12/8/2022 0 Comments Was the korean war a real warProponents of the B-36 Peacemaker superbomber were wielding influence on Capitol Hill, while supporters of a new class of aircraft carrier, led by the United States (CV 58) faced an uphill fight. 18, 1947, was enjoying a period of dominance in U.S. The Air Force, a newly independent service branch as of Sept. industry, Congress, and the Pentagon were saying the aircraft carrier was obsolete. In the period prior to the Korean War, many in U.S. “We needed to span oceans to get into combat, and once we got there, we needed to be able to reach any target we wanted to reach.” James McCallister, a Korea-era airlift wing commander. “We were always looking at the tyranny of distance,” said Col. The Navy had a presence in the Pacific, but did not have an aircraft carrier forward-based in Japan as it did in later years. When the Korean War began June 25, 1950, the USAF was not ready to deploy forces over vast distances in a short time. Although the number of Sabres committed to the battle was never high, a limitless number were available back in the States. They were good enough and they existed in sufficient quantity. With the exception of the Sabre, they did not represent the cutting edge of technology. What the Sabre, Thunderjet, Shooting Star, and Superfortress had in common was that they were more than good enough for the duty handed to them. The lumbering B-29 Superfortress went the distance behind enemy lines and carried out longer-range strikes on strategic targets in a relentless bombing effort, adjusting tactics as conditions changed. The straight-winged, utilitarian F-80 Shooting Star and F-84 Thunderjet hauled bombs and rockets to support ground troops and journeyed behind the front lines to strike land targets in a sharply focused air-to-ground effort. The silvery F-86 Sabre flashed through Korea’s skies and racked up a 7-to-1 kill advantage over the MiG-15 in a pure air-to-air, fighter-versus-fighter, eyeball-to-eyeball battle campaign.
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