Marine close air support on the Pusan perimeter during the early months of the Korean War

Abstract

This thesis presents a qualitative analysis of the Marine experience in the Korean War with air power. Evidence suggests that Marine Close Air Support in the early months of the Korean War was superior to Navy and Air Force CAS. The Marine Corps collected interviews during the war, which support this conclusion. Interviews were taken with pilots, commanders, tactical air coordinators, forward air controllers, mechanics, infantrymen and other front line soldiers who experienced the CAS in the opening months of the war. Many factors contributed to this qualitative difference including; training, doctrine, control system, and type of planes used. This qualitative difference amounted to the superiority of Marine CAS in the opening months of the Korean War.