News Archive — Page 1

At an extraordinary shareholders' meeting and board meeting on September 18, 2026, Hanwha Aerospace moved to a co-CEO structure of Kim Dong-kwan and Lee Bu-hwan, and Hanwha Systems appointed Yang Ki-won as chief executive. The changes end the dual-CEO role that Son Jae-il had held across both companies since October 2024. Hanwha said the reshuffle is unrelated to the June 2026 explosion at its Daejeon plant and is intended to give each defense affiliate a dedicated executive as export programs in Europe and the Middle East scale up.

The Korea Defense Industry Association and the Estonian Defence and Aerospace Industry Association signed a cooperation memorandum at the first Korea-Estonia Defense Industry Forum in Tallinn in the week of September 18, 2026. About 40 Estonian organizations took part alongside Hanwha Aerospace, LIG D&A, Kia, and Hyundai WIA, and the agreement names technology transfer, local production, maintenance, early warning, and multisensor fusion as areas for joint development. The forum follows Estonia's K239 Chunmoo purchases in 2025 and 2026 and the DAPA minister's meetings with NATO eastern-flank officials at MSPO 2026.

The Defense Supply Chain Security Cooperation Partnership was launched in Seoul on September 17, 2026 with LIG D&A (formerly LIG Nex1) as chair and sponsorship from the National Intelligence Service and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups. About 40 participants from 14 major contractors, including Hanwha Aerospace and Hyundai Rotem, attended the launch. Prime contractors will share security practices, threat information, and audit know-how with smaller suppliers to close gaps in the export supply chain as Korean weapons programs expand overseas.

Hanwha and UAE state defense group EDGE signed a strategic term sheet at EDGE headquarters in Abu Dhabi on September 16, 2026, setting the direction for cooperation on an integrated air defense network for the United Arab Emirates. Hanwha Systems CEO Yang Ki-won and EDGE Group CEO Hamad Al Marar signed the document, which covers the Korean L-SAM long-range surface-to-air missile system, additional M-SAM (Cheongung-II) medium-range capability, counter-drone defenses, and the K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher. Subject to government approvals, the two sides will explore a joint venture in the UAE plus local production and technology transfer. No value was disclosed and the term sheet is not a procurement contract; it builds on the Korea-UAE defense framework agreed in February 2026 and on the 2022 M-SAM sale worth about $3.5 billion. Demand is driven by the 2026 Iranian missile and drone campaign against the UAE, during which Cheongung-II recorded its first combat intercepts.

The Ministry of National Defense held its first Defense Drone Technology Exhibition at the Seungjin training ground in Pocheon, Gyeonggi, on September 16, 2026, opening a military range so private firms could prove their systems. Six of 17 demonstrations failed: a Korea Aerospace Industries medium jet-powered unmanned aircraft crashed right after takeoff, a second KAI aircraft lost its signal in flight, a direct-impact attack drone crashed, and a drone-launched air-to-ground guided missile missed its target. Military officials from the UAE and Saudi Arabia were among the visitors. Authorities are investigating radio-frequency interference from the large crowd as a likely cause, and a ministry official said the results were "a process of developing better technology rather than failure." The episode followed an August 25 Navy experiment in which an Agency for Defense Development loitering munition fell into the sea seconds after launch on both attempts. Analysts are calling for more test ranges and flight opportunities, R&D funding concentrated on competitively selected firms, a rebuilt domestic supply chain, and long-term procurement commitments.

Hanwha Ocean will carry out a depot-level overhaul of the 7,600-ton Aegis destroyer ROKS Sejong the Great (DDG-991) from September 2026 to March 2027, the first time the Republic of Korea Navy has assigned a surface-combatant overhaul to a private shipyard. The Navy plans to expand this public-private maintenance model through the 2030s and implement it fully by 2040, after projections showed that military maintenance resources alone could cover less than half of demand by the 2040s. The award adds to Hanwha Ocean's growing MRO portfolio, which already includes US Navy logistics ships serviced at Geoje.

