[속보] Military “Not a North Korean drone was sighted in Ganghwa, but a flock of birds”

The military announced on the afternoon of the 27th that it had detected and responded to what was believed to be a North Korean drone in Ganghwa-gun, Incheon, but was eventually identified as a flock of birds.

A Joint Chiefs of Staff official said that day, “Today’s situation was assessed as a flock of birds, not North Korean drones.”

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the military captured the unknown trajectory at around 1:00 pm the same day and tracked it for approximately three hours while deploying strike assets. Air Force fighters and army helicopters were deployed, similar to those used when five North Korean drones invaded South Korean airspace the previous day. The military explained that it made no warning broadcasts or warning shots on this day.

Earlier, Ganghwa-gun sent a disaster safety message saying, “Please pay attention to safety while drones are being observed in the Seokmodo area,” leading to speculation that a North Korean drone situation may have occurred. .

A Joint Chiefs of Staff official explained, “It appears that the disaster message sent by Incheon Ganghwa-gun and others that day was mistaken for a drone after seeing the movement of friendly aircraft.”

The Joint Chiefs of Staff apologized the same day, saying, “We have caused much concern to the public,” as criticism poured in for failing to shoot down a North Korean drone that had infiltrated northern Seoul the day before.

Kang Shin-cheol, head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Operations Headquarters, said in a statement that day, “I regret that five enemy drones invaded South Korean airspace yesterday and the South Korean military spotted and tracked, but was unable to bring them down.