South Korea and France have completed joint air drills at Cheongju Air Base, bringing together Korean Air Force F-35A stealth fighters and KC-330 tankers with French Air and Space Force Rafale fighters and an A330 tanker. The three-day exercise, held from 15 to 17 September, was the first bilateral air training between the two countries in three years and focused on combined operations, aerial refuelling and tactical flying.
The French detachment formed part of Pégase 26, France’s long-range airpower deployment across multiple countries designed to test interoperability and deterrence. The drill included air-to-air refuelling from both sides and formation flying, with South Korean participation also reported from F-15K, KF-16 and FA-50 aircraft. The event came as France continues to use overseas deployments to deepen coordination with regional partners while demonstrating the reach of its air force.
The exercise underlined routine operational cooperation between Seoul and Paris at a time when both air forces are expanding their use of multi-domain training and long-range deployment profiles. Cheongju’s role as host base placed South Korea’s front-line fighters and tanker capability alongside a French expeditionary package built around the Rafale and A330 tanker, providing a practical interoperability check across platforms and crews.