Battle of Hill 282

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Battle of Hill 282
Part of the
Songju
, Korea
Result Stalemate
Belligerents

 United Nations

 North KoreaCasualties and losses United Kingdom 17 killed or missing
79 wounded Unknown
  • American P-51 Mustangs, having no contact with friendly ground troops, mistook them for enemy North Korean forces, leaving 17 British troops dead and 79 wounded from napalm and .50 BMG machine gun fire.

The Battle of Hill 282 took place on 23 September 1950 during the

27th British Commonwealth Brigade
on the Naktong River.

On 22 September 1950, the Battalion of Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders moved up to attack Hill 282 near

Songju
. Starting before dawn on 23 September, B and C Companies after an hour's climb seized the crest of Hill 282 surprising there a North Korean force at breakfast. Across a saddle, and nearly a mile away to the southwest, higher Hill 388 dominated the one they had just occupied. C Company started toward it.

North Korean troops occupying this hill already were moving to attack the one just taken by the British. The North Koreans supported their attack with artillery and mortar fire, which began falling on the British. The action continued throughout the morning with North Korean fire increasing in intensity. Shortly before noon, with American artillery fire inexplicably withdrawn and the five supporting U.S. tanks unable to bring the North Koreans under fire because of terrain obstacles, the Argylls called for an air strike on the North Korean-held Hill 388.

Just after noon the Argylls heard the sound of approaching aircraft. Three

strafed it with 50 calibre machine-gun fire.[1][2]

The attack was over in two minutes and left the hilltop a sea of orange flame. Survivors plunged 50 ft down the slope to escape the burning napalm.

Maj. Kenneth Muir, second in command of the Argylls, who had led an ammunition resupply and litter-bearing party to the crest before noon, watching the flames on the crest die down, noticed that a few wounded men still held a small area on top. Acting quickly, he assembled about thirty men and led them back up the hill before approaching North Koreans reached the top. There, two bursts of automatic fire mortally wounded him as he and Maj. A. I. Gordon-Ingram, B Company commander, fired a 2-inch mortar. According to his Victoria Cross citation, Muir's last words as he was carried from the hilltop were "The Gooks will never drive the Argylls off this hill".[3][4]

Gordon-Ingram counted only ten men with him able to fight, and some of them were wounded. His three

Bren guns
were nearly out of ammunition. At 15:00 the survivors were down at the foot of the hill.

The next day a count showed 2 officers and 11 men killed, 4 officers and 70 men wounded, and 2 men missing for a total of 89 casualties; of this number, the mistaken air attack caused approximately 60.[5]

See also

References

  1. ISBN 9-7801-9558-3434
    .
  2. ^ A.A.P.-Rueter (25 September 1950). "U.S. Planes Bomb British Units by Mistake". The Canberra Times.
  3. ^ Lt Col G.I. Malcolm of Poltalloch, The Argylls in Korea; Thomas Nelson and Sons Ltd, London 1952
  4. ^ "No. 39115". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 January 1951. pp. 133–134.
  5. ^ South to the Naktong, North to the Yalu Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Battle_of_Hill_282&oldid=1120408535"