Operation Combat Fox

Last updated August 29, 2023

On January 23, 1968, North Korean patrol boats supported by two Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21 fighters captured the USS Pueblo northeast of the North Korean island of Ung-do.^[1] The seizure of the Pueblo led to President Lyndon Johnson ordering a show of force with a massive deployment of U.S. air and navy assets to Korea. The airlift and deployment of 200+ aircraft was code named Operation Combat Fox^[2] while the deployment of six aircraft carriers plus support vessels was code named Operation Formation Star .^[3] The operations were supported by the partial mobilization of reservists for the first time since the Cuban Missile Crisis.^[3] CIA A-12 Oxcart reconnaissance overflights over North Korea were used to monitor a feared retaliatory mobilization of North Korean forces and when these flights revealed no mobilization or large scale deployments by North Korean forces, Operation Combat Fox forces were stood down.^[4]

Soviet response

Publicly, the Soviet Union responded by augmenting their naval forces in the Pacific and by sending a letter to US president Lyndon B. Johnson on February 3, 1968 demanding that the United States scale back their build-up in the Sea of Japan. Privately however, Alexei Kosygin gave assurances to the US ambassador in Moscow (Llewellyn Thompson) on 6 February 1968 that the Soviet Union had no intention to go to war over Kim Il Sung's provocation. As a response to this overture, Lyndon Johnson agreed to withdraw one unnamed vessel "somewhat southward". This exchange enabled Brezhnev to make a subsequent face-saving statement to the 23rd Congress of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union that the Soviet letter was answered by the Americans by withdrawing the USS Enterprise from DPRK's shores.^[5]

Units deployed

Fifth Air Force ^[6] - Osan AFB (Advance echelon sent from Fuchu AS)

4th Tactical Fighter Wing - Kunsan AFB (72 F-4D Sent From Seymour Johnson AFB)

334th Tactical Fighter Squadron - Kwangju AFB

335th Tactical Fighter Squadron

336th Tactical Fighter Squadron

18th Tactical Fighter Wing (-) - Osan AFB (12 F-105D Sent From Kadena AFB)

15th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron

12th Tactical Fighter Squadron

19th Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron - Taegu AFB (6 EB-66 Sent From Shaw AFB)

64th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron - Kimpo AFB (24 F-102A Sent From Naha AFB)

82nd Fighter-Interceptor Squadron - Suwon AFB (24 F-102A Sent From Naha AFB)

318th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron - Osan AFB (24 F-106A Sent From McChord AFB)

356th Tactical Fighter Squadron - Kunsan AFB (14 F-4C Sent From Misawa AFB)

558th Tactical Fighter Squadron - Taegu AFB (14 F-4C Sent From Cam Ranh Base AFB)

Notes

↑ Jacobson (2011), pp. 271–272.
↑ Jacobson (2011), p. 272.
1 2 Bolger (1991), Ch 3.
↑ Jacobson (2011), p. 274.
↑ The Soviet Union and the North Korea Seizure of the USS Pueblo: Evidence from Russian Archives pp. 18-19 (PDF)
↑ Bolger (1991), p 72.

Related Research Articles

Osan Air Base, is a United States Air Force (USAF) and Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) base located near Songtan Station in the city of Pyeongtaek, South Korea, 64 km (40 mi) south of Seoul. Despite its name, Osan AB is not within Osan City, which is 7.5 km (4.7 mi) to the north. The base is the home of the headquarters for Seventh Air Force, Pacific Air Forces' 51st Fighter Wing, and a number of tenant units. The base is also the headquarters of the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) Operations Command. Osan Air Base is also the departure and arrival point for U.S. government-contracted "Patriot Express" flights bringing service members and their family members to South Korea from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in the U.S. state of Washington, Misawa Air Base and Yokota Air Base in Japan.

Kunsan K-8 Air Base(군산공군기지) is a United States Air Force base located at Gunsan Airport, on the west coast of the South Korean peninsula bordered by the Yellow Sea. It is located in the town of Gunsan, about 180 kilometres (110 mi) south of Seoul.

