"Some Crazy War"

The Chinese Communist air force had a tactical advantage oyer the U.S. Far East Air Force last week. U.S. pilots were under strict orders not to cross the Korea-Manchuria border, or even to fire across it. Communist flyers, under no such handicap, were staging hit & run raids across the frontier.

The only way U.S. B-29s could bomb the Yalu River bridges without violating the border was by making long bomb runs just inside and parallel to the line running down the center of the 2,500-ft.-wide Yalu. While making such a ten-minute bomb run on Sinuiju, 24 U.S. Superforts at 25,000 ft. were jumped by 16 Russian-made jet fighters--MIG-iss. Attacking in pairs, the Red jets, traveling at better than 600 m.p.h., began their dives high on the Manchurian side of the border, swept across the Yalu just long enough to shoot up the slow-moving (200 m.p.h.) Superforts, and ended their dives back on the Manchurian side before U.S. jets could catch them. There they stayed until the coast was clear for another pass at the bombers. In the first two weeks of November, one B-29 was lost, three others damaged, by border-hopping MIGs.

Not all U.S. bombers were being attacked by the Communist jets. Some B-29 crews reported that they were "escorted" over their targets by enemy jet pilots who observed the bombing of their people with apparent interest, then flew on home. One frustrated U.S. fighter pilot, watching Communist jets maneuvering north of the border, summed up U.S. resentment thus: "Some crazy war when those bastards can practice stunt flying right in front of you!"

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.