US Air Force Gunship Arrives in SKorea for Joint Exercise

U.S. Air Force personnel and an AC-130J Ghostrider gunship assigned to the 1st Special Operations Wing arrived at Osan Air Base in South Korea on Wednesday as part of a joint, combined exchange training exercise with U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command.

The Ghostrider and its crews are participating in a regularly scheduled exercise designed for combat readiness of special operations forces personnel supporting the defense of the U.S. and South Korea, U.S. Forces Korea said in a news release. The exercise began in late May and is expected to end sometime this month.

"As a professional military force, we train to maintain our readiness," said Brig. Gen. Derek Lipson, commander of Special Operations Command Korea, in the news release. "This long-planned JCET [exercise] ensures our personnel remain ready in our core, skills-based activities to fulfill our SOF-peculiar mission, if called upon.

"We're hyperfocused on supporting our ironclad commitment to the U.S.-ROK [Republic of Korea] Alliance to defend our homelands. Every training event we plan and participate in focuses on the enduring goal of preventing conflict while also preparing to prevail if someone should ever decide to mistake our level of readiness and resolve toward a free, open, and stable Indo-Pacific region."

U.S. Naval Special Warfare Command personnel focus on direct action, special reconnaissance, and supporting functions, including the need and ability to coordinate joint strikes from various weapons systems such as the AC-130J Ghostrider, U.S. Forces Korea said.

The AC-130J Ghostrider, nicknamed "angel of death," is based with the 1st Special Operations Wing out of Hurlburt Field in the western Florida Panhandle. The gunship is suited to support unique mission requirements and can travel vast distances to reach the Indo-Pacific.

The aircraft and personnel participated in exercise Balikatan 24 in the Philippines in April and a previous JCET in Korea in March 2023, the news release said.

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