Korea and France staged a joint aerial exercise this week aimed at enhancing interoperability between their troops, the Korean Air Force said Thursday. The three-day drills, which kicked off Tuesday, took place at an air base in Cheongju, about 110 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the armed service. It marks the first joint drills between Korea and France in three years. The Air Force mobilized its F-35A stealth jets and KC-330 Cygnus multirole aerial tankers, among others, while the French Air Force deployed two Rafale fighter jets and an A-330 aerial refueling tanker for the drills. The French team was mobilized as part of France's "Pegase" mission designed to inspect its interoperability and deterrence capabilities with allied forces. The exercise is scheduled to take place across nine countries, including Canada, the United States and Japan, from Sept. 8 through Oct. 15. On Wednesday, the Korean and French air forces conducted mutual aerial refueling designed to enhance the understanding of their respective aerial refueling systems. The air forces also staged joint tactical flig