Free Republic

SEOUL, Jan. 26 (Yonhap) -- The U.S.' stalled decision over the export of a key GPS system is causing a major delay in South Korea's plan to introduce Taurus missiles by the end of this year, sources said Tuesday. The U.S. government is currently delaying its decision on whether to approve the export of a military GPS receiver for the local project to arm its fighter jets with the made-in-Germany air-to-surface missiles, military and defense procurement officials said. Any decision on the matter is expected to come after August, according to the officials. The GPS component is an integral part...

The F-15K Slam Eagle of the Republic of Korea Air Force is currently considered the most advanced fighter in Northeast Asia when compared to its Chinese and Japanese counterparts, the Hong Kong-based Ta Kung Pao reports. After Beijing established its air defense identification zone on Nov. 23, tensions between China, Japan and South Korea have heightened over the disputed East China Sea. There are disputes between China and Japan over the Diaoyutai (called the Diaoyu in China, the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyutai in Taiwan), between China and South Korea over Socotra Rock (called Ieodo in South Korea and...

At least 7 percent of F-15Ks, the most advanced fighter jets that Korea has ever purchased, have been flying with a malfunctioning electronic countermeasures (ECM) system over the past few years...

Boeing delivered the final two F-15K Slam Eagles to the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) on April 2 at Daegu Air Base. All ROKAF F-15Ks were delivered on cost and on schedule. "Boeing is proud to have worked with the ROKAF to ensure that their F-15Ks included all the capability and power necessary to defend their homeland through 2040 and beyond," said Roger Besancenez, F-15 Program vice president for Boeing. Boeing will continue to support the ROKAF fleet through the long-term, affordable Performance Based Logistics (PBL) sustainment contract the company received from the Republic of Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program...

[Exclusive] F-15K jets fly blind to enemy attacks At least 7 percent of F-15Ks, the most advanced fighter jets that Korea has ever purchased, have been flying with a malfunctioning electronic countermeasures (ECM) system over the past few years, according to multiple sources Thursday. No less than four of the country’s 52 F-15Ks in service are operating with a defective ALQ-135M, an internal ECM system manufactured and supplied only to Korea by Northrop Grumman, they said. “Korea has set aside $56 million to procure six ALQ-135Ms to use them as spare parts as the critical electronic warfare suite of the...

Is South Korea Stealing U.S. Weapons Technologies? Let’s say one hears rumblings that certain East Asian countries are stealing US defense technology. Naturally, the immediate assumption is that it’s the North Koreans or the Chinese. Little would anyone expect that it is South Korea, one of the US’s staunchest allies, who might be doing some copyright law-breaking. According to Korean newspaper the Chosun Ilbo, there had been talk in recent weeks that American intelligence agencies were investigating Korean defense companies to see if they had developed weapons based on stolen US military technologies. “The rumors began circulating after an unusual...

U.S. Suspects Korea of Stealing Weapons Technology Korean and U.S. military officers earlier this year investigated suspicions by the U.S. government that Korea illegally disassembled F-15K fighter jet equipment for low-altitude night penetration attacks. An official with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration on Monday said the chief of the U.S. Defense Technology Security Administration raised suspicions in a meeting with a senior DAPA official in early June that Korea illegally disassembled Tiger Eye, a key component of the cutting-edge U.S.-made fighter jets. The U.S. suspects this was done to steal the technology, since Korea is an aspiring player in the...

South Korea to invite bids for F-15K cruise missile By Greg Waldron South Korea is to invite bids for a new stealth cruise missile to equip its Boeing F-15K Slam Eagle, following technical glitches implementing Lockheed Martin's AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM). A source at the nation's Defense Acquisition Program Administration confirms that bidding for the missile will open in June. He would not divulge details about how many missiles South Korea intends to acquire, or the specific technical difficulties South Korea encountered trying to implement JASSM. Possible bidders in the South Korean competition could include Europe's MBDA with...

The Air Force has received two more F-15K fighter jets from U.S. defense contractor Boeing, bringing the total number of the advanced aircraft in the country to 47, officials said Monday. South Korea purchased 21 F-15K Slam Eagle jets in 2008 under the second phase of its fighter jet modernization project, and the delivery of the jets will be completed by 2012. The first-phase procurement of 40 F-15K jets was completed in 2008. The two new F-15Ks were deployed at the South's 11th Fighter Wing in Daegu, 302 kilometers southeast of Seoul, according to the Air Force. With a combat...

Boeing [on Nov. 8 delivered three F-15K Slam Eagles to the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF) at Daegu Air Base. The company delivered the first three of 21 F-15Ks it is producing under the Next Fighter II contract to the ROKAF in September. The remaining 15 aircraft will be delivered through March 2012. "Boeing is honored to deliver these highly advanced fighters to the ROKAF," said Roger Besancenez, Boeing F-15 Program vice president. "We will continue to work closely with our ROKAF customers to prepare for upcoming deliveries that will provide them with superior air combat capability, as we...

