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U.S. B-29s were bombing Pyongyang, the Red capital, and other objectives north of the 38th parallel. U.S., British and Australian naval forces, including carriers and cruisers, were committed to action in the Korean theater; U.S. warships shelled shore installations at the Red-seized port of Inchon. Douglas MacArthur ordered the 24th Division, equipped with tanks and artillery, to Korea by sea. One battalion of the 24th was flown to Pusan and shipped to the Kum River front by rail. Major General William F. Dean, the 24th's commander, was appointed commanding general of all U.S. forces in Korea, with Church as his senior GHQ liaison officer. Meanwhile four enemy columns were reported moving south, one of them outflanking Suwon. The U.S. troops in the field deployed to meet them. One unit got its first taste of combat when five Yaks strafed them savagely, for 25 minutes, with rockets and machine guns.
In the first week of fighting, the invader had won conspicuous success. But at week's end, South Korea—and her friends —had not lost the battle. The issue would turn on whether the defenders could hold out long enough for MacArthur's men to get into the line.