![A top-down view of the Uiju Airport in Sinuiju, North Pyongan, on the homepage of U.S. news outlet Beyond Parellel [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/04/10/1c1e8723-a25f-4929-b428-df8c1bb02054.jpg)
North Korea has restored Uiju Airfield in Sinuiju, North Pyongan, to full operational status and redeployed its bomber fleet, nearly four years after the base was converted into a freight and quarantine facility during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Satellite imagery shows that as of January, all 34 Il-28/H-5 bombers have been relocated back to the airfield, according to Beyond Parallel — a North Korea-focused news outlet by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) — on Wednesday.
The Ilyushin Il-28 is a Soviet-designed light bomber first deployed in 1950. The Harbin H-5 is the same plane that is produced by China under license. North Korea is believed to be the only country still operating the model.
In 2021, North Korea converted the airfield into a rail-based freight and inspection terminal to process essential imports from China as part of its pandemic response. The facility was equipped with five unloading platforms and eight large warehouses.
However, following the end of the pandemic and the normalization of rail trade with China and Russia by 2023, the airfield’s role was significantly diminished.
A major flood in the Sinuiju area in July last year caused parts of the rail line connected to the facility to be submerged, prompting large-scale repairs. North Korea ultimately opted to dismantle the rail infrastructure and restore the airfield to its original purpose.
By Sept. 8 last year, most of the warehouses and industrial railway spurs installed at Uiju had been dismantled. Two weeks later, work had been completed to restore the taxiways and other airfield components.
Satellite images taken on Aug. 18 last year showed that most of the freight stored at the site had been removed. By Sept. 8, both the warehouses and the rail infrastructure were no longer visible, according to Beyond Parallel.
The report added that by Sept. 26, debris had been cleared from the runway and new markings had been painted. On Oct. 4, five Il-28/H-5 bombers, likely from the North Korean Air Force’s 24th Air Regiment, were spotted at the southeastern apron.
By Jan. 8 this year, all 34 Il-28/H-5 aircraft had returned to the airfield, and operations appeared to be fully normalized.
BY BAE JAE-SUNG [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]
