US military flies reconnaissance aircraft over Korean Peninsula after N. Korea’s coastal artillery drills

An image of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspecting what’s assumed to be the same artillery recently fired in drills off the coast of Changrin Islet, broadcasted by Korean Central Television on Nov. 25. (Yonhap News)

Aircraft suggests increased US surveillance of North’s military activity

An image of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspecting what’s assumed to be the same artillery recently fired in drills off the coast of Changrin Islet, broadcasted by Korean Central Television on Nov. 25. (Yonhap News)

Three US Air Force and Navy reconnaissance aircraft flew over the Korean Peninsula on successive days in the wake of North Korea’s recent firing of coastal artillery from Changrin Islet near the West Sea Northern Limit Line (NLL) in violation of the Comprehensive Military Agreement of Sept. 19, 2018.

The aircraft’s presence suggests the US is stepping up its reconnaissance activities to detect additional military activities by the North.

The civilian aviation tracking site Aircraft Spots reported on Nov. 28 that a US Navy EP-3E reconnaissance aircraft had flown over the Korean Peninsula earlier that day, including the Greater Seoul area. The EP-3E is an aircraft used by signal information gathering and reconnaissance by the US Navy. Previously, a state-of-the-art US Air Force E-8C ground surveillance aircraft flew over the Korean Peninsula. Considered a strategic US military asset, the aircraft was previously used for operations over the peninsula at times when signs of an imminent intermediate- or long-range missile launch were detected from North Korea. The day before, an RC-135V, the US Air Force’s mainstay communication interception aircraft, flew over the Seoul and Gyeonggi Province areas.

By Yoo Kang-moon, senior staff writer

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