The nation’s first indigenous Surion helicopter |
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
South Korea rolled out the first prototype of its high-end Korea Utility Helicopter (KUH) Friday, becoming the 11th nation in the world to develop an indigenous rotary-wing aircraft.
The Surion helicopter, developed by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) with technical assistance from Eurocopter since June 2006, will begin operation with the Army, the Marine Corps and other civil services after 2011 after flight and ground tests, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said.
Development of the KUH is scheduled to end in June 2012, and mass production is expected to start later. About 245 KUHs will be manufactured to replace the Army's aging UH-1H and 500MD fleets.
The agency and KAI forecast that KUHs could replace about 300 of 1,000 transport helicopters globally over the next 25 years, the agency said in a news release.
The Surion also could be converted into an attack helicopter equipped with indigenous armament, and other sensor and avionics systems, it said.
A roll-out ceremony held in Sacheon, about 438 kilometers southeast of Seoul, was attended by about 800 government officials and developer representatives.
``The successful development will mark a turning point for Korea's bid to become an advanced nation with strong defense capability,'' President Lee Myung-bak said in a congratulatory speech.
Lee Yeon-seup, senior manager and chief of the KUH program management division at KAI, said the Surion will offer the best troop carrying and projection capabilities to the Army, as it has been designed for Korea's specific territorial and climate conditions.
The 8.7 metric ton class aircraft is able to hover at 9,258 feet with a climbing speed of 500 feet per minute, he said.
``The Surion will be able to conduct missions all over the Korean territory,'' Lee said. ``Simply, the ground troops can operate at North Korea's highest point, Baekdu Mountain, at a height of 9,012 feet in an emergency.''
The Surion features a variety of state-of-the-art technologies including a four-axis digital automatic flight-control system, a cockpit with multifunctional liquid crystal displays and an engine health and usage monitoring system.
Survivability gears include laser warning receivers, a missile warning system, chaff and flare dispensers, an electronic warfare commander and infrared countermeasures.
The helicopter has a top speed of 240 kilometers per hour and can carry two pilots and 11 troops. It can stay in the air for well over two hours.
Weapons systems include two sets of 7.62-milimeter machine guns and a ``friend-or-foe'' identification system.
In June 2006, KAI and Eurocopter inked the 1.3 trillion-won research and development contract, Seoul's biggest arms deal ever with a non-U.S. company.
A production contract worth about 4.4 trillion won is expected to be signed around 2011 before the start of mass production.
Eurocopter has a stake of 30 percent in the 2006-2012 development phase and 20 percent in the following 10-year production phase.
As the prime contractor, Eurocopter has provided technical assistance and has supplied the power transmission, automatic flight control system and rotor mast. It also provided technical assistance for certain sub-assemblies.
gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr
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