ADSYSTEM (AD System), a Cheonan-based drone maker founded in May 2019 by former Air Force maintenance warrant officer Kim Jung-ho, closed a 13 billion won (~$9.9 million) Series A round announced September 16, 2026. LB Investment led, with KDB, JB Investment, Smilegate Investment, Mirae Asset Venture Investment, Mirae Asset Capital, Flux Ventures, and Innopolis Partners participating, taking reported cumulative funding to about 18.4 billion won after a 300 million won seed in 2024 and a 3 billion won pre-A round in August 2025. The company builds low-observable vertical-takeoff reconnaissance drones (the 15 kg AD-3000 in service and the 35 kg armed AD-4000 due in 2027) that navigate without GPS using visual-inertial odometry and SLAM, with anti-jam datalinks and evasive terminal flight validated in Agency for Defense Development tests. On July 30, 2026 it signed an 8.7 billion won Army contract for 3,792 AD-ME1 training multicopters, due by December 27, 2026 under the 500,000 drone warriors program. Proceeds go to a larger automated plant in Hwaseong and completion of the AD-4000.

Korea Aerospace Industries opened its KF-21 Boramae final assembly line in Sacheon to reporters on September 15, 2026, ahead of the first delivery to the Republic of Korea Air Force expected around the end of September during the Chuseok holiday period. About eight production aircraft are due to be handed over in 2026, with the first 40 Block I fighters complete by 2028 and a further 80 by 2032 for a planned fleet of 120. Roughly 30 technicians assemble each airframe largely by hand over about six months on a line sized for more than 20 aircraft per year, routing some 40 kilometers of wiring per jet and drilling 3,400 holes to join wings to fuselage at a tolerance of one-thousandth of an inch. KAI noted that its trainer and fighter programs, from the KT-1 and T-50 through the FA-50 and KF-21, have logged 10,000 cumulative test-flight hours since 2005 without an accident, and said it is preparing additional production capacity should export demand from Indonesia, the UAE, the Philippines, Malaysia, or Peru exceed the current line. Separately, KAI is beginning to fabricate parts this month to convert an FA-50 prototype into a single-seat variant with extra fuel in place of the rear cockpit, targeting ground tests in 2028.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense hosted diplomats from 15 countries, including Iraq, Canada, Brazil, Oman, Kuwait, and Mexico, at the Army training complex in Yangpyeong, Gyeonggi, on September 15, 2026. Guests rode the K2 Black Panther tank and the K21 infantry fighting vehicle, watched live-fire drills, and viewed the Korean Combat Engineer Vehicle, the Cheongung-II medium-range surface-to-air missile system, drones, quadruped robots, and the Army TIGER combat system. Second Vice Foreign Minister Kim Jin-a told the group that the Korean defense industry "has grown in no small part just because of the confidence that you placed in our products." The acting Iraqi head of mission rode a K21 and sat in the K2 gunner position; Iraq bought eight Cheongung-II batteries for $2.8 billion in 2024 and is negotiating for about 250 K2 tanks.

The Defense Project Promotion Committee of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration approved a plan in mid-September 2026 to acquire 20 additional Lockheed Martin MH-60R Seahawk maritime helicopters for about 3.24 trillion won (~$2.4 billion), with deliveries running through 2032. The aircraft will replace the aging Lynx helicopters that operate from Republic of Korea Navy destroyers and frigates, and bring better detection of submarines and surface ships. The purchase is an import through the US government rather than a Korean export, and follows US State Department approval earlier in 2026 of a possible sale of up to 24 MH-60R helicopters to South Korea.

The 178th Defense Project Promotion Committee of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration approved on September 15, 2026 the domestic development of a divisional vertical-takeoff-and-landing reconnaissance UAV for the Army worth about 2.16 trillion won (~$1.51 billion), to be developed over 2027 to 2036. The new drone will replace Korean Air's fixed-wing RQ-102K (KUS-FT) with a surveillance capability more than four times greater and an operating radius about 30 percent larger, and rotary, hybrid, and tiltrotor configurations will be considered. The same meeting approved the second batch of 20 MH-60R Seahawk helicopters.

