South Korea is looking shift its defence industry from one that is centred on internal demand to one that is focussed on exports. Korean defence firms are now making growing and rapid inroads into the defence market in the region,...
To read the full article, please log in or enter your email below:
South Korea is looking shift its defence industry from one that is centred on internal demand to one that is focussed on exports. Korean defence firms are now making growing and rapid inroads into the defence market in the region, underscored by the government's ambitions of transforming the country into an arms-exporting powerhouse.
Defence firms in South Korea have tailored export strategies, optimised to the demands of customer countries by region, and have been conducting market development activities in future effective markets in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America. According to International Trade Administration, South Korea’s defence budget is the world’s 10th largest in size and it is also the world’s 10th largest defence exporter. South Korea is projected to generate 29.7 trillion won (US$23.4 billion) in defence exports by 2027. Last year, South Korean arms exports grew by 140 per cent to US$17.3 billion from US$7.25 billion in 2021, the highest arms exports in the history of South Korea.
According to data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), South Korea's share of the global arms exports over a five-year period ending in 2021 was 2.8 per cent, making it the eighth largest in the world. By comparison, during the preceding five-year period, South Korean arms exports accounted for just 1 per cent of the global output for 13th place overall.
According to Morgan Stanley, South Korea has become a major exporter of military and defence equipment and supplies, with 2022 exports totalling 22.9 trillion South Korean won (US$17.9 billion). That’s more than double the figure of 9.5 trillion won in 2021. “Rising demand from Europe and Asia for Korean manufacturers to provide military/defence equipment, including tanks, artillery, and airplanes, are pushing up export volumes,” said the bank’s second half outlook investment report on South Korea.
Humble Origins
The South Korean defence industry began with production of rifles which imitated M-16, the ammunitions and other small arms not significantly considered advanced technology. It rapidly developed and produced more advanced defence products with the K-1 88-tanks, manufactured by Hyundai, based on General Dynamics’ M1 Abrams, and K200-KIFV (Korea Infantry Fighting Vehicle), manufactured by Daewoo and based on the American AIFV) in the mid-1980s to K-1 basic trainer aircraft, made by KAI, the Chang Bogo class submarine (upgraded German 209-type, produced by DMSE), in 1990s, K-50 supersonic advanced trainers and multirole light fighters developed by KAI, and Son Won Il class submarines (German 214-type submarines), produced by Hyundai in recent years.
Today, South Korea has already become an aggressive competitor with Europe in high-end military components, matching Western standards for quality and performance. The government is developing defence industry export markets and promoting marketing activities.
Aerospace Defence Booster
The aerospace defence industry pushes the South Korean arms exports. The country has succeeded deals to sell KT-1 and T-50s to Indonesia, Turkey, Peru, Iraq and the Philippines. KAI is seeking to export T-50 to several countries including the United Arab Emirates. Early this year, KAI finalised a contract to supply Malaysia with eighteen FA-50 light fighters. The FA-50, a multi-role aircraft modelled after the T-50 Golden Eagle advanced trainer aircraft, underscores KAI's expanding global footprint in the aerospace industry. With this export deal, the total exports of KAI's domestically produced KT-1 and T-50 series aircraft may reach approximately 240 units globally.
The next goal of the nation's sole jet maker this year is to win the preferred bidder status for Egypt's project to locally produce the jet trainers and lightweight fighters in collaboration with a foreign company, KAI CEO Kang Gu-young said. It will be KAI’s first foray into Africa's military aircraft market if it wins the contract to export more than 100 T-50 trainer aircraft to Egypt. “Egypt's strategic geographic location (between the northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia) would then open many other doors of opportunity," Kang opined.
KAI's ultimate objective is to export its aircraft to the United States, a market for the world's greatest fighter aircraft makers. That would elevate KAI's status and provide momentum for its next vision of becoming a key player in the international aerospace industry, Kang added. Nevertheless, South Korea continues to be the United States’ third largest country for arms exports after Saudi Arabia and Australia based on the total export volume from 2009 to 2021, thus a substantial market for U.S. defence contractors.
