Key Facts
- Dates
- 15–19 September 1950
- Troops involved
- ~75,000
- Naval vessels
- 261
- Operation code name
- Operation Chromite
- KPA prisoners taken (within 1 month)
- 135,000
Strategic Narrative Overview
Despite strong objections from senior commanders over treacherous tides and heavily confined harbor approaches, MacArthur's Operation Chromite launched on 15 September 1950. UN forces rapidly overcame the lightly defended city of Inchon following preliminary naval bombardment. The operation lasted just four days, and within two weeks UN and ROK troops had recaptured the South Korean capital, Seoul.
01 / The Origins
By the summer of 1950, North Korean Korean People's Army (KPA) forces had driven UN and Republic of Korea (ROK) troops into a small defensive perimeter around Pusan in the southeast of the Korean peninsula. General Douglas MacArthur devised a bold amphibious landing far behind enemy lines at Inchon to relieve pressure on the Pusan Perimeter and strike at the KPA's overextended supply lines.
03 / The Outcome
The landing at Inchon ended on 19 September 1950 with a decisive UN victory. The recapture of Seoul partially severed KPA supply lines across South Korea, triggering a rapid collapse of North Korean forces. Within one month of the landing, United States forces had taken approximately 135,000 KPA troops prisoner, fundamentally altering the strategic balance of the Korean War.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur.
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.