South Korea - The Korea Times

Lockheed Martin’s joint projects with Korea

Partnership in military areas 1991 Co-production of the F-16 Fighting Falcon - Korea completes the acquisition of 140 F-16s under the Korea Fighter Program (KFP) in August 2004. - The majority of them were produced and assembled here under license from LM. 1995 Introduction of the LM P-3 Orion - The Navy flies the first two deliveries of the eight Lockheed Martin maritime patrol aircraft to monitor its coastlines. - The P-3 Orion aircraft provides the capability to carry out anti-submarine warfare. 1997 The T-50 full-scale development program begins - LM makes extensive technology transfer as part of the KFP offset program. - LM contributes to flight control, avionics and wing development. - The Korean government funds 70 percent of the development cost. - Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and LM shoulder 17 percent and 13 percent of the cost, respectively. 2000 Joint marketing agreement (JMA) for the T-50 - LM Aero and KAI sign a JMA for the T-50, the world’s only supersonic trainer - LM Aero responsible for marketing in the United States - KAI resp

Oct 24, 2011

Lockheed Martin eager to win Korea’s FX-race

By Lee Tae-hoon One of the most-talked-about news this year was that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il could not come out of his underground bunker for nine days, fearful of the F-22 Raptors in the skies above during a joint military drill between South Korea and the United States late last year. The surprising news clearly demonstrated the power of deterrence that stealth fighter jets can offer to South Koreans at the time still grieving the loss of their 50 soldiers and fellow citizens in two deadly North Korean attacks in 2010. When the North bombarded the South’s border island of Yeonpyeong last year on Nov. 23, eight fighter jets, including two F-15Ks, were patrolling the area but they all returned to their base without engaging the enemy. Outraged by the indecisiveness of its military leaders, the public began to question how effective the country’s existing weapons systems are in providing adequate protection against the communist North. The tragic incident was also a wake-up call for Seoul to beef up its defense capability against Pyongyang’s further military

Oct 24, 2011

Korea to make $1.1 bil. sub sale to Indonesia

By Jung Sung-ki Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) has begun final-phase negotiations with the Indonesian government over the construction and sale of three 1,300-ton, Type-209 submarines valued at $1.1 billion, the company said Tuesday. Korea’s biggest arms sale is expected to be completed by November. Previously, a $400 million deal with Indonesia to sell 16 T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jets, jointly built by Korea Aerospace Industries and Lockheed Martin of the United States, was the biggest weapons sale. “We have launched talks to sign a contract with Indonesia’s defense ministry,” the shipbuilder said in a statement. DSME’s Communication Director Jeong Seong-dae told The Korea Times, “Both sides have long discussed the sale of Korean-built submarines, and now we are in the final stage of fine-tuning detailed requirements and contract terms,” said Jeong. DSME competed with submarine powerhouses Germany, France and Russia to win the status of preferred negotiator. The diesel/electric propulsion sub is built with technical assistance

Oct 11, 2011

Will Jeju naval base trigger arms race in Asia?

By Lee Tae-hoon GANGJEONG, Jeju ― The debate continues to rage as to whether an envisioned naval base on Jeju Island will strengthen national security or spur an arms race in Northeast Asia, potentially making it a prime target for military retaliation. The Navy is building a naval base with a budget of 977.6 billion won ($920.5 million) in Gangjeong, a village on the southern coast of the volcanic island. It is capable of housing more than 20 warships, including three Aegis destroyers, and mooring two cruisers or an aircraft carrier, according to a military source. Opponents of the naval base argue that the militarization of the resort island, which lies south of the Korean Peninsula between China and Japan, will provoke Beijing and Tokyo to beef up their military presence and stir up regional instability. Proponents claim that the operation of the new base will be strictly defensive in nature and it will be the least a country surrounded by superpowers can do to protect its sovereignty. What’s at stake? The Navy claims that its military presence in Jeju will

Sep 5, 2011

Korea gets 1st early warning aircraft

By Lee Tae-hoon Korea’s first early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft, to be deployed next month, arrived at an Air Force base Monday, an official of the country’s defense procurement agency said. “The first one arrived at Gimhae Air Base today from Boeing’s factory in Seattle and it will be deployed for use by the Air Force in early September after undergoing final flight tests and acceptance inspections,” Lt. Col. Lee Ki-wook of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said. The E-737, nicknamed “Peace Eye,” is capable of 360-degree detection and tracking airborne and maritime targets within a 370-kilometer radius. “It is capable of locating airborne or seaborne targets on the entire Korean Peninsula, including ones flying at low altitude infiltrating mountainous areas,” he said. Lee noted that if Peace Eye is flying near the border area, it will be able to detect enemy airplane infiltrations in both the East Sea and West Sea, given that the peninsula is only approximately 250 kilometers wide. He said that the remaining three planes, priced at $