Romania plans to buy 216 main battle tanks plus 76 derivative vehicles with a budget of up to EUR 6.488 billion (about KRW 10 trillion), with Hyundai Rotem's K2 competing against the Leopard 2 and Rheinmetall's KF51 Panther. Bidding is to open once Bucharest completes a localization analysis, and Hyundai Rotem's K2 gained NATO AQAP-2110 quality certification in July 2026 to strengthen its case. Romania already operates Korean K9 howitzers and is buying K239 Chunmoo launchers. Next milestone: tender launch, date unknown.

Hanwha Aerospace signed a EUR 411.8 million (640 billion won, ~$477 million) contract with Croatia's Ministry of Defence on September 10, 2026 for 18 K239 Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers, ammunition carriers, fire direction command vehicles, guided rockets across short, medium, and long ranges, training, and lifecycle support, with deliveries through 2030. The ceremony at the Croatian Prime Minister's office was attended by Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, Deputy PM and Defence Minister Ivan Anusic, ROK Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back, DAPA Minister Lee Yong-cheol, and Hanwha Aerospace business head Billy Boo-hwan Lee; the two governments also signed a defense-partnership MOU creating a regular working-level dialogue. Croatia's total procurement comes to EUR 435.2 million excluding VAT, as Poland's WB Electronics was contracted separately to deliver and integrate the TOPAZ battlefield management system, keeping the Croatian configuration interoperable with Poland's Homar-K, and Anusic said Croatian firm Koncar will take part in implementation. The rockets, ranging from the 80 km CGR-080 to the 290 km CTM-290, replace Soviet-era M92 Vulkan and BM-21 Grad launchers and sit alongside Croatia's separate order for eight HIMARS. Plenkovic called it "one of the largest investments in the equipment and modernization of the Croatian Armed Forces." Croatia becomes the fourth European Chunmoo customer after Poland, Estonia, and Norway, and DAPA said it expects the deal to grow into industrial cooperation and follow-on logistics support.

Hyundai Rotem publicly unveiled the K2PL, the Polish-configured K2 Black Panther, at MSPO 2026 in Kielce on September 8, 2026, showing an active protection system against anti-tank missiles and drones, a drone jammer, a remote weapon station, and a Miranda mobile camouflage system, alongside bridge-laying, combat-engineering, and recovery variants, the HR-SHERPA unmanned ground vehicle, and a 30-ton wheeled armored vehicle with an anti-drone turret. On September 9 Hyundai Rotem CEO Lee Yong-bae signed a memorandum of understanding with Huta Czestochowa to assess Polish-made armor steel plate for K2PL tanks and support vehicles, which he called "another step in our efforts to increase the participation of Polish industry in the K2 program"; the 61 K2PL tanks in the second executive contract are to be built at Bumar-Labedy in Gliwice. The same day Hanwha Defense and Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa signed a memorandum defining roles for production, servicing, lifecycle cost, and future development across the K9 family, covering Poland's planned 672 howitzers to be manufactured, serviced, and repaired at PGZ plants, and extending to infantry fighting vehicles and rocket artillery if the Polish Armed Forces order them. Hanwha Systems also linked real-time satellite imagery to K9 and Chunmoo fire missions in its first overseas AI demonstration, and KAI displayed a KF-21 teamed with unmanned combat aircraft.

President Lee Jae-myung and French President Emmanuel Macron met at the Elysee Palace on September 9, 2026 during a two-day state visit marking 140 years of diplomatic relations, and agreed to deepen cooperation on military information, logistics, and the defense industry. The two sides signed an upgraded agreement on the protection of classified military information and committed to conclude a mutual military logistics support agreement. On defense industry, they pledged "mutually beneficial projects based on France's technological expertise and South Korea's manufacturing prowess," with Airbus cited as a likely partner, and agreed to joint R&D on AI, semiconductors, and quantum technology plus cooperation on next-generation nuclear reactors and supply-chain diversification. The leaders also set a target of $20 billion in bilateral trade by 2030 and agreed to coordinate on freedom-of-navigation efforts in the Middle East. The summit followed French interest earlier in 2026 in the K239 Chunmoo as a candidate for its long-range fires requirement.

