The Korean War, 70 Years Ago, The Press, Pittsburgh PA
Korean War Weekly Front Pages
15 March 1953 – 21 March 1953
The Press, Pittsburgh PA
Valor in combat.
*****
The former commander of the US Eighth Army, General James A. Van Fleet, said that American units in Korea were “in bad shape” and “under strength.” Speaking to fellow alumni of the US Military Academy at West Point, the general also said second lieutenants assigned to combat platoons in Korea should be given more training under battle conditions in this country before they’re sent overseas. He said he had seen too many young officers with “too much bravery and not enough wisdom” under fire.
American second division infantrymen ripped to pieces a savage 1000-man Chinese Communist attack in an eight-hour battle that made new American war heroes. From reports indicated that the enemy assault, fiercest in months, was intended to establish a strongpoint for a much larger attack. The battle started with artillery exchanges. As the Chinese closed – even fighting their way into the American trenches – machine guns, rifles, pistols, and then fists were the weapons. A lieutenant colonel was credited with keeping the Chinese from capturing their objective, Little Gibraltar hill on the western front, and making it the base for an offensive on Big Gibraltar hill. The lieutenant colonel led reinforcements through a devastating Chinese mortar and artillery barrage, intended to seal off the battle area. He was wounded and kept on. Three more times he was hit, but he kept at the head of his men until he collapsed to the ground.
American Sabrejets destroyed or damaged 12 Communist MIG-15s, and two flyers became double aces in the wild air combat. Five were destroyed and seven damaged. The big toll marked the biggest day since 14 January when Sabres destroyed eight, probably destroyed one, and damaged seven. Seven B-29s, bombing by radar through heavy overcast, unloaded high explosives on two Red supply centers north of Pyongyang and another west of Hamhung. The giant Superforts wrecked 225 Red buildings around a rail line linking Pyongyang to the battlefront and about 230 buildings on the same line leading to Manchuria. Other B-29s hit the battle front and supply targets on the East Coast.
(Photo courtesy newspapers.com, Pittsburgh Press)