Click to see full-size image
On the morning of December 26th, several North Korean UAVs crossed the demarcation line dividing the Korean peninsula and entered the airspace of South Korea.
According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces of South Korea, several targets in the border areas at 10:25 Seoul time. the UAVs were spotted near the capital Seoul, as well as in Gimpo region, on the island of Kanhwa and in Paju.
In total, 5 DPRK UAVs flew into South Korea. One of them managed to reach Seoul and return back. The remaining four drones disappeared from the radars of the South Korean military. The Air defense forces fired about 100 shells with a caliber of 20 mm at the foreign drones, but they failed to shot them down.
In response,the attack helicopters and fighter jets of the South Korean Air Force took off to intercept the targets. After they fired warning shots, the warcraft attempted to destroy the UAVs.
During the military operations, South Korea lost the KA-1 attack aircraft in the crash. According to the YTN TV channel, the crash occurred at 11:40 am local time in a field near the village of Mukkeri, near the demarcation line.
Click to see full-size image
Both pilots survived the incident and ejected. They were picked up by firefighters and sent to the hospital.
The military of the Republic of Korea is facing difficulties in destroying North Korean drones. The UAVS change their flight path and altitude, approach areas with a large number of civilians.
The command of the South Korean Armed Forces assumes that Pyongyang conducted a drone raid “in an attempt to provoke and shoot targets for more accurate artillery guidance.” The military expects that they will be able to study the electronic stuffing of downed UAVs.
In response, South Korea took pictures of key North Korean military facilities, including with the unmanned reconnaissance assets of the army, the South Korean Defense Ministry said.
“The South Korean military sent man–controlled and unmanned reconnaissance assets to the adjacent areas of North Korea north of the military demarcation line, thus taking increased measures in response to the invasion of North Korean drones into our airspace, and carried out reconnaissance and operational measures, including filming of the main military infrastructure,” said the head of military operations of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of South Korea.
This incident was the first time in 5 years that North Korean UAVs invaded the airspace of SouthKorea.
South Korea reported raids by North Korean UAVs in 2014 and 2017. In the spring and autumn of 2014, a total of four fallen drones were found. They found footage of the Presidential Administration of the Republic, military bases and other facilities.
In June 2017, a local resident found another crashed North Korean drone in Gangwon Province. According to the military of the Republic, the drone filmed the THAAD missile defense base of the American Armed Forces, the surrounding roads and landscapes.
