The Chosun Ilbo reports that USFK is planning to deploy new PAC-2 and PAC-3 Patriot surface-to-air-missiles at Gwangju AB:
USFK reported Friday that they have decided to deploy an additionally 16 units (2 batteries) of the brand new PAC-2 and PAC-3 Patriot surface-to-air-missiles to Gwangju aerodrome.
In order to command the two battalions, U.S. forces are also planning to relocate the 550-strong 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade, currently stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas, to Osan.
Needless to say, not everyone is happy with this — courtesy OhMyNews (who else?):
In the case of Gwangju AB, however, local citizens have demanded compensation for noise pollution caused by USAF flight training exercises; opposition is expected. Moreover, civic groups in the Gwangju area are expected to oppose the move, so the deployment of the battery is not expected to go smoothly.
Mun Hee-tae, the head of the executive committee of the Gwangju/South Jeolla Province Unification Alliance, said, “Gwangju citizens know only too well that the U.S. was the principal offender behind the massacre of May 1980… In this situation, the deployment of missile defense batteries in Gwangju as a strategic re-enforcement will bring about the fierce opposition of Gwangju citizens.”
The Gwangju/South Jeolla Province People’s Alliance and the Gwangju/South Jeolla Province Unification Alliance, hearing that the two batteries would be deployed at Gwangju AB, are scheduled to demand that the additional deployment be withdrawn; the plan to discuss countermeasures afterward.
I’m not going to waste time retorting accusations that the U.S. was the Gwangju Massacre’s “principal offender.” I will talk about the noise pollution, though. Having lived and worked at Gwangju University — not far from Gwangju AB — for a year, I didn’t notice a lot of noise coming from visiting American aircraft. I did, however, notice a significant amount of noise coming from the piece of shit F5s of the ROKAF 1st TFW.
I guess an American fighter makes a different kind of noise.
8 Comments
the F5 is an American designed and manufactured warplane
i guess what u mean is that it seems to emit less noise when flown by korean pilots.
while you were out the hour has struck, and the moment has arrived!
Having had the misfortune to live in Kwangju, I can report that these nuts are absolutely typical of Kwangju citizens. There is no twist of logic too torturous when it comes to hating foreigners and justifying their racism/hypernationalism.
When I was finished in Kwangju and came to Seoul, I thought I hated Korean people. After 3 months in Seoul, I realized: I don’t hate Korean people - I hate Kwangju people.
Kwangju - the epicenter of Korean racism.
These people should be so lucky as to get Patriots to defend them. I say we force them to ask us very, very kindly to deploy them in Kwangju - otherwise the city should be a testbed to see how well ROK 90mm AA guns work against Nodongs.
I once ran into a wanker from Kwangju who blamed me for the massacre in 1980. Gotta blame someone else when Koreans kill Koreans, as we all know they wouldn’t do that. The truth hurts.
Those F-5s, although a Northrop design, were built under license by Korean Air at Kimhae.
“the F5 is an American designed and manufactured warplane
i guess what u mean is that it seems to emit less noise when flown by korean pilots.”
Yeah and it was a mistake to make them. That’s why the US Military never bought them, save for a few used as mock MIGs in training. We GAVE the others away to places like Korea and Singapore.
Mr. T,
I can’t let you get away with dissing the F-5 like that. The reason the USAF never bought many of them was because at the time they were busy pumping money into the F-4 (an answer to the question: “Will a rock fly if you hang a big enough engine on it?”) and then the F-15 (an answer to a question the Mig-25 never asked but was then deemed as an answer to all air combat questions for the next 25 years).
The F-5 in its day was/is actually a fine fighter for what it was designed to do. It was meant to be a small, cheap and easy to maintain day fighter that could get out there and mix it up with Mig-17s, 19s, 21s and 23/27s.
I’m glad that you mentioned it’s history with the Top Gun school. Those instructors were ROUTINELY hammering the fleet boys with their F-14s and F/A-18s in close-in dog fights with the lowly F-5. Aircrew quality still matters!
Finally, I can put 15 F-5s in the air for every F/A-18 you can for the same price. My maintenance cost is much lower and finally my maintenance to flight hour ratio is much better that my opponent that flies the “cool” stuff that gets all the hot chicks. I also have the ability to pick up parts at the local swap meet. That’s how ubiquitous F-5 parts are!
If you fly F-16s, you had better stay on Uncle Sam’s good side or you wont get any more spare parts to keep your pretty-boy toys flying. I, on the other hand, can go completely “rogue-state fabulous” and still pick up spare parts from Viet Nam or Libya who tend not to ask silly questions about the atrocious human rights record of Jimmystan and its ruler for life “The Clamster” who just declared himself a living god.
My biggest problem with the F-5 is they tend to fall out the sky with alarming regularity in Korea. It seems like you can’t get through a month without an F-5 crashing somewhere.
I think I can sum that up with an equation Marmot.
30-year-old aircraft + 3rd world maintenance practices = Lots of smoking holes in the ground
When properly maintained, they are enough to hold back the godless commie hordes from the North, or at least make the NorKs think twice if they ever decide to do any more air shows South of the 38th.