(LEAD) Air Force begins regular Soaring Eagle exercise

(ATTN: ADDS more details in paras 4-7, byline)By Kim Seung-yeon

SEOUL, June 12 (Yonhap) -- The Air Force on Friday kicked off a key regular aerial combat exercise aimed at enhancing its operational capability and assessing its combat readiness against various potential threats.

The annual Soaring Eagle exercise will run for a week through next Friday, involving various air assets, such as the F-35A stealth fighters, the E-737 early warning and control aircraft, and the KC-330 tanker transport aircraft among others, according to the armed service.

More than 210 personnel will take part in the exercise at an air base in Cheongju, about 110 kilometers south of Seoul.

It marked the first Soaring Eagle exercise to be held since November 2024.

The drill had been held twice a year since its launch in 2008 but was suspended last year following a series of incidents, including the accidental bombing of a civilian residential area by two fighter jets in March that year.

"We will instead bolster flight drills for peacetime operations and strengthen combined aerial exercises with the United States, such as during the Freedom Flag and the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises," an Air Force official said.

The latest drill focuses on enhancing response capability against enemy threats in the air and on the ground, while improving the ability to carry out integrated operations among various air assets, the Air Force said.

Participants will conduct training to detect and intercept targets at long range, neutralize enemy forces by striking the source of attacks, and preemptively thwart enemy offensives before they are launched against friendly forces.

The Air Force said it has invited 10 personnel from Saudi Arabia, Poland, Turkey, Britain and a few other countries to observe the exercise.

Launched in 2008, Soaring Eagle is the largest standalone exercise conducted by the South Korean Air Force.

The South Korean Air Force conducts the Soaring Eagle exercise from an air base in Cheongju, about 110 kilometers south of Seoul, in this file photo provided by the Air Force on Nov. 27, 2024. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)