[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] US Air Force Nuclear Detection Reconnaissance Aircraft Flies Over Korean Peninsula... Any Signs?

Special reconnaissance aircraft WC-135

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu Reporter] The U.S. Air Force's nuclear detection special reconnaissance aircraft began its mission just five days after arriving at the U.S. military base in Japan. As the world's only special reconnaissance aircraft equipped to collect radioactive materials flew near the Korean Peninsula, there is speculation that unusual nuclear-related activities by North Korea may have been detected.

According to the civilian aviation tracking site 'Aircraft Spot' on the 22nd, the WC-135 (Constant Phoenix, Bulsa-jo, photo) took off from the Kadena U.S. military base in Okinawa at 8:25 a.m. (Korean time) on the 21st and flew over the East Sea.

The WC-135W model is owned by the U.S. government in only two units, and its primary mission is nuclear test detection. It is reported to have arrived at Kadena base last week. It has not been specifically confirmed whether the movement of this special reconnaissance aircraft to Kadena base was merely for a stopover or for operational purposes. In August of last year, the WC-135W also landed at Yokota base in the Indian Ocean while en route to the U.S. mainland. The WC-135W belongs to the 82nd Reconnaissance Squadron under the 55th Wing at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska.

The WC-135W is better known by its nickname "Sniffer." The WC-135W detects radioactive materials using atmospheric sample collection equipment shaped like an engine attached to the side of the fuselage. When the internal temperature of the atmospheric component collector inside the reconnaissance aircraft is lowered to below minus 50 degrees Celsius, nuclear materials in the air adhere to it. It collects and measures radioactive materials such as xenon (Xe-135), krypton (Kr-85), and cesium (Cs-137), which are released during nuclear explosions when atoms artificially break apart, allowing it to determine not only whether a nuclear test has occurred but also to distinguish between enriched uranium, plutonium, and hydrogen bombs.

Since North Korea's first underground nuclear test in October 2006, the WC-135W has been dispatched over the East Sea to collect radioactive materials and conduct related activities. The WC-135W also played a key role in tracking radiation leaks during the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster in the Soviet Union. It flew during nuclear tests conducted by India and Pakistan in 1998 as well. Considering the past activities of this reconnaissance aircraft, it is expected that the U.S. military has been collecting atmospheric components to examine the possibility of North Korea restoring the Punggye-ri nuclear test site, which it had previously dismantled.

Earlier, North Korea stated that it would no longer be bound by promises not to conduct nuclear tests or intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launches. Ju Yong-chol, counselor at North Korea's Geneva mission, threatened at the United Nations Disarmament Conference held in Geneva, Switzerland, on the previous day (local time), saying, "The United States clearly harbors ambitions to paralyze North Korea's development and political system," and "If this attitude continues, denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula will become impossible."