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01-02-2011 13:36
'Kim Jong-il hides himself underground for fear of F-22 Raptors'
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il hid himself in an underground bunker for nine days during the South Korea-U.S. joint military exercise off the west coast from Nov. 28 to Dec. 1 last year for fear of F-22 Raptors of the U.S. Air Force, the Joongang Sunday magazine reported.
The F-22 Raptor is a fifth-generation supermaneuverable fighter aircraft equipped with stealth technology.
A defense ministry official said on condition of anonymity that Kim hid to protect himself from an attack by the F-22 Raptors, called an “air dominance fighter,” which participated in the exercise, according to the report.
Another official said, “F-22 Raptors, accompanied by in-flight tankers, were on standby in mid-air over the Korean Peninsula during he joint exercise.”
Their mission was to attack should North Korea retaliate by flying MiG jet fighters, he added.
F-22s takeoff from U.S. air bases in Guam and Alaska or the Kadena Air Base in Japan.
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