I kind of assumed the K9 would have had its own domestically produced engine considering Korea’s manufacturing prowess; regardless soon it will have a Korean made engine:
South Korea has produced the first homegrown engine for the country’s K9 self-propelled howitzer after a yearslong development project, the state arms procurement agency said Friday.
The move comes after the country began the 32.16 billion-won (US$24.5 million) project in 2021, involving STX Engine Co., Hanwha Aerospace Co. and others, as part of efforts to reduce reliance on foreign defense parts, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).
The K9, produced by Hanwha Aerospace, has been powered by a German MTU engine, built by STX Engine under a license.
DAPA said the homegrown engine will be more cost efficient and have improved performance. It is also expected to help efforts to export the K9 as it would not need to undergo extra approval procedures required for components of foreign origin.
You can read more at the link.
I guess we will see if robotics becomes another defense industry product that the ROK can reliably produce:
The state arms procurement agency said Monday it has test-deployed a multi-legged robot designed for counter-terrorism operations as part of a push to introduce advanced technologies to the military.
The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) launched the project in August 2022 to develop a robot that can check for threats inside buildings in a terror situation before troops are deployed.
The Army received the robot last Wednesday to conduct the six-month trial run to determine whether it is suitable for operations. The Army Special Warfare Command and a front-line Army division will assess its performance and capabilities.
You can read more at the link.
This is another way for South Korea to respond to increasing provocative behavior from North Korea:
South Korea’s army held live-fire artillery practice near the border with North Korea for the first time in six years, and the first such move since suspending a ban on live drills in June. The artillery drill was conducted at an unspecified firing range within three miles of the Military Demarcation Line, the actual border dividing the Korean Peninsula, according to a news release Tuesday from the South Korean army.
The border is inside the 2½-mile-wide Demilitarized Zone. Numerous air and artillery ranges are scattered near the border with North Korea. U.S. and South Korean troops conduct drills throughout the year at the 3,390-acre Rodriguez Live Fire Complex roughly 16 miles south of the border. Tuesday’s artillery drill focused on South Korea’s “response capabilities and fire preparedness” in the event of North Korean provocations, the release said. The army said it plans to regularly conduct artillery drills around the area for the foreseeable future.
Stars & Stripes
You can read more at the link.
