Air Force: "8 Bombs Dropped Abnormally During ROK-US Joint Exercise... Apologies for Damage"

"We Will Actively Implement All Necessary Measures, Including Compensation for Damages"

On the 6th, during the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises, a ground-attack bomb was mistakenly dropped by a South Korean Air Force fighter jet, resulting in 7 civilians sustaining serious and minor injuries. The Air Force expressed regret and stated, "We will actively implement all necessary measures, including compensation for damages."

Yonhap News

The Air Force announced that at 10:04 a.m. that day in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, eight MK-82 general-purpose bombs were abnormally released from a KF-16 fighter jet, causing the bombs to fall outside the designated firing range.

The abnormally dropped bombs exploded near Nangyudaegyo Bridge in Nogok-ri, Idong-myeon, Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi Province, injuring a total of seven people?four seriously and three with minor injuries. Additionally, one church building and two houses were partially damaged.

On that day, the South Korean and U.S. militaries were conducting the first joint combined integrated firepower live-fire exercise of the year at the Seungjin Science Training Center in Pocheon, Gyeonggi Province, in connection with the 2025 Freedom Shield (FS) exercise. Thirteen 4th and 5th generation fighter jets from the South Korean Air Force, including F-35A, F-15K, KF-16, and FA-50, participated in the exercise.

Among the participating fighter jets, the F-15K, KF-16, and FA-50 were equipped with two types of ground-attack bombs: MK-82 and MK-84. The MK-82 bomb that was abnormally dropped is typically used for destroying buildings and bridges. It creates an explosion crater 8 meters in diameter and 2.4 meters deep, with the lethal radius of one bomb covering an area roughly the size of a soccer field (105x68 meters).

The Air Force has formed an accident response committee chaired by Vice Chief of Staff Park Gi-wan as of that day to investigate the exact circumstances of the accident and the extent of the damage. The Air Force stated, "We deeply regret the civilian damage caused by the abnormal bomb release accident and wish for the speedy recovery of the injured. We will also actively implement all necessary measures, including compensation for damages."