"Operation Light of the Desert"... 204 Koreans Return Home from Saudi Arabia on Military Transport Aircraft

KC-330 "Cygnus" Deployed
Five Foreign Family Members and Two Japanese Nationals On Board

Due to the ongoing conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran, Koreans who had been staying in the Middle East have returned home on a military transport aircraft deployed by the government.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense on the 15th, a KC-330 'Cygnus' multi-purpose aerial refueling transport aircraft of the Air Force took off from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on the afternoon of the 14th (local time) carrying a total of 211 people, including 204 Koreans, 5 foreign nationals who are family members, and 2 Japanese citizens. Koreans staying in the Middle East boarded the Air Force transport aircraft (KC-330) on the 14th (local time) as part of an operation named "Light of the Desert." Ministry of National Defense and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Yonhap News

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense on the 15th, a single Air Force multipurpose aerial refueling transport aircraft KC-330 "Cygnus," carrying a total of 211 people—including 204 Koreans, 5 foreign family members, and 2 Japanese nationals—landed at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, at 5:59 p.m. on this day.

The transport aircraft departed from Korea on the 14th, arriving in Riyadh the same afternoon (local time). After picking up passengers locally, it headed back to Korea. Koreans who had been staying in Saudi Arabia, as well as in Kuwait, Bahrain, and Lebanon, traveled to Riyadh to board the aircraft. Korean nationals in Kuwait were transported by bus under the guidance of the local embassy, while those in Lebanon are reported to have arrived in Riyadh by plane.

For this operation, named "Light of the Desert," the government requested overflight cooperation from more than 10 countries along the flight path and dispatched a rapid response team to the area. In addition to the Air Force pilots, more than 30 personnel—including Air Force Combat Control Team (CCT) members, special forces, maintenance, and medical staff—were also on board the aircraft.

Previously, the government had supported the operation of commercial and charter flights for Koreans staying in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. However, when it became difficult for nationals in other Middle Eastern countries to travel, the decision was made to deploy a military transport aircraft.

This is the seventh time that the Air Force's KC-330 "Cygnus" has been used to transport overseas Koreans. Most recently, in 2024, it was used to evacuate 96 nationals from Lebanon.

In accordance with relevant regulations, the government plans to charge each adult passenger approximately 880,000 won for using the military transport aircraft.

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