S.Korea’s first homegrown KF-21 fighter jet takes first flight

South Korea’s first homegrown KF-21 fighter jet successfully completed its inaugural test flight Tuesday afternoon, the country’s arms procurement agency announced. A KF-21 Boramae fighter prototype took off for its maiden flight at 3:40 p.m. at the base of South Korea’s Air Force 3rd Training Wing in the city of Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said. The jet flew for 33 minutes and landed at 4:13 p.m. Major Ahn Jun-hyun of So

July 19, 2022

S. Korea, UK hold 1st defense strategic dialogue to promote multifaceted security cooperation

South Korea and the United Kingdom committed to expanding “substantial” defense cooperation in multifaceted areas, including combined exercises, cyber domain and outer space, at the first vice-ministerial defense consultative meeting. South Korea’s Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul and his UK counterpart Annabel Goldie held a bilateral defense strategic dialogue on Monday afternoon in London, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday. South Korea and the UK have

July 19, 2022

Female Air Force officer found dead at local base: source

A female service member of the Air Force was found dead at the barracks of her base south of Seoul on Tuesday, a military source said, as investigators are looking into the exact cause of her death in cooperation with local police. The body of the 21-year-old technical sergeant was found by her colleague at around 8:10 a.m., according to the source. She was a member of the 20th Fighter Wing based in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province, where another female soldier, who apparently took her own lif

July 19, 2022

S. Korea, Britain hold 1st strategic defense dialogue on security cooperation

South Korea and Britain had their first vice-ministerial strategic defense dialogue in London earlier this week to discuss bilateral security cooperation, Seoul's defense ministry said Tuesday. Seoul's Vice Defense Minister Shin Beom-chul and his British counterpart, Annabel Goldie, held the meeting on Monday to implement the defense segment of the "bilateral framework for closer cooperation" adopted during last month's bilateral summit. On the margins of a North Atlanti

July 19, 2022

S. Korea, US stage combined high-tech training

South Korea and the United States have been conducting combined military drills, involving a high-tech training system, Seoul official said Monday, amid the allies' stepped-up efforts to sharpen deterrence against North Korea's evolving security threats. The 11-day training got under way at the Army's Korea Combat Training Center (KCTC) in Inje, 165 kilometers east of Seoul, on July 11. It involved 4,300 South Korean troops from the 51st Brigade of the 12th Division and 81st Briga

July 18, 2022

S. Korea to deploy around 20 more F-35A fighters by 2028

South Korea's defense authorities approved a 3.94 trillion-won ($2.97 billion) plan Friday to deploy some 20 additional F-35A radar-evading fighters by 2028 as part of efforts to counter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, according to the state arms procurement agency. The Defense Project Promotion Committee endorsed the "basic" procurement plan, which is subject to adjustments following a feasibility study and other procedures, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Ad

July 15, 2022

S. Korea's Navy creates aviation unit tasked with bolstering maritime security

South Korea's Navy on Friday launched a new aviation command to be armed with high-end surveillance aircraft, choppers and drones, as part of efforts for stronger, longer-range maritime security capabilities, officials said. Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Lee Jong-ho hosted a ceremony launching the command at an airport in Pohang, 370 kilometers south of Seoul, pledging to pursue "perfect" maritime aviation operations. The newly minted command has grown out of the now-defunc

July 15, 2022

S. Korean, US F-35 stealth fighters stage first aerial drills

F-35 stealth fighters from the South Korean and the US air forces teamed up for the first time for four days of combined aerial drills, as the allies move to enhance interoperability and combined defense posture against North Korea’s escalating threats. South Korea and the US conducted combined military exercises involving fifth-generation F-35A fighter jets in South Korean airspace from Monday to Thursday, South Korea’s Air Force announced Thursday. Around 30 aircraft -- which i

July 14, 2022

New US envoy to Seoul vows to expand alliance

The new US ambassador to South Korea vowed Wednesday to work towards strengthening the two countries' alliance into a "comprehensive strategic" one, while expressing that there was "no better partner" than Seoul. Philip Goldberg made the remarks in his speech during a reception marking US Independence Day at his residence in central Seoul, just days after he arrived in the country to begin his duty. "We'll continue to expand the ironclad security alliance we've built

July 13, 2022

S.Korea, US discuss resuming field training exercises this fall

South Korea and the US have been discussing the resumption of yearslong suspended field training exercises in the second half of the year, the South Korean military said Monday. The discussion has been underway as the South Korean and US military tentatively agree to conduct their annual combined military exercises between Aug. 22 and Sept. 1, according to military sources who wished to remain anonymous. Regular Combined Command Post Training has been carried out based on a computer simulati

July 11, 2022

Military reports 565 more COVID-19 cases

South Korea's military reported 565 additional COVID-19 cases Sunday, raising the total caseload among its service members to 182,022. The new cases confirmed as of 2 p.m. on the day included 445 from the Army, 60 from the Air Force, 28 from the Navy and 16 from the Marine Corps, according to the Ministry of National Defense. There were also 16 cases from units under the direct control of the ministry. (Yonhap)

July 10, 2022

First homegrown KF-21 fighter jets ready to take off. What’s ahead?

