The Graybeards - KWVA - Korean War Veterans Association

INTER-SERVICE APPRECIATION
During the early days of the Korean
War, the holding actions of the 8th
Army and Marines had failed to
sufficiently slow Red troop advances and,
despite the heavy pounding by our fighter
planes on all three fronts circling Taegu, and
a mass saturation raid by B-29s near
Waegwan, we could not keep the enemy
from crossing the Naktong River.
As the battle lines drew closer ... the
noose tightened around Taegu, there were
actually fewer Red supplies being intercepted
because the Reds were ‘holing-up’ during
daylight hours, and making their long
moves at night, when our fighter planes
were on the ground. It took them longer, but
the supplies were still reaching the front.
And, secondly, we were having to expend
much more of our aerial resources at the
front lines, supporting our troops. We didn’t
have time to go searching behind the lines
on interdiction missions.
But as the lines closed in on Taegu ...
from the west and from the north, our
ground forces had to back steadily into an
ever-shrinking defensive perimeter; we
found it necessary to direct almost all of our
mission effort to close tactical support of the
frontlines, reducing the sorties we could
send north to interdict their supplies. It was
a “Catch 22” ... we couldn’t afford to slack
off on our interdiction attacks because the
armor coming onto the line would jeopardize
our fragile hold on the perimeter’s front
lines ...but if we didn’t help our troops on
… a Twenty on the Bar
Fall, 1950
Unsung Heroes of the Korean Air War
by
Duane E. ‘Bud’ Biteman,
Lt Col, USAF, Ret
the front, their wouldn’t be any perimeter
left to defend!
It is not possible to adequately describe
the intense feeling of gratification we pilots
felt when we could hit the Reds attacking
our front-line troops. By August there were
enough radio jeeps operating on our frequencies,
and airborne T-6 Mosquito spotter
planes, that we could work with reasonable
safety within just a few hundred yards of
our own troops. When the verbal orders of
the man on the ground were insufficient to
tell us precisely where to strike, we’d ask
the spotter to fire a smoke rocket, or the
ground artillery to place a white phosphorus
shell onto the target.
With positive target identification like
that, we could work over the Red’s dug-in
positions with a vengeance. It was doubly
gratifying because we were not only taking
the enemy pressure off of our troops, but
they would often stand right up in plain
sight to cheer us on.
We knew that our close-support efforts
were deeply appreciated, so we would
inevitably press our attacks a little harder ...
a little closer, or a little lower than was prudent
for the safety of our own hides. But we
knew, too, that when we finally ran out of
ammunition and had to head back over the
hill to our base at Taegu, those poor characters
below had to stay in their foxholes all
night to protect our position and our lives.
Too often they didn’t make it through the
night, for that was when the Reds liked to
attack ... at night, when our planes weren’t
around to break up their thrusts.
But as the battle fronts closed in around
our Taegu base, we soon had a steady flow
of casualties passing through for medical air
evacuation to hospitals in Japan, and for the
first time we pilots had a chance to talk
face-to-face with some of the Army people
we’d been supporting during those close
ground support missions along the front
lines.
They had nothing but praise for the job
we had been doing, and told us of the hundreds
of ‘kills’ which we had been unable to
see because we were moving too fast.
Little did they realize that it wasn’t really
our ‘bravery’ when we’d fly into those
heavy concentrations of ground fire ... it
was our ignorance! We just couldn’t see all
the people who were busily shooting at us.
As the front lines neared Taegu airstrip,
the stream of casualties increased proportionately.
Seeing the maimed bodies of
those youngsters quickly dispelled any
remaining thoughts we might possibly have
had about the war being a “game... a test of
skills” among pilots
I was especially touched one evening,
after we’d been having some especially
rough close support missions just a short
distance from Taegu, resulting in several
severely damaged Mustangs and a couple of
wounded pilots.
A young Army Captain hobbled into our
little tent which we used for an ‘Officer’s
Club,’ he was bandaged from head to waist,
had one arm in a sling and one bandaged
foot, but he was managing. He made his
way slowly and silently, with the aid of a
makeshift cane over to our packing-crate
‘Bar,’ as the few of us patrons moved aside
to make room for him.
But instead of ordering a drink, he
looked to both sides, laid a twenty dollar bill
on the bar, then said: “Thanks, men,” turned
around and hobbled out without another
word.
My morale went up a thousand points
upon hearing of his appreciation for our
risks.
Duane E. ‘Bud’ Biteman, Lt Col, USAF, Ret
“...one of those OLD, Bold Fighter Pilots...”
Next Issue: Rocky Return.
“As long as you can walk away from it, it’s a
good landing”.
Page 66
The Graybeards