Korean air force pilots accidentally dropped bombs on civilian homes, injuring 15 people

On March 6, the South Korean Air Force confirmed that a bombing accident involving a fighter jet in a civilian area during the joint US-Korea military exercises in the Seungjin Scientific Training Ground, Pocheon, occurred due to a pilot's error in entering target coordinates.

At 10:04 AM on the same day, during the joint live-fire training involving the Air Force and Army, a KF-16 fighter jet accidentally dropped eight MK-82 general-purpose bombs outside the intended target area, with some landing in civilian regions about 8 km away from the training site.

An Air Force official stated during an afternoon media briefing that the pilot mistakenly entered the target coordinates into the aircraft's system while preparing for the flight the previous day at the office. "The initial coordinates were not incorrect; however, the pilot made an error when inputting them into the system," the official explained. As a result, the bombs, which were intended for the training grounds, fell outside the target zone.

The official further explained that the pilot had checked and uploaded the coordinates into the fighter jet before takeoff and visually confirmed the coordinates once more during flight. "There needs to be an investigation into whether the two confirmation checks were properly conducted," the official added.

The bombing incident occurred during a live-fire training exercise involving two KF-16 jets, each dropping four MK-82 bombs at the training site. While one of the jets confirmed the pilot's error in inputting the coordinates, the cause of the second bombing error is still under investigation by the Air Force.

Initially, the military authorities speculated that the accident might have been caused by the fighter jet bombs. However, the Air Force only provided a brief statement about the incident, 1 hour and 40 minutes later, in a text message to the press, which attracted criticism for its delayed response.

Until the exact cause of the incident is determined, the Ministry of National Defense has decided to halt all live-fire training, including rifle shooting exercises. The Joint Chiefs of Staff stated that the joint US-Korea exercise 'Freedom Shield (FS)' will proceed as scheduled, but discussions are underway with the Ministry of National Defense and military branches regarding adjustments to field maneuver training. 

Meanwhile, the "Integrated Joint Firepower Live-Fire Training" linked to the FS exercise was taking place at the Seungjin Scientific Training Ground on the same day.