Sea Fury WE790 supposedly from HMAS Sydney serviced by USMC mechanics.i

The Sea Fury F10 entered service in August 1947 with 807 Squadron, and the F11 with 802 Squadron in May 1948.ii The Sea Fury was operated by Fleet Air Arm (and RAN) squadrons 801, 802, 803, 804, 805, 806, 807, 808, 811, 871 and 898.iii During the Korean War, Sea Furies operated with squadron nos

“802 (Ocean), 807 (Theseus), 801, 804 (Glory), 805 and 808 (Sydney).iv

Sea Fury FB 11, VX642 with ordinance display. Note the two 45 gallon drop tanks which increased the aircraft's range from 700 to 1040 miles.v

The aircraft was armed with 4 20mm Hispano Mk V cannons and could carry up to 2,000 lbs of

ordinance (1,000 or 500 lb bombs) or 12 76mm (60 lb) rockets.vi Empty, the aircraft weighed 9,240 lbs and fully loaded 12,500 lbs. Powered by a Bristol Centaurus XVIIC 18 cylinder twin-row radial engine

developing 2,480 horsepower, the aircraft could make 460 mph (400 knots) and ascend to 10,900 meters.vii

Source.viii

The Sea Fury was first used to in combat to support Fairey Firelies on ASW patrols. HMS Theseus arrived in the Yellow Sea carrying 23 Furies and 12 Fireflies from 807 and 813 Squadrons and

conducted its first patrols and strikes on 9 October 1950.ix The first Sea Fury strike involved six aircraft (and four Fireflies) carrying mixed ordinance of 500 lb bombs and rockets, led by Lt Cdr Stovin-

Bradford against targets at Paengyong-do.x That afternoon five Sea Furies and four Fireflies attacked the harbour at Chinnampo.xi Loadouts favoured rockets as the weight of bombs necessitated higher

steaming speeds than the Theseus was capable of attaining (21 knots with rockets, 28 with bombs).xii

“A raid in progress on warehouses on the waterfront at Chinnampo in North Korea by Fairey Firefly aircraft from HMS THESEUS.”xiii

Day two on station, Theseus launched a strike against the Chang-you railway bridge, the flight consisting of Fireflies escorted by a pair of Furies and resulting in significant damage to the bridge.xiv A

simultaneous flight targeting the surrounding area resulted in the destruction of Sea Fury VW628, although the pilot, who ditched the aircraft successfully, was rescued by helicopter.xv Deteriorating weather on the afternoon of 11 October forced Theseus to leave the area and refuel. Strikes were

launched against the Chang-yong area later the following day.xvi For the next several days attacks were made against targets in the Cinnampo area, including the harbour where the Sea Furies attacked Korean junks believed to be mine layers.xvii After refuelling at Inchon, Theseus moved to the Sinanju-Chonju-

Sonchon area of operations and sortied aircraft on 20 October to attack Chongju.xviii

Sea Fury VW546 aboard HMS Glory.xix

Theseus was relieved by Glory 23 April 1951, then Sydney in September. After four months and 2366 sorties, Glory returned in January 1952, and was relieved by Ocean in the summer.xx During these two tours, Glory's air group conducted 5000 sorties.xxi Between 1950 and 1953 the four Sea Fury equipped

carriers were supported by HMS Unicorn which ferried fresh equipment from the fleet base at Singapore the 2,500 miles to the theatre of operations.xxii All told the FAA flew 23,000 sorties between

1950-3.xxiii

HMS Theseus leaving Malta after the war in July 1953.xxiv

Some measure of the intensity of operations can be made by examining the sortie record of HMS Theseus from the beginning of hostilities to the end of March 1951.xxv Between 9 October and 5

November 1950, Theseus's Furies (avg 19.3) made 492 sorties. From 5 December to 26 December, 423 Fury sorties were flown by an average of 19.6 aircraft. From 7 January 1951 to 23 March, 20.8 Furies flew 718 sorties, for a total of 1634 sorties over 98 days of operation (of which 65 were suitable for flying). During the first six months, Theseus's air wing dropped 829,000 lbs of explosives and fired 7,317 rockets and “half a million rounds of 20mm ammunition.”xxvi In recognition of these efforts,

Theseus and the 17th Carrier Air Group was awarded the Rear-Admiral Sir Denis Boyd trophy for 1950 for “outstanding feat of naval aviation”.xxvii

