Editing Civil Air Transport (section)

===Korean War Support (1950–1953)===
During the Korean War, CAT airlifted thousands of tons of war materials to support U.S. and KMT forces, including supplies for KMT holdouts in Burma under Operation PAPER. This operation aimed to harass communist China from Burmese bases, with CAT providing logistical support.

On November 29, 1952, a CAT C-47 mission to extract a Chinese Nationalist spy in Manchuria using a “pole and line” pickup system was ambushed by Chinese forces. The plane, piloted by Robert Snoddy and Norman Schwartz, was shot down near Antu, Jilin province, killing both pilots. CIA officers John T. Downey and Richard G. Fecteau survived but were imprisoned by China for nearly 20 years. The CIA initially concealed the mission, telling families the plane crashed in the Sea of Japan. Remains of Snoddy were recovered in 2005, but Schwartz’s remain missing. This incident highlighted the risks of CAT’s covert missions.