Tag: K-9

It looks like Putin’s War has opened a whole new market for the ROK defense industry:

Poland’s defense minister said his country will buy a large package of Korean weapons, including K-2 tanks, K-9 self-propelled howitzers and FA-50 light fighter jets, and also manufacture some weapons in Poland under license, according to a media report released Wednesday.  
   
In an interview with Polish defense media outlet Defence24, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak cited the Russian invasion of Ukraine as the main driver of the purchase.  
   
“The unpredictable nature of Putin means that we need to accelerate equipment modernization even further,” Blaszczak said. “It is of key importance to increase the levels of security as fast as possible for Poland. We can do this only by creating a powerful military that is strong enough to deter any potential aggressor from deciding to attack.” 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

This is interesting, India would like to work with South Korea to export their specific model of the K-9 Thunder howitzer. It makes me wonder which countries they have in mind to export the K-9 to?:

India is seeking to export the K9 self-propelled howitzer to third countries in cooperation with South Korea, India’s secretary for defense production said Thursday, stressing his country is pushing for a “win-win” partnership between the two sides.

Raj Kumar made the remarks during an exclusive interview with Yonhap News Agency, expressing satisfaction over India’s recent deployment of the K9s, which were manufactured by the Indian company, L&T, in technical collaboration with the South Korean company Hanwha Defense.

“The Indian armed forces are very satisfied with the performance of the K9 Vajra platform, where the K9 Thunder has been very effectively adapted and indigenously built for Indian conditions and requirements,” the secretary said.

“The variant of the platform also has good potential in third countries, and our governments (of India and South Korea) and industries are cooperating to take these opportunities forward,” he added.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

These are very capable artillery pieces that Estonia is purchasing from South Korea:

Estonia has agreed to buy South Korean artillery in a $54 million deal that officials say will substantially boost the small Baltic country’s defense capacity.

The Estonian military procurement agency says the contract with Seoul-based weapons producer Hanwha Land Systems is for 12 K9 Thunder howitzers, training, maintenance and spare parts.

Agency director Col. Rauno Sirk said after a signing ceremony on Tuesday that the artillery pieces “will bring Estonia’s defense capacity to a new level and be one of the most considerable steps of building up armored maneuvering capacity.”

The first howitzers are to arrive in Estonia in 2020.  [Stars & Stripes]

Here is news of a tragic training accident that occurred up in Choerwon:

One Army soldier was killed and six others were injured Friday in an explosion during an artillery firing drill, the military said.

The blast occurred on the shooting range of a front-line Army unit in Cheorwon, some 88 kilometers north of Seoul, at 3:19 p.m., according to an Army officer.

Seven servicemen were rushed to a hospital and one of them, a 27-year-old sergeant first class, died during the transport, the officer said.

“An unidentified explosion took place during the drill, injuring some people,” he said. A probe into the cause of the incident is underway, he added.

Flames erupted from inside one of the 10 K-9 Thunder self-propelled howitzers during the training session, injuring the seven soldiers attending it, according to the officer.  [Yonhap]