U.S. F-22 Raptors perform “show of force” in South Korea against North

Four Raptors have deployed to South Korea.

On Feb. 17, four U.S. Air Force F-22 “Raptor” fighter aircraft from Kadena Air Base, Okinawa, Japan, deployed to Osan Air Base, in South Korea.

The multi-role stealth fighters were joined by four Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) F-15 Slam Eagles and U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons to perform a “show of force” flyover in the vicinity of the base, in response to recent provocative actions by North Korea: the crisis in the Peninsula deepened this month after Pyongyang, ignoring several international warnings fired a long-range rocket carrying satellite into the space in what world powers consider a prohibited missile test.

On Jan. 10, 2016 in response to the a previous North Korean nuclear test, a U.S. Air Force B-52 from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, performed a low-level flight over Osan Air Base, South Korea escorted by South Korean F-15K Slam Eagle and a U.S. F-16 Fighting Falcon.

The F-22 is designed to quickly project air dominance and at great distances (as proved by the 2015 deployment in Europe) and can perform a wide variety of missions: for instance, thanks to its advanced sensors they provide “kinetic situational awareness” to other assets in Syria.

Image credit: U.S. Air Force

Related articles

• Stunning pictures show U.S. F-16s conducting a night elephant walk in South Korea
• U.S. has just deployed 14 F-16s to Estonia
• Eighteen F-4E Phantom aircraft stage Elephant Walk in South Korea
• [Photo] F-22 Raptor zooming through the clouds during demo training
• More U.S. F-16s have just deployed to Poland amid Ukraine crisis
• Watch South Korean and U.S. combat planes drop bombs on range hills during massive show of force
• Targeting Pod footage shows a pilot ejecting from an F-16 over the North Sea

About David Cenciotti

WebsiteFacebookTwitterLinkedIn instagram

David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.