S.Korea to Buy $1.2 Bil Dollar Worth of K9 and F-15Ks The South Korean government has set a 1.4 trillion won or about 1.2-billion-US-dollar budget in purchasing K-9 self-propelled howitzers and F-15K fighter jets with the hopes of strengthening the country's military and naval forces. According to finance and defense ministries on Friday the amount of next year's national defense budget has increased 5.8 percent compared to this year's. Such an increase is seen as an effort to strengthen South Korea's military capabilities in the wake of North Korea's attack on Yeonpyeong Island this week. With the newly set budget...

A 26-year-old Belgian schoolteacher has been found guilty of killing her romantic rival by sabotaging her parachute in a skydiving love-triangle. Els Clottemans on Wednesday sat stony-faced as the 12-member jury's verdict was read in the northeast Flemish town of Tongres at the end of a trial that captivated Belgium. Clottemans, who claimed her innocence again before the verdict, faces between three years to life in prison. The sentence will be decided in a separate hearing. The jurors replied "yes" to the question of her guilt and as to whether the crime was premeditated, judge Michel Jordans said in a...

There is a resurgence in interest in South Korea's fighter aircraft requirements, with the east Asian country deciding on a variety of aircraft as part of an ongoing modernisation of its air force's capabilities. The choices represent a mix of imported and indigenous solutions, with the country trying to find a way to match its operational requirements with a desire to promote the local industry, mainly state-owned Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI). South Korea has maintained three levels of fighters - low, medium and high - as part of its operational capability. At the low level are Northrop F-5s, at the...

South Korea and the United States will stage large-scale anti-submarine drills in the Yellow Sea after the United Nations takes action against Pyongyang for sinking of the South Korean warship Cheonan, Yonhap news agency said. "The joint drills will be carried out after the U N Security Council takes measure against North Korea," the agency quoting Col. Lee Bung Woo said. The United States’s 97,000-ton USS George Washington, an Aegis-equipped destroyer, and a nuclear-powered submarine are reportedly participating in the joint naval drills and a 4,500-ton destroyer, a submarine and F-15K fighter jets will take part from the South Korean...

South Korea and the United States are expected to fix dates for their joint naval exercises after assessing progress in Seoul's diplomatic efforts to rebuke North Korea at the U.N. Security Council, an official here said Monday. The two countries agreed last month to hold the drills after a multinational team of investigators blamed North Korea for torpedoing a South Korean warship, the Cheonan, in the Yellow Sea on March 26. The attack left 46 sailors dead. Seoul has referred the incident to the Security Council, urging its members to punish North Korea. "The dates for the joint exercises are...

Korean Air Force decommissions F-4D jets By Jung Sung-ki Staff reporter A squadron of F-4D Phantom fighter jets conducted its last flight Wednesday, ending its 41 years of service with the ROK Air Force. A ceremony for the decommissioning of the aircraft was held at the 11th Fighter Wing in Daegu, about 300 kilometers south of Seoul. Boeing-built F-15K Slam Eagle fighters will replace the older aircraft. “Though the F-4D aircraft is fading into the mist of history, their spirit will be succeeded by the F-15K, which will further bolster our air defense,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Lee...

US aircraft carrier will join a major anti-submarine naval exercise with South Korea next week in a show of strength to North Korea after the sinking of a warship, reports said Wednesday. South Korea, which accuses the North of torpedoing its ship Cheonan in March with the loss of 46 lives, is also mounting a diplomatic drive at the United Nations but indicated it would not seek new sanctions. The USS George Washington will leave its base in the Japanese port of Yokosuka around Saturday and arrive in the Yellow Sea early next week, Yonhap news agency quoted a military...

On April 19 conducted the first flight of F-15K41, the first of 21 F-15K Slam Eagles the company is producing under the Next Fighter II contract for the Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF). The aircraft, flown by Boeing test pilot Steve Schmidt, took off from Lambert St. Louis International Airport at 2:36 p.m. Central time and landed at 3:44 p.m. The F-15K is an advanced variant of the combat-proven F-15E. Equipped with the latest technological upgrades, it is extremely capable, survivable and maintainable. The F-15K enables the ROKAF to change its focus from the short-range defense of the past...

F-15Ks Primed with 'Unpatriotic' Maps The Air Force's F-15K fighter jets carried some digital map information that is at odds with their mission to defend the country, it has emerged. The jets carried digital maps that referred to Korea's Dokdo Islets either by their Japanese name "Takeshima" or as "Liancourt Rocks," the East Sea as "Sea of Japan," and Mt. Baekdu in Chinese as "Changbaishan" -- all names that are red rags to many patriotic Koreans. This was revealed by Grand National Party lawmaker Kim Jang-soo, a former defense minister, in a questionnaire distributed Sunday prior to a parliamentary audit...

Boeing Left as Sole Bidder for Fighter Contract U.S. aerospace company Boeing will likely be the sole bidder to participate in the second phase of Korea’s F-X fighter jet procurement project. Korea will purchase 20 F-15K fighter jets in the second phase of the defense project between 2010 and 2012. Originally three bidders were expected to compete to win the contract: U.S. defense manufacturer Lockheed Martin, European consortium Eurofighter International and Boeing. Lockheed Martin recently withdrew its bid and now Eurofighter has also decided not to participate. According to a military source, Eurofighter’s agent European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co....