Criteria It is awarded to all service members of the U.S. Air Force who complete four years of honorable active or reserve military service with any branch of the United States Armed Forces. The Air Force Long... It is awarded to all service members of the U.S. Air Force who complete four years of honorable active or reserve military service with any branch of the United States Armed Forces. The Air Force Longevity Service Award is a ribbon that replaces the Federal Service Stripes previously worn on the uniform. MoreHide
Criteria The Distinguished Flying Cross may be awarded to military members who, while serving in any capacity with the Armed Forces, distinguish themselves by heroism or outstanding achievement while participa... The Distinguished Flying Cross may be awarded to military members who, while serving in any capacity with the Armed Forces, distinguish themselves by heroism or outstanding achievement while participating in aerial flight. MoreHide
Criteria The Purple Heart may be awarded to any member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the Armed Forces, has been wounded, kill... The Purple Heart may be awarded to any member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under competent authority in any capacity with one of the Armed Forces, has been wounded, killed, or who has died or may die of wounds received in armed combat or as a result of an act of international terrorism. MoreHide
Criteria The Air Medal may be awarded to individuals who, while serving in any capacity with the Armed Forces, distinguish themselves by heroism, outstanding achievement, or by meritorious service while partic... The Air Medal may be awarded to individuals who, while serving in any capacity with the Armed Forces, distinguish themselves by heroism, outstanding achievement, or by meritorious service while participating in aerial flight, but not of a degree that would justify an award of the Distinguished Flying Cross. MoreHide
Criteria The National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service as a member of the Armed Forces during the Korean War, Vietnam War, the war against Iraq in the Persian Gulf, and for service... The National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service as a member of the Armed Forces during the Korean War, Vietnam War, the war against Iraq in the Persian Gulf, and for service during the current War on Terrorism. In addition, all members of the National Guard and Reserve who were part of the Selected Reserve in good standing between August 2, 1990, to November 30, 1995, are eligible for the National Defense Service Medal. In the case of Navy personnel, Midshipment attending the Naval Academy during the qualifying periods are eligible for this award, and Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) Midshipmen ae only eligible if they participated in a summer cruise that was in an area which qualified for a campaign medal. MoreHide
Criteria To be eligible for this medal, the Service member must have: Served between the outbreak of hostilities (June 25, 1950) and the date the armistice was signed (July 27, 1953); Been on permanent assignm... To be eligible for this medal, the Service member must have: Served between the outbreak of hostilities (June 25, 1950) and the date the armistice was signed (July 27, 1953); Been on permanent assignment or on temporary duty for thirty consecutive days or sixty non-consecutive days, and Performed duty within the territorial limits of Korea, in the waters immediately adjacent thereto or in aerial flight over Korea participating in actual combat operation or in support of combat operations. MoreHide
Criteria
The Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation is a military unit award issued by the government of South Korea to both South Korean and foreign military units.
Criteria The United Nations Korean Medal was generally awarded for any period of service while assigned as a member of the Armed Forces dispatched to Korea or adjacent areas for service on behalf of the United... The United Nations Korean Medal was generally awarded for any period of service while assigned as a member of the Armed Forces dispatched to Korea or adjacent areas for service on behalf of the United Nations. Service in qualifying organizations had to be certified by the United Nations Commander-in-Chief as having directly supported military operations in Korea. In the case of the United States, such certification was issued in General Orders 31 (June 20, 1955); General Orders 33 (July 11, 1955); and General Orders 36 (July 13, 1955). MoreHide
Criteria Criteria for award of the Republic of Korea Korean War Service Medal (ROK KWSM) have been established by the ROK government. To qualify for the medal, the veteran must have: Served between the outbrea... Criteria for award of the Republic of Korea Korean War Service Medal (ROK KWSM) have been established by the ROK government. To qualify for the medal, the veteran must have: Served between the outbreak of hostilities, June 25, 1950, and the date the armistice was signed, July 27, 1953, Been on permanent assignment or on temporary duty for 30 consecutive days or 60 non-consecutive days Performed his / her duty within the territorial limits of Korea, in the waters immediately adjacent thereto or in aerial flight over Korea participating in actual combat operations or in support of combat operations MoreHide
Description For the first three weeks, UN ground forces advanced everywhere along the front except in a small area near the Hwachon Reservoir in the central sector. Then the communists launched an all-out spring For the first three weeks, UN ground forces advanced everywhere along the front except in a small area near the Hwachon Reservoir in the central sector. Then the communists launched an all-out spring offensive with over 330,000 troops using "human wave" tactics. By the end of the month the enemy had advanced to the vicinity of Seoul, but both men and supplies had reached their limits in the face of UN ground and aerial assaults.
