Don't discount North Korea in fact, be weary!

The US doesn't want to resume the war with North Korea, because it would take weeks to build up the forces for the way we fight, and our supply lines would be huge. We'd also most likely end up having to fly fighters in from either Japan or Okinawa, which would severely limit their ability to stay in the area and protect ground forces. All of our resources would be tied up in resupply, heading to North Korea, and it would have to be constant.

I was in on an exercise for if war started up in Korea again, and it was insane. They were going to essentially shut down Honolulu International Airport, and use taxiways Bravo, Reef Bravo, Reef Echo, runways 4L and 4R just for fighter parking, and would have a continuous rotation of tankers flying to almost the halfway point and back to get fighters to Hawaii. From there, we would be able to take them in groups of 6 per KC-10 and 4-6 per KC-135R depending on how much fuel they'd let the R models offload. Almost every tanker in the inventory would be involved just in getting the fighters to Korea. We'd have to have several dozen minimum in theater just to support around the clock air operations. Subtract a couple dozen more to support the bombers flying from the mainland to hit targets, and recovering in Guam, as well as the C-5s and C-17s constantly going back and forth. A C-5 going non-stop California to Japan, over Hawaii needed 6 KC-135R models out of Hickam to make it. At least four would offload, and depending on winds, one to two of the others would be needed. If any couldn't offload, they would have to land on either Guam, or at Hickam because they couldn't make it.

reply to post by Zaphod58


Don't forget about our assets in the south, as well as their willingness to support a major U.S opperation with utmost cooperation. An extensive air campagin would take the conbined efforts of the U.s South Korea and japan.

Maybe this is just dark thinking, but I can see it going to nuclear blows with North Korea.

Given the country has developed WMDs. They have raised the level of what conventional warfare used to limit, and that is the use of these WMD.

If the US and North Korea go to blows, it could very well be a Nuclear War in the Korean Peninsula, and could balloon outwards into full scale nuclear war.

What ever the case for action is, I can only see a nuclear war in this fight.

Conventional is not an option, North Korea will simply use WMD, that is the level of which this fight can now be escalated too.

reply to post by YouAreDreaming


I agree as stated in the OP, but I believe in the very real possibility of stratigic nuclear strike to sensitive North Korean targets. As you have seen recently they have openly threatened nuclear war.

LOL..

Your joking right?? Um.. say five stealth bombers loaded to the tits with smart bombs cruising at 60000 feet. Power/communications would be completely wiped out in a matter of hours. Then we would just lob thousands of cruise missiles at them from a 1000 miles away.... hitting every open military target in sight.

lol...

Its funny. People see the Iraq Afghanistan quagmire and they think that they have the US army figured out, fighting an insurgency with no flag and no uniform is far different from fighting an organized force..with tanks.. and buildings.. and air fields .. The us could completely cripple NK in a matter of days.... Anyone who thinks otherwise is simply uninformed about the vast drooling beast that is the US armed forces..

reply to post by Retikx


The exercise that I witnessed was around 2000, well after the B-2 was in inventory. Yes, the B-2s would go in, along with B-52s, and B-1s, but the primary Close Air Support for the ground troops (and there would be a lot of them) would be fighters. It takes a LOT to get that many fighters over there.

reply to post by Retikx


I have faith in the United States millitary, but I have been to Korea and been breifed about what would happen if the North came south, and let me tell you it's not pretty, not only that but they do possess nuclear warheads that could be delivered by artie so they would be able to decimate seoul within hours at most, IMO followed by strategic nuclear by the U.S or South Korea.

reply to post by alyosha1981


Absolutely, this isn't the normal conventional war the US faces, it really comes down to a fast nuclear strike. Big blows for a big problem.

Now are we going to see this, is this going to be a reality? Hard to say, I hope not but it seems with all the tensions in the region, the game is escalated and well in play.

reply to post by Zaphod58


Correct but don't forget about the South Korean Airforce as well as the Japeneese Airforce, both would be plenty to act while we mobilize any air assets we needed, fighters would most likly be used to attack hard targets while kiowa and apache heli's used for anti armor and troops.

reply to post by YouAreDreaming


Not only that but with the rumor of K.J.I not running the country, who knows [who] is in charge over there and as such the man is crazy anyhow and it wouldn't be too far fetched to assume that he would want to see his "mighty country" go to war before he dies.

reply to post by alyosha1981


Interesting that you bring that up as I was pondering also a self-proclaiming deity knowing he is dying having kind of a suicidal death wish that involves his new WMD.

