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South Korea tour may be a good deal for airmen

More than half a century after a battlefield armistice that ended the Korean War, American troops are still a vital part of the U.N. force that guards South Korea.

“We still have a very important mission,” Lt. Gen. Stephen G. Wood, the U.S. air commander in South Korea, said in an Aug. 8 phone interview.

Despite the bellicose nature of the North Korean regime and the very real military threat it poses, some observers argue that the U.S. presence on the Korean peninsula is an anachronism. In a column published several years ago, I asked when South Korea will be able to defend itself without U.S. help.

We may be close. Although serious plans are in place to reinforce the permanent U.S. presence in Korea — Wood is responsible for six “co-located operating bases” that would bed down reinforcements rapidly in a crisis — South Korea’s own forces would bear the brunt in the first hours of a North Korean attack. On a year-round basis, Wood has just four fighter squadrons plus a tenant reconnaissance unit, a force that is significant in an era of pinched resources but far from overwhelming.

War in Korea isn’t very likely. The situation on the Korean peninsula has been stable for decades. North Korea’s recent detonation of an atomic device doesn’t really alter the longstanding balance. Although “we’re kept on our toes,” as Wood said, by minor flare-ups from time to time, analysts say a full-scale Korean war probably isn’t going to happen in the foreseeable future.

We live in a world where no place is quite safe but few places are overtly dangerous. Yes, violence could happen in Korea, but terrorism has touched my northern Virginia region of Washington, D.C. The untold secret within the U.S. military is that Korea is a pretty good place to pull a tour of duty.

“Our message is, we want you to come over,” said Wood, referring to airmen who might receive orders to join his team.

“The Republic of Korea is not a Third World country,” he said. “It’s a great place to be assigned. We have modern bases and plenty of quality-of-life enhancements.”

Wood said the people are friendly, the country is fascinating, and airmen assigned there will “be able to travel around.”

In recent years, the U.S. and South Korean press have reported anti-American sentiment among some younger Koreans. The U.S. war in Iraq is as unpopular in South Korea as in the U.S., and there are other causes of anti-U.S. sentiment, but it exists on a small scale and is mostly subdued: American airmen rarely encounter it. Indeed, many form lasting friendships with their South Korean colleagues and hosts.

If you are assigned to South Korea for the standard 12-month unaccompanied or 24-month accompanied tour, you may be offered an incentive to stay longer. The Korea assignment Incentive Pay Program was set up to increase volunteers for extended service in Korea and promote unit and personal stability for Air Force members.

The program authorizes $300 monthly payments to airmen signing a written agreement to serve their original prescribed tour in Korea followed by an additional 12 months. Tours under this program total 24 months unaccompanied or 36 months accompanied, when authorized.

“We have a lot of takers for this program,” Wood said.

I took advantage of an earlier version of this program in 1959, but back then, it was offered only to certain specialties and only in my squadron. Today’s version is more widespread and far more generous. That’s not chump change.

Bottom line: Of all the places you might serve in the profession of aerial arms, South Korea is one of the better ones.

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The writer, an Air Force veteran, lives in Oakton, Va. He is the author of “Air Combat,” a history of fighter pilots. His e-mail address is robert.f.dorr@cox.net.