OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea (Feb. 5, 2016) -- U.S. and South Korean military officials gathered to commemorate the 65th anniversary of the Battle of Hill 180, also referred to as the Battle of Bayonet Hill.
The 65th anniversary ceremony for the Battle of Hill 180 was hosted by the 3rd Battlefield Coordination Detachment-Korea, or BCD-Korea, commanded by Col. Yi Se Gwon.
Gwon, an artillery officer, and a native of California recognized the significant impact of the battle and the legacy of it on Osan.
"The strength of the South Korean and U.S. alliance was forged on the battlefield," Gwon said. "Hill 180, on Osan Air Base, is one of those battlefields where the Soldiers of Easy Company, 27th Infantry Regiment (Wolfhounds), displayed remarkable bravery and courage during the Battle of Bayonet Hill."
The battle, which occurred on Feb. 7, 1951, was conducted in support of Operation Punch, an effort to halt the advance of Chinese and North Korean forces south of the Han River in Seoul. Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 27th Infantry Regiment (Wolfhounds) of the 25th Infantry Division, commanded by then Capt. Lewis Millett, led the charge to secure Hill 180. Millett, cognizant of the psychological impact of cold steel on his adversaries, gave the standing order to his men that bayonets would be fixed whenever Easy Company attacks.
Outnumbered and outgunned by the enemy, Millett personally led his beleaguered forces up Hill 180 in a bayonet charge, killing an estimated 50 enemy Soldiers. For his heroic actions, Millett received the Medal of Honor, the nation's highest military honor.
The following year, Osan Air base was established around Hill 180, and is now the home to 7th Air Force and 51st Fighter Wing.
Command Sgt. Maj. Rick Merritt, senior enlisted advisor to the 8th Army commander, served as the guest speaker during the event. Merritt, a seasoned combat veteran with 59 months of combat experience while serving with the 75th Ranger Regiment, recognized the leadership, drive, and determination of Easy Company, and how their sacrifices and valor equate to the modern Soldier on the American battlefields to this day.
"Though my men did not have to fight an uphill battle as Millett's did, they faced their own close-quarter hand-to-hand combat with the Taliban forces in Afghanistan, and relied on their training, discipline and experience with modern Army combatives to achieve victory," Merritt said.
Sgt. Maj. Cedric Moore, senior enlisted advisor to the 3rd BCD-Korea, and a native of Alabama, noted the importance of leadership within the military and how Millett's leadership shaped the outcome for the Soldiers of Easy Company.
"From the time that we enter the Army, leaders are taught to lead from the front," Moore said. "Leadership only counts during adversity, trials and when everything seems to be going wrong. Millett was faced with this dilemma as the enemy held the high ground and his men were being gunned down around him from two different sides. As any good leader would do, he called out to his platoon sergeant to follow him as he led from the front, 'shouting, kill em' with the bayonet.'"
Moore said that "because of Millett's actions, Hill 180 is the most hallowed piece of ground on Osan Air Base because the difference between success and failure on the battlefield is determined by the leader."
"It is truly an honor for the 3rd BCD-Korea, with our mission for integrating air and ground forces, to be able to carry on the legacy of courage and victory displayed by the Wolfhounds," Gwon said. "This event could not be possible without the tremendous support of our partners; the Colonel Lewis L. Millet Hill 180 Memorial Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 10216, the 51st Mission Support Group, and Team Osan community."
Social Sharing