The War of the 21st Century

Chapter 10: The Korean Campaign

Sometime after the conquest of Taiwan, North Korea entered the war on the Chinese side by invading the South Korean border and firing rockets at military targets just as the American intel had predicted. After so many years of threats, North Korea with the aid of China was finally confident enough about the prospect of war against their neighbor under the pretense that they wanted to unify Korea under one flag. The Chinese declared war on South Korea, with their president supporting the North Korean cause and stating that: "It is time to expel the Western Influence from the lands of our allies and our peoples. Asia belongs to the Asians! We ask our brothers in South Korea to join us. There is no need for bloodshed between our countries, but we need to rid ourselves from the world's real enemy: USA". The South Korean president responded: "It is you who has attacked us! If there is no need for bloodshed, why seek it?"President MacArthur also responded: "We, the United States, stand with our South Korean ally. North Korea's actions are the moves of an opportunistic vulture, reaping the benefits provided by the greatest foe we have ever faced: China. Asia deserves better than what the totalitarian regimes want to impose on their Asian neighbors. They stand for control and domination; we stand for the freedom of our allies and our own."

The South Koreans, aided by the US 3rd army and the USAF Wolf Squadron (consisting of A-10 planes suited for tank busting and air to ground attack) resisted the North Korean offensive. The Chinese fleet blockaded the Yellow Sea trying to isolate Korea from its allies, prompting the US Navy to engage them in combat. Everything seemed to be going just as Admiral Medina had predicted...until the Chinese fleet heading towards the Philippines turned around and headed north into the Yellow Sea to surround the US navy between the two Chinese fleets. 

The situation was dire for the US Pacific fleet which was surrounded and fired upon from all sides. To make matters worse, the Chinese air force diverted their strikes toward the American Navy instead of supporting their own troops on the South Korean border. Admiral Medina called General Miles, commander of the Pacific Forces, asking for air support because the navy air wings were already deployed against a numerically superior force. The general acquiesced ordering the Air Force bases in Okinawa and the Philippines to bring in aerial reinforcements. He was furious...

"The enemy has outplayed you, admiral! The 3rd Army will be left stranded in Korea, cut-off from its supply lines. The South Koreans can only supply us so far! How soon can your naval reinforcements arrive?"

"The submarine fleet is coming and will be here in 30 minutes, but we are short on air. All our air wings are currently engaged, and the enemy is overwhelming us. The enemy keeps sending planes after planes non-stop to the point that our ships are being currently defended by anti-aircraft fire alone."

"Hang in there, admiral. I'll bring you the reinforcements. Resist till we get there", replied the general.

The air battle was immense. The US F-35s engaged the enemy's planes and were joined by F-18s which were focused on engaging the enemy ships. The F-35s fared better than the enemy, and the F-18s sunk a few ships, but the enemy's air superiority was winning the day. By the time the USAF F-22s arrived the enemy had ravaged the Navy air wings. The F-22s made all the difference. They managed to clear the air and swing the air battle in the US favor long enough for the submarine fleet to arrive and strike the enemy fleet at the Pacific Fleet's rear giving them time to recover and retreat from the enemy ambush. The Air Force saved the day for the Navy and the Army too; their A-10s Wolf Pack Squadron also played a part on helping the Navy escape. As soon as the US gained air superiority for a brief time, the A-10s were sent to attack the Chinese fleet instead. The combination of destroyers and cruiser ships aided by the Wolf squadron proved to be lethal to many of the Chinese ships in the Yellow Sea.

The land battle was a success for the South Korean army and the American 3rd army which managed to hold off the the enemy's invasion at the doorstep. The Korean Campaign which was risked to fail from the start, was saved by the Air Force that day; however, the cost was too great for the US Navy. They lost 8 destroyers, 5 cruisers, 4 submarines, a damaged fleet carrier, and 100+ planes in a single battle. The Pacific Fleet had to retreat from the Yellow Sea to the Sea of Japan. There, the Japanese Navy's defense prevented the Chinese fleet from blockading South Korea entirely. Nevertheless, the Yellow Sea was secured by the enemy which in turn left South Korea's capital Seoul in danger of invasion from sea at Incheon.