The Daily Alaska empire., 1950-08-16
875 TONS OF B0MB5pANIC
 ENEMY LINES
Reds Running in All Di- reetions" : May Be
 Turn of War
(By the Associated Press)


 in retreat on the Naktong river front in Korea today after giant smash by 98 B-29 Superforts un- loaded l,750,000 pounds of explo- sives on their offensive buildup.
 The massive blow, inaugurating new role for the giant bombers, was aimed at breaking the back of l 60,O00-man Communist buildup cross the Naktong where kickoff lad been expected against Taegu, he main American forward position a South Korea.
 Large-scale US. endorsements nave arrived on the battlefront in he southwest sector, where Negro nits of the US. 25th Division have )een fighting some of the fiercest battles of the war in the area of Chinju, main Communist southern ,ase. The replacement units were lot identified as to size or outfit.
 President Truman spent 20 min- ties today with his Joint Chiefs of staff, reviewing the Korean war. while the nation wondered if the massive Superfortress strike meant turning of the tide which might cad to victory.
 Destroying Bridges?
 There were some indications on he main front northwest of Taegu hat the enemy might be blowing up he very underwater bridges he laid Town for his big push. If this was %, it appeared the Reds expected round attack in the wake of the 3-29 smash, which reportedly spread error in Red ranks. Observer pilots reported enemy units stunned and iemoralized by the blow.
 Some of the enemy troops were running in all directions" from the flaming, smoking target area after he Superfortesses, in the first strike )f this kind in their history, sat- irated 26 square miles of the Red 1uildup area with 875 tons of bombs. Observer pilots reported some Reds ieserting positions east of the Nak- .ong and racing back across it.
 The saturation blow was the ,ouivalent of 30,OO0 rounds of heavy artillery fire. It was perhaps the ,reatest concentrated strike that could be made on a front line posi- ion short of an atomic attack. sgs
 Saturation Raid
 The Superfortresses took off at lawn in waves of eight, each carry- ng about 10 tons of bombs. They Jew a mile west of the Naktong, beginning on a strip three miles north of Waegwan. and systematic ally dropped one 500-pound bomb every 150 feet. The area is about Is miles northwest of Taegu. US. for ward base where the bulk of North Korea's attack force was believed centered.
 Tt is hard to see how it can take l battering such as it is getting now md mount an offensive soon." wrote AP Correspondent Hal Boyle. who flew along with the raiders in a transport-observer plane.
 The bombing was made in clear weather.
 The attack apparently spread con- fusion through Red ranks on the northern flank of their attack on the Naktong defense line, while a lull fell over the rest of the battle front. No sooner had the B-29s ylided off from their merciless strike than Allied fighters and bombers roared in, strafing and bombing any targets they could find.
 While the B-29s roared in to drop their $500 bombs, each weighing zoo pounds. American Infantrymen stood up in their foxholes and cheered.
 Like Normandy Raids
 Never before had B-29s been used in mass support of ground troops. The attack was similar, however. to the massive blows of B-17s and B-24s on German lines on Normandy before the St. Lo breakthrough of Americans in World War II. The air blows then paralyzed German lines so that they could not effectively resist the ground attack.
 A lull fell over the other sectors. This was the situation: two Red bridgeheads have been established across the Naktong below Taegu. the provisional South Korean capi-