A Very Different War

The Korean War lies between the enormity of the Second World War and the controversy of Vietnam. Although it often slips through the cracks of history, it represented a global shift as two opposing ideologies clashed and the Cold War heated up. The fledgling United Nations was called to act, and Australia joined the 21 nations committed to supporting South Korea. 
Within days of the North Koreans crossing the 38th Parallel, the RAAF was flying missions from its base in Japan. In the ensuing three years, the RAAF gained respect among its peers and the attention of the opposing military powers. When the war reached a crisis point, with UN forces pinned down and threatened with being pushed off the peninsula into the sea, the RAAF was at the epicentre.
During the war, the RAAF entered the jet age, and the transition was not without challenges and losses. Ultimately, a generation of RAAF leaders emerged from the ranks of sergeant pilots and junior officers who underwent their baptism of fire on the Korean Peninsula. Using No 77 Squadron operations as a timeline, this concise history of the RAAF involvement in the war examines the roles of the transport unit, nurses, ground crews, prisoners of war and those who still have no known resting place.

About the Author

Owen Zupp is an award-winning aviation author. This book is one of ten by him. His first book, Down to Earth, was published in 2006 by Grub Street (UK). His biography about his father, Without Precedent, has been even more widely acclaimed. His work has featured in magazines around the globe including FlyPast and Airliner World in the United Kingdom, Aviation History and Plane & Pilot in the United States, and Global Aviator in South Africa, as well as Australian Aviation. Owen has won Australasian Aviation Press Club awards and is a commercial pilot with more than 35 years' experience. He is also an officer in the RAAF Reserve.