The 356th Fighter Squadron is an active United States Air Force fighter squadron. It is assigned to the 354th Fighter Wing, being stationed at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. It was reactivated in 2019 to operate the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II.

The 51st Fighter Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force and the host unit at Osan Air Base, South Korea. The wing has been based entirely in the Far East during its entire existence, including its combat role as the 51st Fighter-Interceptor Wing during the Korean War.

The 111th Attack Squadron is a unit of the Texas Air National Guard 147th Attack Wing located at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base, Houston, Texas. The 111th is equipped with the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).

The 80th Fighter Squadron is a General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter squadron of the United States Air Force, currently part of the 8th Operations Group of the 8th Fighter Wing, and stationed at Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">354th Fighter Wing</span> US Air Force unit

The 354th Fighter Wing is a United States Air Force wing that is part of Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is the host wing at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, and is assigned to the Eleventh Air Force.

The 113th Wing, known as the "Capital Guardians", is a unit of the District of Columbia Air National Guard, stationed at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. If activated to federal service, the fighter portion of the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command, while the airlift portion is gained by Air Mobility Command.

The 334th Fighter Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the 4th Operations Group and stationed at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">8th Fighter Wing</span> US Air Force unit

The United States Air Force 8th Fighter Wing is the host unit at Kunsan Air Base, Republic of Korea and is assigned to Seventh Air Force. Seventh Air Force falls under Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). The Wing's 8th Operations Group is the successor of the 8th Pursuit Group, one of the 15 original combat air groups formed by the Army before World War II.

The 136th Airlift Wing is a unit of the Texas Air National Guard, stationed at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Fort Worth, Texas. If activated to federal service, the wing is gained by the United States Air Force's Air Mobility Command (AMC).

The 158th Airlift Squadron is a unit of the Georgia Air National Guard's 165th Airlift Wing located at Savannah Air National Guard Base, Georgia. The 158th is equipped with the C-130H Hercules and is operationally-gained by the Air Mobility Command (AMC).

The 166th Air Refueling Squadron is a unit of the Ohio Air National Guard 121st Air Refueling Wing located at Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base, Columbus, Ohio. The 166th is equipped with the KC-135R Stratotanker.

The 68th Fighter Squadron was one of the longest-serving fighter squadrons in U.S. Air Force history, remaining active almost continually for 60 years. Known as the "Lightning Lancers", on the morning of 27 June 1950 pilots of the 68th Fighter-All Weather Squadron flying the North American F-82 Twin Mustang made history by achieving the first aerial kill of the Korean War.

The 196th Attack Squadron is a unit of the 163d Attack Wing of the California Air National Guard stationed at March Joint Air Reserve Base, California, operating the MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft.

The United States Air Force in South Korea is composed of units assigned to Pacific Air Forces Seventh Air Force. The mission of the personnel, equipment and aircraft is to deter, protect and defend the Republic of Korea from attack from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) or more commonly known as North Korea.

The 16th Weapons Squadron is a United States Air Force unit. It is assigned to the USAF Weapons School, based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada.

The 148th Fighter Wing is a unit of the Minnesota Air National Guard located at Duluth Air National Guard Base, Minnesota. The 148th is equipped with the General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon. If activated to federal service, the Wing is gained by the United States Air Force Air Combat Command.

References

Bolger, Daniel (1991). Scenes from an Unfinished War: Low intensity conflict in Korea 1966–1969 (PDF). Diane Publishing Co. ISBN 978-0-7881-1208-9. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 January 2018.
Jacobsen, Annie (2011). Area 51. London: Orion Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4091-4113-6.
Okonski, John (2012). Operation Combat Fox – The USAF Response. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015.

External links

The Second Korean War: A Forgotten Conflict 1966 - 1969 - Mark Felton Productions - August 13, 2020

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[1] Jacobson (2011), pp. 271–272.

[2] Jacobson (2011), p. 272.

[Bolger1991-3] 1 2 Bolger (1991), Ch 3.

[4] Jacobson (2011), p. 274.

[5] The Soviet Union and the North Korea Seizure of the USS Pueblo: Evidence from Russian Archives pp. 18-19 (PDF)

[6] Bolger (1991), p 72.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]