some 50 miles northeast of Seoul and 10 miles south of the 38th parallel, opened to cargo traffic, adding to 315th Air Division's ability to meet the growing demand for air-drop capability. In Tokyo, Lt. Gen. Otto P. Weyland assumed command of FEAF, replacing Partridge.

June 11: An SA-16 of the 3rd ARS made a pickup at dusk of a downed F-51 pilot from the Taedong River near Kyomipo, North Korea. The SA-16, although receiving fire from both sides of the river, made a landing approach without lights, avoiding low electrical transmission lines and rocks and debris on the river's surface. The pilot earned the Distinguished Service Cross for the rescue.

June 15: Fifth Air Force moved its headquarters from Taegu back to Seoul.

June 23: Jacob Malik, Soviet ambassador to the United Nations, called for negotiations between representatives of UN forces and Communist forces for an armistice in Korea based upon the separation of the armies along the 38th parallel.

June 25: The 8th FBG moved to Kimpo after completion of repairs to Kimpo's short runway. This marked the resumption of combat operations at Kimpo, although aviation engineers continued their work to restore the main runway.

 

[Charlie-G]

1951


July 1: Kim Il Sung, North Korean premier, and Paeng Te-huai, CCF commander, responded to UN overtures and agreed to participate in truce negotiations. Pioneer in aerial reconnaissance, Col. Karl L. Polifka, commander, 67th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing (TRW), was shot down and killed, while flying an RF-51 near the front lines.

July 6: An Air Materiel Command KB-29M tanker, operated by a Strategic Air Command crew assigned to the 43rd ARS, conducted the first in-flight refueling over enemy territory under combat conditions. The tanker refueled four RF-80 Shooting Stars flying reconnaissance missions over North Korea.

July 10: Naval Forces, Far East, commander Joy led the UN delegation that met the Communists at Kaesong, some 30 miles northwest of Seoul and just south of the 38th parallel, in the first conference of the armistice negotiations. A flight of F-80s reported a long convoy of NKA trucks and tanks halted by a demolished bridge. Fifth Air Force diverted every available aircraft to attack with bombs, rockets, and gunfire, resulting in the destruction of over 150 vehicles, a third of them tanks.

July 14: In one of the more spectacular night strikes of the war, a single B-26 of the 452nd BG attacked two enemy convoys north of Sinanju in the early morning hours, claiming 68 destroyed or damaged vehicles.

July 21: A detachment of the 6004th Air Intelligence Service Squadron completed a week-long effort near Cho-do Island to recover the most components ever salvaged from a MiG-15 aircraft. This combined operation involved 5th Air Force aircraft providing high cover, British carrier aircraft flying low cover, and the US Army contributing a vessel outfitted with a crane.

July 24: The 116th FBW, the second Air National Guard wing deployed to the Far East, arrived with its F-84 Thunderjets at Misawa and Chitose ABs in Japan.

July 25: Fifth Air Force directed the formal establishment of an air defense system for South Korea, utilizing the resources of the 502nd Tactical Control Group and its subordinate squadrons.

July 29: UN jet fighter-bombers and reconnaissance aircraft operating near Pyongyang encountered MiGs much farther south than usual. Evading the attacking MiGs, the UN aircraft returned safely to base.

July 30: In the largest single mass attack for the month on targets in the Pyongyang area, 91 F-80s suppressed enemy air defenses while 354 USMC and USAF fighter-bombers attacked specified military targets. To avoid adverse world public opinion during ongoing peace negotiations, the Joint Chiefs of Staff withheld information on the strike from the news media.

Aug. 4: Communist ground forces violated the Kaesong neutral zone, resulting in suspension of truce talks.

Aug. 10: Armistice negotiations resume at Kaesong with the North Korean promise to respect the neutral zone.

Aug. 17: A typhoon at Okinawa halted B-29 operations.

Aug. 18: FEAF began Operation Strangle against North Korean railroads.

Aug. 22: The Communist delegation trumped up evidence that a UN aircraft bombed Kaesong, resulting in suspension of the armistice negotiations once again.

Aug. 24/25: B-26s claimed over 800 trucks destroyed in the new campaign of night anti-truck operations.

Aug. 25: In Bomber Command's largest operation of the month, 35 B-29s, escorted by USN fighters, dropped 300 tons of bombs on marshaling yards at Rashin in far northeastern Korea. Previously excluded from target lists because of its proximity of less than 20 miles to the Soviet border, Rashin was a major supply depot.

Sept. 9: Seventy MiGs attacked 28 Sabres between Sinanju and Pyongyang. Despite such odds, F-86 pilots, Capt. Richard S. Becker, 334th FIS, and Capt. Ralph D. Gibson, 335th FIS, each destroyed a MiG, increasing the number of jet aces from one to three.

Sept. 10: South of Pyongyang a 3rd ARS H-5 helicopter, with fighter escort, rescued F-80 pilot Capt. Ward M. Millar, 7th FBS. He had suffered two broken ankles during his ejection from the jet but escaped after two months as a prisoner and then evaded recapture for three weeks. The helicopter also brought out an NKA sergeant who had assisted Millar, delivering both to Seoul.

Sept. 14: Capt. John S. Walmsley Jr., 8th BS, on a night B-26 interdiction sortie, attacked an enemy train, expending his ordnance. He then used a USN searchlight experimentally mounted on his aircraft's wing to illuminate the target for another B-26. Shot down and killed by ground fire, Walmsley earned the Medal of Honor for his valorous act.

Sept. 23: In an excellent example of shoran bombing technique, eight B-29s from the 19th BG knocked out the center span of the Sunchon rail bridge despite nine-tenths cloud cover.

Sept. 24: Attempts to reopen peace talks at Kaesong failed.

Sept. 25: In the largest air battle in recent weeks, an estimated 100 MiG-15s attacked 36 F-86s flying a fighter sweep over the Sinanju area. Sabre pilots destroyed five MiGs in aerial combat, the daily high for the month.

Sept. 27: In Operation Pelican, a service-test C-124A Globemaster flew its first payload from Japan to Korea, delivering 30,000 pounds of aircraft parts to Kimpo airfield.

Sept. 28: On the longest flight to date for a jet aircraft using in-flight refueling, a Yokota-based RF-80 flew for 14 hours and 15 minutes on a Korean combat sortie, refueling multiple times from two KB-29M tankers.

Sept. 30: Replacing Terrill, Brig. Gen. Joe W. Kelly assumed command of Bomber Command.