VR943 of 804 Squadron launches from HMS Glory, June 1951.xxviii

Operations in Korea were strenuous. Briefed the night before, a typical day involved waking at 0400 for flights launching at 0500. An average of 50 sorties were flown each day, though 66 or 68 was not

unheard of, each sortie lasting two to two and a half hours.xxix Flights were over mountainous, difficult terrain against targets often heavily defended and camouflaged.xxx The Fury pilots adapted to these

missions: for example, pilots of 804 (Glory) and 802 (Ocean) Squadrons developed 45º dive bombing tactics for bridge strikes.xxxi Weather conditions ranged from extreme heat to intense cold. Snow storms

grounded operations, while flying in summer heat resulted in cockpit temperatures of 140º.xxxii

“Combat operations rarely stopped for... minor inconveniences such as snow.”xxxiii

In combat, the Sea Fury was a match for the 200 mph faster jet powered MiG-15 as demonstrated by an engagement at 0600 9 August 1952: “four Sea Furies [commanded by Lt Peter Carmichael] were flying north of Chinimpo, returning from a raid on railway lines and trains. They were attacked by eight MiG-

15s at 3,500 feet... one MiG-15 was shot down and another two damaged.”xxxiv

Sea Fury WJ288 at 2009 Oshkosh Air Show.xxxv

The Korean experience demonstrated the flexibility and capability of naval aviation in the era of limited war.xxxvi The skilled pilots of the FAA rose to the challenge and their combat record attests to

their esprit de corps as much as the technical qualities of the Sea Fury and Firefly aircraft they flew. It should also be kept in mind that this impressive war-time record was amassed by aircraft believed to be

obsolete (the Sea Fury was replaced by the Attacker and then Sea Hawk jet fighters after the Korean War), and during a period of significant cost-cutting at the Admiralty.xxxvii After the Second World War

it was expected that only 10% of the FAA would be dedicated to strike aircraft.xxxviii

i <http://www.flickr.com/photos/41311545@N05/3946532231/> ii Reginald Longstaff, The Fleet Air Arm: A Pictorial History, London: Robert Hale Ltd., 1981, p 124iii Kev Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, South Yorkshire: Pen & Sword Books Ltd., 2009, Appendix 2, p 330-1iv Longstaff, The Fleet Air Arm: A Pictorial History, p 124v Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 161-2, 331vi Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 331; Longstaff, The Fleet Air Arm: A Pictorial History, p 125vii Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 331viii<http://www.dva.gov.au/aboutDVA/publications/health_research/korean_war/Documents/hawker.jpg> ix Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 159, 161x Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 162xi Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 162xii Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 162xiii<http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205020623> xiv Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 162xv Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 163xvi Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 164xviiDarling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 165-7xviiiDarling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 167xix Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 168xx Hugh Popham, Into Wind: a History of British Naval Flying, London: Hamilton, 1969, p 227xxi Popham, Into Wind, p 226-7xxii Ian Speller, “Limited War and Crisis Management: Naval Aviation in Action from the Korean War to the Falklands

Conflict” in British Naval Aviation: The First 100 Years, 151–76, Corbett Centre for Maritime Policy Studies Series. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2011, p 155

xxiii Popham, Into Wind, p 228xxiv<http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205016307> xxvData compiled from ADM 1/2236/4, National Archivesxxvi Speller, “Limited War and Crisis Management” p 155xxvii Popham, Into Wind, p 225xxviii<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:SeaFury_launch.jpg> xxixDavid Wragg, A Century of British Naval Aviation, 1909-2009, Pen and Sword, 2009, p 156; Darling, Fleet Air Arm

Carrier War, p 162, Darling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 162xxxDarling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 161xxxiPopham, Into Wind, p 227xxxiiWragg, A Century of British Naval Aviation, p 155xxxiiiDarling, Fleet Air Arm Carrier War, p 196xxxivWragg, A Century of British Naval Aviation, p 156xxxv<http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hawker_Sea_Fury_WJ288_at_2009_Oshkosh_Air_Show_Flickr_38218329

18.jpg> xxxvi Tim Benbow, “The Post-1945 Struggle for Naval Aviation,” in Dreadnought to Daring, edited by Peter Hore, 128–

142, Barnsley: Seaforth Publishing, 2012, p 134xxxvii Tim Benbow, “British Naval Aviation and the ‘Radical Review’, 1953-55” in British Naval Aviation: The First 100

Years, edited by Tim Benbow, 125–150, Corbett Centre for Maritime Policy Studies Series. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Ltd, 2011, p 127 fn

xxxviii Benbow, “British Naval Aviation and the ‘Radical Review’, 1953-55” p 127