Once the peace negotiations started, no one knew what day, hour or second an agreement would be reached, but they were aware of the fact that the time of the cease fire would probably establish defensive lines for both sides. The military forces strove to take, and hold, the highest elevations, as they would become the permanent national boundaries.

As a result of the acreage having changed "ownership" so many times during the months of the conflict, bunkers had been built into both sides of the elevated hilltops. The preparation of defensive positions and the constant bombardments caused the higher elevations to be completely devoid of plant life and those areas often gave the area the appearance of freshly plowed landscape.

Close air support was perfected by the Marine Air Wings in the Pacific islands during WWII and was used extensively in Korea by all allied nations. The tactics consisted of strikes from allied fighter aircraft on enemy positions very close to our own troops. This maneuver left little margin for error, and to avoid hitting "friendly positions," the pilots would wait until they were low and directly on target before delivering their payloads. The maneuver not only placed the aircraft at great risk from ground fire, but also made them vulnerable from the ordinance they were delivering.

The new jets were being used extensively, but the support aircraft were American built and WWII vintage although some belonged to our allied nations and were piloted by members of their respective air forces. Regardless of the nationality of the pilot, every pilot knew that if his bird became disabled on a mission, his best chance of survival was to get back to or near our lines where assistance and rescuers were available.

Parachutes were not known for their reliability and seldom did any of the pilots choose that method of escaping a disabled plane over the choice of a "controlled crash” when it could be done near friendly forces. I witnessed two occurrences of pilots bringing their crippled aircraft back to our area

In the first instance, I was a member of a reconnaissance patrol on a hillside near an emergency landing strip when a "carrier based" pilot was forced to make an emergency landing of his Corsair. Another member of his three-plane group signaled attention to the emergency ground crews by making a very noisy, low, high-speed pass over the field to draw attention then turning back in the direction of the limping aircraft.

We paused to watch the drama unfold as the disabled plane slowly approached and the pilot gently set the bird down on the runway. The underside of the wings of all three Corsairs were loaded with rockets and napalm suggesting that this bird had become crippled before the flight formation reached their designated targets.

The other two Corsairs circled briefly to satisfy themselves that the pilot had exited his plane safely then turned back in the direction they had come, presumably to complete their mission.

The summer of 1951 was marked with very high daytime temperatures and warm nights. Fortunately, our unit was set up in the bend of a river, and in the late afternoon everyone not on duty would head there for a swim. The Marine Corp did not issue bathing suits to combat Marines, and the swimming hole was not unlike a male only nudist colony.

As I was nearing the river one afternoon, I heard the unmistakable whistle of the wing tips of a low flying F-51 and looked in the direction of the sound to see the airplane slowly turning and descending in the direction of our swimming area. The engine was rotating at idling speed and the propeller appeared to be "feathered." The absence of exterior ordinance on the aircraft suggested that the pilot had either completed his mission or had "dumped" his payload before attempting the " landing." The swimmers immediately realized the pilot’s intention and scrambled clear of the river.

The Mustang made a wheels up landing in mid-river and after briefly skimming the surface came to an abrupt stop. Before the plane had time to sink below the surface, the pilot was pulled from the cockpit and carried to the safety of the riverbank.

The Marine Corp utilized an annual rotation system, and each month the personnel who had completed their tour were relieved and sent to new assignments throughout the world. By late summer I had been twice elevated in rank as vacancies occurred and my responsibilities increased. Without realizing it, I had become a twenty-year-old "old timer."

The Government of South Korea provided us with laborers from an organization identified as the Korean Service Corp, which was similar to our own depression era Civilian Conversation Corp. We utilized their labor, but only for the simplest tasks in our compound. The frail looking men were actually very hardy and amazingly strong. It was not uncommon to see a small adult male walking along the roadside carrying a heavy construction log in the "A" frame on his back.

Often, when setting up outpost, we would hire them to carry our equipment and supplies to the mountaintop. The accepted medium of exchange was American cigarettes, and one pack would save us the backbreaking task of moving our heavy weapons and communication equipment.

Our camp laundry services were provided by local farm women who could be seen squatting along the river banks beating the clothing against the rocks. They chatted and laughed as they worked and seemed to enjoy the opportunity to visit. The gatherings reminded me of the quilting bees I had witnessed as a child. Despite the language differences, the lack of laundry markings and detergents, the clothing was always returned to the owner in a repaired condition, smelling fresh and neatly folded. These ladies were treated with utmost courtesy and always rewarded with tips for their services.

There were times when American and Communist forces would be engaged in combat for possession of a particular piece of real estate. The actual movement of ground troops was always preceded by heavy artillery along with air and rocket attacks that drew a lot of local attention. The civilian population would come to the area in large numbers to sit on the side of a nearby hill to be entertained by the activity. The scene was reminiscent of a well-attended football game.

There was always concern that one, or more, of the spectators might be an enemy observer using a radio to guide the Communist fire. When such a situation developed, a warning shell would be lobbed close enough to their area to signal them to them to disband and scatter. The spectators had no trouble understanding this form of communication.

Both sides employed psychological efforts to harass and demoralize the other. At night the Communist forces used loudspeakers, whistles, off-key bugles and frequently employed massive probing actions. The Allies, in turn, dropped propaganda leaflets, and after dark, utilized artillery borne parachute flares to light up their area and huge floodlights to reflect light off of low clouds onto the Communist area to suggest that they were being closely watched. The efforts were successful in depriving the other of sleep and were very successful at keeping the night hours from becoming boring.

Want to leave a comment on this story?
Please visit our Message Board
or write Ye Editor at bethjacks@hotmail.com.



Back to USADEEPSOUTH - I index page

Back to USADEEPSOUTH - II index page