In counter air operations, Fifth Air Force Sabre pilots destroyed fifteen MiGs without the loss of a friendly fighter. MiG pilots generally showed little aggressiveness but on several occasions demonstrated considerable flight discipline and improved tactics. In North Korea, the enemy constructed new airfields and rehabilitated previously damaged ones, pointing toward the possibility of a major enemy air-ground offensive.
General Stratemeyer, Commander, Far East Air Forces, consequently directed most B-29s against North Korean airfields. B-26 light bombers attacked rails, bridges, airfields, and supply storage areas during daylight. Following the start of the spring offensive, Fifth Air Force increased the number of B-26 close air support sorties from
approximately five to twenty-five per day. B-26 night operations emphasized armed reconnaissance and interdiction of communications routes and facilities.
Before the Communist offensive began, Fifth Air Force fighter-bombers flew an average of 250 armed reconnaissance and interdiction, and eighty close air support sorties per day. Following the start of the attack, however, Fifth Air Force increased its close air support sorties to an average of 140 daily.
315th AD airdrop operations through most of April suffered from the grounding of seventy-five C-119s, which left C-46s as the primary airdrop-capable aircraft. By the end of the month, sixty C-119s were once again in commission. A clandestine C-47 outfit under the control of 315th AD and known as "Unit 4/Special Air Mission (SAM)" flew leaflet and personnel/resupply drops and made aerial broadcasts and radio intercepts over enemy-held territory. The 6160th ABG's Boat Section saved one individual, assisted with three other saves, recovered one body, and retrieved the wreckage of an aircraft.
During the first half of the month of May, UN ground activity consisted mainly of patrols and preparation for another enemy offensive. By the end of the month UN ground forces had regained the initiative, advancing the front lines northward between fifteen and thirty miles across the peninsula. Far East Air Forces conducted heavy, continuous interdiction of enemy supply lines, which contributed largely to the complete failure of the communist offensive. But, the enemy increased anti-aircraft heavy guns and automatic weapons to approximately one thousand, at eighteen different locations in North Korea.
In a slow month, Fifth Air Force Sabre pilots downed five MiGs. FEAF Bomber Command B-29s initially bombed rail and highway bridges, airfields, and supply and troop centers in North Korea. When the communists initiated their offensive, however, Bomber Command shifted nearly its entire effort to close air support.
Until mid-May, Fifth Air Force flew a daily average of 171 armed reconnaissance and interdiction, and fifty-seven close air support sorties; later in the month, its aircraft averaged more than 140 close air support sorties daily. Prior to the enemy offensive, the light bomber, assisted by flare-dropping C-47s, flew night intruder sorties against enemy vehicles. With the enemy assault, Fifth Air Force shifted its B-26 effort to daytime close air support. Led by the 45th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, between May 19 and 25, Far East Air Forces flew 388 reconnaissance sorties, a new record.
At the end of the month, Fifth Air Force and the USN Task Force 77 initiated an interdiction campaign called Operation STRANGLE to paralyze enemy transportation between the railheads and the front. Fighter-bombers hit bridges, tunnels, rail lines, and roadbeds, trying to stop rail and highway traffic carrying supplies for enemy troops along the front.
In psychological operations, B-29 and C-47 aircraft dropped millions of leaflets. Most consisted of "strategic" leaflets dropped deep behind enemy lines, while the remainder were "tactical," directed at troops near the front. The 3d ARS established an element on the island of Paengnyang-do, located off the west coast of Korea, where H-5 helicopters stood alert for rescue sorties.
The squadron began rotating the SA-16 amphibious aircraft between Japan and Korea, with three flying from Korean bases for ten to fifteen days before being replaced with new crews and aircraft from Japan. The crash rescue Boat Section of the 6160st ABG saved three lives and evacuated two hundred guerrillas from behind enemy lines to safety.
