Civilian Drone Flights

South Korea formally expressed regret to North Korea on Wednesday after confirming that three civilians conducted four unauthorized drone flights into the North’s airspace between September and January, incursions that crashed two aircraft on North Korean territory and prompted Pyongyang to warn of “terrible situations” if such provocations continued.

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young disclosed the findings of an ongoing joint military-police investigation during a press conference, saying authorities were probing the three civilians on suspicion of violating aviation safety laws and breaching criminal statutes against benefiting the enemy. Some officials at South Korea’s military intelligence agency and the National Intelligence …