North Korean leader happy in home skies: Expert

Seoul, May 27: North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has no problem flying, crisscrossing his rugged country on military planes, contrary to popular belief that he avoids air travel at all cost, a South Korean expert said.

Media reports and diplomats have said Kim, like his late father, has a debilitating aversion to flying and almost always travels by train or motorcade under tight secrecy.

''Not much has been known about Kim Jong-il's air travel, but when you look at his movement on field guidance at military bases, he doesn't seem to have a particular aversion to flying,'' said Ko Jae-hong of the Institute for National Security Strategy.

''The common talk about Kim Jong-il not flying probably applies only when he's going abroad,'' said Ko, an expert on the North's military, in a report prepared for publication in July.

Kim has used a private train when visiting China and Russia, which a former bodyguard said was because of his fear of flying.

But Ko said Kim doesn't fly on foreign trips ''because he doesn't trust the outside world''.

To support his theory that Kim uses an aircraft to travel in North Korea, Ko said Kim visited two military bases in May last year one day after another. He said going from the air base just north of Pyongyang to an army base in the north near the Russian border would have been impossible had he not flown.

''Being Kim Jong-il doesn't mean you can overcome physical limitations and show up in the east one minute and then show up in the west the next.''

REUTERS

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