South Korean Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

Seoul: North Korea fires 3 short-range projectiles
Jun. 26, 2014 - 08:05AM |

By Hyung-jin Kim
The Associated Press
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SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korea fired three short-range projectiles Thursday into the waters off its east coast, a South Korean defense official said. The move was most likely a routine test-firing, but the official said it could also be meant to stoke tensions with Seoul.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of department rules, said the projectiles flew about 190 kilometers (120 miles) before harmlessly landing in the water. The projectiles were fired from North Korea’s eastern port city of Wonsan, and the South Korean military was investigating the type of projectiles and the North’s intentions, the official said.

Short-range test firings by North Korea aren’t unusual, but a barrage of missile and artillery tests earlier this year boosted animosity between the rivals.

North Korea has in recent months threatened South Korea’s leader, calling her a prostitute, and the South has vowed to hit North Korea hard if provoked. North Korea’s rising anger coincided with annual joint military exercises by the U.S. and South Korea and a visit to Seoul by President Barack Obama. North Korea also test-fired two medium-range ballistic missiles and exchanged artillery fire with South Korea near a disputed boundary in the Yellow Sea.

There was also widespread speculation about a possible North Korean nuclear test. North Korea has conducted three nuclear tests since 2006, the latest in February 2013.

Experts believe North Korea has developed a handful of crude nuclear devices and is working toward building a warhead small enough to mount on a long-range missile, although most experts say that goal may take years to achieve.

The Korean Peninsula is still technically in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty

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North Korea tests new precision-guided missiles
Jun. 27, 2014 - 07:47AM |



By Hyung-jin Kim
The Associated Press
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Seoul: North Korea fires 3 short-range projectiles
North Korea calls new U.S. movie an 'act of war'
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korea said Friday that leader Kim Jong Un has guided the test launches of its newly developed precision guided missiles, in a possible reference to three short-range projectiles South Korean officials say the North fired toward its waters a day earlier.

South Korean defense officials said the projectiles fired from an eastern port city Thursday flew about 190 kilometers (120 miles) before harmlessly landing into the waters off its east coast. The exact type of those projectiles and the North’s intentions weren’t immediately known.

The North’s state media said Friday that the country tested what it calls “cutting-edge ultra-precision tactical guided missiles” and Kim watched the tests with top deputies and was satisfied with the results.

There is virtually no way to independently confirm whether North Korea has developed such high-tech missiles. North Korea has frequently bluffed and exaggerated about its military capability, and its army, though one of the world’s largest, is seen as running on outdated equipment and short supplies amid the nation’s chronic economic problems, according to foreign analysts.

Still, the impoverished North devotes much of its scarce resources to its missile and nuclear programs, which subsequently pose a serious threat to South Korea, Japan and tens of thousands of U.S. troops in the region. Outside analysts say North Korea has developed a handful of crude nuclear devices and is working toward building a warhead small enough to mount on a long-range missile, although most experts say that goal may take years to achieve.

The North didn’t say when the latest launches took place or how many missiles were fired, but they are likely the projectiles that Seoul says North Korea fired Thursday as there have been no other such reported firings by North Korea in recent days.

South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said Friday that North Korea has been trying to upgrade its large-caliber multiple rocket launch systems in recent years and that those weapons’ range has been slightly and gradually increased in each test-launch.

The North Korean media dispatch Friday called the latest missile launches “significant” because they were made at a time when it is bolstering its national defense because the U.S. and South Korea are “going extremely reckless in the moves to isolate and stifle (North Korea) and unleash a war of aggression.”

Short-range test firings by North Korea aren’t unusual, but a barrage of missile and artillery tests earlier this year boosted tension between the rivals. A North Korean artillery attack in 2010 killed four South Koreans on a front-line Yellow Sea island.

North Korea has in recent months threatened South Korea’s president, calling her a prostitute, and the South has vowed to hit North Korea hard if provoked. North Korea’s rising anger coincided with annual joint military exercises by the U.S. and South Korea and a visit to Seoul by President Barack Obama. North Korea also test-fired two medium-range ballistic missiles and exchanged artillery fire with South Korea near a disputed boundary in the Yellow Sea.

On Thursday, North Korea’s army accused South Korea of firing shells into the North’s waters near the sea boundary. The North Korean army in the front-line area is “full of the strong will of retaliation to punish the provocateurs to the last one by giving vent to their pent-up grudge,” said the army statement carried by Pyongyang’s Korean Central News Agency.

Both Koreas routinely conduct artillery drills near the maritime boundary, a scene of several bloody skirmishes in recent years.

The Korean Peninsula is still technically in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice and not a peace treaty. The United States keeps about 28,500 troops in the South.

