Anti-submarine exercises and flights from U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptors were the focus Monday of the second day of the “Invincible Spirit” exercises by U.S. and South Korean forces, according to news reports from the Korean peninsula.
Four F-22s, the United States’ most advanced stealth fighter, flew missions over South Korea for the first time, said the commander of the U.S. 7th Air Force, Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Remington, according to a report from South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
"As with all of our combined air assets in theater, the F-22s stand ready to respond in the defense of the Republic of Korea," Remington said at Osan Air Base, according to Yonhap.
At sea, a group of 20 U.S. and South Korean vessels, led by the aircraft carrier USS George Washington, practiced anti-submarine warfare, according to a Voice of America report from the 97,000-ton carrier.
"Our intent is to improve defense capabilities in areas such as anti-submarine warfare, air defense and anti-surface warfare," the VOA report quoted Rear Adm. Dan Cloyd, commander of the George Washington’s strike group, as saying.
The exercises come after the March sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan in which 46 sailors were killed. An international inquiry found a North Korean torpedo attack was behind the sinking, but Pyongyang has denied any responsibility and has threatened to a “physical response” to the U.S.-South Korean exercises.
CNN