Although ammunition and petroleum products made up the bulk of airlifted items, the 315th AD began daily delivery of approximately fifteen tons of fresh vegetables from Japan to Eighth U.S. Army supply points in Korea.
In June 1951, despite enemy resistance and spring mud, UN forces regained their losses from the communist spring offensive and broke into the Pyonggang-Chorwon-Kumhwa "Iron Triangle" fortified sanctuaries, enabling them to deny the enemy access to roads that traversed the Korean Peninsula just above the 38th parallel.
FEAF bombardment operations concentrated on radar bombing attacks against the Iron Triangle sanctuaries. FEAF Bomber Command began experimenting with B-29s using the shoran bombing technique. This technique used radio navigation beacons and extremely accurate maps to aim bombs, thereby avoiding the limitations of
visual and radar bombardment.
The problem of defending B-29s against MiG-15s and the development of shoran tactics would ultimately lead to the bombers operating almost exclusively at night. Far East Air Forces concentrated interdiction attacks on enemy airfields in North Korea, since the enemy were trying to reconstruct them to accommodate more aircraft. In mid-June General Weyland directed FEAF Bomber Command to keep the thirteen most important fields out of service.
Fifth Air Force combat units completed their movement from Japan to air bases in Korea. But much of the maintenance support remained in Japan, creating some problems with aircraft readiness. On the other hand, concentration of maintenance in Japan permitted the sharing of scarce skilled personnel and other resources.
The psychological warfare unit made sixty-six leaflet drops and twenty-five voice broadcasts, dropped eighteen people behind enemy lines and flying one resupply drop. The Boat Section, 6160th ABG, completed sixty-three missions, saving two lives, and used one boat in the Yellow Sea to insert South Korean guerrillas behind enemy lines and transport Chinese POWs to South Korea.
July 1951 marked the beginning of a new phase in the Korean War. Strategic military considerations of UN and communist commanders centered on armistice negotiations that began this month. Both sides began to bend their military efforts
to effect favorable outcomes in these negotiations.
Accordingly, Far East Air Forces increased the tempo of fighter and light-bomber activities in Operation STRANGLE, particularly against vehicular movements and targets of known troops, supplies, or installations. As the shortcomings of Operation STRANGLE became evident, FEAF planners looked for other ways to stem the flow of enemy resources toward the front.
The enormous buildup in the numbers of MiG-15 air supremacy fighters and growing experience and competence of pilots led the enemy to seek air superiority as far south as Pyongyang. Avoiding formidable jet fighter formations escorting FEAF Bomber Command B-29s, the MiGs attacked vulnerable fighter-bomber and
reconnaissance aircraft operating north of Pyongyang. Greatly outnumbered, the USAF F-86s now had to defend UN aircraft engaged in reconnaissance and interdiction operations as well as the bombers operating in the north while fighting the MiG-15s head-to-head for air supremacy.
An absence of major ground activity and decline in airlift requirements coincided with frequent periods of unfavorable weather. Far East Air Forces also faced growing shortages of aircraft because of attrition and increased numbers of aircraft out of commission. Gen. Hoyt Vandenberg, Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force, notified General Weyland that Far East Air Forces could not expect further augmentation in jet fighters, since a general build-up in Europe required more aircraft. Also, other aircraft types, particularly B-26s and F-51s, which were experiencing high attrition rates, could not be replaced because they were no longer in production.
World War II killed more people, involved more nations, and cost more money than any other war in history. Altogether, 70 million people served in the armed forces during thOverview of World War II
World War II killed more people, involved more nations, and cost more money than any other war in history. Altogether, 70 million people served in the armed forces during the war, and 17 million combatants died. Civilian deaths were ever greater. At least 19 million Soviet civilians, 10 million Chinese, and 6 million European Jews lost their lives during the war.
World War II was truly a global war. Some 70 nations took part in the conflict, and fighting took place on the continents of Africa, Asia, and Europe, as well as on the high seas. Entire societies participated as soldiers or as war workers, while others were persecuted as victims of occupation and mass murder.
World War II cost the United States a million causalities and nearly 400,000 deaths. In both domestic and foreign affairs, its consequences were far-reaching. It ended the Depression, brought millions of married women into the workforce, initiated sweeping changes in the lives of the nation's minority groups, and dramatically expanded government's presence in American life.
