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Tech Transfer Hobbles South Korea's Fighter Program
By Jung Sung-ki2 p.m. EDT September 27, 2015

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SEOUL, South Korea — Only six months after Seoul’s KF-X fighter program took off, the state project valued at about US $15 billion faces a crash over tech transfer issues with the US government.

The KF-X is linked to Lockheed Martin’s sale of 40 F-35As to South Korea under the F-X III program through the Foreign Military sales process. Lockheed Martin offered to provide 21 technologies required to build the KF-X fighter jet as part of F-X III offset deals. The US aircraft giant was also selected as the main partner to build KF-X with Korea Aerospace Industries.

At the request of Seoul’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), Lockheed Martin also agreed to consult with the US government over the transfer of four more technologies related to the active electronically scanned radar (AESA), electro-optical targeting pod, infrared search-and-rescue systems, and radio frequency jammer.

In April, however, the DAPA received notice of the refusal to transfer the four technologies, according DAPA officials.

“We were trying to secure the US export license of those technologies but failed to get them,” Lt. Gen. Park Shin-kyu, head of DAPA’s procurement business bureau, said. “Instead, we’ll seek ways of obtaining those technologies from other countries or through local developments.”

The general hinted the KF-X timeline could be further delayed from 2025 without the US tech transfer.

The AESA, in particular, is a key specification of the KF-X, which is expected to be a twin-engine F-16-plus fighter jet with high-end sensor systems. Some 120 jets are to be built to replace the aging fleet of F-4s and F-5s.

Lockheed Martin says it is still consulting with the US government over transfer of the technologies.

“There is no F-35 customer nation receiving the AESA radar technology,” a Lockheed official said. “We made it clear that the tech transfer is only possible with the approval of the US government. We tried but failed.”

Cheong Wa Dae (executive office), however, said DAPA was trying to cover up the tech transfer failure.

The presidential office launched a probe into the suspicion that DAPA had selected Lockheed as the final bidder for both the F-X III and KF-X programs in an unfair manner.

“The presidential office will look into all paperwork and documents related to the KF-X program,” a Cheong Wa Dae spokesman said, adding that the fighter development plan could be halted if it is judged nonviable economically and technically.

Some pundits anticipate the KF-X fiasco could affect the F-X III contract in a worst-case scenario.

“I think it’s not possible that the South Korean government cancels the F-X III contract with Lockheed Martin at this moment,” Kim Dae-young, secretary-general of the Korea Defense & Security Forum, a Seoul-based defense think-tank, said. “But the controversy over the F-X III competition process could become an issue again.”

In 2013, Lockheed Martin was dropped in the middle of the F-X III competition, but the DAPA reversed its decision later, upsetting then-preferred bidder Boeing.

The DAPA argued the country’s Air Force needs to operate fighters fitted with the so-called fifth-generation radar-evading capability in response to North Korea’s threats. As a result, Lockheed Martin won the $7 billion deal, beating Boeing and Eurofighter though the latter promised to provide more lenient tech transfers than did the former.

“The easiest way is to buy US radar and sensors to fit them into the KF-X jet, but that may provoke a backlash,” Kim said, referring to the alleged trauma of the T-50 development.

Lockheed Martin helped South Korea develop the T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jet. But key technologies are protected by the US, so integrating European radars into the plane or exporting the jet to other countries requires US approval.

“This case should serve as an opportunity for us to look back on the way we treat the US,” said Rep. Kim Jung-hoon of the ruling Saenuri Party. “We decided to buy fifth-generation fighter jets with the expectation of sophisticated tech transfer, but now we have nothing.”

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The ship-based Korean Surface-to-Air Anti-Missile (K-SAAM, or SAAM) system is halfway through operational test firing and on track to enter service with the Republic of Korea Navy (RoKN) in 2018, officials from manufacturer LIG Nex1 said at the Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (ADEX) 2015.

The K-SAAM programme began in 2011 with operational test firing starting in 2013, one of the missile's designers told IHS Jane's in Seoul. LIG Nex1 has held 22 operational test firings and expects to hold about 10 more before a contract is signed with the Defence Acquisition Programme Agency, which manages all defence acquisitions in South Korea, in late 2016 or early 2017.

The medium-range system is intended to protect the RoKN's surface fleet from anti-ship cruise missiles and aircraft, and will replace the short-range Raytheon Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM) in providing close-in ship defence, LIG Nex1 officials said.

The 2.07 m long K-SAAM employs inertial mid-course guidance and a dual microwave and imaging infrared seeker for terminal guidance. It is housed in a four-cell vertical launch system (VLS), four of which are intended to be fitted to RoKN ships, giving 16 missiles per ship. It can also be retrofitted to existing VLS already in service, the officials said.

Officials declined to disclose its range or speed, but pointed to its jet vane assembly and imaging infrared seeker as major technical accomplishments that they saw as improvements on the RAM.

The RoKN first ordered RAM systems in 1999 under a USD24.9 million order covering the supply of three Mk 49 guided missile launching systems (GMLSs) for its initial batch of three KDX-2 destroyers. It is also fitted to the RoKN's KDX-3 destroyers, Incheon-class frigates, and Dokdo amphibious assault ship.

