Description
Object description
British officer commanded 1913 Light Liaison Flight, Royal Artillery, 1st Commonwealth Div in South Korea, 1951-1953
Content description
REEL 1 Background to formation of 1913 Light Liaison Flight, Royal Artillery in GB, 1951: end of use of gliders by Glider Pilot Regiment; contrast between gliders and powered aircraft; opinion of Auster aircraft; training in Wales; tactic for combat landing; character of training from Army and Royal Air Force instructors; tactical observation; techniques of avoiding artillery fire and landing distances; accidents in training; organisation of flight; role of National Service conscripts; discipline in unit and how esprit de corps emerged in Korean War; reaction to outbreak of Korean War, 6/1950; question of troops' lack of knowledge of war.
REEL 2 Continues: Aspects of period with 1913 Light Liaison Flight, Royal Artillery in Japan, 1951: voyage from GB to Japan, 9/1951; arrival in Kure; visit to Hiroshima; relations with Japanese civilians. Recollections of operations as flight commander with 1913 Light Liaison Flight, Royal Artillery, 1st Commonwealth Div in South Korea, 1951-1953: reaction of troops to arrival in South Korea, 10/1951, including adjusting to being in war zone; chain of command; role as Divisional Air Reconnaissance Officer to 1st Commonwealth Div; maps used; reconnaissance techniques; briefing procedure; orientation in air; aid given to Royal Engineers; sense of isolation on patrol; efforts to spot Chinese People's Volunteer Army vehicles and troop movements; times of observation flights; losses in unit to anti-aircraft fire.
REEL 3 Continues: loss of Australian Army officer in fatal crash-landing; issue of parachutes; capture of unit personnel; conduct of personnel on capture; personal weapons; reasons for lack of night flying; air traffic control; radio communications; pilot workloads and length of missions; impact of weather; effects of battle fatigue; role of ground crew including conditions and coping with cold weather; maintenance of morale.
REEL 4 Continues: administration and visits to divisional headquarters; line of communication to Royal Air Force; propellers damaged by stones; clothing and sleeping arrangements; importance of personal hygiene; provision of mobile laundry and bath unit; location of airstrip; accommodation of divisional headquarters; importance of keeping warm; rations and alcohol; trading empty bottles with Koreans; leave; rest and recreation in Japan; visits to Seoul, South Korea; contact with civilians; black market.
REEL 5 Continues: opinion of Republic of Korea troops; opinion of Turkish Army troops; opinion of United States Army troops, weapons and equipment; American artillery firepower; statistical basis of intelligence predictions; use of tanks; opinion of American and British manufactured aircraft; American forces' communications; contrast between American and British radio sets; opinion of Cessna L-19 aircraft; relations with American military forces; contrast between United Nations and Chinese People's Volunteer Army positions; transformation of terrain by spring weather; use of sandbags; trench systems; Chinese People's Volunteer Army construction of communication trenches; Chinese People's Volunteer Army's use of mules and porters; Chinese People's Volunteer Army mortar fire; visits by Fleet Air Arm pilots; Chinese People's Volunteer Army's use of dogs; United Nations' use of mines and wire; local security on airstrip.
REEL 6 Continues: medical services; state of unit's health; dangers to health; recreational facilities; entertainment, including meeting Marilyn Monroe; local leave centre in Inchon, South Korea; Chinese People's Volunteer Army's propaganda, including use of leaflets and loudspeakers; sight of impending Chinese People's Volunteer Army's attack; timing of Chinese People's Volunteer Army attacks and artillery; replacement of aircraft; question of lessons learnt during service in Korean War; opinion of Commonwealth contingents; opinion of French Canadian Army troops; attitude of troops on leaving South Korea.
