Live Launches In Korea

Pilots of the 7th US Air Force in Korea employed live AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles for the first time during training missions on 16 August. The 80th Fighter Squadron at Kunsan AB led the initiative to shoot live rounds as a means of evaluating fighter assets in South Korea. Because of logistics issues and fiscal constraints in US Pacific Air Forces, Republic of Korea-assigned F-16 units do not have the opportunity to deploy back to the US for Combat Archer, the established program for live launches. Every fighter squadron in the 7th Air Force participated in the exercise. A-10 pilots from Osan AB, Korea, dropped illumination flares to provide a lock-on for the missiles.