Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) said on the 6th that it held a presentation on localization development results and a technology exchange meeting for the "Aviation Materials Development Alliance" at its headquarters in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang, and succeeded in localizing a total of 228 types of materials. The Aviation Materials Development Alliance is a coalition launched in 2019 with the goal of establishing a cooperative system for the development of the domestic aerospace industry and the localization of materials.
KAI has localized about 69 types of aviation materials, including aluminum extrusions, titanium rolled products, and powders, and about 159 standard items in machinery, avionics, and piping, for a current total of 228 types. Aviation materials must be lightweight while providing high strength and durability.
The localized materials have been applied to the KF-21 and mass-production aircraft. As a result, KAI said it achieved a cumulative import substitution effect of 71.5 billion won. Of about 1,800 types of materials and standard items, KAI aims to replace roughly 900 high-usage items with localized materials by 2030 to achieve an import substitution effect worth about 1.3 trillion won.
A KAI official said, "If we succeed in localizing materials, we can enhance export competitiveness by stabilizing supply, improving cost competitiveness, shortening production schedules, and reducing transportation costs, and because the added value is high, the embedded economic effect and job creation effect are also significant."