Joint Chiefs chairman flies KF-21, orders 'immediate scramble readiness'

Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Jin Yeong-seung personally flew the domestically developed KF-21 supersonic fighter Wednesday on a command flight, using the occasion to inspect South Korea's airspace defense posture and review ballistic missile surveillance readiness at a missile space surveillance unit.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said Jin visited a central-region Air Force combat wing and flew aboard the KF-21. The flight was conducted as a formation with the KF-21 and the FA-50, both domestically developed aircraft, and was aimed at assessing the military's readiness against enemy provocations. The Joint Chiefs said Jin directly evaluated the KF-21's operational performance and confirmed its capabilities.

After the flight, Jin held a debriefing with pilots. "We must deter the enemy through overwhelming air power and maintain the posture and capability to scramble immediately and respond when a situation arises," he said.

He added, "Take pride and a sense of responsibility in being the first to field and operate the KF-21 — a symbol of self-reliant national defense and a core future asset of our military — and become the unit most trusted by the people by firmly defending our airspace."

Jin then visited a central-region missile space surveillance unit responsible for ballistic missile monitoring, where he reviewed the real-time operational readiness of the Korea Air and Missile Defense system.

"This place, which detects enemy missile provocations first, is where missile defense operations begin," Jin said, directing the unit to swiftly detect and relay any form of enemy missile threat and maintain a 24-hour early-warning posture.

"Guaranteeing the lives and safety of the people amid enemy missile threats is the fundamental mission of our military," he said. He added, "Maintain a firm military readiness posture with pride in operating the core assets of Korea's three-axis system."

The Joint Chiefs said the on-site inspection was intended to assess airspace defense and missile surveillance readiness and to encourage service members at operational units.