The Korea Herald

지나쌤

Six KF-16 jets returning home after Alaska drills

By a2017001

Published : June 27, 2017 - 10:33

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Six South Korean fighter jets are flying back home Tuesday after participating in a multinational air combat training exercise led by Pacific Air Forces, the nation's Air Force said.

The KF-16s took off earlier in the day from Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska, where the annual RED FLAG-Alaska training was staged.

South Korea`s KF-16 fighter jets fly over the Pacific with aerial refueling support from the US Air Force`s KC-135 Stratotanker on June 3, 2017, in this photo provided by South Korea`s Air Force. (Yonhap) South Korea`s KF-16 fighter jets fly over the Pacific with aerial refueling support from the US Air Force`s KC-135 Stratotanker on June 3, 2017, in this photo provided by South Korea`s Air Force. (Yonhap)

They are scheduled to arrive in Seosan, home to the 20th Fighter Wing located about 280 kilometers south of Seoul, later in the day, according to the Air Force.

The squadron will fly more than 7,700km for around 10 hours with 13 rounds of aerial refueling support from the US Air Force's KC-135 Stratotanker.

The fighter jets flew into Alaska on June 3 and joined the 11-day exercise from June 12.

South Korea also dispatched a C-130 cargo plane and more than 100 personnel to the series of drills on joint offensive, counter-air operation, interdiction and air support under a simulated combat environment.

"It served as a valuable opportunity for our pilots to have a combat experience through a combined training with the U.S. Air Force at an area unfamiliar to them, which is different from South Korea, and under a circumstance like real combat," Col. Lee Hyong-dong, head of the training team, was quoted as saying. (Yonhap)