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The bombing of Pyongyang was conducted as part of a gradual and sustained U.S. aerial bombing of North Korea during the Korean War. By the time of the armistice, 75 percent of Pyongyang's area was destroyed by the bombing campaign, which was part of a broader U.S. bombing effort throughout the country.
After North Korea invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950, which sparked the conflict, General Douglas MacArthur, Commander-in-chief of the Far East Command, ordered the FEAF to carry out air raids on North Korea to prevent North Korean forces from overrunning the nation. Bad weather delayed further air actions until June 29 when MacArthur authorized FEAF attacks on airfields in North Korea. For the first time, B-26s of the 3rd Bombardment Group attacked Heijo airfield near Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, claiming up to 25 enemy aircraft destroyed on the ground.
Onjong-Ni Airfield was also attacked, resulting in the destruction of 2 Yak 3's and the damaging of 10 other aircraft on the ground. On 18 July 1950 aircraft from Task Force 77 attacked the Pyongyang airfields again destroying 14 aircraft and damaging 13. [1]
Following the capture of Pyongyang on 19 October 1950 Heijo airfield was put into service by the UN forces, designated by the USAF as K-23. [2]
UN forces abandoned the base on 5 December 1950 as part of the evacuation of Pyongyang in the face of the Chinese intervention. [3] On 10 December 1950 B-29s bombed the airfield with high-explosive bombs. [4]
The city was bombed on 3 and 5 January 1951, prompting a protest to the United Nations Security Council by the DPRK Foreign Minister.
On 23 January 1951, 46 F-80s of the 49th Fighter-Bomber Wing attacked anti-aircraft positions around Pyongyang and once this was completed 21 B-29s of the 19th and 307th Bombardment Groups from Okinawa bombed the airfield. [5]
Ninety-eighth Bombardment Group B-29s conducted two "maximum effort" incendiary attacks on Pyongyang in January 1951. [6]
On July 21, 1951, Lt. Gen. Matthew Ridgway, having recently replaced General Douglas MacArthur as commander in chief, Far East and United Nations Command, informed the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) that he planned "an all out air strike on Pyongyang" with 140 bombers and 230 fighters, to be take place on the first clear night after July 24. Under the proposal, warning flyers would be dropped in advance of the attack. The Joint Chiefs of Staff ordered Ridgway to defer the attack pending further instructions, due to concerns about the political implications. In response to concerns from JCS that flyers would place "undue importance" on the capital, Ridgway submitted an amended plan that omitted flyering the city in advance of the bombing. The all-out attack was conducted on July 30, but poor weather interfered with its effectiveness. On August 14, a second attempt was made with cloudy weather again interfering with effectiveness. [7]
On July 11, 1952, a large attack known as Pressure Pump was conducted on the city involving 1,254 sorties from Fifth Air Force, Marine, Navy, Korean, Australian, South African, and British aircraft flying in the day, and 54 B-29s flying at night. The attack was preceded by flyers warning civilians to leave the city. On August 29, operation All United Nations Air Effort bombed the city again with 1,400 sorties. [8]
According to a bomb assessment conducted by the U.S. Air Force, over the course of the war 75 percent of the buildings in Pyongyang was destroyed by the U.S. bombing, placing it approximately at the midpoint in level of damage, relative to other Korean cities: [9]
The Korean War was significant in the fact that it was the first war in which the newly independent United States Air Force was involved.
Sinanju is a region (신안주) in Anju city, South Pyongan Province, North Korea. The name literally means "Comfortable New Village." When Anju County was raised to the status of a city in August 1987, Sinanju Workers' District was divided into Sinwon-dong, Wonhung-dong, Yokchon-dong.
The Twentieth Air Force (Air Forces Strategic) (20th AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Global Strike Command (AFGSC). It is headquartered at Francis E. Warren Air Force Base, Wyoming.
The Blockade of Wonsan, or the Siege of Wonsan, from February 16, 1951 to July 27, 1953, during the Korean War, was the longest naval blockade in modern history, lasting 861 days. United Nations naval forces, primarily from the United States, kept the strategically-important city of Wonsan from being used by the North Korea Navy.
The attack on the Sui-ho Dam was the collective name for a series of mass air attacks during the Korean War on thirteen hydroelectric generating facilities by United Nations Command air forces as part of the North Korean bombing campaign on June 23–24 and June 26–27, 1952. Primarily targeting the hydroelectric complex associated with the Sui-ho Dam in North Korea, the attacks were intended to apply political pressure at the stalled truce negotiations at Panmunjeom.
The 92d Operations Group is the flying component of the 92d Air Refueling Wing, assigned to the United States Air Force Air Mobility Command Eighteenth Air Force. The group is stationed at Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington.
The 19th Operations Group is the operational flying component of the United States Air Force 19th Airlift Wing, stationed at Little Rock Air Force Base, Arkansas.
The United States Air Force in South Korea is composed of units assigned to Pacific Air Forces Seventh Air Force. The mission of the personnel, equipment and aircraft is to deter, protect and defend the Republic of Korea from attack from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) or more commonly known as North Korea.
This is the order of battle for United Nations and North Korean forces during the Battle of Pusan Perimeter in August and September 1950 during the Korean War. The engagement brought each side to muster substantial ground, air and sea resources to fight across southeastern Korea.
The 345th Bomb Squadron is a United States Air Force Reserve squadron, assigned to the 489th Bomb Group. It is stationed at Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, where it is an associate unit of the 7th Bomb Wing.
Sinuiju Airfield(신의주공항) is an airport near Sinuiju, Pyongan-bukto, North Korea.
Mirim Airport, also known as Pyongyang East Airfield or K-24 Air Base, is an airport in Mirim-dong, Sadong-guyok, Pyongyang-si, North Korea.
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The Air Battle of South Korea was an air campaign early in the Korean War occurring roughly from 25 June to 20 July 1950 over South Korea between the air forces of North Korea and the United Nations, including the countries of South Korea, the United States and the United Kingdom. The month-long fight for air supremacy over the country included several small engagements over airfields in Seoul and Taejon and ultimately ended in victory for the UN air force, which was able to destroy the small North Korean People's Air Force.
Pyongyang Air Base also known as Heijo Airfield or Pyongyang (K-23) Air Base was a former Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, Korean People's Air Force (KPAF) and United States Air Force (USAF) air base adjacent to the Taedong River in Pyongyang, North Korea. It was redeveloped after the Korean War as a Government and residential area.
Yonpo Airfield(련포비행장), also known as Yonpo Air Base or K-27 Air Base, is an airport near Hamhung, South Hamgyong Province, North Korea.
Operation Strangle was a sustained interdiction attack on North Korea's supplies and communications by the United Nations forces during the Korean War. Beginning in August 1951, the campaign's 87,552 interdiction sorties were credited with destroying 276 locomotives, 3,820 railroad cars, 19,000 rail cuts, and 34,211 other vehicles. The North Koreans countered the campaign by moving anti-aircraft (AA) guns and crews towards the front line and placing them in higher concentrations around important targets, causing heavy casualties in the UN forces. Despite high losses, Operation Strangle destroyed 900 AA gun positions and damaged 443.
The UN offensive into North Korea was a large-scale offensive in late 1950 by United Nations (UN) forces against North Korean forces during the Korean War.
The UN Forces retreat from North Korea was the withdrawal of United Nations (UN) forces from North Korea that took place from 2–25 December 1950.