Stealth fighters flying to South Korea exercises
By William Cole
Advertiser Military Writer
Six F-117 stealth fighters that landed at Hickam Air Force Base on Monday will soon be heading to South Korea for joint exercises that U.S. officials say are routine but which North Korea regards as a precursor to war.
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Although the "Foal Eagle" exercise has been held annually since 1961, it's the first time since 1993 that the radar-evading jets from Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico have taken part, officials said.
The F-117, based in New Mexico, carries two laser-guided bombs. It flew some of the first U.S. sorties in the 1991 Gulf War.
Maj. Tina Barber-Matthew, a spokeswoman at Holloman, said yesterday that Foal Eagle and an accompanying exercise have been planned for at least a year.
U.S. officials have said the drills are "defense-oriented." But the North Korean news agency KCNA said last week that Foal Eagle, the largest exercise between South Korea and the United States, "is a war rehearsal to invade the North."
The F-117, which carries two laser-guided bombs, flew some of the first sorties in U.S. bombing campaigns in Panama in 1989, Iraq in the 1991 Persian Gulf War and Yugoslavia in 1999.
Foal Eagle, which began last week, will run through April 2. Another drill is scheduled March 19-26.
Both come at a time of escalating confrontation by the North that defense experts say is aimed at securing concessions from the United States — and is not likely to stop short of that.
North Korean fighter jets came within 50 feet of an Air Force RC-135 surveillance aircraft March 2 about 150 miles off the North Korean coast over international waters.
Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Davis, a Pentagon spokesman, said yesterday that the actions of the North Korean fighters, including hand signals by a pilot, "suggest that this was a planned attempt to force the
RC-135 to land in North Korea." Some defense experts believe the move could have been an attempt to capture the Japan-based crew and use them as a bargaining chip.
North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Il, "is going to continue to push buttons," said Ralph Cossa, president of the Pacific Forum Center for Strategic and International Studies in Honolulu. "We were lucky, I think, that nobody was shot down ... because the only defenses that that plane has is the ability to get out of there quickly.
"... I would certainly be talking with the 5th Air Force in Japan about bringing combat air patrol aircraft up when those things (RC-135s) fly."
The Pacific Command said it does not comment on the surveillance flights or the measures taken to protect them.
In 1969, North Korea shot down a U.S. reconnaissance plane, killing 31 crew members.
In a show of U.S. strength, 12 B-1 and 12 B-52 bombers recently were ordered to Guam by Adm. Thomas Fargo, commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific.
Barber-Matthew said the F-117 pilots from Holloman are making a rest stop at Hickam. Since 2000 the aircraft have been participating in joint exercises in Europe and now the Pacific, she said.
"What we found is we needed to train with other aircraft and other branches to make sure that we can integrate," Barber-Matthew said. "The 117 doesn't fight a war by itself."
Military officials said the exercises would involve U.S. military units assigned to the Korean peninsula and a small number of U.S. troops deploying to the region.
In Cossa's view, North Korea hasn't yet crossed the "red line" that could prompt U.S. military action. But that could happen, Cossa believes, if North Korea reactivates a nuclear reprocessing facility at Yongbyon, potentially giving it the capability of producing nuclear weapons within months.
"I believe if he (Kim) starts the reprocessing plant at Yongbyon, that is a red line," Cossa said. "Then we would have to do something within a month or two months or else there's going to be a lot of unaccounted-for plutonium that could end up in the wrong hands."
Reach William Cole at wcole@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-5459.
