Tag: ROK Air Force

It looks like the U.S. wants South Korea to play a larger role in space policy:

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Park In-ho has signed a deal with the chief of the U.S. space operations and agreed to form a joint consultative body on space policy to strengthen cooperation, his office said Sunday.

During his visit to the Air Force Space Command in Colorado, Park signed a memorandum of understanding with Gen. John Raymond on the formation of a joint space policy consultative body on Friday (U.S. time), becoming official partners in space security cooperation.

The Air Force plans to further boost cooperation with the U.S. space force, including exchanging information, through the consultative body.

Park also held a bilateral meeting with the command chief, Gen. James Dickinson, and agreed to strengthen partnership on sharing information on space surveillance, as well as improving joint space operations capabilities, such as missile defense.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Fortunately the pilot escaped unharmed:

 An Air Force pilot on Tuesday made an emergency exit from his KF-16 fighter jet during a takeoff run after detecting flames and smoke from the engine, forcing the Air Force to suspend all flights for aircraft inspection, officials said.

The fighter jet was moving on the runway to take off from the 20th Fighter Wing in the western city of Seosan at around 2:31 p.m. when the pilot spotted flames and smoke from the engine and ejected, according to the military.

He sustained no injuries, but the aircraft was damaged and is currently on the strip, it added.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

The scandal of a ROK Air Force NCO that committed suicide after being sexually harassed/assaulted has led to the ROK Air Force Chief of Staff to step down:

The top leader of the Air Force said Friday that he will step down from his post over the recent suicide of a female officer who reportedly took her own life due to unresolved sexual harassment by a fellow service member.  
   
General Lee Seong-yong, chief of staff of the Air Force, sent a text message to reporters in the afternoon, saying that he “accepts grave responsibility of the recent situation and has decided to step down as of Friday.”  
   
President Moon Jae-in said Friday that he agrees that Lee will have to step down. The resignation will not be processed immediately in order for Lee to be probed as a member of the military. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

Here is an update on the case of the ROK Air Force NCO who committed suicide after what the ROK media is calling sexual harassment by another NCO. However, the fact that she was groped and forced to touch the body parts of the other NCO is by the American definition actually sexual assault. What makes this incident even worse is that her parents said that one of the superiors pushing her to stop her complaint had harassed her as well in the past:

 An Air Force noncommissioned officer, who took her own life after being sexually harassed by a colleague, had suffered similar abuse twice before, a lawyer for her family said Thursday, as two of her superiors were relieved of duties for mishandling the latest case.

Public outrage strengthened amid growing suspicions that her unit attempted to cover up the crime. President Moon Jae-in ordered a thorough investigation and stern punishment of those responsible, saying his heart aches to think of how much despair the victim must have felt.

The two superiors — a warrant officer and a senior master sergeant — were accused of attempting to persuade the victim to reach a settlement with the suspect. One of them was even accused by her family of abusing the victim himself earlier. The suspect in the latest case, surnamed Jang, allegedly groped the victim and forced her to touch his body parts inside a car on their way to the base after a drinking session she was forced to attend in March.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but there is a severe lack of leadership going on with the unit the deceased NCO was in.

Apparently the ROK service member was pressured by colleagues to reach a settlement with her harasser before committing suicide:

An Air Force officer has died in an apparent suicide after being sexually harassed by a colleague, officials said Tuesday.

In March, the female master sergeant stationed in the central city of Seosan was sexually harassed by the man surnamed Jang inside a car on their way back to the base after a private gathering that she was forced to attend, according to the officials.

She then reported the case to the authorities the following day, but the military allegedly failed to take appropriate steps to protect the victim.

Jang, as well as his family members and senior officers, had instead tried to cover up the case and persuade her to drop the complaint, according to the bereaved family members.

After taking two months off, she was transferred to another base by her application, but she was found dead at her residence inside the base late last month.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Does any ROK Heads have any good names for this new ROK fighter jet?:

The Air Force has launched a naming contest for the country’s next-generation fighter jet under development, officials said Friday.

South Korea is building the first prototype jet for the KF-X project after its design was confirmed last year, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.

Through Oct. 30, South Koreans can submit suggestions for the new fighter with an explanation on how they represent the new jet’s mission. 

The winner will be given a model aircraft with an award from the Air Force chief of staff, officials said. 

Under the KF-X project worth 8.8 trillion won (US$7.5 billion), South Korea has been working since late 2015 to develop a homegrown cutting-edge fighter aircraft to replace the Air Force’s aging fleet of F-4 and F-5 jets.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest on South Korea’s acquisition of the Global Hawk surveillance aircraft:

Two more units of the Global Hawk high-altitude unmanned aircraft are expected to arrive in South Korea this month, sources said Thursday, a move expected to further boost the country’s surveillance capabilities against North Korea and beyond.

Their planned arrival comes after South Korea brought in its first RQ-4 Block 30 Global Hawk remotely piloted aircraft in December last year. Under a 2011 deal, Seoul purchased four from the United States.

Air Force officers and the manufacturer, Northrop Grumman, have been working to bring in two additional units within this month, though the exact schedule is subject to change, according to the government sources. One remaining unit is also expected within the first half, they added.

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but this sale has been in the works since 2003 because of the delays caused by concerns that technology and information would be leaked to North Korea.  Now with the US wanting the ROK to take on more of their defense responsibilities the sale was approved and hopefully whatever concerns of technology leaks has been mitigated as well.