Army Ground Operations Command’s Belated Inspection

Investigation Launched into Subordinate Corps After K6 Live Ammunition Loading Issue Raised

The Army Ground Operations Command will begin inspecting guidelines for guard operations at front-line areas. This is a belated response after it was revealed that the Army’s 1st Corps, which oversees the Western Front, had been conducting security operations at general outposts (GOP) and guard posts (GP) without actually loading live ammunition into K6 machine guns.

Lee Sang-ryul, Ground Operations Commander

According to the military on July 30, the Army Ground Operations Command (GOC) announced, "Starting today, we will inspect subordinate corps beginning with the 1st Corps." The inspection will target five regional corps under the command: Capital, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 5th Corps.

Since the first half of this year, the 1st Corps has not loaded live ammunition into K6 machine guns during security operations at GPs and GOPs. Instead, the security operation guidelines were revised to keep ammunition boxes with live rounds next to the weapons. The K6 machine gun is the largest caliber firearm used by the South Korean military, capable of firing 12.7mm rounds at a rate of 600 rounds per minute, with an effective range of about 1.8 kilometers. With its strong firepower and long range, it is deployed as a shared weapon at the most forward posts. For front-line units, it has been the principle of security operations to keep belt-fed live ammunition loaded in case of sudden incidents requiring immediate response.

However, the Ground Operations Command, which supervises the 1st Corps, was not even aware of these facts. The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced a day earlier that they would launch an investigation into whether the change in security operation guidelines by the 1st Corps was legitimate. The Ground Operations Command is now belatedly trying to address the situation after the Joint Chiefs began their probe. The Joint Chiefs plan to investigate broadly whether a corps commander can unilaterally change a front-line security guideline that requires live ammunition to be loaded, and whether readiness can be maintained without loading live ammunition.

In particular, it will also be determined how far the reasons for the 1st Corps’ change in the K6 live ammunition loading guideline were reported up the chain of command. Authorities intend to question whether the Ground Operations Command overlooked this even after being notified by the 1st Corps. The Joint Chiefs stated that they were not informed about the 1st Corps’ change in security operation guidelines.

A Joint Chiefs of Staff official stated, "Currently, in front-line areas such as GPs and GOPs, the principle is that our military’s weapons are operated with live ammunition loaded," and added, "For cases where certain units are making exceptions, we will conduct on-site checks and take necessary measures afterward."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.