All Nippon Airways (ANA) has been named "2025 Airline of the Year" by Air Transport World (ATW) at the 51st…
Jet Aviation’s Singapore facility has been accredited as an authorised member of the Airbus Corporate Jets (ACJ) Service Centre Network,…
The organisers of the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (Seoul ADEX) 2025 have announced changes to the event’s venue…
The Airbus-built CSO-3 Earth observation satellite has been launched successfully on Ariane 6’s first commercial flight from the European Spaceport…
The Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL) is exploring the potential acquisition of ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi (C 551), an Italian Navy (Marina Militare)…
The Trump administration has authorized a significant military transfer of weapon systems to Israel worth around US$3 billion, without a…
Vietnam has secured a US$680 million deal with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) for the purchase of two spy satellites. According…
U.S intelligence organizations are trying to confirm information about Iran receiving permission from Russia to assemble Su-35 and Su-30 fighter…
Baykar Technologies and Leonardo on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to form a Italy-based joint venture for the…
SkyFive and Akses Prima Indonesia (API) have announced a partnership to introduce an Air-to-Ground (A2G) inflight connectivity network in Indonesia,…
Deutsche Aircraft has appointed Patricia Ferrari as Vice President of Supply Chain. She will oversee the company’s supply chain operations,…
The European Defence Agency (EDA) has selected Schiebel’s CAMCOPTER S-100 for its “Autonomous Systems for Cross-Domain Logistics (Air and Land)”…
Italy’s Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) teams have received advanced radar technology from Camero-Tech to assist in locating survivors in…
The Air Astana Group has increased its fleet to 60 aircraft following the arrival of a new Airbus A320neo in…
Lockheed Martin’s LM 400 technology demonstration is scheduled to launch no earlier than 15 March aboard a Firefly Aerospace Alpha…
Fly Across MRO has joined Embraer’s Authorised Service Centre Network for Executive Jets, providing base maintenance services for the Phenom…
LCR Embedded Systems has introduced the DK3HS-4, a four-slot VPX development platform designed to support 100Gb data rates (25Gb per…
Dedienne Aerospace has renewed its CFM LEAP tooling licence with CFM International for a further 10 years. The agreement extends…
FLUX GmbH (FLUX) has announced a new 300mm size option for its IND-MAX range of inductive angle encoders, designed for…
Orbit Communication Systems Ltd. has launched the MPT30Ka Deployable SATCOM System, a portable satellite communication terminal designed for rapid deployment…
AAR CORP. has entered into an exclusive distribution and licence agreement with BELAC LLC, a subsidiary of Chromalloy, for Parts…
Boeing's X-66 Sustainable Flight Demonstrator has completed two initial wind tunnel tests using scale models, a necessary step before a…
Assac Networks, a subsidiary of Aspis Cyber Technologies Inc., has secured a contract with a government authority in Asia to…
The U.S. Army’s Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory (CRREL) has acquired a THeMIS Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) from Milrem…
Muirhead has introduced BioPRO Foam, a protein-based aviation biofoam that is naturally fire-resistant. The patented material is made using hydrolysed…
Korean Air has introduced a new corporate value system as it commemorates its 56th anniversary. The initiative, called "KE Way,"…
Lockheed Martin has announced that the global fleet of F-35 aircraft has accumulated more than 1 million flight hours. The…
Three MH-139A Grey Wolf helicopters underwent Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) flights in January as part of efforts to…
BAE Systems and Hamek have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) by which they wili work together to support Norway’s…
Turkiye has offered Indonesia the opportunity to participate in the co-development and co-production of its domestically developed 5th-generation fighter jet,…
Headquartered in Singapore with reporters spread across all major regions, GBP Aerospace & Defence is a leading media house that publishes three publications that serve the aerospace and defence sector - Asian Defence Technology, Asian Airlines & Aerospace and Daily News. Known industry-wide for quality journalism, GBP Aerospace & Defence is present at more international tradeshows and exhibitions than any other competing publication in the region.
For over three decades, our award-winning team of reporters has been producing top-notch content to help readers stay abreast of the latest developements in the field of commercial aviation, MRO, defence, and Space.
Copyright 2024. GBP. All Rights Reserved.
Home Defence & Security Space Commercial Aviation Maintence Repair & Overhaul Daily News Events About Us
2025 GBP all rights reserved.