One Of North Korea's Most Dangerous Weapons Is The Ancient An-2 Biplane [1/4] - An-2 Biplane.jpg (1/1)

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With tensions between North Korea and the U.S., South Korea, and its allies at
an all time high, and as the U.S. and South Korea execute combat drills,
Pyongyang ordered its own military show of force. North Korea's recent exercises
included a massive artillery barrage and an amphibious assault near the maritime
border between the two long time foes. Images released by state media shows
North Korea's modernized commando units going through their paces, but one
picture was of especially unique interest.

The photo in question shows a gaggle of An-2 biplanes dropping North Korean
commandos at low altitude. At first glance it just looks like another canned and
somewhat laughable military display by the North Koreas, but it's actually
relevant practice for what North Korea has planned for the opening hours of an
all-out conflict on the peninsula.

During the dark of night, as part of the opening throws of a battle royale
between South Korea, the U.S. and North Korea, hundreds of these old radial
engine biplanes will fly low over the ground at slow speed, penetrating deep
into South Korean airspace. For the vast majority of their crews it will be a
one-way mission—to deliver Kim Jong Un's hardest shock troops deep behind enemy
lines. This is done via low altitude air drop, as seen above, or by landing in
short stretches of fields or roadways.

The missions of these North Korean suicide assault teams are many fold, but
generally they pertain to creating total havoc deep inside South Korean
territory. This includes attacking key infrastructure and military
installations, and generally sowing massive terror among the already frightened
South Korean populace. This deep insertion tactic alone is one of the main
reasons why installations like air bases in South Korea must be prepared for
instant war, even on the foot soldier level.

It may seem downright laughable at first glance that North Korea would throw up
antiquated agricultural/utility aircraft which were designed the better part of
a century ago against the might of the USAF and ROKAF, but first glances can be
very deceiving. The An-2 Colt is a fabric covered flying machine that is at home
muscling through the sky at very low altitudes and slow airspeed. This
translates into a small radar cross-section for its size, one that is hard to
spot by fighters using their radars in look-down-shoot-down mode. Flying at low
altitude means traditional surface-to-air missile systems will have a very hard
time of detecting and engaging these aircraft as they plot along south, hugging
the terrain.

Their slow speed also plays nasty tricks on pulse doppler radars whose velocity
gates (filters) often discount relatively slow moving objects, especially when
they are moving at oblique angles from the radar emitter. Even Washington DC,
arguably the most surveilled and highly secured airspace in the United States,
along with its elaborate integrated air defense system, couldn't spot a slow
moving target with a small radar cross section even as it flew down the National
Mall and landed on the Capitol's lawn.

Finally, the old adage that quantity has a quality all its own rings true with
the An-2 and North Korea's war plans. North Korea has the ability to fill the
sky with roughly 300 of these aircraft. During a time of war, there wouldn't be
enough fighter aircraft or surface to air missile batteries to shoot them down
even if they could be detected and successfully engaged. Additionally, it is
well assumed by Pyongyang that they will lose many of these aircraft, but that's
the hardcore nature of the tactics behind their use. Even if half the fleet is
lost, still thousands of shock commandos will be on the ground in South Korea
causing mayhem.






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