Again, speculating the mind of a madman, but a madman indeed.

reply to post by YouAreDreaming


Who knows what he is capable of and what his plans are for his people maybe if wasn't so sick we would not be dealing with the likelyhood of this scenario.

The US doesn't HAVE to do anything with North Korea. All the US has to do is have the patience to let Kim Jong-il and his country banter about and either destroy themselves or serve as a miserable example of communist/ anarchist failure. They certainly are doing well in that capacity.

Does anyone think North Korea will still be on the map in perhaps 10 years or how about 20? LOL!

Right now NK's greatest accomplishments are questionable rockets, a failed nuclear device, and generic Viagra!

When the enemy insists on destroying himself you never interfere!

[edit on 19/4/09 by plumranch]

reply to post by plumranch



In addition, they do have a very large and powerfull military that the leader devotes almost all of the countries food and money to. Point being their a force to be reckoned with make no mistake.

reply to post by alyosha1981


Even if they don't destroy the US, they will certainly destroy South Korea and badly hurt Japan in what ever they decide to do.

They might get a luck shot on the US but I doubt that highly... as in US soil.

reply to post by YouAreDreaming


Well as od yet they dodn't possess any ballistic tec that is capable of carrying any type of payload to U.S soil. We can only hope that they don't procure any of that said tech.

were technically still at war with NK, we just have a cease fire with them. it could re-ignite at any point in time!

NK MIGHT have some firepower, but nothing compared to the good ol US of A. yea, they have a nuke, we have 20,000 more. they have missiles, but we have ICBM's. they have an army, we have a highly technological army!

we might be having some trouble with Iraq and Afghanistan because its guerrilla warfare. we are not fighting a nation, we are fighting an insurgency!!

its A BAD WAY of comparing two different battlefields... the USA COULD CRUSH NK in HOURS! yes, damage will be done on both sides, the USA might have a black eyes, but the dust left behind from whats left of NK.... is nothing compared to the USA's single bruise...

Please... NK isn't powerful enough to cause a threat... lets just keep them isolated like little endangered species that they are, and let them die off on their own... thats what we have been doing right?

i dont mean to hurt any feelings, and i appreciate your concern... but the USA, SK, and japan, will do fine if there is ANY conflict with this rogue nation.

[edit on 4/19/2009 by ugie1028]

reply to post by ugie1028


You make some good points, as well I have stated my faith in the U.S, Japan and South Korea I just don't think that North Korea is as weak as many would have us believe. Nuke? try a few hundred at least and some of those are from the former soviet union bought with money ment to give aid to the North Koreans.

Originally posted by alyosha1981
reply to post by ugie1028

 

You make some good points, as well I have stated my faith in the U.S, Japan and South Korea I just don't think that North Korea is as weak as many would have us believe. Nuke? try a few hundred at least and some of those are from the former soviet union bought with money ment to give aid to the North Koreans.

where is the evidence that NK bought nukes from russia?

North Korea maintains uranium mines with an estimated four million tons of exploitable high-quality uranium ore. Information on the state and quality of their mines is lacking, but it is estimated that the ore contains approximately 0.8% extractable uranium. In the mid-1960s, it established a large-scale atomic energy research complex in Yongbyon and trained specialists from students who had studied in the Soviet Union. Under the cooperation agreement concluded between the USSR and the DPRK, a nuclear research center was constructed near the small town of Yongbyon. In 1965 a Soviet IRT-2M research reactor was assembled for this center. From 1965 through 1973 fuel (fuel elements) enriched to 10 percent was supplied to the DPRK for this reactor.

reply to post by ugie1028

It doesn't take much to reverse enginer a weapon if you already have fissionable materials and a stockpile of them at that, as well as a soviet reactor and a a U.S suplied reactor as well.
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