As well as eventually replacing RAM on these ships, K-SAAM will also be fitted to the RoKN's minehunters, LIG Nex1 officials said.

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Navy fires warning shots at NK patrol boat


By Kang Seung-woo

South Korea fired warning shots at a North Korean patrol boat that crossed the maritime border in the Yellow Sea, Saturday, the military announced on Sunday.

The incident took place while the second round of reunions of families separated by the 1950-53 Korean War are being held at the Mount Geumgang resort in the North.

The North Korean vessel's intrusion across the Northern Limit Line (NLL) occurred at 3:30 p.m. when it sailed into South-controlled waters by as much as 700 meters. The NLL is a de facto maritime border.

According to the military, the ship is believed to have been cracking down on about 100 illegal Chinese fishing boats near the South's Yeonpyeong Island.

The South Korean Navy fired five warning shots at the North Korean boat, which retreated about 18 minutes after the shots were fired.

"There was no clash in forcing the North Korea ship back to its waters, with no injuries being reported," a military official said.

The military has tightened vigilance in the region to brace for similar NLL violations in the near future.

In June, the South Korean Navy twice forced North Korean ships back into their own territorial waters with warning shots.

In response, Pyongyang criticized the South for carrying out a military provocation.

"South Korean belligerents conducted a military provocation against our patrol boat, which was carrying out its duties in our waters," said a spokesman for the North's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea (CPRK).

"The South's move is aimed at purposely increasing tensions on the Korean Peninsula through a military clash."

Since the Aug. 25 inter-Korean agreement to defuse cross-border tension and improve bilateral ties, the Kim Jong-un regime has refrained from raising tension on the peninsula.

It did not launch an anticipated long-range missile on Oct. 10 _ the 70th anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party.

Chang Yong-seok, a senior analyst at Seoul National University's Institute for Peace and Unification, said the NLL incident would not immediately damage inter-Korean relations, including the family reunions.

"The CPRK's condemnation seems to be a theoretical response to the South's warning shots at its patrol ship," Chang said.

"Therefore, the incident is unlikely to increase tension between the two nations in the near future."

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South Korea’s KF-X Still Treading Water
Dec 3, 2015

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| Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

• 
  
  Artist's concept of KFX: KAI
  
  
  BEIJING – South Korea’s KF-X indigenous fighter program will tread water again in 2016 but has at least survived a risk of cancellation that it has faced over the past few months.
  
  Parliament on Dec. 2 authorized spending 67 billion won ($57.3 million) on KF-X, only enough for more preliminary work on the two-engine aircraft, which is intended to be as big as the
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  . It would be developed with help from
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  and Indonesia, the latter a 20% partner.
  
  The defense ministry may not have wanted to begin full-scale development next year, anyway, since it asked the finance ministry in August to recommend a budget of only 162 billion won. The finance ministry cut the figure down to the level that parliament has approved.
  
  
  The program was not assured of getting any money at all. Political resistance to the challenging project escalated in September when South Korean politicians and the public learned that the U.S. would not supply sensitive technology, despite earlier assurances from the Defense Acquisition Program Agency (DAPA) that Washington would cooperate.
  In October the defense committee of parliament said it would recommend a termination of funding if DAPA failed to present a convincing and comprehensive report on KF-X.
  
  The committee eventually recommended funding, but there was still a risk that parliament would not OK the recommendation, as it usually would. And President Park Geun-hye also called for DAPA to report on the program. She could have stopped it by executive order but did not.
  
  DAPA tried to bypass the finance ministry last month, asking parliament to approve the originally requested 162 billion won. DAPA chief Chang Myoungjin said that if the project did not get that much 2016 funding it could be delayed by two or three years.
  
  But it was not clear why one year’s inadequate funding would result in more than one year’s delay. When member of parliament Kim Seongchan challenged Chang on that point, the official said only that the estimate was based on his personal experience.
  
  Since 2012, when DAPA proposed to begin full-scale development in the following year, parliament has repeatedly restricted funding to only enough for preliminary development.
  
  The first KF-X would fly around seven years after the beginning of full-scale development, says Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI), DAPA’s preferred but unconfirmed prime contractor. Approval for volume production would be given eight years after launch, according to the company’s schedule.
  
  A preliminary contract signed by KAI and the government of Indonesia last month seems to have removed immediate doubts about the continued participation of that country. But the question of technological transfer remains unresolved.
  
  Yonhap news agency quotes a U.S.
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  spokesperson as saying: “The U.S. government is in discussions with Lockheed Martin to address [South Korean] areas of concern. We will continue to work closely with Lockheed Martin throughout this process to ensure continued support to the KF-X program.”
  

