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Korea Herald
20-05-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
1st indigenous KF-21 fighter jet enters final assembly phase
The first production model of South Korea's homegrown KF-21 fighter jet entered final assembly Tuesday, the state arms procurement agency said, in a major milestone for the advanced aircraft acquisition project. A ceremony marking the final production phase took place at Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd.'s headquarters in Sacheon, about 290 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. During the phase, the aircraft will be fully assembled with external and internal components and undergo various performance tests before proceeding to flight testing, according to DAPA. South Korea launched the KF-21 development program in 2015 to acquire a homegrown supersonic fighter to replace the Air Force's aging fleet of U.S.-made jets, including the F-5. Mass production of the so-called 4.5-generation fighter jet began last July after years of development and prototype testing, and the first model is scheduled to be delivered to the Air Force in the second half of next year. DAPA said the aircraft is on track with the project's schedule, expressing expectations the latest development will have a positive impact on the potential exports of the aircraft. In June last year, KAI signed a 1.96 trillion-won ($1.41 billion) deal with DAPA to build 20 KF-21s through 2027. The country seeks to operate 120 KF-21s by 2032. (Yonhap)
Korea Herald
24-02-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
DAPA chief discusses arms exports in UAE, Egypt
The chief of the state arms procurement agency discussed arms cooperation with key defense and military officials as he visited the United Arab Emirates and Egypt as part of Seoul's bid to boost arms exports, officials said Monday. Defense Acquisition Program Administration Minister Seok Jong-gun held the talks as part of a two-nation trip last week, which included a visit to the IDEX 2025 defense exhibition in Abu Dhabi, according to the officials. In the UAE, Seok met with Minister of State for Defense Affairs Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Mazrouei, Chief of Staff Issa Al Mazrouei and other senior defense officials to discuss South Korean firms' potential participation in Abu Dhabi's arms procurement projects. Seok also held talks with key officials from Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Romania and Estonia on the sidelines of IDEX and signed a memorandum of understanding with Saudi Arabia on a mutual government quality guarantee program for their exported arms products. The DAPA chief then visited Egypt, accompanied by officials from Korea Aerospace Industries Ltd. and Hanwha Aerospace Co., to promote South Korean arms products, such as the FA-50 fighter jet and K9 self-propelled howitzer. In a meeting with Egypt's Air Marshal Mahmoud Fouad Abdel-Gawad, Seok vowed to provide comprehensive support should the Egyptian Air Force decide to acquire the FA-50 fighters, according to DAPA. South Korea aims to carve out a 5 percent share of the global arms export market by 2027 to become the world's fourth-largest defense exporter. (Yonhap)
