South Korea's radar development project moves to next phase
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A prototype of an active electronically scanned array radar system / Yonhap
South Korea's project to develop an advanced radar system for an indigenous fighter under development will move to the next phase after its preliminary designing, the state defense procurement agency said Thursday.
The defense authorities launched the 360-billion-won (US$333 million) program in 2016 to acquire an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar system. The state-run Agency for Defense Development (ADD) has been leading the development initiative.
The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) held a preliminary radar design review session from Tuesday to Wednesday. There, it decided to move the project to a "critical design" phase, a step for detailed designing, after completing the initial design.
The DAPA plans to hold a critical design review by May 2019 and produce the first AESA radar based on the review in the latter half of 2020. The entire development project is set to end in 2026 following a process to integrate the radar into the KF-X fighter system.
The radar project is a key part of the KF-X fighter development project, worth 8.8 trillion won, to replace the Air Force's aging fleet of F-4 and F-5 jets.
The AESA radar system can detect and track multiple targets simultaneously and extensively, as the beam of radio waves is electronically steered to a point in different directions without moving the antenna. (Yonhap)