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The Republic of Korea (ROK or South Korea) Navy unveiled a new naval base on the southern resort island of Jeju. Jeju island is strategically located in a sea passage connecting the East China Sea and the Sea of Japan (East Sea) in the northwest Pacific Ocean. The 7,600-ton KDX-III Aegis Destroyer Yulgok Yi arrived on December 22 to the "Jeju civil-military sea port base" (the official designation of the base) ahead of its official launch scheduled for January.
A KDX-III Destroyer is set to be permanently homeported to the new base whihc spans nearly 500,000 square meters with docks running some 5 kilometers. The dual-use base is capable of simultaneously docking up to 20 combat ships and two of the biggest cruise ships, larger than 150,000 tons. With the relocations, Jeju will host more than 3,000 Navy troops as well as the Submarine Force Command. The base could see more destroyers in the future as South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff( JCS) decided in 2013 to increase the number of its Aegis destroyers from the current three to six by 2027 to strengthen its maritime combat capabilities

The ROK Navy stressed the new base will dramatically enhance the Navy's ability to counter North Korea's potential provocations at the sea borders both in the west and the east. The new naval compound also has in mind the mission to defend Ieo Island, known as Socotra Rock, a strategically important South Korean submerged rock located nearly 300 km southwest of Jeju. China has previously laid claims to the resource-rich rock, which South Korea controls with the presence of its maritime research center there.

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KAI, or Korea Aerospace Industries, Inc. announced today it has completed the development of the amphibious variant of its Surion transport helicopter, which will help enhance the range of operation and mobility for the ROK Marine Corps, specifically from ROK Navy Dokdo class LPH.

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The Pentagon and State Department remained careful Thursday when discussing whether strategic assets or missile defense systems could be moved closer to South Korea, but would not rule out anything when discussing US actions in response to Tuesday’s North Korean nuclear test.

Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook told reporters that the relationship between the US and the Republic of Korea remains “iron-clad,” a phrase he used four times when discussing the US willingness to protect its longstanding ally.

He also said the US would “consider every possible option that should be considered to further the defense of South Korea.”

However, just how far the US is willing to go is unclear.

Media reports Thursday cited a South Korean official as saying Seoul has requested the United States deploy strategic assets to the peninsula. Unsurprisingly, both Cook and State Department spokesman John Kirby were reluctant to address that directly.

“I'm not going to get into a list of options on the table, but this is something that is an ongoing discussion that we have on a regular basis already with the South Koreans,” Cook said. “In light of recent events, [the US] has only stepped up the contact that we're having with the South Koreans and the communication we're having to make sure that they are assured, other allies in the region are assured that everything is being done to ensure the sanctity of the alliance and our commitment to South Korea moving forward.”

Kirby said he was not aware of any such request, noting it would go through military channels initially.

“It's not just about being there, it's about being ready and they are ready. And of course, there are other assets in the Asia-Pacific region elsewhere that we could draw upon if needed,” Kirby noted.

Unsaid by Kirby is that even non-regional strategic assets can be quickly deployed if needed. In March 2013, an American B-2 stealth bomber flew from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri over South Korea and back in what officials at the time publicly said was a show of force to Pyongyang.

Another potential option would be to position Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) systems on the Korean peninsula itself, something that has been discussed before. As with the strategic option, Cook did not rule it out as something that could occur in the future.

“We have not had formal consultations on the THAAD system with the Republic of Korea; no decisions have been made on a potential deployment of the THAAD to the Korean peninsula,” Cook said, before noting “this is part of a larger discussion that we'll continue to have with South Koreans about capabilities and about the alliance moving forward, but there's been no formal discussions about THAAD deployment.”

Historically, the US has chosen the path of non-military options – in part because the specter of combat on the Korean peninsula would result in massive loss of life and property not just for both Korean nations, but their Pacific partners as well. While the Pacific is known for its distances, Seoul rests less than 50 miles from the DMZ, Tokyo is just 800 miles from Pyongyang and China shares a border with the DPRK.

The goal appears to once again use economic and political factors to defuse a North Korean fueled crisis.

Asked about potential sanctions on North Korea, Kirby said, “The United States has in many cases unilateral sanctions and I'm certainly not going to rule anything in or not at this point. … I think that you can safely assume that US decision makers are considering a wide range of potential options here and I won't speculate about what they will be.”

Notably, Secretary of State John Kerry told reporters at the State Department that he had discussed the issue with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and the two sides agree that “there cannot be business as usual” following the DPRK’s weapons test.

While there are signs that relations between North Korea and China have frayed since Kim Jong Un’s ascension to the North Korean leadership, China has historically been the patron and protector of the Kim family. If Beijing is willing to work with Washington on a solution, Kerry indicated, it would be welcome help.

“On the first trip that I made to China, when I raised the issue of the climate negotiation that resulted in China joining with us, I spent most of that trip and most of that time on North Korea,” Kerry said.

“Now China had a particular approach that it wanted to make and we agreed and respected to give them the space to be able to implement that, but today in my conversation with the Chinese I made it very clear, that has not worked and we cannot continue business as usual,” he added.

Whatever actions the Obama administration takes, it may need to make them quickly to stay ahead of Congress.

On Capitol Hill, US House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy and the House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce rapped the Obama administration's response to the test as "weak and inadequate" in a joint statement Thursday.

They pledged the lower chamber would take up a bill that would restrict, if enacted, North Korea’s access to hard currency and take other measures to block and seize assets related to nuclear proliferation, illicit activities, and human rights violations "that are the hallmark of the Kim regime."

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