Amphibious Raid from USS Perch

Unit/ Formation: 41 Cdo RM

Location: Korea

Period/ Conflict: Korean War

Year: 1950

Date/s: 1 October 1950

The Royal Marines and the USS Perch went on several amphibious landing exercises during the one-week training period, which included a full-scale simulated demolition raid.

The Royal Marines and the crew of the Perch appeared to get along. The commandos remarked on the quality of submarine food, stating that “one of the steaks is a week’s meat ration in England.” Typically the commandos averaged about six eggs for breakfast.

While ashore on liberty after the full-scale exercise, the crew of the Perch were made honorary members of the Chowder, Marching, Singing and Shakespeare Society, celebrating through the streets around Camp McGill until 1:30 a.m., which inspired a few “conversations” at the officers club.

Before the training got under way and even before the Royal Marines arrived, the particulars of the mission for the undersea raiding force had to be determined. In July 1950, top commanders established several joint target zones along the east coast of North Korea where there were vulnerable railroad lines that were a direct conduit from the Soviet Union to North Korea. To plan out the raids, Far East Command sent the USS Pickerel (SS 524) to photograph prospective sites in August. From that photoreconnaissance mission, four target sites were prioritized in the Perch’s operational plan.

41 (Independent) Commando Royal Marines and Perch crewmen gather on the deck of the submarine while in Japan, en route to Korea. (80-G-421629)

As the American submarine USS Perch surfaced just off the east coast of North Korea, not far from the border with China, her crew and a detachment of Royal Marine commandos hurried on deck to open a large hangar.

Under the night sky on October 1, 1950, they began to inflate seven boats, six for commandos and Perch crewmen and one for high explosives and mines. At the same time, they also launched a 24-foot skimmer, a plywood boat with an outboard motor.

At just before 9 p.m., the skimmer set off toward the target area, which was a span of railroad tracks, bracketed by two tunnels that ran along the northeastern coast of North Korea, near the town of Shoko-Do (40° 22ʹ N and 128° 49ʹ). The plan was to set mines in the tunnels and to blow up the culvert on the open part of the track.

In a little more than an hour, the skimmer was within 500 yards of shore; two of the small boats took off in one direction to serve as lookouts for any North Korean troops, and four of them headed to the beach to put the explosives and mines in place. The men laying the explosives encountered a small group of North Koreans but drove them off.

Colonel Drysdale and Marine Peter Jones, who died on the raid were both awarded a Silver Star. Others on the mission received the Bronze Star with Combat "V," and several more received letters of commendation. (RG 24, Records of the Bureau of Naval Personnel)

The combat engineers first prepared pressure-triggered mines in the east and west tunnels. Then they retrieved the remaining high explosives that were left with the skimmer and began to work on placing them down a culvert in the mountainside. The resulting explosion in the culvert would cause a landslide, covering the rail tracks with rock and debris. When the North Koreans sent a repair train to clear the tracks, the pressure mines would detonate, blocking the tunnels and cutting off an important North Korean supply line. As the combat engineers were placing the explosives, small parties of North Koreans encroached upon them. The security patrols drove them off, but time was running out.

Royal Marine Commandos plant demolition charges along the railroad track of an important North Korean supply line in a daring raid eight miles below Song-Jin, a few months after the raid launched from the USS Perch. (80-G-428315)

At around 12:30 a.m., as the work on the culvert was being completed, another party of North Koreans, possibly a group that had attacked before, tried to outflank the commandos. With all the charges set, the raiding party withdrew to the beaches with one of the groups under fire. Shortly after 1 a.m., they blew up the culvert, blocking the railroad tracks, then left the beach. The six boats rendezvoused at the skimmer.

Back on board the Perch, the Royal Marines reported a single casualty, Marine Peter Raymond Jones. He had been shot through the neck while the commandos were departing the beach. Later that day, Jones was buried at sea with a full honor guard firing three volleys. On the Perch, the United Nations flag was struck and lowered to half-mast.

This mission was the work of the crew of the USS Perch and the British 41st Independent Royal Marine Commandos and part of a strategy to repel the North Korean invasion of late June 1950 by cutting off their supply lines. This was one of a number of daring raids against North Korean railways conducted by the U.S. Navy with elite American and British special forces.

One, and only one, of these raids was launched from an American submarine, the USS Perch (ASSP 313), with her British commando guests, on the night of October 1, 1950.

The raid was a success, Marine Peter Raymond Jones was killed in a fire fight whilst departing the beach.

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Read More/ Web Link:

Silently. Quickly. By Sea, in Darkness.

How U.S. Submarines Helped Special Troops Destroy Enemy Supply Lines in the Korean War- US National Archives