What did the declassified documents reveal?

Declassified. Today, we present a declassified intelligence document from the Central Intelligence Agency, detailing a preliminary evaluation of a Far East Air Forces, or F-E-A-F, report from June eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. This record sheds light on early U.S. assessments of enemy air defense capabilities during the Korean War. This document is archived at documents2.theblackvault.com. This document was declassified and released through The Black Vault's efforts to obtain United States intelligence on China, with the release date of February twenty-fourth, two-thousand-fourteen. The declassification authority is not specified on the document itself. The document, titled "Preliminary Evaluation of F-E-A-F Report", is marked Top Secret. It opens with a cover sheet indicating "limited distribution" for "General Moore (Personal)". The report states: "On the night of June fifth, an R-B-45 was dispatched to obtain radar photo coverage from twenty-five miles northeast of Fuhsien to Ch'angehun to Yung-chi (Kirin). Weather was clear; visibility was good. The aircraft was cruising between thirty-five-thousand and forty-two-thousand feet at a ground speed of approximately four-hundred-eighty knots. The R-B-45 was intercepted by one aircraft ten miles west northwest of Sinmak where enemy aircraft used landing lights and ground searchlights to complete the interception. Another interception was made by one aircraft over T'aih-ling and by four others when twenty-five miles east of T'aih-ling. The R-B-45 broke from its mission and headed southeast with all five aircraft following for about thirty minutes, firing intermittently. When ten miles north of Huai-jen one aircraft made a firing pass from one-thousand feet high. No damage resulted. Flak was received at altitudes from thirty-nine-thousand feet to forty-two-thousand feet in the vicinity of Anshan, fifteen miles south of Mukden, twenty miles southeast of Mukden, twenty-five miles northeast of T'ieh-ling, forty miles northwest of [one line redacted] and ten miles northeast of Hamhung." The report continues, quoting the F-E-A-F's implications: "a. Air defenses in area overflown are excellent with enemy on twenty-four hour alert. Good coordination exists between ground and air. b. The enemy has the capability of intercepting a high speed aircraft at forty-thousand feet during the hours of darkness. c. The enemy has radar controlled flak effective at forty-thousand feet against high speed aircraft." The intelligence comment section offers counterpoints: "One. It is improbable that the aircraft making the southernmost interception was, in fact, an enemy interception, in light of the distance from known enemy radar (Pyongyang) or any airfield capable of supporting jet operations as well as the fact that no firing attack was made. The aircraft making interception along the line, Anshan/Mukden, could have been launched from any one of five airfields in the immediate area capable of supporting jet fighters. Two…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

CIA Today, We Present A Declassified Intelligence Document From The Central

◆ BLUF — The short version

Declassified. Today, we present a declassified intelligence document from the Central Intelligence Agency, detailing a preliminary evaluation of a Far East Air Forces, or F-E-A-F, report from June eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. S. assessments of enemy air defense capabilities during the Korean War.

Date: OCT 19 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

↯ Dispatch — press play1:00

0:001:00

↯ Share

X in r/

Episode notes

Declassified. Today, we present a declassified intelligence document from the Central Intelligence Agency, detailing a preliminary evaluation of a Far East Air Forces, or F-E-A-F, report from June eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. This record sheds light on early U.S. assessments of enemy air defense…

View the primary source document

Questions about this case

What was CIA Today, We Present A Declassified Intelligence Document From The Central about?: Declassified. Today, we present a declassified intelligence document from the Central Intelligence Agency, detailing a preliminary evaluation of a Far East Air Forces, or F-E-A-F, report from June eighth, nineteen-fifty-one. S. assessments of enemy air defense capabilities during the Korean War.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

intelligence-vault

Related cases

✉ Dispatches

A short dispatch when a new file is released — narrated, answer-first, and linked straight to the primary source. No spam; unsubscribe anytime.

↯ Subscribe to the feed

RSS feed Browse all cases

CIA Today, We Present A Declassified Intelligence Document From The Central

Questions about this case

Related cases

CIA Estimate Of The Far East Situation

CIA Current Intelligence Bulletin

Today On Declassified, We Examine A Top Secret Department Of The Army

Central Intelligence Agency Intelligence Summary Dated June Thirteenth

CIA Today, From Vault.fbi.gov, We Bring You A Declassified F B I Document, "chinese

Questions about this case

Related cases

CIA Estimate Of The Far East Situation

CIA Current Intelligence Bulletin

Today On Declassified, We Examine A Top Secret Department Of The Army

Central Intelligence Agency Intelligence Summary Dated June Thirteenth

CIA Today, From Vault.fbi.gov, We Bring You A Declassified F B I Document, "chinese

Get the next declassified case in your inbox