hankyoreh

Fighter jets, including the F-35B, sit atop the USS Makin Island currently docked at a naval base in Busan, South Korea, on March 23. (Yonhap)

On Thursday, the South Korean and US militaries unveiled the USS Makin Island (LHD-8) to the media. The vessel is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship sometimes referred to as a “small aircraft carrier.” The ship docked at a naval base in Busan on Wednesday and will take part in South Korea-US Ssangyong (“twin dragon”) joint amphibious exercises.

The size of the Makin Island is so massive that the body of the ship cannot be seen with just one glance. The ship measures 257 meters in length and 31.8 meters across, with a displacement of 42,000 metric tons. It’s capable of carrying F-35B stealth fighter jets. Although it’s a landing ship by name, it earned a reputation as a “small aircraft carrier” given its capacity to carry up to 20 F-35B jets.

The deck of the Makin Island was jam-packed with 10 F-35B fighter jets and 10 MV-22B Ospreys, the latter of which use both vertical takeoff and landing to transport marines. The F-35B is a model of the F-35 fighter jet manufactured especially for the US Marine Corps.

“The level of fighting power has now changed with the participation of Makin Island in the Ssangyong drills,” a military official said while pointing to the aircraft on the deck. The extra power obtained from the F-35B and MV-22B jets for amphibious operations enables marines to dominate the air, the official said.

The US military also expressed confidence. Tony Chavez, commander of the Makin Island, held a press conference in the ship’s hangar Thursday.

“As a fifth-generation fighter jet, the F-35B’s mission performance is suitable for air-to-air combat,” Chavez said, adding that “through the joint exercises, we will be able to show what tactics and operations can be demonstrated.”

With this year’s resumption of the Ssangyong drills, South Korea and the US have expanded the scale of the exercises from brigade to division level.

Besides the Makin Island, the ROKS Dokdo amphibious assault ship and Dokdo Landing Platform Helicopters (LPH) as well as the ROK Army’s AH-64 Apache attack helicopters will also be taking part in the joint drills. The exercises, which began on March 20, will continue through April 3.

In addition, the US Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the USS Nimitz, is also scheduled to dock in Busan around Tuesday.

Meanwhile, North Korea continues expressing its strong opposition to the ongoing South Korea-US joint drills, saying the exercises are aimed to “master a preemptive strike against North Korea.”

On Thursday, North Korean propaganda outlet Uriminzokkiri lashed out at the drills, saying the South and US were showing their true colors with their military exercises and accusing them of practicing to invade North Korea through a preemptive strike.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are expected to continue rising for the time being due to the intense South Korea-US joint drills and North Korea’s shows of force.

By Shin Hyeong-cheol, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]