Another example of a concession made to North Korea without the Kim regime even asking:
The military is toning down a handover ceremony for a batch of new F-35A state-of-the-art fighters from the U.S. as an inter-Korean summit looms. The jets, which cost W7.3 trillion, are intended to counter the nuclear and missile threat from North Korea (US$1=W1,067).
The event will be held at the Lockheed Martin plant in Fort Worth, Texas on March 28. Air Force Chief of Staff Lee Wang-keun and Jeon Jei-guk, the chief of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, both abruptly canceled plans to attend.
“Neither can attend the ceremony,” a military spokesman said. “Lee must stay in the country to maintain military preparedness while [President Moon Jae-in] is on an overseas trip, and Jeon will accompany the president.” [Chosun Ilbo]
You can read more at the link, but you would at least think the ROK government would be honest and just say no one is attending in order to not upset North Korea instead of the cover story they are using.
By the way Seoul has bought 40 of the F-35A’s at a cost of 120 billion won a piece.
FA-50 fighters fly over the main venue for the upcoming PyeongChang Winter Olympics on Jan. 1, 2018, in this photo released by the Air Force. (Yonhap)
Children climb up the launcher of the surface-to-air guided missile system, Cheongung, during an event at the 18th Fighter Wing in the city of Gangneung on South Korea’s eastern coast on Sept. 21, 2017, to celebrate the first independent sortie that the Air Force made from Gangneung Air Base during the 1950-53 Korean War. (Yonhap)
A Taurus missile fired from an F-15K fighter jet hits the target during the first live-fire drill of the missile in Taean, South Chungcheong Province, on Sept. 13, 2017, in this photo from the Air Force. South Korea is deploying some 170 of these long-range air-to-surface missiles, brought in from Germany, for precision bombing of facilities in North Korea. The missile fired during the drill flew approximately 400 kilometers to reach the target, according to the Air Force. (Yonhap)
A C-130H transport plane of the South Korean Air Force takes off from an air base near the southeastern port of Busan on July 25, 2017, to join a multinational exercise. The Air Force is also sending 30 service members to the inaugural Mobility Guardian training organized by the U.S. Air Mobility Command slated for early August. (Photo courtesy of the Air Force) (Yonhap)
I wonder if the jets have “Dokdo is Our Land” painted on the side of them 😉 :
Six South Korean F-16 jet fighters have made an emergency landing at a U.S. military base in Tokyo after a refueling aircraft malfunctioned, U.S. Forces Japan officials said Thursday.
U.S. Forces Japan spokesman Air Force Lt. Col. Kenneth Hoffman said the aircraft are headed to Alaska to participate in the annual Red Flag exercise.
The emergency landing was forced by “a mechanical issue with an air-to-air refueler that was scheduled to support their movement,” Hoffman said. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link.
According to the article the ROK has bought these missiles for the explicit purpose of targeting North Korean regime leadership:
South Korea is a step closer to being the first Asian country to deploy air-to-surface missiles with a range of more than 500 kilometers.
The Air Force said Monday some 40 German-made Taurus missiles have arrived in South Korea and are being inspected at the K2 Air Base in Daegu.
Once they pass inspections, the missiles are set to be deployed on F-15K fighter jets within the year. [KBS World Radio]
You can read more at the link.
This undated photo, released by The Associated Press, shows the radar-evading F-35A fighter ready to take off at a U.S. air base. South Korea is considering procuring 20 additional F-35A fighters to enhance its wartime strike capabilities, military officials said on Sept. 12, 2016, amid escalating nuclear threats posed by North Korea. (Yonhap)
Actress Go A-ra salutes after being named promotional ambassador for the Air Force in Daejeon on Monday. /Newsis
