After 20 days in the line, the weary battalions of the 5th Marines retired on 5 October across the Han River to an assembly area at Inchon. They were followed on the 6th by the 1st Regiment, and on the next day by the 7th Marines. The withdrawal of the latter unit completed the relief of X Corps, and General Almond’s command officially reverted to GHQ Reserve.[39]
[39] Ibid., 55.
October 7th also marked the displacement of the 1st Marine Division command post (CP) to Inchon, where planning and reality had finally merged to the extent that preparations for Wonsan could begin in earnest. Two days earlier, Vice Admiral Struble had re-created JTF-7 out of his Seventh Fleet; and by publication of his OpnO 16-50 on the same date, 5 October, he set in motion the operational elements involved in the projected amphibious envelopment. His new task organization, almost identical to that which had carried out the Inchon Operation with historic dispatch, was as follows:
| TF 95 (Advance Force) | RAdm Allen E. Smith |
| TG 95.2 (Covering & Support) | RAdm Charles C. Hartman |
| TG 95.6 (Minesweeping) | Capt Richard T. Spofford |
| TF 90 (Attack Force) | RAdm James H. Doyle |
| TF 79 (Logistical Support Force) | Capt Bernard L. Austin |
| TF 77 (Fast Carrier Force) | RAdm Edward C. Ewen |
| TG 96.8 (Escort Carrier Group) | RAdm Richard W. Ruble |
| TG 96.2 (Patrol & Reconnaissance) | RAdm George R. Henderson |
| TG 70.1 (Flagship Group) | Capt Irving T. Duke |
Struble, who had directed the Inchon assault from the bridge of the USS Rochester, would now fly his flag in the recently arrived USS Missouri, the sole American battleship in commission at this early stage of the Korean war.[40]
[40] ComSeventhFlt OpnO 16-50, 5 Oct 50.
WONSAN AND HARBOR
MAP-3