``Women also participate in the air-tight guard of the skies around the Korean peninsula``

For the first time in the country, two women will begin duty as air defense weapons directors. The two are the first women officers in the Air Force Jung Hyun-Suk (graduate of Sookmyong Women’s University, Chemistry major, 26) and Son Hwa-Jeong (graduate of Korea University, Biology major, 28). They were both commissioned second lieutenant in February.

After 20 weeks of training, the two female officers will be assigned to the Master Control and Reporting Center (MCRC) today. They will monitor the skies around the Korean Peninsula and the neighboring countries 24 hours a day and will help the fighters’ air-operation as air traffic controllers.

An Air Force official said, ``Female air defense weapons directors have clear command of their pronunciation and sensitiveness. Female officers will play the important roles in the more complicated future warfare of the Air Force.``

There is one telling episode the two female officers experienced during the training. When the female officers repeatedly announced, ``Radio check. Radio check,`` to communicate with the fighter pilots on duty, they did not receive any response from the pilots. When the trainer tried to communicate after a while, then, the pilots replied saying ``five by five (I can hear).`` When the pilots, who have communicated with the male controllers only, heard the female voice, they thought that they were the air traffic controllers at the civilian air port. The two women officers said, ``As the pilots become familiar with our voices, they say that our voices are comfortable to hear since they are clearer.``

Lee Chol-Hi klimt@donga.com