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By Lee Tae-hoon
South Korea has decided to purchase two advanced reconnaissance aircraft from France by 2015 in an effort to boost the country’s surveillance capability against the increasingly unpredictable situation in North Korea, sources said Monday.
"The military will introduce two Falcon-2000 MRA reconnaissance jets produced by France’s Dassault Aviation to replace its aging spy planes that have a short range and outdated equipment," a government official said.
The official said the two French planes are specialized in intercepting coded military radio messages and will allow Seoul to keep a closer watch on the North.
The move came amid criticism that Seoul failed to gather any credible intelligence regarding the sudden death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
Currently, a fleet of RC-800s by U.S. firm Raytheon are in service for tactical reconnaissance and surveillance operations.
The Air Force recently acquired two airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) “Peace Eye” aircraft and plan to deploy two more by next year.
The Peace Eye is capable of 360 degree detection and tracking of air and sea targets with a maximum range of 450 kilometers.
Air Force officials say the introduction of the French reconnaissance jets will take place before December 2015, when Seoul is scheduled to retake wartime operational control of its troops from Washington.
They added that Washington has requested Seoul purchase four Global Hawk unmanned high-altitude surveillance aircraft, but the government has yet to make a decision as their price has more than doubled recently.
The U.S. has held wartime command of South Korean troops since the beginning of the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended in a truce, not a peace treaty.
The U.S. Forces Korea routinely flies reconnaissance planes along the border and closely monitors the reclusive North using spy satellites.
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