Revisiting the country of a forgotten war

  • Published
  • By Orville F. Desjarlais Jr.
  • Air Force News Agency
SEOUL, South Korea (AFPN) --  Time has changed Seoul.

The first time retired Lt. Gen. Charles G. Cleveland saw this city, it was in ruins.

"Fifty-four years ago, it looked like Berlin (Germany) after it was bombed. There was nothing left," said the former F-86 Sabre pilot who fought in the Korean War, fought between 1950 and 1953.

Today, it's a city that thrives, with residents who still remember the men and women who made that possible.

"We're thankful for the freedom and democracy we enjoy today," said Rae Hyuk Park, director of the Korean Revisit Program, part of the Korean Veterans Association. "We are grateful for the sacrifices made by these Korean War veterans."

As part of the Air Force's 60th anniversary, eight Korean War fighter pilots are re-visiting here -- a country they hadn't seen in more than 50 years. And they aren't just any old fighter pilots. Two of them are aces -- meaning they shot down at least five enemy aircraft -- one was a prisoner of war, and one of them is retired Col. Buzz Aldrin, one of the first men who landed on the moon. Colonel Aldrin is also credited with having shot down two MiG-15s.

The two fighter aces are retired Col. Ralph Gibson, who is credited with five "kills," and retired Lt. Col. Harold Fischer, who is credited with 10 kills and was also a prisoner of war.

The eight men arrived Sept. 9 and will leave after an Air Force Ball Sept. 15 in honor of the Air Force's 60th anniversary.

While the ex-fighter pilots are visiting a few Air Force bases in South Korea, John Sullivan, an Air Force historian from the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., is gathering information about their experiences so others may learn from the past.

"It's a historians dream to be able to meet the people I've just read about," Mr. Sullivan said. "I am absolutely thrilled to be able to shake their hands. Buzz Aldrin went to the moon, and I'll be talking to him only about his time as a young second lieutenant in the Korean War."

After interviewing the Korean War veterans, Mr. Sullivan is going to place the transcripts on a Web site through Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., making them accessible to all.

"It was definitely a forgotten war," Mr. Sullivan said. "And the things that were written weren't gathered from data and documents, but from people's recollections, which can be good or not so good."

Since the inception of the Korean Revisit Program, 24,200 Korean War veterans from America have been drawn back to this country for some reason or another.

Mr. Sullivan said many veterans feel a need to go back.

"Sometimes one visit doesn't bring closure for them," he said. "They need to return to a country where they fought, where they lost friends in combat. They need to see that it wasn't in vain, in some way. They lost very, very close friends as young men."

Because World War II and the Vietnam War overshadow the Korean War, many call the war that happened here the "Forgotten War."

But for these eight men, it's a war they will never forget, in a country that will always remember.

(NOTE: Throughout Sept. 10 through 14, look for more articles about the Korean War veteran's visit here in Air Force Print News.) 

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