Attack on the Sui-ho Dam

Attack on the Sui-ho Dam
Part of the bombing of North Korea
F-80C fighter-bomber of the 8th FBG with wing-mounted bombs
Date June 23–27, 1952 Location Sui-Ho (Sup'ung-ho), Choshin Changjin, Fusen (Pujǒn), and Kyosen (P'ungsan), North Korea Result United Nations victory
Belligerents
United Nations  United States South Africa	Soviet Union  China  North Korea
Commanders and leaders
Otto P. Weyland	Georgii A. Lobov
Strength
670 USAF, USN, USMC fighter/fighter-bombers	210 VVS MiG interceptors 275 PLAAF/KPAAF (UAA) MiGs 87 major AA guns
Casualties and losses
Five fighter/fighter-bombers lost or written off	Multiple MiGs shot down/destroyed Unknown number of AA guns destroyed/damaged Permanent destruction of 90% of generating capacity, power outage in North Korea for two weeks and reduction of available power to northeast China by 23%

The attack on the Sui-ho Dam was the collective name for a series of mass air attacks during the Korean War on thirteen hydroelectric generating facilities by United Nations Command air forces as part of the North Korean bombing campaign on June 23–24 and June 26–27, 1952. Primarily targeting the hydroelectric complex associated with the Sui-ho Dam in North Korea, the attacks were intended to apply political pressure at the stalled truce negotiations at Panmunjeom.^[1]

Heavily defended by Soviet, Chinese and North Korean Air Forces, as well as major anti-aircraft guns, the hydroelectric targets were subjected to attacks totaling 1,514 sorties. These were conducted jointly by fighters and fighter-bombers of the United States Air Force, US Navy, US Marine Corps, and South African Air Force, the first time in 21 months that the separate air arms had worked together on a massive scale. The attack on the facilities was followed seventeen days later by another series of large-scale joint attacks on the capital city of Pyongyang.^{[2][n 1]}

The attacks destroyed 90% of the facilities targeted and completely knocked out power in North Korea for two weeks, as well as reducing available power to northeast China by 23%. North Korea built new facilities but did not restore its previous capacity until after the armistice in 1953. Politically, the attacks failed to sway the truce talks, as highly publicized repercussions in both the UK and the United States Congress undermined their impact.

Four attacks on a much more limited scale occurred between September 12, 1952, and June 7, 1953, causing only minor damage and little impact on the outcome of the truce talks. UN forces also exerted pressure on the North Korean infrastructure by attacking the smaller power-generating plants of the North Korean power grid during the summer of 1952 to prevent them from filling the void in power generation.^[3]

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