Tag: Kunsan Airbase

Aircraft noise has returned to Kunsan Airbase:

Military flights at Kunsan Air Base resumed Thursday following a five-month reconstruction of the installation’s 9,000-foot runway.

The $22 million project began in April and required the 8th Fighter Wing’s roughly 30 F-16 Fighting Falcons to temporarily relocate 75 miles north to Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek city, according to a news release from the wing on Thursday.

Kunsan’s F-16s returned to their home base Wednesday after the flightline was checked for debris the previous day by the wing and the South Korean air force’s 38th Fighter Group.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

It looks like there is not going to be much activity going on this summer at Kunsan AB as its runway goes through a complete overhaul:

The last U.S. Air Force fighter jets from Kunsan Air Base moved this week to Osan Air Base, about 75 miles north, ahead of a scheduled runway overhaul expected to last through the summer.

Around 30 F-16 Fighting Falcons of the 8^th Fighter Wing will continue flight operations over South Korea from Osan while their 9,000-foot-long home runway receives a makeover, wing spokeswoman Capt. Kaylin P. Hankerson told Stars and Stripes by email Thursday.

Kunsan is on the country’s west coast about 115 miles south of Seoul and is home to around 4,200 U.S. troops.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

After the Sergeant Major of the Army closed down substandard barracks at Ft. Bragg it appears that even the Air Force is now in the crosshairs for barracks conditions:

Complaints of mold growing inside buildings at Kunsan Air Base in South Korea have caught the attention of a Missouri congressman.

Photos shared Wednesday on the Air Force amn/nco/snco Facebook group purported to show water spots, leaky ceilings and black mold growing in buildings on the air base about 115 miles south of Seoul.

The Facebook group is popular with airmen who anonymously submit messages about life in the military, including complaints and memes. It has more than 93,000 followers.

Information posted with the photos indicate some Kunsan dormitory occupants had no hot water or working air conditioners for several weeks.

“There are hundreds of people on this base and in this building that are suffering from the same situation,” said a post on Monday.

A representative for Rep. Billy Long, a Republican from Springfield, Mo., said Long’s office has been in touch with service members from Kunsan. The congressman’s director of constituent services, Lisa Taylor, told Stars and Stripes by phone on Friday that Long plans to request an inquiry into the complaints.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

The coronavirus issues within USFK has continued to spread, now to Kunsan Airbase:

U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) on Friday imposed movement restrictions on all individuals affiliated with its air base in the western city of Gunsan due to the recent coronavirus outbreak there.

Under the order, travel to and from Kunsan Air Base is prohibited until Monday, though members can be granted exceptions “to perform assigned and authorized duties and missions only,” USFK said in a Facebook post.

The directive came a day after three service members on the base tested positive for COVID-19.

One service member was confirmed to have been infected, then two of his colleagues tested positive after coming into direct contact with him, according to U.S. military.

Up until Friday, USFK had reported a total of 648 COVID-19 patients among its population.

USFK also has enforced a “shelter in place” directive through Sunday that calls on service members at the Yongsan garrison in central Seoul to stay at home except for necessary activities.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Condolences to the airman’s friends and family:

An airman found dead this week at Kunsan Air Base served as a section chief for the 8th Maintenance Squadron, the 8th Fighter Wing announced Wednesday.

Tech Sgt. Joshua Arndt, 35, was found unresponsive in his dorm room just before 9 a.m. Monday and pronounced dead 20 minutes later, according to statements issued by the wing. His death is under investigation.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of Tech. Sgt. Arndt,” said Col. Christopher Hammond, commander of 8th Fighter Wing, according to the wing. “On behalf of the Wolf Pack, I offer our sincerest condolences to his family, friends and fellow Airmen.”

Arndt was one of nearly 4,600 airmen selected this month for advancement to the rank of master sergeant.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

It looks like the U.S. might sending a message back to the North Koreans about what could happen in response to their “Christmas Present”:

 Special forces of South Korea and the United States carried out regular combined drills last month at a South Korean air force base under the scenario of raiding an enemy camp and capturing an agent, apparently targeting North Korea.

According to photos released by the U.S. military, the U.S.’ Special Operations Command Korea and South Korea’s Special Warfare Command conducted “close quarters battle training” at Kunsan Air Base located in South Korea’s western city of Gunsan in November as part of their regular training program.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is more details on the incident involving an F-16 at Kunsan Airbase:

An F-16 pilot who was injured when he ejected at Kunsan Air Base has been released from the hospital, but the aircraft was damaged, according to the Air Force.

The Fighting Falcon pilot from the 8th Fighter Wing suffered minor injuries when he ejected during a landing after a routine sortie on Monday.

He was released in good condition, the 8th Fighter Wing said Wednesday in a press release.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but the article did not say exactly what caused the pilot to eject.

This should serve as a warning to USFK officials that the Korean media now controlled by the political left will make big news out of any USFK crime story they can find, to include one that happened two years ago that they just heard about:

A former U.S. senior airman is serving a 15-year jail sentence for sexually molesting two South Korean male orphans and possessing dozens of child pornography videos, court records showed.

Robert Kelgard, who was stationed at Kunsan Air Base, 270 kilometers south of Seoul, between 2012 and 2013, was convicted by a court-martial in April 2016, Col. John Bosone, the commander of the 8th Fighter Wing at the base, confirmed the information last week in a response to questions from Yonhap News Agency.

Bosone called Kelgard’s crimes “heinous and despicable,” noting that his wrongdoings have resulted in his dishonorable discharge from the Air Force, 15 years of confinement in military prison, total forfeiture of pay and allowance, and demotion.

“As soon as United States Air Force investigators stationed at Kunsan Air Base were made aware of the incidents, they, with Korean National Police, immediately and aggressively investigated the allegations, and Kelgard was militarily prosecuted for his crimes,” the commander said.

“This is a very shameful past moment for Kunsan Air Base and our community,” he added, stressing that the crimes by the “predator” are not reflective of U.S. service members who serve here for the defense of South Korea under an alliance treaty.  [Yonhap]

You can read much more at the link, but considering that the molestation crime happened off post the ROK authorities could have asked to prosecute him.  However, like we have seen with other incidents ROK authorities have let USFK prosecute servicemembers if the crime does not become well known in the Korean media because the perpetrator for a sex crime receives greater punishment.

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— Foreign Policy (@ForeignPolicy) October 24, 2017