As Israel said it successfully completed a performance test of an anti-air weapon system that intercepts missiles at an altitude of 10 kilometers with a laser, voices are calling for Korea to also speed up the advancement of laser anti-air weapon technology. Many countries, including Korea, are at the level of intercepting low-altitude flying objects such as drones.
According to Reuters and others on the 19th, Israel's Ministry of National Defense reported that on the 17th (local time) it completed preparations to deploy Iron Beam, a high-power laser-based system that intercepts missiles, into operation. Iron Beam is a weapon that fires a 100 kW high energy laser to intercept rockets, drones, and missiles. Israel's anti-air system consists of Iron Dome, the medium-range interceptor missile David's Sling, and the Arrow missile for ballistic missile response, and Iron Beam is expected to be integrated into the Iron Dome system for operation.
The advantages of laser anti-air weapons are price and interception time. A typical anti-air missile is known to cost at least $50,000 (about 69 million won) per round. When Israel blocked Iran's air attack this year, the expense for Iron Dome alone was reported to be at least 1.5 trillion won. In contrast, the cost per shot for a laser anti-air weapon is in the 1,000–2,000 won range. Also, as long as there is sufficient power, it can be installed anywhere, and the time to intercept a target is shorter than a missile.
Having embarked on developing laser anti-air weapons in the early 2020s, Israel appears to have secured technology that projects a high-power laser to a range of more than 8–10 kilometers without energy loss after years of testing. It has also accumulated combat experience by deploying test units on multiple fronts. The Ministry of National Defense said in May that it "operated a high-power laser system prototype (for testing) and successfully intercepted an enemy missile."
Once Iron Beam's fielding is complete, Israel will become the first in the world to possess an anti-air weapon capable of intercepting missiles at an altitude of 10 kilometers. The United States and China are also developing laser anti-air weapons. China unveiled what appeared to be the LY-1 laser weapon during a military parade on the 3rd for Victory Day. Detailed specifications and performance have not been disclosed. The United States launched the "SONGBOW" project, a next-generation laser weapon development plan, early this month, and Japan is developing laser anti-air weapons mounted on naval vessels.
Korea, which began developing anti-air weapons in 2019, has also deployed laser anti-air weapons into service. Under the direction of the Agency for Defense Development (ADD), 87.1 billion won was invested in development, with Hanwha Aerospace participating. Last year it was unveiled under the name "Cheongwang (Block I)," with an effective range of about 3 kilometers. The laser output is also reported to still be lower than that of other countries.
Currently, research and development related to laser anti-air weapons is led by Hanwha Systems. Hanwha Systems recently introduced Cheongwang at the International Defence Industry Exhibition in Poland and said it would make it a new growth engine. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration and others are reviewing a performance improvement program for Cheongwang (Block II), but no specific plan has been established yet. The Block II program is said to be a form mounted on vehicles such as tanks.
Because Korea is exposed to North Korea's missile threat, there are calls to accelerate the development of laser anti-air weapons to upgrade the air defense network. An industry official said, "Laser anti-air weapons are a global trend," and added, "We need to speed up research and development of Block II and Block III."