Everything about Operation Ripper totally explained
Operation Ripper was a
military operation conceived by
General Ridgway during the
Korean War, intended to destroy as much of the
People's Volunteer Army and
North Korean military from
Seoul and of the towns of
Hongch'on, fifty miles west of Seoul, and
Ch'unch'on, fifteen miles farther to the north and to bring
UN troops to the
38th parallel. It followed upon the heels of
Operation Killer, an eight day UN offensive that concluded
February 28, to push Communist forces north of the
Han River.
The operation was launched on
March 7,
1951 with the
I and
IX Corps on the west near Seoul and
Hoengsong and
X and
ROK III Corps in the east, to reach "Line Idaho", an arc with its apex just south of the 38th Parallel in
South Korea.
Operation Ripper was preceded by the largest
artillery bombardment of the Korean War. On the left, the
U.S. 25th Infantry Division quickly crossed the Han and established a bridgehead. Farther to the east, IX Corps reached its first phase line on 11 March. Three days later the advance proceeded to the next phase line. During the night of
March 14-
March 15, elements of the
ROK 1st Division and
3rd Infantry Division liberated Seoul, marking the fourth and last time the capital would have changed hands since June 1950. The Communist forces were compelled to abandon it when the UN approach to the east of the city threatened them with encirclement.
Following the recapture of Seoul, Communist forces retreated northward, conducting skillful delaying actions that utilized the rugged, muddy terrain to maximum advantage, particularly in the mountainous X Corps sector. Despite such obstacles, RIPPER pressed on throughout March. In the mountainous central region, the IX and X Corps pushed forward methodically, the IX Corps against light opposition and the X Corps against staunch enemy defenses. Hongch'on was taken on the fifteenth and Ch'unch'on secured on the twenty-second. The capture of Ch'unch'on was the last major ground objective of Operation Ripper. UN forces had advanced north an average of thirty miles from their start lines. However, while the
Eighth Army units had occupied their principal geographic objectives, the goal of destroying enemy forces and equipment had again proved elusive. More often than not, the Communist forces withdrew before they could receive extensive damage. Ch'unch'on, a major Communist supply hub, was empty by the time UN forces finally occupied it. As the U.N. troops ground forward, they were constantly descending sharp slopes or ascending steep heights to attack enemy positions that were sometimes above the clouds.
By the end of March, U.S. forces reached the 38th parallel.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Operation Ripper'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://operation_ripper.totallyexplained.com">Operation Ripper Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
