Korean Air War Perspective
Air Rescue in the Korean War Era
by
Lt. Col. John Caldwell, USAF-Ret
Many share my belief that senior leadership throughout the USAF chain of command has been inadequate at best and derelict at worst in the recognition and application of rotary wing capabilities and potential.
The shortcomings became obvious in the Korean War and have continued to this day.
USAF helicopter utilization remains limited by target fixation on other options and lack of knowledge, interest and imagination. In the great Missouri Waltz that followed the inauguration of Harry S Truman and the cessation of hostilities of the Second World War, the most powerful armed forces ever known on planet earth were disbanded with little if any thought to current or future threats. We were as a nation experiencing ineptness and even disregard of the facts as evidenced by the attempts of the new Secretary of Defense Louis Johnson as he cut military budgets to the bone and failed miserably to recognize the current and future threats to our country’s security.
In the new and greatly reduced Department of the Air Force, the political musical chairs were arranged so that the bomber and secondly the fighter generals received the dollar allocations, and even more significantly, the choice of fast track personnel.
The support commands got what amounted to second or third priority in money, equipment and personnel. Resources for recognizing and developing new concepts or equipment were extremely limited.
This situation was compounded by the inadequacy of leadership in the support commands and the overwhelming prestige of the bomber and fighter generals.
The Air Rescue Service and helicopter development were among the significant victims of this failure to recognize the present or anticipate the future.
One consequence was that few senior officers were qualified to recognize the potential of rotary wing aircraft. For years, the helicopter and its operational capabilities wallowed in the forgotten mudpits of ignorance. A few, relatively junior officers recognized the potential promised by the versatile helicopter and volunteered to become qualified to operate the frequently ridiculed machine. More by accident than by design the actions of these pioneer helicopter crews—pilots, medics and sometimes maintenance personnel, began to get the attention of some senior officers, especially when they accomplished near impossible feats of airmanship during dangerous, risky rescue operations. Still, the rule of too little, too late was to apply.
Bureaucratic fumbling was to limit the number of front-line rescue helicopters allocated to Korea. To make matters worse, only the operators in the field understood the capabilities of their equipment. As the war progressed, the newer model H-19B was retained in the USA while the worn out and significantly less efficient H-5 and H-19A aircraft were allocated to Korea.
The lack of helicopter experience or even knowledge in Japan’s 3rd Air Rescue Group and Korea’s 5th Air Force resulted in confusion and inadequate application of capabilities. Despite this fiasco, no pilot to my knowledge ever failed to attempt a rescue within range of his helicopter. The Medics responded with the same bravery that was to make them a legend in Vietnam.
It is significant also that helicopter flight crews frequently went unnoticed and deserved decorations were neither recommended nor awarded. In summary, the junior officers, flight crews and ground support personnel did an outstanding job in Korea despite an overall lack of support at all levels above the squadron.
Lt. Col. John Caldwell, USAF (Ret) is a veteran of 28 years of active service including four tours in Pacific areas. He is a command pilot who has checked out in fighters, bombers, transport and eight types and models of helicopters. Col. Caldwell is credited with three behind the lines rescues in Korea. He has served as a staff officer in a variety of assignments, including nuclear tests and satellite recovery. He is the first USAF Officer to serve in tactical command of two USAF Navy ships. He is active in the 18th Fighter Wing Association, the USAF Helicopter Pilot’s Association, and Jolly Greens, as well as a number of other Veteran’s organizations.