Leenn025--韩空军今年半数飞机停飞

Dozens of S. Korean Jets Grounded Over Safety Concerns

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, SEOUL

South Korea’s air defenses against North Korea are being weakened because dozens of fighter jets were grounded this year due to maintenance and safety concerns, a legislator said Oct. 24.
"Although the air force had to maintain a higher level of combat-readiness since North Korea’s (October 2006) nuclear test, it keeps half of its main fighter jets in warehouses," said Maeng Hyung-Gyu of the opposition Grand National Party.
"There should not be loopholes in defending the country’s airspace due to maintenance problems," Yonhap news agency quoted him as saying.
In a report to Maeng for an ongoing parliamentary audit, the air force said only 60 percent of about 130 KF-16 jets were engaged in normal operations during the first eight months of this year.
Dozens of KF-16s were grounded to check for possible engine problems after one of them crashed in February due to poor maintenance.
As for advanced F-15K jets, only 70 percent of them were in service, according to Maeng.
Each KF-16, a local variant of the F-16, costs around 40 billion won ($43 million).
U.S. engine maker Pratt & Whitney, which supplied the KF-16’s engines, advised the air force to replace a defective part but mechanics ignored it, an air force internal probe concluded.

韩空军今年半数飞机停飞

    据法新社报道，韩国一名大国家党议员24日表示，韩空军今年以来数十架飞机因为维护和安全隐患问题一直处于地面停飞状态。尽管自2006年10月朝鲜核试后韩空军一直保持着较高的战备水平，但其主力战机仍有一半处于停飞状态。韩空军表示，今年前八个月其130架KF-16战斗机只有60%可以执行正常的战备任务，其余的均因为发动机可能存在隐患而停飞检查；最新装备的F-15K战斗机也只有70%的出勤率。Dozens of S. Korean Jets Grounded Over Safety Concerns

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, SEOUL

South Korea’s air defenses against North Korea are being weakened because dozens of fighter jets were grounded this year due to maintenance and safety concerns, a legislator said Oct. 24.
"Although the air force had to maintain a higher level of combat-readiness since North Korea’s (October 2006) nuclear test, it keeps half of its main fighter jets in warehouses," said Maeng Hyung-Gyu of the opposition Grand National Party.
"There should not be loopholes in defending the country’s airspace due to maintenance problems," Yonhap news agency quoted him as saying.
In a report to Maeng for an ongoing parliamentary audit, the air force said only 60 percent of about 130 KF-16 jets were engaged in normal operations during the first eight months of this year.
Dozens of KF-16s were grounded to check for possible engine problems after one of them crashed in February due to poor maintenance.
As for advanced F-15K jets, only 70 percent of them were in service, according to Maeng.
Each KF-16, a local variant of the F-16, costs around 40 billion won ($43 million).
U.S. engine maker Pratt & Whitney, which supplied the KF-16’s engines, advised the air force to replace a defective part but mechanics ignored it, an air force internal probe concluded.

韩空军今年半数飞机停飞

    据法新社报道，韩国一名大国家党议员24日表示，韩空军今年以来数十架飞机因为维护和安全隐患问题一直处于地面停飞状态。尽管自2006年10月朝鲜核试后韩空军一直保持着较高的战备水平，但其主力战机仍有一半处于停飞状态。韩空军表示，今年前八个月其130架KF-16战斗机只有60%可以执行正常的战备任务，其余的均因为发动机可能存在隐患而停飞检查；最新装备的F-15K战斗机也只有70%的出勤率。