Aug 1, 2011

Korea, China agree on military relief

By Lee Tae-hoon Senior defense officials of Korea and China agreed to meet again next year to discuss ways to mobilize military resources, should one of the two countries be stricken by a natural disaster, an official said Thursday. He said the agreement was reached during two days of talks that ended Thursday between Vice Defense Minister Lee Yong-gul and Gen. Ma Xiaotian, deputy chief of the general staff of the Chinese army. “Working-level defense officials of the two countries will hold talks in Seoul October next year to further deliberate the signing of a memorandum of understanding on military relief activities,”he said asking for anonymity. The high-level bilateral military talks came after the defense ministers of South Korea and China agreed on July 15 that Seoul and Beijing will hold annual “strategic military talks” to strengthen a bilateral strategic alliance. In his opening remarks of the strategic dialogue, Lee said he was "confident" that the new bilateral forum will contribute a great deal to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in North

Jul 28, 2011

Lockheed Martin offers stealth technology

By Lee Tae-hoon Lockheed Martin is willing to outsource production of F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and transfer stealth technology to Korea, should the nation opt to buy the aircraft, a senior company official said Monday. Korea is currently seeking to develop domestic multirole fighters with stealth capability under a program, code-named KF-X and purchase 60 high-end aircraft from a foreign aerospace company under the FX-III program. “We’d be honored to be a partner in the KF-X program,” Stephen O’Bryan, Lockheed's vice president for F-35 business development, said in an interview in Seoul. “With the F-35 type of technology, we can give you (Korea) state-of-the-art stealth and fifth-generation manufacturing technology.” Fifth-generation stealth technology can significantly reduce the size of the radar signature, helping an aircraft penetrate deep into enemy territory without being detected. O’Bryan confirmed that the U.S. government has approved the production of the F-35 final assembly and checkout for Japanese assembly. “We also intend to offer to build com

Jul 25, 2011

Exclusive 30% of Air Force bomb fuses may not work

By Jung Sung-ki The proportion of South Korean aircraft bombs to misfire remains high because about 90 percent of the fuses to detonate bombs were 40 years old and many of them have become obsolete, military sources said Tuesday. An Air Force source privy to inventory of aircraft bombs revealed that up to 30 percent of the fuse inventory of the South Korean Air Force could not be exploded properly in the case of an emergency. There is a concern that without the modernization of bomb technology, the effects of deploying up-to-date fighter jet platforms could be limited in the real world. “I can’t deny the fact that the current fuse inventory mostly comprising of the mechanical M-904/905 units is too old to work properly," the source told The Korea Times on condition of anonymity. “The current fuses inventory mostly comprising of the mechanical M-904/905 units is too old to use. They are 10 to 20 years past their due shelf life date.” The source, backed up by two active and retired officers, said on the basis of their own analysis and training run results that at least 20

May 3, 2011

Exclusive Vertical launching system for attack subs developed

By Jung Sung-ki Korea has developed a vertical launching system (VLS) to be installed on 3,000-ton heavy attack submarines to be deployed after 2018, according to a shipbuilding industry source, Monday. Hyundai Heavy Industries and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering are subcontractors for the heavy attack submarines. It is the first time that the development of a submarine VLS in Korea has been confirmed. The Agency for Defense Development (ADD) has already developed one used aboard the 7,600-ton KDX-III Aegis destroyer. A VLS is a modern type of missile-firing system used aboard submarines and surface vessels of several navies around the world. When installed on an attack submarine, a VLS allows a greater number and variety of weapons to be deployed in comparison to using only torpedo tubes. Following the development of the VLS for subs, top shipbuilders in Korea and the ADD are also on track to develop an indigenous horizontal tube to launch torpedoes, cruise missiles and mines, the source said. “The development of a vertical launching system has alrea

May 2, 2011

Exclusive Korea set to endure bad terms for T-50 export to Indonesia

Jakarta asks Seoul to buy more planes, accept penalty write-offs By Jung Sung-ki Indonesia has asked South Korea to write off $20 million in penalties over the former’s delayed delivery of CN-235 transport aircraft in return for buying the T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jet, which can also be

Apr 5, 2011

Defense