US fighter jets stage mock bombing drill over Korean Peninsula

Two days after North Korea flew a missile over Japan, the United States and South Korea staged their own show of force with state-of-the-art stealth fighters Thursday.

Four US F-35B fighter jets joined two US B-1B bombers and four South Korean F-15 fighter jets in the joint US-South Korean flyover of the Korean Peninsula, an official with the South Korean air force told CNN.
The exercise was designed to "strongly counter North Korea's repeated ballistic missile tests and development of nuclear weapons," the official said.
In a statement, the air force said the US bombers flew out of Guam and four stealth fighter jets from a US Marine Corps base in Japan.

They conducted a mock bombing drill, which simulated a surgical strike of key enemy facilities, over the Pilsung Range in the eastern province of Gangwon.
In a statement, US Pacific Command said the flyover was a "direct response to North Korea's intermediate range ballistic missile launch."
"North Korea's actions are a threat to our allies, partners and homeland, and their destabilizing actions will be met accordingly," said Gen. Terrence O'Shaughnessy, commander of Pacific Air Forces.

Thursday's flyover follows North Korea's latest weapons test, the first ballistic missile fired over Japan, though various stages of rockets carrying satellites have landed to Japan's east and south.
North Korea has been test-firing missiles at a rapid clip this year. With each launch, experts say Pyongyang can further refine and perfect its missile technology.
The bomber flights are a common response to North Korean actions that the United States and its allies perceive as hostile.

B-1s flew over the Korean Peninsula following both of Pyongyang's successful tests of intercontinental ballistic missiles, the type of weapons designed to deliver nuclear warheads to far-off locations such as the US mainland.
The bombers flew from Andersen Air Force Base on Guam, the closest US territory to North Korea and the target of North Korean threats in recent weeks.
The state-run Korean Central News Agency said that Tuesday's missile launch was "a meaningful prelude to containing Guam," which it called the "advanced base of invasion" for US forces.
In a follow-up statement Thursday, the agency promised future launches "targeting the Pacific, where the US imperialist aggressor forces' bases are stationed."
"It should not be forgotten even a moment that the whole of South Korea can turn into ruins," the statement said.