The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said on the 23rd that it held a kick-off meeting for an additional weapons testing program for the Korean fighter KF-21 at Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang.
The program is intended to verify the KF-21's weapons operation capability and secure its full performance as a multirole fighter. DAPA and others plan to test more than 10 types of air-to-ground (launched from the air to the ground) weapons for the KF-21 from this month through Dec. 2028, spending about 700 billion won.
Under a phased plan to secure air-to-ground weapons capability, DAPA will shorten the timeline for the initial air-to-ground capability by about 1 year and 6 months from the original plan and, starting in 2027, sequentially apply weapons that pass testing to mass-produced KF-21s.
Earlier, in the system development phase, the KF-21 succeeded in flight tests for control stability, verification of avionics performance, and air-to-air launch tests. It has now completed design, verification, and ground tests for air-to-ground weapons flight testing. After the start of this program, it will swiftly move into flight tests.
No Ji-man, head of DAPA's Korean Fighter Program Office, said, "The air-to-ground weapons capability secured through this program will not only dramatically enhance the KF-21's operational capability on future battlefields, but also have a positive impact on the technological self-reliance of the domestic aviation industry and its entry into global markets."