[Comprehensive Report 2] Multiple North Korean Drones Invade Airspace... Attack Helicopters Deployed

Temporary Suspension of Aircraft Takeoff at Gimpo and Incheon Airports

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] A North Korean drone has once again violated our airspace after five years. Our military identified it as a drone and issued multiple warning broadcasts and warning shots, deploying response forces including Air Force fighter jets and attack helicopters to carry out a shootdown operation.

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 26th, several unidentified tracks presumed to be North Korean drones were detected around Gyeonggi Province starting at approximately 10:25 a.m. that day. The North Korean drones flew from north of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) over areas including Gimpo and Paju in Gyeonggi Province and Ganghwa Island. Several drones showed different types of flight paths, with some descending into areas inhabited by civilians and villages.

The military identified the drones not only with detection assets but also visually, and the size of the drones was reported to be similar to the North Korean drones discovered on the South Korean side in 2014. As part of the military’s response operation to the drone intrusion, aviation authorities temporarily suspended civilian aircraft takeoffs at Incheon International Airport and Gimpo Airport, but later lifted the restrictions.

According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, takeoffs at Gimpo Airport were temporarily suspended from 1:08 p.m., and at Incheon Airport from 1:22 p.m., with the suspension lifted simultaneously at 2:10 p.m. Takeoffs were halted for 1 hour and 2 minutes at Gimpo Airport and for 48 minutes at Incheon Airport.

This is the first time a North Korean drone has been detected since June 9, 2017, when one crashed in a mountain area in Inje, Gangwon Province. At that time, the drone not only crossed the MDL but also flew down to the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) base in Seongju, Gyeongbuk Province, capturing images of the area. According to our military’s investigation, the drone’s total flight time was about 5 hours and 30 minutes, covering approximately 490 km. After photographing Seongju, it headed north but crashed due to engine failure.

Additionally, in January 2016, a North Korean drone crossed the MDL into the Munsan area of Gyeonggi Province but returned north after the military issued warning broadcasts and warning shots. In August 2015, when tensions were high due to landmine provocations in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), North Korean drones repeatedly violated the airspace south of the MDL over Hwacheon, Gangwon Province.

Regarding this recent provocation by North Korea, there is an analysis that it reveals an intention to continuously escalate tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

Since explicitly violating the October 9·19 agreement by conducting artillery fire with multiple rocket launchers within the buffer zone, North Korea has blatantly violated the 9·19 agreement, including conducting artillery fire into the maritime buffer zone in the East Sea earlier this month, citing South Korea-U.S. artillery drills as a pretext. From this perspective, the drone’s airspace violation is a clear breach of the September 19 military agreement and can be seen as part of recent moves to undermine the 9·19 military agreement.

There is also an analysis that this was a multi-purpose move to cause confusion in the South while probing the South’s readiness posture. In fact, aviation authorities temporarily suspended aircraft takeoffs at Incheon International Airport and Gimpo Airport for about an hour in the afternoon at the request of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, before lifting the suspension.

Earlier that day, at 11:39 a.m., a KA-1 light attack aircraft crashed after taking off from the Air Force Wonju base. It was deployed to support the operation responding to the North Korean drone but was involved in an accident.

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