North Korea Missile Seen By Cathay Pacific Airline Crew
The crew on board a Cathay Pacific flight saw a North Korean missile blow up over the Sea of Japan last week. The aircraft was reported en route from San Francisco to Hong Kong when the ballistic missile was spotted re-entering the Earth's atmosphere.
In a recent statement by the airline, it said that it has been in contact with relevant authorities, industry bodies and other airlines about what Cathay Pacific Flight 893 has seen. At the moment, there are no plans to change the airline's flight routes following the incident.
"Though the flight was far from the event location, the crew advised Japan ATC (Air Traffic Control) according to procedures. Operation remained normal and was not affected," the statement said. "We remain alert and review the situation as it evolves."
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Cathay Pacific said it does not have images or video or the incident. Many of the airline's international flights have cameras mounted beneath the fuselage the footage of which can be viewed by passengers live from their seats. So far, none of the flight's passengers or crew came forward with footage of the incident.
North Korea fired what is believed to be its biggest and most powerful ballistic missile in its arsenal last Wednesday a weeks-long lull in testing. The Hwasong-15 flew 2,800 miles (4,475 kilometers) in the sky, spending 53 minutes in the air, before splashing down in waters off the coast of Japan.
United States Defense Secretary James Mattis said shortly after the missile was launched that the missile demonstrated North Korea may have the ability to hit "everywhere in the world."
National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. H. R. McMaster warned that the risk of war with North Korea continues to increase with each passing day. According to McMaster, Kim Jong-un's regime is the "greatest immediate threat to the United States" and that the country is in a race to solve the tense situation in the Korean Peninsula.
