US Navy and Marine pilots often referred to the F2H as the "Banjo".

The F2H-2 served during the Korean War with the US Navy's Task Force 77 and the Marine Corps.

Due to its good performance at high altitude, the F2H-2 initially proved its worth as an escort fighter for USAF bombers, which were supporting United Nations Command (UNC) ground forces.

From mid-1950, the F2H-2 had negligible exposure to hostile aircraft over Korea, due to several factors.
During the opening weeks of the war, the North Korean air force was almost completely annihilated by UNC fighter units.
From that point onwards, North Korea and its allies were unable to open new airfields near combat zones in South Korea, forcing them to operate out of air bases in China.
  As a result of their air superiority throughout most of 1950, UNC squadrons were restricted to ground attack missions, especially close air support and interdiction of North Korean army supply lines.
 In addition, the Banshee, like most jets of its generation, had a serious handicap, relative to the latest fighters: naval air services, including the USN, had resisted faster, swept wing designs – fearing that their characteristics at low speeds would make them unsafe to operate them from aircraft carriers.
Consequently, the Banshee was almost 100 mph (160 km/h) slower than the latest fighter designs.
The obsolescence of all straight-wing fighters was reinforced by the introduction, in November 1950 of the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 – often covertly operated by elite Soviet units.
Most UNC air combat missions, such as patrols over "MiG Alley", were undertaken by F-86 Sabres of the USAF Far East Air Force.
Consequently, the F2H-2 operated for virtually the entire war in areas beyond the range of enemy fighters.
During the Korean War, Banshee pilots scored no victories in air-to-air combat, nor suffered any losses, although three F2H-2s were lost to anti-aircraft gunfire.

The F2H-2P flew reconnaissance missions during the Korean War, primarily with the USMC.
At the time of the war, accurate surface-to-air missiles had not yet been developed and the vast majority of enemy aircraft did not have onboard radar, and AA guns were all but ineffective at fast, high-altitude targets.
Air defense tactics still largely depended on being able to see the enemy, and US commanders soon discovered that a lone high-flying F2H-2P was almost impossible for ground forces to spot, much less shoot down.
The aircraft was soon in very high demand for the invaluable battlefield photography it could provide.
F2H-2Ps received USAF fighter escorts when operating in areas frequented by enemy fighters.
Despite being deployed constantly throughout the war, only two F2H-2Ps were lost to radar-directed AA gunfire, with no air-to-air losses.

The USN deployed the new radar-equipped F2H-3 and F2H-4 for all-weather fleet defense after the conclusion of the Korean War, but only as a stopgap measure until the much faster F9F Cougar, F3H Demon, and F4D Skyray could be deployed in significant numbers.
Later variants of the Banshee served for only a few years on the front lines and saw no action.
Similarly, the F2H-2P was superseded by the F9F-8P (later RF-9J) variant of the F9F Cougar and the F8U-1P (later RF-8A) variant of the F8U Crusader as these faster aircraft became available.

In 1954, a Banshee flew coast-to-coast, nonstop without refueling, approximately 1,900 miles (3,100 km) from NAS Los Alamitos, California to NAS Cecil Field, Florida, in approximately four hours.

During the Korean War, the US was concerned about a general war in Europe involving the Soviet Union and the total lack of intelligence on that country, in particular the location of airfields.
The US Navy devised a plan named "Operation Steve Brody", where four F2H-2P photo reconnaissance Banshees would launch from a carrier cruising on routine maneuvers off the north-east coast of Greece and fly north photographing the land mass of Russia bordering the Black Sea.
In May 1952, the U.S. Navy presented the plan to Secretary of Defense Robert Lovett, with the reques
US Navy and Marine pilots often referred to the F2H as the "Banjo".
The F2H-2 served during the Korean War with the US Navy's Task Force 77 and the Marine Corps.
Due to its good performance at high altitude, the F2H-2 initially proved its worth as an escort fighter for USAF bombers, which were supporting United Nations Command (UNC) ground forces.
From mid-1950, the F2H-2 had negligible exposure to hostile aircraft over Korea, due to several factors. During the opening weeks of the war, the North Korean air force was almost completely annihilated by UNC fighter units. From that point onwards, North Korea and its allies were unable to open new airfields near combat zones in South Korea, forcing them to operate out of air bases in China.   As a result of their air superiority throughout most of 1950, UNC squadrons were restricted to ground attack missions, especially close air support and interdiction of North Korean army supply lines.  In addition, the Banshee, like most jets of its generation, had a serious handicap, relative to the latest fighters: naval air services, including the USN, had resisted faster, swept wing designs – fearing that their characteristics at low speeds would make them unsafe to operate them from aircraft carriers. Consequently, the Banshee was almost 100 mph (160 km/h) slower than the latest fighter designs. The obsolescence of all straight-wing fighters was reinforced by the introduction, in November 1950 of the Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 – often covertly operated by elite Soviet units. Most UNC air combat missions, such as patrols over "MiG Alley", were undertaken by F-86 Sabres of the USAF Far East Air Force. Consequently, the F2H-2 operated for virtually the entire war in areas beyond the range of enemy fighters. During the Korean War, Banshee pilots scored no victories in air-to-air combat, nor suffered any losses, although three F2H-2s were lost to anti-aircraft gunfire.
The F2H-2P flew reconnaissance missions during the Korean War, primarily with the USMC. At the time of the war, accurate surface-to-air missiles had not yet been developed and the vast majority of enemy aircraft did not have onboard radar, and AA guns were all but ineffective at fast, high-altitude targets. Air defense tactics still largely depended on being able to see the enemy, and US commanders soon discovered that a lone high-flying F2H-2P was almost impossible for ground forces to spot, much less shoot down. The aircraft was soon in very high demand for the invaluable battlefield photography it could provide. F2H-2Ps received USAF fighter escorts when operating in areas frequented by enemy fighters. Despite being deployed constantly throughout the war, only two F2H-2Ps were lost to radar-directed AA gunfire, with no air-to-air losses.
The USN deployed the new radar-equipped F2H-3 and F2H-4 for all-weather fleet defense after the conclusion of the Korean War, but only as a stopgap measure until the much faster F9F Cougar, F3H Demon, and F4D Skyray could be deployed in significant numbers. Later variants of the Banshee served for only a few years on the front lines and saw no action. Similarly, the F2H-2P was superseded by the F9F-8P (later RF-9J) variant of the F9F Cougar and the F8U-1P (later RF-8A) variant of the F8U Crusader as these faster aircraft became available.
In 1954, a Banshee flew coast-to-coast, nonstop without refueling, approximately 1,900 miles (3,100 km) from NAS Los Alamitos, California to NAS Cecil Field, Florida, in approximately four hours.
During the Korean War, the US was concerned about a general war in Europe involving the Soviet Union and the total lack of intelligence on that country, in particular the location of airfields. The US Navy devised a plan named "Operation Steve Brody", where four F2H-2P photo reconnaissance Banshees would launch from a carrier cruising on routine maneuvers off the north-east coast of Greece and fly north photographing the land mass of Russia bordering the Black Sea. In May 1952, the U.S. Navy presented the plan to Secretary of Defense Robert Lovett, with the reques
McDonnell F2H Banshee