Passing the Test: Combat in Korea, April-June 1951 (Battles and Campaigns)

486 Pages·2011·4.18 MB·English

by  William T. Bowers and John T. Greenwood (Editors)

ContinUEd From Front FlaP
history/military/KorEan War
enemy and position UN forces to re-
ceive the anticipated counteroffensive “Passing the Test completes the story of ground combat
on the ground of their choosing. during the Chinese offensives of 1951. It records the action
of the small units that held back the last offensives and then
A comprehensive narrative of the counterattacked to regain the ground lost. Recorded on the
offensive and its battles, Passing the ground where the soldiers fought, these chapters are ‘the
Test provides not only a context for unadorned first drafts of history’ brought back by the military
battle strategies and specific actions history detachments, as told by the men who fought in those
but relates the experiences of individual battles. This is combat history at its best.” For U.S. and UN soldiers fighting in
the Korean War, the spring of 1951
soldiers. The third and final book in
— Lt. Gen. Julius W. Becton Jr., USA (Ret.)
was brutal. The troops faced a tough
Bowers’s series on combat operations
and determined foe under challenging
in the Korean War, Passing the Test
“The final volume in the Combat in Korea series captures the conditions. The Chinese Spring Offen-
draws from interviews conducted by
shock, flow, and change of tactical battle in the spring and sive of 1951 exemplified the hardships
U.S. Army historians within hours or
early summer of 1951. Battlefield interviews and selections of the war as the UN forces struggled
days of the battles. Supplemented
from unit battle summaries combine to vividly portray the facts with the Chinese troops over Line
by official records, unit journals, and
of small-unit combat in ways that formal war histories do not. Kansas, a phase line north of the 38th
after action reports, the interviews
The leaders and soldiers’ personal accounts of their uncertainty parallel, in a conflict that led to the
offer a firsthand account that is
and reactions under fire, their choices, and ultimately, their war’s final stalemate. Passing the Test:
untainted by nostalgia and later
resolute performance are encompassed by this narrative of Combat in Korea, April–June 1951
literature, illuminating the events
brutal battle at the height of the Korean War. Passing the Test looks closely at the fierce fighting of
that unfolded on the battlefields
will be a classic for those who wish to study the Korean War the Spring Offensive and analyzes U.S.
of Korea and yielding a unique and
as experienced by the combat soldier in 1951.” and UN strategies and operations,
compelling portrait of the chaos,
exploring the combat from the
perseverance, and heroism of the war. — Lt. Gen. John R. Wood, USA (Ret.)
perspectives of platoons, squads,
and the men themselves.
William T. Bowers (1946–2008), a
former U.S. Army officer, was editor of
Editors William T. Bowers and John
The Line: Combat in Korea, January–
T. Greenwood emphasize the tactical
February 1951 and Striking Back:
EditEd by William t. boWErs and John t. GrEEnWood operations on the front lines and
Combat in Korea, March–April 1951.
examine U.S. and UN Command
an aUsa titlE
strategy, as well as the operations of
John T. Greenwood retired as chief of
battlEs and CamPaiGns sEriEs
the Communist Chinese and North
the Office of Medical History, Office
Korean forces. Passing the Test
of the Surgeon General, U.S. Army, Series Editor: Roger Cirillo
thoroughly chronicles the decline
in 2007. He is the editor of Milestones
of China’s offensive strength and
of Aviation, Normandy to Victory:
thE UnivErsity PrEss oF KEntUCKy
the effects of the shifting balance of
The War Diary of General Courtney
power on the war. The UN Command
H. Hodges and the First U.S. Army,
and Eighth U.S. Army fully expected
and The Blitzkrieg Legend: The 1940
both phases of the Fifth Chinese
Campaign in the West.
Offensive, and they made several
methodical advances to suppress the
Jacket images courtesy of the National Archives
and Records Administration. Jacket design by
ContinUEd on baCK FlaP
Erin Bradley Dangar / Dangar Design.
PASSING THE TEST
BATTLES AND CAMPAIGNS
The Battles and Campaigns series examines the military and strategic
results of particular combat techniques, strategies, and methods used
by soldiers, sailors, and airmen throughout history. Focusing on dif-
ferent nations and branches of the armed services, this series aims to
educate readers by detailed analysis of military engagements.
SERIES EDITOR: Roger Cirillo
AN AUSA BOOK
PASSING
THE TEST
COMBAT IN KOREA
April–June 1951
Edited by
William T. Bowers and
John T. Greenwood
The University Press of Kentucky
Copyright © 2011 by The Association of the United States Army
Published by The University Press of Kentucky
Scholarly publisher for the Commonwealth,
serving Bellarmine University, Berea College, Centre
College of Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky University,
The Filson Historical Society, Georgetown College,
Kentucky Historical Society, Kentucky State University,
Morehead State University, Murray State University,
Northern Kentucky University, Transylvania University,
University of Kentucky, University of Louisville,
and Western Kentucky University.
All rights reserved.
Editorial and Sales Offi ces: The University Press of Kentucky
663 South Limestone Street, Lexington, Kentucky 40508-4008
www.kentuckypress.com
15 14 13 12 11 5 4 3 2 1
Unless otherwise indicated, all photographs are from the
National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 111.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Passing the test : combat in Korea, April–June 1951 / edited by William T. Bowers
and John T. Greenwood.
p. cm. — (Battles and campaigns)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8131-3452-9 (hardcover : alk. paper) —
ISBN 978-0-8131-3453-6 (ebook)
1. Korean War, 1950–1953—Campaigns. 2. Strategy—History—20th century.
3. United Nations—Armed Forces—History—Korean War, 1950–1953. 4. United
States—Armed Forces—History—Korean War, 1950–1953. 5. Korea (North)—
Armed Forces—History—Korean War, 1950–1953. 6. China—Armed Forces—
History—Korean War, 1950–1953. I. Bowers, William T., 1946– II. Greenwood,
John T.
DS918.P37 2011
951.904’24—dc23
2011023322
This book is printed on acid-free paper meeting
the requirements of the American National Standard
for Permanence in Paper for Printed Library Materials.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
Member of the Association of
American University Presses
A NOTE ON THE TEXT
Sadly, Col. William T. “Tom” Bowers, U.S. Army (retired), passed
away in September 2008, just as the University Press of Kentucky
published The Line: Combat in Korea, January–February 1951, the
fi rst volume of his trilogy on the U.S. Army’s combat operations in
Korea from January to early June 1951. Fortunately for us, he had
completed preliminary drafts of the text and maps for the second
and third volumes, and the second volume was nearly ready for
submission to the press. Following Tom’s death, Dr. Roger Cirillo
called on me, an experienced Army historian and editor and a for-
mer colleague of Tom’s at the U.S. Army Center of Military History,
to complete what work remained on the second volume and to coor-
dinate with the press throughout the editorial and publication pro-
cess. Late in 2009 the press published the second volume, Striking
Back: Combat in Korea, March–April 1951.
Upon publication of Striking Back, Dr. Cirillo asked me to fi n-
ish the work on the third volume, titled Passing the Test: Combat in
Korea, April–June 1951, and to see it through the publication pro-
cess. This I did beginning in early 2009. With the publication of
Passing the Test, Tom’s personal and professional commitment to
preserving the actions and sacrifi ces of the American soldiers of the
Korean War in their own words is fi nally concluded. These three
volumes will remain a fi tting tribute to William T. “Tom” Bowers as
an American soldier and a U.S. Army historian.
John T. Greenwood
Editor