Korea Aerospace Industries was the only Korean exhibitor at the Egypt International Airshow in El Alamein on September 8 to 10, 2026, where it marketed the FA-50 and a KF-21 and FA-50 high-low mix to the Egyptian Air Force. Egypt is running an acquisition for 36 advanced trainer and light-attack aircraft, a program in which the FA-50 competes against Western and Chinese types. No contract progress has been reported, and earlier talk of a deal for up to 100 aircraft is not supported by current reporting. Next milestone: a downselect or contract, timing unknown.

The Royal Thai Navy announced on September 8, 2026 that it has selected Hanwha Ocean's 4,000-ton OCEAN-40F export frigate for its next-generation frigate program, a THB 16.73 billion (~$508 million, 683 billion won) package covering one ship, equipment, spares, documentation, support, and trials. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul acknowledged the evaluation report on September 4 and the Defence Ministry gave final approval on September 7; the Navy will formally brief the selection on September 18 after the appeal period, then negotiate final contract terms. Hanwha Ocean prevailed over five rivals from four countries, including HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, Navantia, ST Engineering, and Turkey's ASFAT and TAIS, leaning on its 2018 delivery of the 3,700-ton HTMS Bhumibol Adulyadej, of which the OCEAN-40F is an enlarged derivative. The design carries a 16-cell VLS for MBDA VL MICA NG, Exocet MM40 Block 3c anti-ship missiles, a 76mm gun, Naval Group's SETIS combat management system, and a TRS-4D radar. Thailand wants eight frigates but operates only four, and Korean reports put potential follow-on orders at up to 4 trillion won. The win is Hanwha Ocean's first surface-combatant export since 2023 and comes as it also competes with HD HHI for the Philippines' first submarine program, with proposal evaluation entering its final stage in September.

South Korea's leading defense companies are exhibiting at MSPO 2026, one of Europe's three largest defense shows, held September 8-11 in Kielce, Poland. Hanwha Aerospace and Hanwha Systems share a 274-square-meter booth under the slogan "Proven Partnership, Strategic Capabilities, Sovereign Defence," showing a multi-layered air defense lineup (L-SAM, H-SHORAD, H-Shield counter-drone, 40mm unmanned air defense), laser weapons including the Cheonkwang anti-aircraft laser and 50kW and 20kW mobile laser vehicles, the K9A2 howitzer, K-NIFV, unmanned ground systems, and the Striker-S unmanned surface vessel with a Chunmoo launcher; Hanwha Systems will demonstrate an AI satellite-imagery analysis solution on September 9. LIG Defense & Aerospace is presenting Cheongung-II, L-SAM, and the KGGB guided glide bomb, targeting Poland's multi-layered air defense and precision-munitions programs. SNT Dynamics and SNT Motiv are showing a 120mm vehicle-mounted mortar, a three-barrel 20mm remote weapon station, a 1,500-1,700 hp tank powerpack, and small arms including the K2C, K16, and K4, pitching integrated MRO and product-support packages. Hyundai Rotem is attending for the fifth consecutive year and KAI is also present, with the Korean delegation expected to review K2, K9, and FA-50 contract execution and expanded post-sale support with Polish counterparts.

South Korea's government plans to establish a 50 billion won venture fund for startups developing security-critical technologies, including AI, semiconductors, space, and defense applications, Seoul Economic Daily reported on September 5, 2026. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Defense Acquisition Program Administration will each contribute 25 billion won, with the fund to grow beyond 200 billion won by 2030. Modeled on In-Q-Tel, the CIA's venture arm, the new institution will sit under Korea Venture Investment Corp. and invest roughly 2-3 billion won per company in early-stage firms with strong technology but unproven commercialization, prioritizing strategic value over financial return. Launch is targeted for mid-2027 at the earliest, pending National Assembly passage of a special act this year. The plan follows the February 2026 MSS-DAPA pledge to nurture 100 defense-participating startups and 30 "defense venture 100-billion-won companies" by 2030.

