Korea Aerospace Industries' (KAI's) third Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) prototype flies during the 76th anniversary of the Armed Forces Day at Seoul Air Force Base on 25 September 2024. (Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) is preparing to deliver the first of 10 contracted Light Armed Helicopters (LAHs) to the Republic of Korea Army (RoKA) from December, a company spokesperson has said.
According to the spokesperson, the first production helicopter has started flight-testing. “The helicopter can be delivered to the RoK Army after the test flight is successfully [completed],” the spokesperson told Janes on 10 October.
The delivery schedule is in line with KAI's December 2022 contractual agreement with the South Korean government. The RoKA's acquisition of the 10 helicopters is valued at KRW302 billion (USD22.44 million). This includes integrated product support and training for first-time operators, Janes reported.
According to the company spokesperson, KAI is working to complete the production of the remaining helicopters in the batch.
South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has previously said that deliveries of the batch will take place after the army completes its “acceptance inspection”.
The South Korean government awarded KAI a second production contract, valued at KRW1.4 trillion, in December 2023. Helicopters from this production batch are due to be delivered to the RoKA from the fourth quarter of 2025, according to KAI. The South Korean Ministry of National Defense (MND) has said that the LAH will become a core component of the RoKA's mobile strike force.
Imagery analysis suggests that KAI has produced at least three airworthy LAH prototypes. Helicopter No 001 conducted its maiden test flight in July 2019.
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