Boomerang, Papasan, and OP 2 Part 2
OP 2
BC Scope at 1062 or Papasan
Mr. Sakrekoff wrote:
As I mentioned the "Boomerang'(?) pic, this OP 2, and one more through the BC scope, were sent to me by one of my reunion buddies. We would have as many as four Flash OP's at a time, with BC scopes, and yes, when they saw the flash of a gun firing they'd call the azimuth in to the forward CP and as they'd been surveyed in the azimuths would be plotted on the acetate covered topos and a three ray intersection warranted calling in a fire mission in return. Sound OP's didn't have to be surveyed in. This pic shows how elaborate these OP's became. They were spotted on high ground, sometimes with the infantry and sometimes behind them, high ground with forward visibility the prerequisite. The Sound OP that I pulled time on had a Flash OP about 15 yards up from us that was just an oversized foxhole with a roof and vision slit for the BC scope and their living bunker was on the reverse side of that crest about 20 ft away. For some strange reason, I never fathomed, our OP was our living bunker, but it was on the forward slope, or 'military crest' I think they called it. OP locations did occasionally fluctuate, why I never knew for sure (I rotated home a corporal-7 mos a PFC and 2 mos a Cpl- so can't say I was privy to many decisions. Just did what I was told and tried to keep my nose clean). The pic through the BC scope I'll send is looking at the W'ly face of 1062. Between looking down at 'Boomerang' and right (E'ly) at 1062 you might be able to figure approximately where the OP was. I'd guess left of the OP Holman had marked on his topo. Looking to the right from Crush Communism towards 1062 I was pretty positive I recognized the ridge we traversed (and caught incoming) above the valley where the French were dug in along the old railway embankment just south of the Boomerang hills. They had outposts at that time towards Boomerang and to the right towards 1062 but the MLR was the railway embankment to my knowledge. My library list has books that talk about this time with some maps that have helped me to understand better now what was going on then. There were three different divisions on line with us while I was there. Directly in front of our battery area that is. We covered IX Corps so there were divisions right and left also as Corps was usually a three division front minimum. I remember being from the Chorwon valley to Kumsong, Hwachon, and tying in with X Corps (where our 'B' Btry was). I Corps was 'A' Btry and HQ Btry, left of Chorwon towards Munsan-ni the 'A' guys told me. By the way, Flash and Sound could call daylight 'sight' missions any time. Being as we weren't a firing outfit, but an Observation Battalion, we could call on Corps artillery, if warranted. I'm rambling, later, Paul