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In the summer of 1950, North Korean forces under [[Kim Il Sung]], 135,000 strong and supported by 200 aircraft, thrust southwards. The 95,000 strong South Korean army, created under US control, was unmotivated, inefficient and had been deliberately denied heavy weapons; within hours most formations had fled south, often abandoning their equipment. After a week, almost half of the South Korean army had disappeared.
In the summer of 1950, North Korean forces under [[Kim Il Sung]], 135,000 strong and supported by 200 aircraft, thrust southwards. The 95,000 strong South Korean army, created under US control, was unmotivated, inefficient and had been deliberately denied heavy weapons; within hours most formations had fled south, often abandoning their equipment. After a week, almost half of the South Korean army had disappeared.
A United Nations resolution, passed in the absence of the USSR, condemned the attack and demanded the withdrawal of the North Korean forces. The United States, wanting its half of Korea back, was the most enthusiastic in pursuing these demands.
A United Nations resolution, passed in the absence of the USSR, which was boycotting the UN at the time, condemned the attack and demanded the withdrawal of the North Korean forces. The United States, was the most enthusiastic in pursuing these demands. A second resolution invited member nations to provide forces to repel the invasion, which the United had already started doing.
The [[United States Air Force]] was the first (non-Korean) force to respond to the invasion. Initial action, however, was limited to making sure American citizens were evacuated safely. Once the first UN resolution was passed, attention turned to stopping the North Korean advance. USAF planes flew from bases in [[Japan]] and [[Okinawa]], and two [[aircraft carrier]]s were in the area, the USS ''Valley Forge'' and the British HMS ''Triumph''. In addition, US [[cruisers]] and [[destroyer]]s off the coast lent fire support to the retreating South Korean forces.<ref>''Historical Atlas of the U.S. Navy'', by Craig L. Symonds, the Naval Institute, 1995</ref>
The North Koreans had the latest piston-engined fighters from the Soviet Union, but they were outclassed by the first-generation jet fighters flown by the USAF and the [[United States Navy|US Navy]]. UN aircraft made several strikes on North Korean air bases, and by July 5, the NKAF had lost over a hundred aircraft and the UN had complete air superiority.<ref>''Rolling Thunder: Jet Combat from World War II to the Gulf War'', by Ivan Rendall, Dell Publishing, 1997</ref>
No modern conventional war has been won without air superiority, but air power alone has never won a war, and the first months of the Korean War were a case in point. Air strikes by bombers and fighter-bombers slowed the North Korean advance, but the communist troops were just too numerous to stop, especially with the South Korean resistance crumbling. UN troops, mostly American, were sent in to help hold the line, but they were outnumbered, and forced back. In August, the lines finally stabilized around the Pusan perimeter.
=== Pusan perimeter ===
=== Pusan perimeter ===