For decades, North Korea’s military doctrine centered primarily on ground forces and artillery. The Korean People’s Army (KPA) was historically structured to conduct massive conventional warfare on the Korean Peninsula, with huge infantry formations, long-range artillery aimed at Seoul, and special operations units designed for infiltration. The Air Force, established in 1945 with Soviet assistance, traditionally played a secondary role. Its fleet grew outdated due to international sanctions, technological isolation, and lack of access to modern aviation systems.
While the United States, South Korea, and Japan invested heavily in fifth-generation fighter aircraft, North Korea’s air fleet remained dominated by MiG-21s, MiG-23s, and aging Su-25 ground-attack aircraft. For years, military analysts referred to the North Korean Air Force as one of the weakest components of the KPA. Yet this perception is now steadily changing.
Kim Jong-un’s leadership has transformed the logic of North Korea’s military development. Rather than attempting to match its rivals symmetrically in conventional warfare, Pyongyang has opted for asymmetric deterrence, centered on nuclear weapons, ballistic missiles, cyberwarfare, and strategic special forces. Within this evolving framework, the Air Force is acquiring a new mission—not as a conventional dogfighting force, but as an integrated component of nuclear deterrence, surveillance, and strategic strike operations.
