US Reconnaissance Aircraft Flies Over South Korean Airspace for Two Consecutive Days

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu]A U.S. military reconnaissance aircraft was detected flying over South Korea for the first time in 13 days. Some interpret this as a measure to monitor unusual activities in North Korea.

According to the civilian aviation tracking site 'Aircraft Spot' on the 21st, the U.S. Air Force reconnaissance aircraft Rivet Joint (RC-135W) flew at an altitude of 31,000 feet (9.4 km) over South Korea. The exact flight time was not disclosed, but it is estimated that the flight occurred on the 21st based on Coordinated Universal Time. The RC-135W was also detected flying over South Korea for three consecutive days on the 6th, 7th, and 8th of this month.

The RC-135W, the U.S. Air Force's main communications interception reconnaissance aircraft, is equipped with devices that detect signals emitted from ground remote telemetry equipment before missile launches and analyze warhead trajectories.

The day before, the U.S. Navy EP-3E flew over South Korea at 25,000 feet (7.62 km). The EP-3E is an aircraft responsible for signals intelligence (SIGINT) collection and reconnaissance, capable of capturing and analyzing all signals from ground and air, including electronic signals emitted before and after missile launches and electromagnetic radiation signals during nuclear tests.

So far, more than seven types of assets have conducted reconnaissance over the Korean Peninsula, including the U.S. Air Force Joint STARS (E-8C), Combat Sent (RC-135U) electronic reconnaissance aircraft, Rivet Joint (RC-135W), Cobra Ball, Global Hawk (RQ-4) high-altitude unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, signals intelligence reconnaissance aircraft (EP-3), and anti-submarine patrol aircraft (P-3C). The number of their flights exceeds 30.