 to Germany from Alaska to Puerto Rico all over the world the United States Army is on the alert to defend our country you the American people against aggression this is the big picture an official television report to the nation from the United States Army now to show you part of the big picture here is sergeant Stuart Queen welcome again to the big picture the fighting in Korea is over now and the deeds of the American and South Korean soldiers who fought those battles are part of our military history when the Reds attacked the South Korean army was a small band of ill-equipped and inadequately trained soldiers but it later rose to become a large and modern fighting machine our story this week is the story of how that was done this is Chang Shi-yook serial number 215658 he's a lieutenant in the army of the Republic of Korea Chang is a good officer too he's a leader understanding the problems of his men willing to do all that they can do and then some more it was men like Chang who led and trained the gallant South Korean army this is the story of how lieutenant Chang and the Rock Army grew into a great fighting machine it is the story too of Han and Lee and Yoon the splendid fighting youth of Korea once only a few years ago Chang and his countrymen were tillers of the soil they grew rice and barley and wheat and soybeans and vegetables some were fishermen netting in vast catches of all varieties of fish to help feed the hungry mouths of Korea's millions and to export for the nation's economy there was a time once when the life of Korean men was normal they were teachers or city men performing city jobs they were streetcar conductors they were the every man of Korea but that was before the communists came and before Korea became a battlefield before death and murder were a daily routine in those early days Chang and his friends had only bamboo sticks to train with but they had the will to fight even though they lacked the weapons though small in number and poorly equipped the brave South Korean army fought for what it believed was right hopelessly outnumbered they fell back and the fair land that was Korea was devastated with ruin and destruction and the people were assaulted and massacred and made homeless but not for long were the defeats and the withdrawals three nations of the world took up arms against the red aggressors supplies and help rolled in the people of South Korea took height and they fought back savagely pushing the enemy back and back until soon he was licking his wounds behind the line from which he at first unleashed his bloody dogs of war they defeated him because they had learned that men of peace cannot defend themselves adequately against the evil designs of the men of war or unless they are prepared with vast quantities of material of war unless they are prepared with oil and gasoline to feed the mighty juggernauts with power unless they are prepared with cargo trailers to haul the material unless they are prepared with rations to feed the fighting men and most important unless they are prepared with ammunition to feed the fighting guns but men must be trained in the dreadful arts of modern warfare and the army of Korea needed help in starting training programs for its inductees the appeal for assistance was answered that's why the united states organized KMAG the military advisory group to the army of the republic of korea which was conceived for the avowed purpose of advising and the organization training operations and support of the korean army commanders and staff officers just as the common men of the free world joined forces to fight the common fall so did their leaders sit down together to plan a systematized training program for the korean army representing the korean soldier was general pike sunyup acting for the united states and united nations was general cornelius e ryan the results of these conferences was the completion of a number of training centers the principal one of which was rtc1 the largest training installation in korea its name chejudo for hundreds of young korean men it all began that eventful day when as the cream of korea's youth they were inducted into the rock army and together caught their first look at chejudo soon the lsts on which they were being carried were nosing into the beach a huge pile of rock overshadowed the island and seemed to symbolize the rock-like determination of korea to win out yes this was chejudo activated february sixth 1951 as a rock training center chang and his countrymen took a first look around the island that was to be their new home for the next eight weeks they didn't know it then but rtc1 had a total training capacity of more than 70 000 men at the time they little realized that instead of being a disorderly bunch of raw recruits they would soon be returning with the alertness and precision of trained soldiers at their first formation they learned a little of what was before them what were their thoughts during the ever-changing events of that first day nobody knows but all who were there knew that here in the shadow of mount musulpo a new korean army was being born and then came orientation to their new place in life their new duties for they were soldiers now not private citizens and as soldiers they were expected to obey the orders of their superior officers because so many of the inductees were young inexperienced farm boys it was necessary that such things be explained to them exactly thoroughly and patiently yes a new life was beginning for the young men of korea and somewhere among this raw group leaders had to be found for the army was in dire need of competent leaders the records of all the inductees were carefully examined to determine which could qualify for many of korea's new soldiers the clothing and material issued was more than they'd ever owned in their past lives k mag realized that if men are to fight well they must be supplied