Six US Bombers Simultaneously Deployed Over the Korean Peninsula

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Six U.S. bombers simultaneously took off near the Korean Peninsula. It is very unusual for six U.S. bombers to take off simultaneously the day before the start of the South Korea-U.S. joint exercises.

According to the U.S. Pacific Air Forces on the 19th, six bombers, including four B-1B strategic bombers and two B-2 Spirit stealth bombers, took off from the U.S. mainland and Guam on the 17th and flew over the Korea Strait and the skies near Japan.

Two B-1Bs took off from Dyess Air Force Base in Texas, and the other two took off from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam. The B-2s reportedly flew from Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, where they were recently deployed, to the waters near Japan.

The two B-1Bs that took off from Dyess Air Force Base conducted joint exercises with F-15J fighters belonging to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. At this time, four F-15C fighters stationed at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, F-35Bs, and F/A-18 Super Hornet fighters aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan also participated.

Military experts analyzed that this flight partially reflected the will of Robert Abrams, commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, who emphasized that the joint exercises starting on the 18th should focus on verifying the combined defense posture.

Commander Abrams has insisted that the Combined Command Post Training (CCPT) in the second half of this year should be conducted with a focus on maintaining and verifying the combined defense posture. On the other hand, the South Korean military has shown the position that it should focus on verifying the Full Operational Capability (FOC) of the future combined military command, which will exercise wartime operational control.

Ultimately, the two countries decided to focus on checking the combat readiness posture of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command in this exercise, instead of verifying the FOC for the transfer of wartime operational control.

Kenneth Wilsbach, commander of the U.S. Pacific Air Forces, evaluated the bomber sortie and the U.S.-Japan joint exercises by saying, "Our strength is the ability to conduct integrated actions with our allies at the time and place of our choosing," adding, "These simultaneous missions demonstrated the capability and posture to provide a wide range of options to rapidly deploy forces in support of the mission to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific theater."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.