The ‘Laser Based Anti-Aircraft Weapon Block-I' developed by Hanwha Aerospace and ADD. (DAPA)
South Korean firm Hanwha Aerospace started production on 11 July of a new anti-aircraft laser weapon, the country's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) announced.
DAPA said the start of production follows a contract it signed with Hanwha Aerospace in late June to produce the ‘Laser Based Anti-Aircraft Weapon Block-I' for the Republic of Korea (RoK) Armed Forces. Under the contract, which is valued at KRW100 billion (USD72.5 million), deliveries of an unknown number of systems will start later in 2024.
“This laser anti-aircraft weapon (Block-I) is a new-concept future weapon system that neutralises targets by directly irradiating them with a light-source laser generated from an optical fibre,” DAPA said. “[The system] can precisely strike small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and multicopters at close range.”
DAPA said the Block-I system is “silent, does not require ammunition, and can be operated only with electricity”. It said the cost of a single firing of the weapon is about KRW2,000.
“In addition, if output is improved in the future it is a weapon system that can play a game-changing role in the future battlefield, capable of responding to aircraft and ballistic missiles,” DAPA said.
Development of the Block-I system started in 2019, with a budget of KRW87 billion. DAPA's Agency for Defense Development (ADD) led the development project and Hanwha Aerospace was selected as programme development and production partner.
DAPA also said it intends to develop a Block-II version that will have extended range and increased power compared with the Block-I variant. DAPA did not elaborate on the performance of either the Block-I or Block-II variants.
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