Radar activity

It was a slow swing shift. Nothing was happening in the north, as far as we could see. Suddenly US and ROK radar began picking up indications of several slower moving, low altitude aircraft traveling south directly towards the DMZ. The flight pattern and speeds were consistent with a group of AN-2 and it looked like it would be about 30 minutes or so before they reached the border. In the meantime, the radar WE were following wasn’t showing anything — not even a transport. We got a call from the pit: Gen Smotherman wants to see someone down here right now! I went down with my senior reporter and the aisle controller. The general wanted to know what was going on. The three of us sort of gave him the TAC salute, but with the greatest respect. “Sir, I don’t know what this is; but whatever it is, our friendly radar is the only thing tracking it. I don’t know what to tell you. I can tell you that it isn’t bombers or fighters and probably not regular transport aircraft.” So, they sent up the F-16s to intercept whatever it was, which turned out to be migrating cranes. The North Koreans lodged an official protest over OUR aggression, and I learned a critical lesson about the importance of continuity at remote assignment locations. We should have KNOWN it was birds.