South Korean media: US transport planes continuously take off from Uijeongbu and Gimhae, some moved to the Mediterranean

¬ Patriot systems may be deployed to the Middle East

Under public concern that the US may withdraw Patriot missiles and other US military forces stationed in South Korea due to the situation in the Middle East, it has been found that there are rare anomalies in the movements of US transport planes stationed in South Korea. There are signs that US military forces stationed in South Korea may have already been transferred and deployed to the Middle East. Public concerns suggest that if the situation in the Middle East continues for a long time, the response capability against North Korea might be weakened. In this context, South Korea and the US started the joint exercise "Freedom Shield" (FS) at 0:00 on the 9th.

According to real-time air traffic tracking websites, since February 22, US C-5 and C-17 transport planes have landed at the Gyeonggi Uijeongbu base, and as of the 7th, C-5 took off multiple times, and C-17 took off more than ten times. Most of these were concentrated after the US struck Iran on February 28. After the Iranian attack began, the C-17 took off more than 11 times. Not only at Uijeongbu base, but on the 6th, one C-5 transport plane took off from Gimhae heading towards the Pacific.

C-5 and C-17 are large transport aircraft of the US military. The C-5 can carry about 127 tons at a time, which is more than 1.5 times that of the C-17 (about 77 tons). It is reported that when the US circulates the deployment of Patriots or THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system), two transport planes are required. Since civilian flight track websites do not fully disclose military aircraft flight information, the actual scale of movement may be larger.

After the air strike on Iran ... US transport planes took off from Uijeongbu at least 13 times

Although the scale of C-5 and C-17 that passed through the US military base in South Korea is unknown, at least two C-5s arrived at Uijeongbu in late February and left South Korea on February 28 and March 2, respectively. According to experts, the C-5 flew to the US forward base in the Middle East, the Diego Garcia Air Base located in the Indian Ocean's Chagos Archipelago. According to Lee Il-woo (音), director of the Korean independent defense network, "The US Air Force F-16 forces stationed in Japan had previously been transferred to Diego Garcia. Therefore, the US pre-deployed strategic bombers to Diego Garcia for the attack on Iran. Hence, it is possible that some of the US military's Patriots stationed in South Korea were transferred to strengthen the air defense capability." Recently, some Patriots stationed in other US bases in South Korea such as Pyeongtaek have been moved to Uijeongbu base.

On the 6th, a C-5 that took off from Gimhae base heading towards the Pacific was suspected to be responsible for transporting the Patriot at the US military base in Oegu, Gyeongsangbuk-do.

It is reported that some C-17s that took off from Uijeongbu base passed through the United States and Europe, and appeared near the Mediterranean Sea near Egypt on the 6th to 8th. According to the flight path, the transport plane departed from Uijeongbu on the 5th, passing through Anchorage, Alaska, New Jersey, and landing at Spangdahlem Air Base in Germany, then flying to the Mediterranean via Greece. Experts believe that the US may have transported the Patriots and THAAD interceptors owned by the US military stationed in South Korea and the US European Command, as well as guided bombs such as JDAM and Paveway, to Israel and Jordan.

According to this report, as of the 8th, there was still one C-5 transport plane waiting at the Uijeongbu base. According to foreign media, one of the US Army THAAD radars stationed at the Muharraq Air Base was damaged due to the Iranian air strike, and it may be relocated along with the South Korean-US THAAD radar.

Therefore, experts generally believe that some Patriot batteries have been transported to the Middle East by C-5 transport planes. Before the US air strike on Iran's nuclear facilities in June 2025, called "Midnight Hammer," the US had previously deployed three out of eight Patriot batteries stationed in South Korea to the Middle East, and returned them in October of the same year. However, there are comments that only part of the three batteries were actually returned.

The position of the US military stationed in South Korea is that they cannot confirm the relevant matters regarding the movement and redeployment of combat power. They only stated, "We always maintain the firm commitment of the United States to defend South Korea." However, analysts believe that if the war continues for a long time, it is just a matter of time before all the combat power of the US military stationed in South Korea is completely withdrawn to the Middle East.

Additionally, the annual defensive exercise FS, which assumes a full-scale war on the Korean Peninsula, involves about 18,000 South Korean troops this year, and the exercise will continue until the 19th. The scale of US participation is similar to that of the South Korean side.

The exercise is divided into two parts. Part 1 (9-13) assumes the discovery of local provocations or signs of a full-scale war by North Korea. Part 2 (16-19) involves the South Korea-US alliance transitioning to an offensive strategy. On the 8th, according to a military source, "This FS exercise serves as an opportunity to evaluate and verify the conditions for the transfer of operational authority, and plans to focus training on this part."

On February 25, the US and South Korean military officials at the press conference for the FS exercise said, "The exercise reflects recent combat analysis results and challenging battlefield environments." It is reported that the current situation where North Korea sent troops to Russia to experience modern warfare and obtain technical training is also reflected in the content of this FS exercise. That is, the exercise includes defense against North Korea's large-scale drone attacks and electronic warfare methods such as GPS interference.

According to military sources, "Drone technology and anti-drone air defense weapons, which have played a significant role in the Russia-Ukraine war, are the core of modern warfare. It can be said that this FS exercise is greatly related to the situation in the Middle East."

Previously, whenever joint exercises were held, North Korea would call it a "North Invasion Exercise" and react sensitively. The US and South Korean military are closely monitoring the possibility of North Korea's provocation during the FS period. Especially, there is concern that North Korea may increase its provocative intensity, taking advantage of the situation in the Middle East.

Source: Chosun Ilbo

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1859151153612810/

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