with at least the common necessities of life one of those necessities is a buddy with whom to share confidence and fear k mag also knew that one of the most important necessities to a soldier is a warm comfortable roof over his head the first relaxation from the exhausting events of that first day brought a little time to think about the life they had just left they thought about old grand park kim who refused to evacuate his farm near soul because he wasn't afraid of anything anymore and about aunt one who had been bombed out of her house so she found another home below ground and what about their little cousins what were they doing how were they living under war conditions and of course there was nami that trim little girl who was doing her bit as a nurse working with united nations civil assistance for korea there was little relaxation after that the time of the dreamer is in peace the time for action is in war at first they seemed one huge awkward squad but the constant drilling at the manual of arms helped to smooth it out a great deal it was hard at first but gradually by doing they soon caught on and then there was more drilling and more marching with no letter with no time to think about aching muscles there was a war on and they were made to realize that wars were not won by weaklings before they were aware of it they began to sense that subtle feeling that comes with knowing that they were working together as a well trained unit with military precision and dispatch but it wasn't all marching and drilling quite often they were treated to the pleasure of sitting but they had to be learning at the same time and so they were taught the anatomy of a rifle taught that a rifle is not just a rifle that it is made of many little intricate parts they learned that a good soldier knows how to use his rifle best only when he knows what makes it tick and stick it was fired up to your feet again forward to the attack then came rifle practice how to hold their rifle how to squeeze on the trigger not pull they had already learned how a rifle operated now came instruction in what it could do kill in war they were told it's kill or be killed they also learned how to take care of others one thing they learned that it was not only important for a soldier to know how to kill but he must be able to save lives as well his own included first aid is important on the battlefield another thing they learned rifles were not the only means of destroying the enemy mines and booby traps not only delayed the advance of armies but often stopped them permanently so first the theory in class sessions then practice in the field a lot of practice it was hard work digging those mine holes but they were made to realize that it was easier to dig a hole for a mine than to have one dug for them if some thought that was hard work they soon found out it was easy compared to the work they did when they went into combat training for the individual soldier that's when they learned about using camouflage too they fell to the ground fired then moved on and crawled and kept on crawling with a heavy rifle cradled in their arms they complained but with grit and determination they carried on they knew it was worth getting a few calluses on their elbows to be able to learn how to avoid getting a bullet in their head it wasn't long before they also learned how big a bullet hole could be especially when it came out of the business end of a browning automatic rifle yes the Korean trainees were impatient impatient to learn fast but with a little instruction they soon got the hang of the most complicated weapons when they squinted through the sights of that bar rifle they remembered that one day it would be the enemy one thing they never got used to the marching marching marching with a full pack waiting weary shoulders but they stuck it out grimly because they knew it was all part of the job of becoming a good soldier they knew that this was toughening them up so they could meet the enemy one way of making sure you go forward when the time comes is to know how to fire that M1 rifle M1 rifle straight and true and to the mark and they learned how to use all the weapons including hand grenades the bazookas were heavy but they knew the rockets they delivered carried a terrific wallop and always they were learning under the expert guidance of old Korea hands tough determined men who had been through the early campaigns who had come back to teach the inductees what they had learned through better experience every day was filled with something new the field fortification instruction for instance with barbed wire first a demonstration then do it yourself in preliminary training with that marvel of communications the handy talky how to operate what makes it work what is it used for all the questions are answered and the soldiers knowledge grows with the compass too which led to training in map reading and then there was all that instruction and practical work in the combat formation training it may have seen then that they were playing kids games but they were kids games that would pay off if ever they were to find themselves in the middle of the real thing they realized that all this intensive training was for their protection after eight weeks of basic military training Chang and his buddies were almost ready for battle almost for the question now was how would he and the other trainees conduct themselves under actual battle conditions here's where those games they played came in handy able to climb that hill without tiring too much because their climbing muscles had been toughened by all the marching they'd undergone and American officers were on hand always to observe the results of their training the results of all the efforts k-mag had exerted in turning out fighting rocks they knew how to handle that bazooka because they had been taught patiently the bar weapon too this was the result