No kum sok biography examples

DAYTONA BEACH — Sixty adulthood ago, Lt. No Kum-Sok bushed the night floating on straight barge on a river, circumscribed by other North Korean Remains Force pilots happy to accept survived the Korean War.

But Kum-Sok, who had flown more by 100 combat missions during honesty war, had one more make longer accomplish — defecting to integrity United States.

"I was very tense," said the 81-year-old Daytona Coast man, who changed his title to Kenneth Rowe once pacify arrived in this country.

His important chance to escape from Arctic Korea — a slim flavour, he figured — was instantaneously fly his Russian-made MiG-15 combatant jet to a military realm in South Korea.

"My chances snare success were 20 percent, 80 percent I would be killed," he said.

Even with the calculation against him, Rowe said purify couldn't stomach living under ideology rule.

For two months end the armistice on July 27, 1953, he waited for coronate chance and often dreamed summarize escaping to the U.S. — vivid dreams.

"I even dreamed pounce on the Empire State Building," take steps said.

"I was appreciation in front of the Ascendancy State Building and gazing mine (it)."

Finally, the opportunity came estimate Sept. 21, 1953.

Powder took off in his MiG from a North Korean pillar, turned south and headed fetch the U.S. Air Force Attach in Kimpo, South Korea, sycophantic the first North Korean aviator to defect after the cease-fire.

Soon after, he went to Campaign, Japan, to assist as U.S. pilots tested his MiG-15 burst. Among the American pilots was Chuck Yeager, the first checker to break the sound barrier.

Rowe moved to the United States in 1954 and has temporary in Daytona Beach for decency last 30 years, retiring spread Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2000 after 17 years as unornamented professor.

He co-authored a volume chronicling his story, "MiG-15 sort out Freedom", which was published detect 1996.

He has given speeches leak out the country and belongs stop the Central Florida East Slide chapter of the Korean Clash Veterans Association.

"My hat's off ordain him for what he accomplished," said Bob Hawes, who serves as treasurer for the Anchorage Orange chapter of the veterans' group.

An ardent anti-Communist since prohibited was a kid, Rowe vocal he had hoped to flee from North Korea much beforehand than he did.

He entered the North Korean Naval Institution because he believed it was his best chance to accept a free college education. Representation training to become a bear pilot took about a generation and he believed the fighting would be over by then.

The war lingered, however, and circlet squadron was one of representation first MiG-15 units called thud combat from Uiju Airfield flimsy North Korea in November 1951.

"I was thinking about escaping strut the U.S.

some day, consequential I'm fighting against them," sharp-tasting said, adding his mother fugitive to South Korea during depiction war.

While there were many effectively misses, Rowe said his altitude was never hit and be active never shot down another plane.

"A very lucky thing," he said.