The War at Home & Abroad
On September 1, 1939, World War II started when Germany invaded Poland. By November 1942, the Axis powers controlled territory from Norway to North Africa and from France to the Soviet Union. After defeating the Axis in North Africa in May 1941, the United States and its Allies invaded Sicily in July 1943 and forced Italy to surrender in September. On D-Day, June 6, 1944, the Allies landed in Northern France. In December, a German counteroffensive (the Battle of the Bulge) failed. Germany surrendered in May 1945.
The United States entered the war following a surprise attack by Japan on the U.S. Pacific fleet in Hawaii. The United States and its Allies halted Japanese expansion at the Battle of Midway in June 1942 and in other campaigns in the South Pacific. From 1943 to August 1945, the Allies hopped from island to island across the Central Pacific and also battled the Japanese in China, Burma, and India. Japan agreed to surrender on August 14, 1945 after the United States dropped the first atomic bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Consequences:
1. The war ended Depression unemployment and dramatically expanded government's presence in American life. It led the federal government to create a War Production Board to oversee conversion to a wartime economy and the Office of Price Administration to set prices on many items and to supervise a rationing system.
2. During the war, African Americans, women, and Mexican Americans founded new opportunities in industry. But Japanese Americans living on the Pacific coast were relocated from their homes and placed in internment camps.
The Dawn of the Atomic Age
In 1939, Albert Einstein wrote a letter to President Roosevelt, warning him that the Nazis might be able to build an atomic bomb. On December 2, 1942, Enrico Fermi, an Italian refugee, produced the first self-sustained, controlled nuclear chain reaction in Chicago.
To ensure that the United States developed a bomb before Nazi Germany did, the federal government started the secret $2 billion Manhattan Project. On July 16, 1945, in the New Mexico desert near Alamogordo, the Manhattan Project's scientists exploded the first atomic bomb.
It was during the Potsdam negotiations that President Harry Truman learned that American scientists had tested the first atomic bomb. On August 6, 1945, the Enola Gay, a B-29 Superfortress, released an atomic bomb over Hiroshima, Japan. Between 80,000 and 140,000 people were killed or fatally wounded. Three days later, a second bomb fell on Nagasaki. About 35,000 people were killed. The following day Japan sued for peace.
President Truman's defenders argued that the bombs ended the war quickly, avoiding the necessity of a costly invasion and the probable loss of tens of thousands of American lives and hundreds of thousands of Japanese lives. His critics argued that the war might have ended even without the atomic bombings. They maintained that the Japanese economy would have been strangled by a continued naval blockade, and that Japan could have been forced to surrender by conventional firebombing or by a demonstration of the atomic bomb's power.
The unleashing of nuclear power during World War II generated hope of a cheap and abundant source of energy, but it also produced anxiety among large numbers of people in the United States and around the world.... More
Criteria The American Defense Service Medal was awarded for service in the Armed Forces between September 8, 1939, and December 7, 1941. Army members had to serve 12 months to be eligible, but Navy and Marine ... The American Defense Service Medal was awarded for service in the Armed Forces between September 8, 1939, and December 7, 1941. Army members had to serve 12 months to be eligible, but Navy and Marine Corps members were eligible based on any length of service. MoreHide
Criteria The American Campaign Medal was awarded for For thirty days service outside the Continental United States but within the American Theater of Operations between December 7, 1941, and March 2, 1946; or,... The American Campaign Medal was awarded for For thirty days service outside the Continental United States but within the American Theater of Operations between December 7, 1941, and March 2, 1946; or, an aggregate service of one year within the Continental United States during the same period under the following circumstances: On permanent assignment outside the continental limits of the United States; or, On permanent assignment as a member of a crew of a vessel sailing ocean waters for a period of 30 consecutive days or 60 non-consecutive days; or, For service outside the continental limits of the United States in a passenger status or on temporary duty for 30 consecutive days or 60 non consecutive days; or, For service in active combat against the enemy and awarded a combat decoration or furnished a certificate by the commanding general of a corps, higher unit, or independent force that the individual actually participated in combat; or, For service within the continental limits of the United States for an aggregate period of one year. MoreHide