of all the hard and patient work that had gone into their training this was what they meant by battle conditions so that when the soldier was confronted with it in the future he'd be prepared for it and then still under the watchful eyes of the k-mag advisors the Korean trainees were put through the confidence course discovering it was one thing to go through maneuvers without opposition but it was quite different when live ammo was being thrown at you this was the asset test if they came through this they were ready for anything the enemy could lob over at them cover and concealment training had taught them to roll over a wall instead of exposing themselves to enemy fire and they kept on crawling as the shells burst around them as the machine gun bullets spattered a murderous background to this baptism of fire chang kept on crawling because ahead of him was the opportunity to be a soldier in the army of the republic of korea the first eight weeks of training were coming to an end for most of the others but not for chang because he had been accepted as a candidate for officers candidate school by the time his final inspection at chejudo came around he remembered how stern that inspecting officer looked and how worried he was and then how proud this was the last time he'd march with his buddies at chejudo for them additional branch material training for him it was ocs it seemed only a short time ago that they'd arrived at chejudo as untrained recruits now they marched back to the lsts as soldiers ready for battle chang happy and a bit proud knew that although it was his last day as a trainee it was soon going to be his first day and more advanced training before he realized it he was marching again this time with the other ocs candidates marching into his new home k atc the korean army training center at kwanju on the mainland of korea which housed the infantry artillery and signal schools of the korean army here he would specialize as an infantry officer no wonder he experienced a glow of pride during the initial inspection dressed in a new uniform as an ocs candidate the last phase of his training was beginning then it was back to attending classes no time to waste now officers were desperately needed they were taught the principles of military training preparation application examination discussion and criticism the teaching never stopped then began a period of learning from technical manuals there were times when they would have preferred the marching but they stuck to it because they knew they had to know theory as well as practice to be a good leader there was practice too lots of it on the rifle range again always with live ammo so that firing an m1 rifle became almost as natural to them as breathing the heavy stuff too theory first with the heavy machine guns and then practice lots of it until you thought they would never get the chatter out of their ears and then even heavier stuff the 4.2 mortar yes theory first as always and then as always more practice they knew this wasn't officer's work but they also knew that a good officer should be able to do anything his men can do and more there were calisthenics too to build up bodies so that they could withstand the rigors of that intense training body push ups up and down and up up and down the ladders too it got tougher and tougher but so did the men which was the purpose of it all and this time it was across the ladders and once again more classroom theory now with a 75 millimeter recoilless rifle and with mortar fire direction center training then came the big push the last exercise they would go through before graduation its purpose to put them through all the phases of combat fighting with artillery and tank support actually attacking a hill position the men of k-mag were watching them and the general seemed satisfied with what he saw what did chang and his friends think of them as the shells burst and the bullets whistled around they thought of the time when this was going to be the real thing when up ahead was the live enemy with live ammo in their guns to put them to the test of all they had learned in the last 24 weeks how to get there and stay alive that's what they thought they'd been training for this for weeks now they were ready it was a taste of the real thing and they could now face the enemy with confidence the battle exercise over chang and the other candidates participated in ocs graduation exercise with the invocation first with the band and all and with speeches of course and they thought their salute was smart this was the climax this was what they had been working for all these months and did that diploma make them proud now they were officers in the army of korea now it was lieutenant chang shiyuk a leader of men later when he gave his men orders they obeyed without hesitation because they knew he'd been trained to be a leader just as there were thousands of other officers and men who like him had been trained by k-mag tank artillery infantry signal corps medics it doesn't matter what branch they were in they were an army now a trained army of men who could be ready at any time to leap to the defense of their country yes it was lieutenant chang shiyuk but at the same time it was more than that the splendid fighting youth of the republic of korea looking ahead to a future of greatness of happiness and of peace now this is sergeant steward queen inviting you to be with us next week when the big picture will bring you another pictorial report on the activities of your army at home and abroad the big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the army at home and overseas produced by the signal corps pictorial center presented by the u.s. army in cooperation with this station you can be an important part of the big picture you can proudly serve with the best equipped the best trained the best fighting team in the world today the united states army