Korea's four largest defense companies — Hanwha Aerospace, Hyundai Rotem, KAI, and LIG Nex1 — are projected to post combined 2026 sales of about 49.76 trillion won (~$36 billion), with combined order backlogs of up to 98.46 trillion won, Seoul Economic Daily reported on September 2, 2026. New orders from core Western markets, notably the US Army K9MH prototype award and the Spain K9 contract, arrived in the second half after a slow first seven months, and further K2 and K9 orders are expected around the MSPO exhibition in Poland in September. The figures underline how quickly the sector has scaled: the Big Four's combined sales are approaching 50 trillion won only four years after the 2022 Poland mega-deals reset expectations for K-defense.

Brent Ingraham, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, led a delegation to Hanwha Aerospace's defense production complex in Changwon on August 26, 2026, Korea Times and Korea Herald reported on September 2. The group toured the K9 self-propelled howitzer line where K9MH wheeled systems are now in production, observed robotic welding and other automated manufacturing, and watched live demonstrations of the K9MH, K9A1, and Chunmoo rocket launcher. The visit came eight days after Hanwha Defense USA won a $100 million US Army contract (up to $263 million with options) to deliver six K9MH prototypes for the Mobile Tactical Cannon program, with US production planned at a new facility in Alabama. Ingraham oversees more than 550 Army procurement programs worth about $170 billion, making the visit a strong signal of US interest in Korean artillery capacity.

Hanwha Aerospace opened the fifth K9 User Club in Tartu, Estonia on September 2, 2026, drawing about 200 military and industry representatives from seven K9 operator nations (Korea, Estonia, Poland, Norway, Finland, Romania, and Australia) plus observers from Spain and Sweden, the largest turnout to date. Hanwha presented a next-generation operating concept in which VTOL fire-guidance drones detect and track targets, generate firing coordinates for the K9, and then assess impact and battle damage, shortening the sensor-to-shooter loop and reducing reliance on exposed forward observers. The company also showed a digital logistics system cataloguing 700-800 key parts with demand forecasting, to be linked to a Polish spares warehouse. At a Chunmoo user workshop on the sidelines, Hanwha announced the first official Chunmoo User Club will be held in Korea in 2027, and Australia will host the next K9 User Club the same year. Hanwha said it will focus new K9 sales on Western European armies modernizing aging artillery, following the Spain contract that took the K9 operator base to 11 countries.

Airvility, the Seoul-based developer of the AB-U60 drone-carrier and hard-kill interceptor drones, closed a 6.5 billion won Series A on September 1, 2026 led by Silicon Valley venture firm Sage Partners, with Stonebridge Ventures returning and IBK Industrial Bank joining as a new shareholder. Cumulative funding now stands at 10.5 billion won. The proceeds will fund completion of its interceptor line — net-gun, direct-strike, and launcher-type aircraft — targeted for the first half of 2027. The company says it is in supply talks with nine countries across the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Latin America and is targeting 50 billion won in cumulative revenue by 2028.

The Royal Thai Navy has completed its evaluation of bids for a new 4,000-ton frigate, worth roughly 175 billion baht (~800 billion won) and expandable toward 4 trillion won with follow-on ships, and Korean reporting on September 1, 2026 says Hanwha Ocean was the only bidder to clear the first qualification and technical round. The result has been forwarded to the Thai Defense Ministry and cabinet for final approval, with an announcement expected within days. Hanwha Ocean holds an edge from its 2018 delivery of the 3,700-ton HTMS Bhumibol Adulyadej and its improved Ocean-40F export design, while HD Hyundai Heavy Industries countered with a roughly 40% local-production pitch. No final signature had been confirmed as of September 3.

Hanwha, LIG Defense & Aerospace, Hyundai Rotem, and Korea Aerospace Industries were all ranked in the 2026 Defense News Top 100 list of the world's largest defense companies for a second consecutive year, according to Korea Times reporting on September 1, 2026. Hanwha climbed six places to No. 16 on sharply higher 2025 defense revenue, consolidating its position as the largest Korean defense group and one of the fastest-rising firms in the ranking. The showing reflects the export boom driven by Poland, the Middle East, and Australia, and places Korea alongside the US, Europe, China, and Japan among countries with multiple companies in the top tier.

