South Korea’s Special Warfare Command Commander Lieut. Gen. Son Sik, U.S. Special Operations Command-Korea (SOCKOR) Commander Major Gen. Michael E. Martin and other officials pose for a photo as they meet to stage a joint “friendship” parachute jump on June 5, 2023, in this photo captured from the Facebook account of SOCKOR. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, June 8 (Korea Bizwire) — The top South Korean and American special operations commanders conducted a “friendship” parachute jump earlier this week, a U.S. military unit here said Thursday, as the two countries mark the 70th anniversary of their alliance.
In a Facebook post, the U.S. Special Operations Command-Korea (SOCKOR) said that South Korea’s Special Warfare Command Commander Lieut. Gen. Son Sik and SOCKOR Commander Major Gen. Michael E. Martin staged a high altitude low opening (HALO) freefall on Monday.
It did not specify where the event took place.
“Together, we are prepared to defend our Homelands as a combined and ready force,” the U.S. unit said.
The “friendship” event included core infiltration training with South Korean and U.S. special operations forces executing static line jumps and HALO jumps, it added.
SOCKOR has also released a set of photos showing Martin taking part in a “friendship” dive with South Korea’s Naval Special Warfare-Flotilla Command chief Rear Adm. Park Hu-byeong in Changwon, about 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on May 30.
Martin, who took the SOCKOR helm in June 2021, will leave the commander post next Monday, according to his unit.
He will move to the U.S. Special Operations Command at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, where he will serve as the J3 director of operations. Brig. Gen. Derek N. Lipson is set to replace him.
“This command is unlike any other, and I am proud of the work we have done in maintaining peace and stability in the region together,” he was quoted by his office as saying.
(Yonhap)
