The Air Force said Wednesday it is carrying out a biannual war simulation exercise involving combat pilots and a fleet of main battle aircraft.
The first round of this year's Soaring Eagle exercise kicked off on Jan. 29 and will run through Friday to train combat pilots under virtual war situations, according to the Air Force.
Some 50 combat jets including the F-15K, KF-16, FA-50, F-4E and F-5 are participating in the drill, along with 370 Air Force troops including 102 combat pilots, the Air Force said.
The main part of the training involves simulated ground-to-air artillery attacks by North Korea as well as simulated infiltrations of North Korean drones against which a group of South Korean fighter jets must make an emergency sortie.
The pilots also were trained under a scenario in which they detected, intercepted and bombed North Korean fighter jets, according to the Air Force.
South Korea's military is on alert as North Korea is gearing up for a long-range missile test following its defiant nuclear test conducted on Jan. 6.
South Korea's deputy chief of the presidential office of national security, Cho Tae-yong, said earlier in the day that "We sternly warn that North Korea will pay a harsh price," prodding the North to drop the missile launch plan.
North Korea has informed international maritime, aviation and telecommunication agencies that it will carry out a rocket launch to put a satellite into orbit sometime between Feb. 8 and 25, hinting at an imminent missile launch. (Yonhap)