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S. Korea dismisses N. Korean proposal as insincere
Jul. 1, 2014 - 08:41AM |

The Associated Press
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Seoul: North Korea fires more short-range missiles
North Korea tests new precision-guided missiles
Seoul: North Korea fires 3 short-range projectiles
North Korea calls new U.S. movie an 'act of war'
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — South Korea on Tuesday rejected North Korean proposals to reduce tensions including the cancellation of annual South Korean military drills with the U.S., saying they were insincere.

North Korea’s powerful National Defense Commission made the proposals Monday, describing the planned drills as a rehearsal for invasion. It also suggested that the two Koreas halt hostile military acts against each other at border areas and stop psychological warfare. South Korea and the U.S. have repeatedly denied that they seek to invade the North.

The North said a mood of reconciliation is necessary ahead of the Asian Games, which will be held Sept. 19 to Oct. 4 in the South Korean city of Incheon. North Korea has said it will take part in the games.

Seoul’s Unification Ministry said in a statement Tuesday that North Korea must first demonstrate that it is serious about nuclear disarmament if it truly wants peace.

The ministry accused North Korea of breaking an earlier agreement to stop mutual slander.

Analysts say North Korea wants better ties with South Korea and other countries to help revive its stagnant economy.

Animosity on the Korean Peninsula remains high following a slew of missile and rocket tests by North Korea and its resumption of harsh rhetoric earlier this year. The two Koreas also earlier exchanged artillery fire along a disputed western sea boundary. South Korean officials said North Korea launched short-range projectiles and missiles into waters off its east coast on Thursday and Sunday.

The Korean Peninsula officially remains in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.

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AgustaWestland Offers AW169 Derivative To KAI

AWIN First
Bradley Perrett
Fri, 2014-08-08 06:27
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and AgustaWestland would jointly develop a derivative of the AW169 if the Italian-British manufacturer is chosen for South Korea’s LCH-LAH helicopter program.

"AgustaWestland considers that KAI will have a major role to play in the global LCH-LAH program, with a significant influence on the development and production of the military variant," AgustaWestland says.

Airbus, Bell and Sikorsky are also contenders for the program, which aims at the nearly simultaneous development of the LCH, a light civil helicopter of about 4.5 metric tons (10,000 lb.) weight, and the LAH, an armed derivative for the South Korean armed forces.

The South Korean government last month chose KAI over Korean Airlines as the preferred prime contractor. KAI is now considering its choice of a foreign partner that will supply a base helicopter design or at least key technology. Its options range from Bell’s offer of a drive train, around which a new helicopter would be developed, to AugustaWestland’s proposal to adapt the new AW169, which needs little or no development for civil use.

AgustaWestland is, however, holding out the possibility of KAI working on the AW169 global production program. "KAI’s contribution to AgustaWestland’s global sales will be very dependent upon the quality and cost-effectiveness of KAI’s solution and AgustaWestland has certainly not ruled out this opportunity," it says in a written response to Aviation Week’s inquiries.

AgustaWestland estimates potential AW169 production at 45-50 units a year.

Although the AW169 is sold as a civil helicopter, it was designed for military roles as well, the manufacturer says. "These also include scout, armed reconnaissance and possibly naval utility applications, thanks to its inherent versatility." Of those three military functions, the first two are part of the South Korean army’s requirement, more than a decade old, to replace MD-500 and AH-1 armed helicopters. A naval requirement for LAHs has also been reported.

Airbus is offering to work with KAI to upgrade its 5-ton EC155, meaning that the South Korean company would get much development experience from the program. Sikorsky has suggested its S-76, of up to 5.3 tons, as the basis of the LCH-LAH, emphasizing the low risk inherent in the proven design of its helicopter, which dates to the 1970s. AgustaWestland, by contrast, promotes the AW169 as offering the latest technology.

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The South Korean Navy envisions three phases:

■ The first is to equip the second ship of the Dokdo-class landing platform helicopter ship (LPH) with a ski ramp to operate short-range or vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft.

The flight surface of the landing ship is already sprayed with urethane, which can withstand the heat created by the aircraft during operations.

The 2nd Dokdo, with the addition of a ski ramp, could be deployed before 2019, according to the report, which suggests the Navy procure used VTOL jets from the US, UK and Spain if needed.

■ Second, the Navy could build an amphibious assault ship, similar to the Spanish Navy’s Juan Carlos, before 2019.

■ Finally, the service aims to build two 30,000-ton light aircraft carriers between 2028 and 2036, the report said. The carrier is to have specifications similar to the Italian aircraft carrier Cavour, which can support about 30 aircraft.

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The 2nd Dokdo, with the addition of a ski ramp, could be deployed before 2019, according to the report, which suggests the Navy procure used VTOL jets from the US, UK and Spain if needed.

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FORBIN said:

Some AV-8B and elsewhere they are not very old.

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