The airbase where North Korea is developing next-generation drones
North Korea is dramatically expanding its drone development programme, new satellite images have revealed.
Images taken above the Panghyon Airbase show the construction of large hangars and new designs of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), visible on runways and taxiways.
The airbase, some 90 miles north of Pyongyang, has become the 'motherland for large UAVs', a new report by the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) quoted a source as saying.
Intelligence reports indicate that the nearby 6 January Factory is manufacturing the North's most advanced new UAV, the Saetybol-class aircraft, which bear an uncanny resemblance to the American RQ-4 Global Hawk drone.
First unveiled at the Pyongyang weapons exhibition in 2023, the aircraft – whose name translates as 'morning star' – has a wingspan of more than 110 feet and the distinctive bulbous nose and V-shaped tail that are consistent with the Global Hawk.
The CSIS report says it is not possible to determine how many drones North Korea intends to build.
It cautions, however, 'If North Korea successfully develops and deploys a Saetbyol-4 class strategic reconnaissance UAV along the demilitarised zone with South Korea and within its air defence identification zone, it will significantly increase the scope and timeliness of the nation's situational awareness in and around the Korean Peninsula'.
The satellite images, captured on March 28, also show the construction of seven 130-feet-wide hangars at the base that dwarf fighter aircraft parked on a nearby runway.
Other images show the rapid development of the site over the past five months as well as the Panghyon aircraft factory.
The report also contains high-altitude photographs of a number of UAVs on taxiways or preparing to take off from a runway.
The South Korean National Intelligence Service reported in March that North Korean troops stationed in Russia are undergoing training in modern drone warfare, including the use of strike and reconnaissance UAV operations.
The CSIS report states that while the impact of the training and the level of cooperation are not clear, it does suggest that North Korea is making a 'concerted effort to enhance its overall UAV capabilities, likely incorporating Russian battlefield experience'.
Analysis of the airfield images comes after Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, oversaw tests of 'suicide attack drones' equipped with AI technology at the base, state media reported on March 27.
Kim was pictured instructing scientists and engineers at the Unmanned Aeronautical Technology Complex and monitored drills involving both reconnaissance and attack drones.
Images released by the Korea Central News Agency showed a quadcopter dropping a bomb on a target as well as suicide drones striking military vehicles. One of the targets looks like a mock-up of a US Stryker combat vehicle while another resembles a South Korean mobile missile system.
The KCNA quoted Kim as saying, 'Our special means developed with up-to-date technology would play a big role in monitoring the potential threats and collecting vital intelligence' and he demanded that 'top priority' be placed on the development of more capable drones.
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