The US Navy on September 1, 2026 began formal evaluations of three allied frigate designs, including South Korea's 4,300-ton Chungnam-class (FFX Batch III), alongside Japan's Mogami-class and Turkiye's Istanbul-class, USNI News reported. The plan, set out in an August 13 procurement framework with $1.85 billion in FY2027 funds, is to buy up to two ships from a foreign builder before transferring construction to US yards, with a selection deadline of November 12, 2026. The Chungnam-class is built by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, SK Oceanplant, and Hanwha Ocean and features CODLOG propulsion with a Rolls-Royce MT30 gas turbine, a 30-knot top speed, and a strong anti-submarine fit. A US selection would be the first American purchase of a Korean-designed warship and would build on Hanwha's Philly Shipyard investment and the growing US-Korea shipbuilding partnership.

The Cabinet approved a 73.28 trillion won ($51 billion) defense budget for 2027 on September 1, 2026, an 8.2% increase from 67.7 trillion won in 2026 and the first time the total has crossed 70 trillion won. The force-improvement portion tied to the wartime operational control (OPCON) transfer rises to 21.3 trillion won from 18.6 trillion won, funding command-and-control upgrades, surveillance drones, and L-SAM long-range interceptors. KF-21 Boramae production funding jumps to roughly 3.3 trillion won from 1.4 trillion won, with an additional 150 billion won earmarked for follow-on production. Nearly 100 billion won is allocated for the first time to the Jangbogo-N nuclear-powered submarine program, covering initial design and nuclear-related reviews. Defense AI spending more than doubles to 361 billion won for drone swarms, attack drones, and counter-drone systems, and the number of full-time reservists nearly doubles from 3,700 to 7,000. Defense spending would reach 2.33% of GDP, still well short of the government's stated 3.5% target. The bill was submitted to the National Assembly on September 3.

The Korea Fair Trade Commission approved Hanwha Group's combined 15.89% stake in Korea Aerospace Industries on August 31, 2026, concluding that Hanwha cannot currently exercise sole control over KAI. The holding comprises 9.90% at Hanwha Aerospace, 4.98% at Hanwha Systems, and 1.01% at Hanwha Aerospace USA; the Export-Import Bank of Korea remains the largest shareholder at 26.41%. The regulator said a fresh business-combination review will be required if Hanwha becomes the largest shareholder, secures the CEO position, or takes more than one-third of board seats. The decision removes the immediate antitrust obstacle to Hanwha's vertical alignment with KAI, which it supplies with engines, radar, avionics, and weapons, while KAI's union continues to oppose any management participation.

Hanwha Aerospace signed the K9 self-propelled howitzer export execution contract with Spain's Indra Sistemas on August 31, 2026, converting the March 2026 binding agreement into a firm order and making Spain the 11th K9 operator nation and Hanwha's first artillery customer in Western Europe. The contract value is undisclosed; Korean reporting estimates the initial tranche at a minimum of about 667.5 billion won (~$480 million), with Hanwha receiving a 20% down payment at signing and a further 5% by year-end. Unit counts and the delivery schedule are confidential. The program follows Spain's deep-localization model, with hulls and much of the production led by Indra in Spain, a structure widely expected to shape follow-on negotiations with Poland and Romania.

EGCED Tech, operator of the D4D (Deploy for Defense) platform, announced on August 28, 2026 a partnership with Korea Investment Accelerator to run a roughly three-month Oregon Defense Tech Base Camp for Korean startups in unmanned aircraft, autonomous systems, and robotics. Participants gain access to overseas flight-test environments through the Oregon UAS Accelerator, local industry partners, and university and defense-ecosystem networks in the state. The program directly addresses the regulatory and airspace constraints that limit drone and robotics testing inside Korea and builds on the Oregon MOU signed in Seoul in July after the D4D Hackathon.