SACHEON, October 22 (AJP) - A giant white starfish spread across Sacheon’s blue autumn sky on Thursday as the Black Eagles broke formation, each jet drawing a long arm of smoke toward a different edge of the heavens.
Their dark silhouettes tipped the widening trails, yellow undersides catching the sunlight as they swept overhead. Behind them, crisp white lines thickened and feathered at the edges, leaving the sky streaked with the paths they had flown.
Below, hands and phones rose together. Spectators leaned back to follow the aircraft while camera crews tilted their lenses skyward, trying to fit the sprawling display into a frame.
The South Korean Air Force’s aerobatic team had given the 2026 Sacheon Airshow an opening written across the sky.
She had come to South Korea through an international program involving the Republic of Korea Air Force, or ROKAF.
“I came with the ROKAF. It’s an international week,” she said. “I study with planes in France, so they invited us. There are [participants from] the Philippines, Malaysia, a lot of countries.”
Running through Sunday at Sacheon Airfield and surrounding venues, the four-day event brings together aerial displays, aircraft and weapons exhibitions, and opportunities for visitors to experience flight. This year, it also incorporates an aerospace and defense industry exhibition as the city seeks a larger role in international aviation business.
Raven and Aldrin, both 22, had traveled from the Philippines as air force cadets taking part in a program at the Korea Air Force Academy in Cheongju.
“We are air force cadets from the Philippines, and visiting the Sacheon Airshow is part of our activities with participants from 19 countries,” they said. “We are taking part in a program at the Korea Air Force Academy in Cheongju, and we expect to graduate next year before becoming military pilots.”
Their visit brought an international dimension to a gathering rooted in South Korea’s aviation industry. Sacheon is home to Korea Aerospace Industries, or KAI, and the Korea AeroSpace Administration, placing aircraft production and the country’s wider space ambitions within the same city.
The flying program puts some of that industrial work directly before the public. Alongside the Black Eagles, the lineup includes demonstration flights by the domestically developed KF-21 fighter and T-50 trainer, as well as performances by overseas guests including Australia’s Paul Bennet Airshows team.
For visitors, the aircraft displays offer a change of perspective: machines seen as small silhouettes overhead can be examined at ground level, with their landing gear, external fuel tanks and cockpit canopies in view.
U.S. Air Force personnel accompanying aircraft from Osan Air Base said their presence was about supporting their South Korean counterparts.
“These are aircraft stationed in Korea, out of Osan. Here, we’re just here for the air show.”
Merriman said this was his second visit to South Korea. The U.S. contingent was not conducting training or flight demonstrations at the event, he added.
Master Sgt. Joshua Ahn, from Seventh Air Force logistics, offered a similar message. “We support the ROKAF and the strong U.S.-Korea alliance,” he said.
That mix of public spectacle, military exchange and industrial promotion runs through this year’s show.
“This will be a historic starting point for its development into an international airshow that attracts attention beyond South Korea and around the world,” he said.
Son urged visitors to experience both the strength of the Air Force and the capabilities of Korean-built aircraft while considering the future of the country’s aerospace industry.
On the ground, that ambition takes the form of two exhibition halls covering a combined 6,050 square meters and an 850-square-meter space for export consultations.
About 100 Korean and overseas companies are participating in the aerospace and defense exhibition. Business meetings and export consultations are concentrated on Thursday and Friday, alongside exchanges involving visiting air force leaders and overseas buyers.
For families and younger visitors, the weekend program offers a more hands-on introduction to those fields. Saturday’s events include a space rover challenge, a national rocket-pitch competition and an aerospace education festival. Science and engineering creators Geekble are scheduled to give a special talk Sunday.
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