Transportation Helicopters in Korea

The 6th Transportation Company received overseas orders in November 1952 and sailed from San Fransisco, CA, on 16 December. They arrived in Chunchon, Korea, on 6 January 1953. During the months of February and March, company aviators traveled to Japan and piloted their helicopters, in four groups of five each, from Kisarazu Air Force Base, Japan, to Airstrip A-5 near Chunchon.

The 6th received its “Baptism of Fire” on 20 March 1953 in the performance of an emergency resupply mission for forward elements of the 3rd Infantry Division, which had been cut off from normal supply by floodwaters. Two platoons of the company moved 33,925 pounds of supplies to forward positions about 7 miles from the supply point.

On 23 March 1953, the company evacuated casualties from forward areas resulting from action on “Old Baldy.” The H-19s picked up wounded soldiers at regimental clearing stations and transported them directly to a hospital near Seoul.

The first mass use of cargo helicopters in medical evacuation occurred from 20 through 26 April 1953 in Operation Little Switch. The H-19s of the 6th Transportation Company evacuated a total of 683 sick and wounded United Nations and Republic of Korean prisoners of war. This took place from Panmunjon to various hospital ships in a total of 124 flights during the 7 days. During the exercise, the men of the 6th developed efficient procedures for loading and unloading patients and arranging litters in the aircraft.

On 22-24 May 1953, 12 H-19 helicopters of the 6th Transportation Company conducted Operation Skyhook, which consisted of furnishing logistical support for three infantry regiments of the 25th Division for 3 days.

Helicopters were the primary means of resupply during this period. Most supplies were carried externally with cargo nets. In a total of 722 flights, the H-19s moved 610,000 pounds of cargo. This operation was deemed to be particularly successful because of adequate planning time.

The 6th used lessons they learned from Operation Skyhook to make Operation Skyhook I even more successful. In this operation, conducted from 7 to 11 June 1953, over 2 million pounds of supplies were delivered to units of the 25th Division. The average load per flight was 1,022 pounds.

This operation demonstrated conclusively that internal loading, as opposed to the use of cargo nets, significantly increased load capacity and usually more than compensated for the additional time required for loading and unloading.

On 1 May 1953, the 13th Transportation Company (Helicopter) disembarked at Inchon, Korea. The company’s H-19 helicopters were assembled by the 79th Ordnance Battalion on the docks at Inchon and then flown to Uijongbu (CS 3217), which became the base of operations for the 13th. Nine pilots of the 13th then departed for Chunchon for orientation and training with the 6th to participate in Operation Skyhook in late May.

Following the arrival in Korea of the 13th Transportation Company, the Eighth Army developed a battalion headquarters TO&E and activated the 1st Transportation Army Aviation Battalion (Provisional), consisting of the 6th and 13th companies. The TO&E was a flexible concept providing from two to four helicopter companies in each battalion. The battalion furnished technical supervision, control, and coordination for the two companies and also a channel for requests for helicopter cargo missions.

Both the 13th and the 6th companies participated in an operation on 15 June 1953 in support of the United Nations positions in the Christmas Hill sector. During the few hours they had to perform the mission before dark, the helicopter units moved about 700 South Korean troops into a blocking position to maintain the defense of strategic terrain for the duration of the truce negotiations.

The 13th Transportation Company evacuated a total of 1,547 wounded soldiers during the months of June and July 1953. From 15 July through 17 July alone, during a major enemy offensive shortly before the truce took effect, the company evacuated 723 patients.

After the truce, the 13th (with elements of the 6th serving as backup) conducted Operation Big Switch. In this operation, which lasted from 5 August through 6 September 1953, the 13th Transportation Company transported all sick and wounded exchange prisoners of war from Munsan-ni to United States and Republic of Korea hospitals.

Many healthy prisoners of war were also airlifted to the Army unit in Inchon. During the 33-day period, 5,674 repatriates were transported in a total of 1,173 flights.

The principal joint helicopter operation in Korea was Operation Byway during September and October 1953.

The 1st Transportation Army Aviation Battalion, consisting of the 6th and the 13th companies, and HMR 161 Marine Squadron of the 1st Marine Division used a total of 28 cargo helicopters to transport more than 6,000 troops in 1,288 flights. Most of the men moved 34 miles from an aircraft carrier in Inchon Harbor to the Panmunjon area in the demilitarized zone.

During the few months cargo helicopters operated in combat in Korea, their activities were hampered by some of the same problems that plagued utility helicopter operations. There were delays in obtaining replacement parts, many parts had a shorter life than expected and there was a shortage of properly trained maintenance personnel.

The transfer of responsibility for logistical support of Army Aviation from the Army Ordnance Corps to the Army Transportation Corps in 1952 was a step in the right direction, but by no means eliminated all difficulties.

No major problems concerning liaison or command relations occurred. Army commanders came to consider the cargo helicopter as another mode of transportation available for the accomplishment of their missions. Consequently, they integrated the employment of cargo helicopters into the normal Transportation Corps control channels. Since few cargo helicopters were available, however, they were considered a limited and high priority means of transportation.

According to the 1952 MOU between the Army and the Air Force, this was the primary mission of the Army cargo helicopters: to provide a short-haul air transport to expedite tactical operation and logistical support in the forward areas of the combat zones. Their secondary mission was medical evacuation – but only to points within the combat zone.

In actual combat, the H-19s were used for whatever functions they were able to perform without undue regard for MOUs and TO&E. They carried patients from the combat zone to hospitals outside the combat zone. And they transported hundreds of armed troops into battle in aerial assault type operations. After hostilities ended, they airlifted thousands of prisoners of war and custodial troops in types of operations unforeseen a year earlier.

The limitations on the missions of Army helicopters incorporated into the MOU of 1952, just as those in the MOU of 1951, proved to be unrealistic and unenforceable under combat conditions. Cargo helicopters entered combat near the end of the conflict, however. The hot war ended before the full range of their capabilities could be demonstrated under the exigencies of combat.

During the few months cargo helicopters were used in combat, some commanders became aware of their potential. The commander of X Corps in Korea, for example, observed “the helicopter delivery of lightly equipped combat elements directly to critical blocking and holding position… is a practical maneuver.”

Also, the Eighth Army commander, General Maxwell D. Taylor, wrote that “the cargo helicopter, employed en masse, can extend the mobility of the Army far beyond its normal capability. I hope,” he continued, “ that the U.S. Army will make ample provisions for the full exploitation of the helicopter in the future.”

Secretary of the Army Frank Pace, Jr. was perhaps even more farsighted. In 1952, he wrote that the Army should provide itself with helicopters “ that are integrated into the tank-infantry-artillery team.”

During the Korean Conflict, cargo helicopters aided the Army in discovering the path that would eventually lead to airmobility-air assault. Cargo helicopters also helped Army Aviation become an accepted member of the combined arms team.

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