A third unidentified drone found crash landed

Posted on : 2014-04-07 11:42 KST Modified on : 2014-04-07 11:42 KST
S. Korean authorities suspect drone found in Gangwon Province likely from North Korea
 Gangwon Province. The drone reportedly crashed from an altitude of 940m and is the same model as a drone recently found in Paju
Gangwon Province. The drone reportedly crashed from an altitude of 940m and is the same model as a drone recently found in Paju

By Park Byong-su, senior staff writer

 Gyeonggi Province. It is 1.22m in length with a wingspan of 1.93m and weighs 15kg. (provided by the Ministry of National Defense)
Gyeonggi Province. It is 1.22m in length with a wingspan of 1.93m and weighs 15kg. (provided by the Ministry of National Defense)

The wreckage of a small drone similar to the one found recently in Paju was discovered in the mountains near Samcheok, Gangwon Province.

The military, which believes the latest drone (UAV, or unmanned aerial vehicle) may also be from North Korea, reacted by beefing up its response forces.

Ministry of National Defense spokesman Kim Min-seok said on Apr. 6 that military and central investigation personnel were sent to the site where the small drone was found after receiving a report from a local resident.

“The location was 940 meters above sea level in the area of Cheongok Mountain in Samcheok’s Hajang Township,” Kim said.

“The UAV was confirmed to be the same type as the triangular, sky-blue miniature UAV found in Paju,” he added.

According to the military, the third drone was 1.22 meters long with a 1.93-meter wingspan and weighed 15 kg. The site was approximately 130 km from the Military Demarcation Line (MDL), making this the farthest south of the armistice line of any suspected North Korean drones found to date.

The wreckage was reported on Apr. 3 by a 53-year-old wild ginseng digger surnamed Lee, who claimed to have witnessed a similar drone to the one found in Paju in a mountainous part of Jeongseon, Gangwon Province, around Oct. 4. According to Lee, the parachute had been deployed, as in the Paju crash, and was caught in kudzu.

It also was reportedly carrying a Japanese-made Canon camera. The camera’s memory chip contained photographs, but these were no longer available after Lee erased the device for personal use, the military reported.

A military official quoted Lee as recalling that images of Donggwang Lake (near Samcheok) and coastal regions were present before the data was erased.

Military authorities believe the Samcheok drone, which comes on the heels of similar discoveries in Paju and on Baengnyeong Island, is also likely to be from North Korea. The Ministry of National Defense said it plans to hold a meeting of major general commanders on Apr. 7 to assess the security situation and present detailed guidelines for a firm response posture, with Minister Kim Kwan-jin presiding. The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) also plans to hold simultaneous reconnaissance patrols for all its units this week in case additional North Korean drones were deployed.

“If North Korea is determined to be responsible, we plan to respond sternly and in various ways, including possible legal action for the violation of our airspace,” said Kwon Oh-han, an Army major general and director of the JCS operational bureau.

Meanwhile, North Korea made its first public mention of the drone controversy on Apr. 5, twelve days after the discovery of the Paju drone was reported in the press on Mar. 25.

But the statement neither confirmed nor denied South Korean authorities’ claims of North Korea’s responsibility for the drones.

While criticizing a recent missile test launch by South Korea, the statement from a North Korean strategic forces spokesman said Seoul had “further damaged its already rock-bottom dignity with an out-of-nowhere drone situation.”

It went on to say that “unidentified drones were flying freely around downtown Seoul, including the Blue House and Gyeongbok Palace areas, and blithely traveling the skies over where Baengnyeong Island was being pummeled.”

 

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