CONTENTS
Preface ix
Note on Maps xv
List of Abbreviations xviii
1. The War before the Communist Spring Offensive of 1951 1
2. Battles along the Outpost Line: 32d Infantry Regiment,
19–23 April 1951 13
3. Caught in a Chinese Ambush: Battery B, 999th Armored
Field Artillery Battalion, 22–24 April 1951 39
4. Tanks above Kap’yong: Company A, 72d Tank
Battalion, 23–24 April 1951 59
5. Artillery in Perimeter Defense: 92d Armored Field
Artillery Battalion, 22–24 April 1951 88
6. Hill 628: 8th Ranger Infantry Company (Airborne),
23–25 April 1951 117
7. Gloster Hill: 1st Battalion, Gloucestershire Regiment
(the Glosters), 22–25 April 1951 143
8. Action along the No Name Line: U.S. IX Corps 180
9. Anything but Peaceful Valley: 15th Field Artillery
Battalion, 16–18 May 1951 223
viii CONTENTS
10. The Battle below the Soyang River: Company C,
72d Tank Battalion, 16–18 May 1951 244
11. The Supply Battle of the Soyang River: U.S. X Corps,
10 May–7 June 1951 285
12. Task Force Gerhart: Company B, 72d Tank Battalion,
24 May 1951 297
13. Task Force Hazel: 7th Reconnaissance Company,
24–25 May 1951 331
Conclusion 376
Notes 383
Bibliographical Essay 415
Index 425

Photo gallery follows page 214
PREFACE
Much can be learned about war from studying the thirty-eight
months of fi ghting in Korea, from June 1950 to July 1953. Military
operations ranged from rapid advances and withdrawals and am-
phibious landings and evacuations, all reminiscent of World War II,
to static operations interrupted by set-piece battles and vicious raids
that recall the battles on the Western Front during World War I. The
weather was often as brutal as the fi ghting: summers hot and hu-
mid, winters frigid with icy Siberian winds. The rugged terrain
challenged even those who thought they were in good physical con-
dition. Before Korea, U.S. strategic planners, and indeed most people
in the United States, believed that such a war would never be fought
again, and certainly not in Korea. Consequently, preparations were
few, and the individuals who actually had to fi ght the battles paid
the price.
This book, the third in a series on the Korean War, takes a close
look at some of the fi ghting that occurred during the Chinese Com-
munist Spring Offensive from late April to late May–early June
1951. This volume focuses mostly on combat at the lowest levels:
battalion, company, platoon, squad, and individual soldiers. Al-
though the spotlight is on tactical operations and frontline fi ghting,
each combat action is placed in its own unique context, so that the
reader is aware of the way in which events and decisions in Korea
infl uenced what happened on the battlefi eld.
Most of the material for this book is drawn from interviews
conducted by U.S. Army historians soon after a combat action oc-