The Black Sheep squadron fought their way to everlasting fame in just eighty-four days. What these men accomplished has become Marine Corps history. They chose for their badge to carry into battle the black shield of illegitimacy, the bend sinister, a black sheep superimposed above a circle of twelve stars, and crowned with the image of their aircraft, the F4U-1 Corsair. They were very successful and Major Boyington was later awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his efforts.
Major Boyington and Major Stan Bailey were given permission to form these unassigned pilots into a squadron, with the understanding that they would have less than four weeks to have them fully trained and ready for combat. The pilots ranged from experienced combat veterans, with several air-to-air victories to their credit, to new replacement pilots from the United States. The call sign "Black Sheep" was chosen by the squadron to commemorate the unusual way in which the Squadron had been formed. Major Boyington had just returned from a year's tour in China as a member of the American Volunteer Group, "The Flying Tigers." In China, he had downed six enemy planes and became, through actual experience, one of the originators of American fighter tactics against the Japanese. In August 1943, a group of twenty-seven young men under the leadership of Major Gregory "Pappy" Boyington joined together to form the original "Black Sheep" of VMF-214. Initially called the "Swashbucklers," they successfully completed two combat tours before the designation was given to the Marine command on Espiritu Santo. Markus Schiller, “Characterizing the North Korean Nuclear Missile Threat,” 2012, accessed June 12, 2014, Marine Fighter Squadron (VMF) 214 was originally commissioned on 1 July 1942 at Ewa, on the island of Oahu, in the Hawaiian group. Taep’o-Dong 2 (Td-2),” Federation of American Scientists, accessed June 12, 2014. Daniel Pinkston, “The North Korean Ballistic Missile Program,” Strategic Studies Institute, accessed June 12, 2014. “Taep’o-Dong 2 (Td-2),” Federation of American Scientists, accessed June 12, 2014, Ballistic and Cruise Missile Threat,” Air Force ISR Agency, 2013, accessed June 12, 2014. “Taep’o-Dong 2 (Td-2),” Federation of American Scientists, accessed June 12, 2014. Missile TestsĬlick here to see a list of the Taepodong-2 tests. “hostility” with nuclear-armed ICBMs.” Despite the failed test launches, each successive test showed an increasing capability by North Korea to develop ICBM technology. According to the Department of Defense, North Korea “reaffirm its need to counter perceived U.S. This weapons system shows the ambition of the North Korean missile program. In South Asia and Oceania, North Korea would also have the capability to strike at India or Australia. The range on the Taepodong-2 would allow North Korea to strike Japan, Guam, Hawaii, and possibly Alaska and the continental United States. It is unknown how many of these missiles exist. Under the pseudonym of Unha-3, in December 2012 the Taepoddong-2 launched without malfunction and nominally placed a satellite into orbit. Finally a third attempt was launched in April 2012 but failed somewhere in the first or second stages. The second attempt was in 2009 resulting in a third-stage failure. There were rumors of launch pad testing in the early 2000s but the first publicly recognized test launch was in 2006 resulting in a first stage failure. The 1998 Rumsfeld report concluded there was evidence that North Korea had developed infrastructure to launch the Taepodong-2. Some reports place the beginning of development of the Taepodong-2 in 1987 as North Korea focused on producing long range ballistic missiles. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, there were reports of Chinese and Russian engineers helping North Korea reverse engineer Chinese and Russian missiles to create indigenous prototypes. The creation of the multi-stage rocket was a decidedly international effort. This missile still requires a conventional launch pad, and preparations for its launch are highly visible. The Taepodong-2 has an estimated payload from 700-1,000 Kg. It is believed to have a range of at least 5,500 Km. It has never had a fully successful test.
The Taepodong-2 is a multi-stage rocket with a liquid propellant. The Taepodong-2 is suspected of being North Korea’s first Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). Launch Pad/surface-to-surface intercontinental ballistic missile Taepodong-2/Unha-3/Moksong 2/Paektusan 2/Pekdosan 2