Airlines
North Korea Missile Launches Threatening Airliners
Failures upon re-entry into atmosphere create wide fields of debris in well-traveled airways
The number of North Korean missile landing sites in the Fukuoka FIR have reached six this year. (Image: Flight Service Bureau)
The number of North Korean missile landing sites in the Fukuoka FIR have reached six this year. (Image: Flight Service Bureau)

Operators flying on airways over the Sea of Japan face increasing danger from missile debris as North Korea has intensified the frequency of unannounced launches. The most recent ICBM launch, on July 28, failed on re-entry, creating a large debris field around a well-traveled airway. According to Orlando, Florida-based Flight Service Bureau (FSB), an Air France Boeing 777-300 passed through the airway in question—R211—only minutes before the missile broke into many fragments.