In yesterday’s Korean Times the state of Korea’s future defense aerospace procurement plan is outlined. In the recent past Korea had optimistic plans to develop its own UAVs and 5th generation fighter aircraft (KF-X). After some feasibility studies, it appears reality is setting in.
Late last year, the Korea Development Institute, a private economic policy think tank, concluded the KF-X would cost at least $10 billion but could be expected to reap only $3 billion in economic benefits….
The analyst said there is little global demand for manned fighters, nor could South Korea compete against the JSF (Joint Strike Fighter).
Seoul should concentrate on developing UAVs, avionics and related systems, and on improving the T-50 and KT-1 trainer planes, he noted. (Emphasis mine)
Read the rest on your own.
8 Comments
Definitely Korea ought to invest in the wave of the future — UAVs. And we have professional video game leagues standing by for defense of the nation!
Maybe the Koreans could make robots which take care of the elderly… and take-over Japan that way.
#1 - Unfortunately, UAVs tend to be a bit too expensive to waste on zerg rushes. Plus, unless they come installed with either an overhead map point-and-click interface, or else a FPS-style interface that allows the user to change weapons 40-50 times a minute, I’m afraid that the average gaming ‘professional’ wouldn’t have much advantage over a trained monkey.
But what about 외나라 (sic)?
WangGon, please note it’s the Korea Times, not Korean Times
UAVs! YES!
Maybe they could build a BASE for em on TAKESHIMA ISLAND and send them over to drop water balloons on Tokyo subway perverts! They could soak em RIGHT when they reach in for the (bought and paid for group) grope!
You could also get a bunch of film directors (ones who have NOT been kidnapped by the North) and use the UAVs to send love packets to Kim Jong Il that would be, like, full of tips on directing good movies like D WARS. That movie ROCKED.
NO you could send the movie about the Han River monster instead, cause then the Nork security goons who just finished TORTURING the guards who accidentally shot a woman dead would have to let it pass up the chain cause it has a TOTALLY TRUTHFUL representation of an EVIL AMERICAN BASTARD forcing the Korean doctor (pure as the driven snow) to dump POISON in the HAN RIVER.
Yeah.. yeah.. yeah… (heavy breathing as another shot of soju is slammed)….
IF the cost estimate is $10 billion for 120 aircraft, that comes out to $83.3 million each. That is comparable to the cost of a F-35 ($83 million). The unit price for the Eurofighter is $122.5 million.
The Turkish AF already ordered 100 F-35A so I doubt they’d be interested in the Korean aircraft.
IMO S. Korea doesn’t have to rely everything on US, there’s European and Russian (PAK-FA) sources for technology.
Ah Jerry,
If only South Korea’s government had listened to me here:
http://www.rjkoehler.com/2007/.....ent-114743
They wouldn’t have needed to hire no stink’in expensive think tank to tell them the same thing seven months later!..