SACHEON, South Gyeongsang Province — South Korea’s first homegrown KF-21 fighter jet is gearing up for its inaugural flight test scheduled for late July. But a maiden flight is just the beginning of 2200 rounds of planned flight tests that will be continued by 2026. KF-21 Boramae fighter prototypes have been undergoing low, medium and high-speed taxi tests since June 25 and will continue until July 13, Korea Aerospace Industries confirmed to The Korea Herald. A taxi test examines

July 8, 2022

Military to establish ‘strategic command’ by 2024 to control three-axis system

The South Korean military will establish a new command in response to missile and nuclear threats from North Korea, the Ministry of National Defense said Wednesday, while President Yoon Suk-yeol called for prompt and firm punishment in respond to North Korean provocations. “It is the military’s mission to protect the lives, property, territory and sovereignty of the people at any cost, and we must firmly show our will to do so,” President Yoon said at a meeting of all milit

July 6, 2022

Four Navy soldiers detained for allegedly assaulting fellow in rowdy discharge ceremony

Four South Korean Navy service members have been detained for an investigation into allegations that they assaulted a fellow in a rowdy ceremony celebrating his planned discharge from military service, officials said Wednesday. A total of seven Navy personnel, including the four, are purported to have assaulted the man for around two hours at a unit in Donghae, 279 kilometers east of Seoul, on June 16. The victim reportedly suffered injuries that require four weeks of treatment. Last week, the N

July 6, 2022

Hanwha Defense to supply 25 Barracuda armored vehicles to Indonesia

South Korean defense firm Hanwha Corp. signed a contract with Indonesia's national police last month to supply 25 armored vehicles by 2024, its officials said Wednesday. The company inked the deal with the National Police of the Republic of Indonesia on June 15 following an international bidding process for the project to procure the multi-role Barracuda vehicles. Hanwha did not specify the contract value. Under the deal, Hanwha Defense, an affiliate of Hanwha Corp., will manufacture and de

July 6, 2022

US dispatches F-35 stealth fighters to Korean Peninsula after 5-year hiatus

The United States Air Force has dispatched its F-35 stealth fighters to the Korean Peninsula for the first time in around five years to conduct combined aerial exercises with its South Korean counterpart. A total of six F-35A stealth fighter jets flew from Eielson Air Force Base in Alaska and arrived here Tuesday to stage drills with South Korea’s Air Force until July 14, the Ministry of National Defense announced the same day, without further details. “The deployment simultaneou

July 5, 2022

New S. Korean government hits roadblock with plans to normalize THAAD base

The new South Korean government has hit a roadblock with its plans to expeditiously normalize the operation of the military base that hosts the US-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system. The Yoon Suk-yeol government has not yet taken the first step to begin a long-postponed environmental impact assessment, which is legally required to repair and refurbish the THAAD base to ensure its full capacity, South Korea’s Defense Ministry confirmed to The Korea Herald on Tuesday. The US

July 5, 2022

S. Korea's new JCS chief to take office without parliamentary hearing

Army Gen. Kim Seung-kyum was set to take office as the new head of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) on Tuesday as Seoul seeks to cement its alliance with Washington and beef up defense to counter North Korea's evolving military threats. Kim will become the first general to take the JCS helm without a parliamentary confirmation hearing since 2006, when the legislative procedure was introduced. His hearing did not proceed amid partisan wrangling over parliamentary committee form

July 5, 2022

S. Korea, Malaysia hold virtual cybersecurity session of ASEAN-related defense forum

South Korea and Malaysia jointly held a virtual subpanel session of a regional defense forum involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Tuesday to discuss cybersecurity cooperation, Seoul's defense ministry said. The experts' cybersecurity working group of the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus (ADMM-Plus) kicked off the two-day session as Seoul seeks to deepen cooperation with the regional bloc on multiple fronts, including security. South Korea and Malays

July 5, 2022

UN Command to resume Panmunjom tour program amid eased COVID-19 curbs

Tours to the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom will resume after months of suspension caused by COVID-19, the UN Command (UNC) said Thursday. The UNC said it decided to restart the tours to the Joint Security Area in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, in line with the South Korean government's continued easing of antivirus restrictions. It did not specify when the tours will resume. The tours were last suspended in January due to a rise in infection cases. As an enforc

June 30, 2022