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There was a history channel series called 'dogfights' which often had stories of korean and vietnam air battles. usually some CGI re-imagining interspersed with first hand accounts from the pilots. hardly top notch entertainment but interesting enough to pass some time if youre at a loose end. you can find them on youtube
Also on YouTube was the old series Wings. Some episodes focused on Korean War aircraft and strategies, but I’m not sure what label they would be under, Wings or the Korean War or Wings of the Red Star or something. If I recall, the Mig15 episode was pretty bomb.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2020/04/21 16:27:55
Can someone point me to some fun resources about the air war in Korea?
I am interested in learning more about how the Korean War unfolded in the air, combatant aircraft, T&O that sort of thing.
Feel free to post links, recommendations, and even images you find interesting here.
Thanks in advance.
You can find any number of technical manuals pretty easily. They're gazillions of them so I won't bother listing any.
I don't know a lot of histories specifically about the air war. Most of the Korean War histories I've read have focused on the ground war and the politics of the conflict. The general consensus of the air war is that it did little to change the outcome of the war one way or the other, so I think Historians are generally less inclined to put lots of time into.
First word of warning. Ignore anything you find by Thomas McKelvey Cleaver. I imagine he's the first name you might find on Amazon or something. His history isn't bad, but have you ever wanted to hear his opinion on Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un? No? Too bad because he will share his opinion with you before talking about an air war from when one of them was still in the first grade and probably didn't have an opinion about it! Cleaver is not a professionally trained historian and it shows really badly. He juxtaposes his present day political biases onto the past and draws conclusions from that erroneous practice so while his 'day to day' history is accurate I highly recommend staying away from him.
Instead try these (if you can find the first two)!
Air war over Korea by Robert Jackson. This might be hard to find (on Amazon a copy is going for $257). The book is from 73 but it's basically the only 'big history' on the Korean air campaigns I know about that tells a coherent narrative and doesn't meander. It's also the definitive history in a way, because Jackson is the man who determined that the air war had little effect on the outcome of the war. Your best bet is to try and find a library copy. I'm unaware of any digital copies of the book.
The United States Air Force in Korea,: 1950-1953 by Robert Futrell. It's even harder to find than Jackson's book and I acquired my copy for a lot less than the $1000 currently listed on Amazon (wtf?). This book is great but maybe a bit dry? it's older than Jackson's, but It's a massive book and it covers literally everything.
The Naval Air War in Korea by Richard Hallion. It's only about naval aviation, and it's more of a popular history than a scholarly one. That might suit you better if you want to enjoy yourself though and it's easier to find than the big histories I just listed.
Crimson Sky: The Air Battle for Korea by John Bruning. It's not a history so much as a collection of engagements that the author uses to discuss the nature of air warfare. it won't give a full narrative history of the air campaigns but the author talks a lot about the ins and outs of combat, the pilots, their training, and the battles they fought.
A hidden gem imo, Red Wings over the Yalu: China, the Soviet Union, and the Air War in Korea by Xiaoming Zhang. A lot of the history you can find on the air war in Korea focuses very much on the US and allies with a lot less said about the other side. Xiaoming Zhang's is the only book I know of that covers the other side of the conflict with a scholarly approach (I haven't read it yet myself, but there's not really any competition so *shrug*).
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2020/04/21 16:54:00
Zed wrote: *All statements reflect my opinion at this moment. if some sort of pretty new model gets released (or if I change my mind at random) I reserve the right to jump on any bandwagon at will.
I can wholeheartedly recommend the Dogfight series from History Channel. You can get the whole thing on DVD for reasonably cheap and it's many many many hours of dogfights illustrated and described with simple (but decent) CGI. There are definitely a handful of Koren War dogfights in various episodes. If you like air combat it's a superb series. Where possible the involved pilots are interviewed during the episode as well.
KamikazeCanuck wrote: It was one of the most incredible wars for air combat. Some of the first ever jet aircraft facing off against each other.
Not just that, but the pinnacle of piston engine fighters, sometimes also facing off against jets!
Yes, the Sea Fury is one of my favourite aircraft
I'm partial to the Sabre myself. A jet with 6 cannons in the nose! And of course this is before air-to-air missiles so everyone still dogfighting the old fashioned way. It was that sweet spot in air war where everything was cool.
KamikazeCanuck wrote: It was one of the most incredible wars for air combat. Some of the first ever jet aircraft facing off against each other.
Not just that, but the pinnacle of piston engine fighters, sometimes also facing off against jets!
Yes, the Sea Fury is one of my favourite aircraft
I'm partial to the Sabre myself. A jet with 6 cannons in the nose! And of course this is before air-to-air missiles so everyone still dogfighting the old fashioned way. It was that sweet spot in air war where everything was cool.
Six .50 caliber machine guns. Late models had four 20mm cannon.
I really like the Sabre too (and the MiG-15; Korea had some great aircraft).
The Aussies built a variant of the Sabre where they squeezed in a couple of 30mm Aden cannons and rigged it to fire Sidewinders, which I always thought would have been an interesting shock for anyone who came across it unawares (although that was post-Korea IIRC)
Zed wrote: *All statements reflect my opinion at this moment. if some sort of pretty new model gets released (or if I change my mind at random) I reserve the right to jump on any bandwagon at will.
My father served as a crew chief for the F8 Bearcat and F4u Corsair during the Korean War. The Navy brought the F4U back into service for its ability to stay on location longer in the ground attack role. He said in training exercises versus the air force that the F8 bearcats moped the floor with the early jets and the pilots that flew them took pride beating the new kids on the block.
The Korean to Vietnam era is a truly interesting time in aircraft history. Many nations trying to modernize their aging WWII relics, only to realize that their new jets don't quite fit a role they were never intended for (long loiter times) and having to pull older aircraft back out of mothballs.
I'll second the recommendations for both Wings and Dogfights. The CGI is somewhat cartoony, but I think it was intentional, and works on some level.
From a gaming standpoint, you may want to consider B-29 Superfortress with the Hell Over Korea expansion. It is a solitaire game where you play out missions and manage the crew and events of a single B-29 over a campaign. It is interesting to see how the B-29 went from state of the art in WW2 to an expendable asset over Korea, fighting its way to the target through MiG-15s. Legion Wargames is the maker.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2020/04/27 03:13:06
I watched Wings of the Red Star the other day based on this threads recommendations. Good stuff.
I did not have the Bearcat on my list of Korean War aircraft, but I did have the Corsair. Here is the list I have so far.....
Name
North American F-28 Twin Mustang
Lockheed F-94 Starfire
Hawker Sea Fury
Republic F-84 ThunderJet
North American F-86 Sabre
Boeing B-29 Super Fortress
Grumman F9F Panther
North American P-51 Mustang
Lockheed p-80 Shooting Star
Douglas A-26 Invader
Vought F4U Corsair
Grumman F9F Cougar
Boeing B-47 Stratojet
de Havilland Vampire
Douglas F3D/F-10 Skyknight
Gloster Meteor
Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star
McDonnel F2H Banshee
North American B-45 Tornado
Northrop F-89 Scorpion
Douglas A-1 SkyRaider
Grumman F7F Tigercat
Fairey Firefly
North American A2 Savage
Supermarine Spitfire
Mig-15
Lavochkim La-9 Fritz
Ilyushin IL-10 Beast
Lavochim La-11 Fang
Yakolev Yak-18 Max
Yakolev Yak-9 Frank
Tupolev Tu-2 Bat
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