[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] The Reason Kim Jong-un Did Not Take His Private Plane

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North Korea has attracted attention as Chairman Kim Jong Un used a special train during his visit to Russia. Although a private plane might be more advantageous than a slow train for the security of the supreme leader, Kim has recently been refraining from using his private plane.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 12th, the Korean Central News Agency reported that Chairman Kim departed Pyongyang by special train on the afternoon of the 10th to visit Russia, stating that "key officials from the Party, government, and military organizations will accompany him."

Chairman Kim did not use a private plane for this visit to Russia. North Korea’s official private plane is the Chamkae-1. Kim also boarded the Chamkae-1 when he visited Dalian, China, in 2018 to attend the North Korea-U.S. summit venue.

The private plane ‘Chamkae-1’ is a modified version of the Soviet-era Ilyushin (IL)-62M. The IL-62M, equipped with four engines, has a flight range of up to 10,000 km, allowing it to fly from Pyongyang to the U.S. West Coast or European cities. The IL-62 was developed in the 1960s, with the improved IL-62M introduced in the 1970s. North Korea imported and modified this model in the 1980s. It has a maximum speed of 900 km/h and can carry about 200 passengers. The model was produced between the 1960s and 1990s and discontinued in 1995.

While Kim Jong Il, the former National Defense Commission Chairman, was reportedly not fond of air travel, Kim Jong Un has frequently been seen inspecting sites aboard the Chamkae-1.

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He also used the train during an on-site inspection of the Dongchang-ri launch site just before a long-range missile launch in February last year. In July 2015, he flew the private plane during a review flight at the Air Force Commanders’ Combat Flight Skills Competition held at Wonsan Galma Airfield. In February 2015, he used the private plane to inspect the construction site of Pyongyang’s ‘Future Scientists Street.’ At that time, North Korean media even published photos of the plane’s interior. The aircraft used by Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, First Deputy Director of the Workers’ Party Central Committee, and other high-ranking North Korean delegations when they arrived at Incheon Airport for the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics was also this model.

Another private plane of Chairman Kim is the Antonov (AN)-148, manufactured in Ukraine. It is known that Kim mainly used the An-148 for provincial inspections, but he has not used it recently. The last time was in 2015 when he flew over Pyongyang on the birthday of his father, Kim Jong Il. Some speculate that using a Ukrainian-made aircraft to attend a summit with the Russian leader might be uncomfortable.

The An-148 model has been mass-produced since 2009. North Korea’s national airline, Air Koryo, introduced several in 2013, one of which was used as Kim’s private plane. It can fly up to 3,500 km and costs about 30 billion won per unit.

The AN-148 had its test flight in 2004 and entered mass production in 2009. Air Koryo purchased two AN-148s in 2013 and deployed them on routes to China. Although its flight range of 3,500 km is shorter than the IL-62M, satellite images show that runways have been constructed near Kim’s villas across North Korea to accommodate the takeoff and landing of this private plane.

Maintenance of the AN-148 has recently become difficult. In July last year, North Korea quickly recognized the independence of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) and Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), separatist regions in eastern Ukraine with pro-Russian leanings. Besides Russia, only Syria and North Korea have recognized the independence of DPR and LPR. In response, Ukraine severed diplomatic relations with North Korea, making it difficult to maintain the two passenger planes imported from Ukraine in 2013.

Although airplane parts are not subject to UN sanctions against North Korea, supply has become difficult. The Sviatoshyn Airport in Ukraine, where Antonov passenger planes are manufactured, was heavily damaged in March, and Antonov is reportedly unable to provide service support for North Korean passenger planes during the war.

If Chairman Kim uses a train to visit Russia, travel time will inevitably be longer. North Korea uses a 1435 mm standard gauge, while Russia uses a 1520 mm broad gauge, requiring the replacement of locomotive wheels. This must be done at facilities equipped for this at either Duman River Station or Ungsang Station, or on the Najin-Hasan section where both standard and broad gauges are laid. The distance from Pyongyang to Hasan Station is 853 km, and from Hasan to Vladivostok is 326 km, totaling 1,179 km. Traveling at 60 km/h and considering the time needed to replace the locomotive wheels at the border, the journey takes about 22 to 23 hours. When Kim traveled to Hanoi, Vietnam, for the second North Korea-U.S. summit with then-President Donald Trump in February 2019, he also traveled by train for 60 hours.