USAF Doubles Down on More F-16 Fighters near North Korea
April 24, 2025 | By Unshin Lee Harpley and Chris Gordon
The U.S. Air Force will ramp up its presence near North Korea by sending more than two dozen additional F-16 fighters to Osan Air Base, South Korea, creating a second “super squadron” there.
Osan, located just 50 miles south of the Korean border, will welcome 31 extra Vipers and 1,000 Airmen from Kunsan Air Base to its southwest in October, service officials said. The latest move will further centralize the Air Force’s footprint on the peninsula. The Air Force started the “Super Squadron” initiative last year, relocating nine F-16s from Kunsan to Osan, upping the base’s fleet to 31 of the fighters—a number that is now set to double after Air Force Chief of Staff David W. Allvin recently signed off on the standup of the second super squadron.
“This temporary change allows us to test and validate force generation capabilities on the Korean peninsula, ultimately fostering a more lethal, ready air component,” Allvin wrote in a post on X. “The Super Squadron test aims to increase sortie generation and combat capability, while enhancing readiness and responsiveness.”
In a release, Seventh Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. David Iverson said the initiative has been a “success” so far and the Air Force now wants to consolidate its F-16s at Osan to further test the Super Squadron structure.
https://www.airandspaceforces.com/air-force-doubles-down-f-16-fighters-north-korea/
