Anti-aircraft missile explodes in midair after unintentional launch

SEOUL, March 18 (Yonhap) -- An anti-aircraft guided missile exploded in midair on Monday after being unintentionally launched during a routine maintenance check and no one was injured, an Air Force official said.

The Cheongung medium-range surface-to-air missile blew up near an Air Force base in Chuncheon, 85 kilometers northeast of Seoul, at around 10:38 a.m. It is designed to explode in the air if its guidance system does not function properly after liftoff.

"There are no human or property damages yet," the official said. "We have formed a task force to identify the cause of the explosion."

The Cheongung is to strike a hostile aircraft at an altitude of around 40 kilometers. In November 2017, two Cheongung missiles flew around 40 kilometers and hit a mock target accurately in its first live-fire mission.

sshluck@yna.co.kr
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