U.S. Marine Corps F-35B stealth fighters for the first time joined U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers and foreign F-15 fighters in a show of force over Korea, the military said.
Four F-35B Joint Strike Fighters, the fifth-generation fighter made by Lockheed Martin Corp., flew alongside a pair of B-1B Lancers, the non-nuclear strategic bomber, two Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15Js and four Republic of Korea Air Force F-15Ks, fourth-generation fighters made by Boeing Co., according to a press release Thursday morning from U.S. Pacific Command.
The B-1s flew from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, by way of Andersen Air Force Base in Guam, while the four U.S. Marine F-35Bs came from Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan, according to the command.
The 10-hour mission -- a direct response to North Korea's Aug. 28 launch of an intermediate range ballistic missile over northern Japan -- included flights of the American and Japanese aircraft near Kyushu, Japan, and a practice bombing run of the U.S. and Korean aircraft at the Pilsung Range training area in the eastern part of South Korea. It came after both Japan and the U.S. conducted tests of missile defense systems designed to counter North Korean threats.
Here are photos released by PACOM of the exercise:
U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, fly alongside 2 U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, over waters near Kyushu, Japan, Aug. 30, 2017, and 2 Koku Jieitai (Japan Air Self-Defense Force) F-15J fighters. (Photo by Japan Air Self-Defense Force)
U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, fly alongside 2 U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, over waters near Kyushu, Japan, Aug. 30, 2017, with 2 Japan Air Self-Defense Force F-15J fighters in Japanese airspace. (Photo by Japan Air Self-Defense Force)
U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan fly alongside 2 U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, over waters near Kyushu, Japan, Aug. 30, 2017, alongside 2 Koku Jieitai (Japan Air Self-Defense Force) F-15J fighters in Japanese airspace. (Photo by Japan Air Self-Defense Force)
U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan fly alongside 2 U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, over waters near Kyushu, Japan, Aug. 30, 2017, alongside 2 Koku Jieitai (Japan Air Self-Defense Force) F-15J fighters in Japanese airspace. (Photo by Japan Air Self-Defense Force)
U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II stealth fighters assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan fly alongside 2 U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, over waters near Kyushu, Japan, Aug. 30, 2017, alongside 2 Koku Jieitai (Japan Air Self-Defense Force) F-15J fighters in Japanese airspace. (Photo by Japan Air Self-Defense Force)
U.S. Marine Corps’ F-35B Lightning II fighters assigned to the Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, are joined by Republic of Korea Air Force F-15K fighters during a 10-hour mission from Andersen Air Force Base into Japanese airspace and over the Korean Peninsula, Aug. 30, 2017. (Photo by Republic of Korea Air Force)
Weapons dropped from U.S. Marine Corps’ F-35B Lightning II practicing attack capabilities impact the Pilsung Range, Republic of Korea, Aug. 30, 2017. (Photo by Republic of Korea Air Force)
Republic of Korea F-15K fighters drop munitions over Pilsung Range during operations alongside U.S. F-35B stealth fighters and B-1B Lancer bombers. (Photo by Republic of Korea Air Force)
Weapons dropped from U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers practicing attack capabilities impact the Pilsung Range, Republic of Korea, Aug. 30, 2017. (Photo by Republic of Korea Air Force)
Munitions from a U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps and Republic of Korea Air Force bilateral mission explode at the Pilsung Range, South Korea, Aug. 31, 2017. The U.S. and ROKAF aircraft flew across the Korean Peninsula and practiced attack capabilities by releasing live weapons at the training area before returning to their respective home stations. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tinese Jackson)
Munitions from a U.S. Air Force, U.S. Marine Corps and Republic of Korea Air Force bilateral mission explode at the Pilsung Range, South Korea, Aug. 31, 2017. The U.S. and ROKAF aircraft flew across the Korean Peninsula and practiced attack capabilities by releasing live weapons at the training area before returning to their respective home stations. (U.S. Air Force photo/Alex Fox Echols III)
Weapons dropped from U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers and U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II practicing attack capabilities impact the Pilsung Range, Republic of Korea, Aug. 30, 2017. (Photo by Republic of Korea Air Force)
