“Several North Korean unmanned aerial vehicles have invaded our airspace in the border areas around Gyeonggi province,” the army command in Seoul said. In response, Seoul called North Korea’s violation of airspace “a clearly provocative action”.
First drones since 2017
They are the first confirmed drones from North Korea since 2017, when a North Korean drone believed to be on a spy mission crashed and was found on a mountain near the border.
South Korea has deployed fighter jets and attack helicopters to intercept the drones. The military also sent a surveillance device into North Korea’s airspace to take pictures of military installations.
One hundred shots
According to South Korean news agency Yonhap, the army fired about 100 shots but failed to bring down the drones. A fighter jet crashed shortly after taking off from a military base. The two pilots managed to save themselves and were taken to hospital.
Flights departing from Incheon and Gimpo airports have been temporarily suspended. Initially, the South Korean transport ministry only said this was in response to a military request.