Hundreds of aircraft in South Korea-US air exercises

The South Korean and US Air Forces are conducting joint exercises involving around 200 aircraft.

The drills are taking place in various locations, Caliber.Az reports, citing Russian media.

The maneuvers are being held from August 19 to 23 as part of the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, which began on August 19. South Korean and US pilots will train for 120 hours, both day and night. South Korea is deploying F-15K, FA-50, and KF-16 aircraft, while the US is using F-16s and A-10s. The South Korean Air Force noted that these are "the first 24-hour exercises in various airspaces involving several aircraft."

The drills will simulate scenarios where enemy aircraft penetrate airspace at high speeds and will practice responses to cruise missile launches. Five aircraft are participating in total—three from South Korea and two from the US—with around 2,000 sorties planned. The exercises will involve flights over both sea and land.

Ulchi Freedom Shield, which will run until August 29, includes command-staff exercises using computer simulations, field maneuvers, and civil defence training. This year, the exercises involve 19,000 South Korean servicemen and feature 48 field drills, including live-fire exercises, compared to 38 last year. The number of brigade-level drills has increased from 4 to 17.