LIG Nex1 to showcase guided missiles, drones at MSPO

LIG Nex1’s exhibition booth at the International Defence Industry Exhibition (MSPO), scheduled to be held from Tuesday to Friday at Centre d’expositions de Kielce in Poland. (LIG Nex1)

LIG Nex1 said Monday it will unveil its guided missiles and drones at this week's International Defence Industry Exhibition, or MSPO, Poland’s annual national defense exhibition.

The company plans to showcase the Korean GPS Guided Bomb (KGGB); a long-range air-to-surface missile; surface-to-surface guided missiles called Hyunggung and Shingung; and drones.

The KGGP is a weapons system that can be installed in fighter aircraft including the FA-50. Equipped with a medium-range GPS guidance system, it carries out countermeasures for GPS jamming as well as long-range attack and all-weather precision attack.

The company’s long-range air-to-surface missile is the first homegrown air-launched guided missile installed in the Korea’s KF-21 fighter jet, which can hit its key target hundreds of kilometers away.

Shingung was created to replace the nation’s short-range anti-air missile system, while the third-generation anti-tank guided weapon Hyunggung was developed for the first time in Korea as a countermeasure for enemy tank attacks. It can be installed in light tactical vehicles or carried by soldiers.

Its small recon and combat drones was greenlighted by the state-run Defense Acquisition Program Administration to be supplied to the Korean Army. They can launch vertically without taxiing -- the process of moving an aircraft while it's on the runway -- according to the company.

“We have made efforts to forge business deals with other governments and global defense companies since the company participated in the MSPO in 2017,” said LIG Nex1 CEO Kim Ji-chan in a statement. “During this exhibition, we will promote our defense technology and brand image.”

Scheduled to be held from Tuesday to Friday at Centre d’expositions de Kielce in Poland, the lead country for the 31st MSPO is South Korea. Korea will be in charge of organizing opening remarks, high-level dialogue and joint seminars.

The annual event is sponsored by the Polish Department of Defense and the state-run defense group PGZ. It is the third-largest event following Paris and London’s trade fairs among exhibitions hosted in Europe.

By Byun Hye-jin(hyejin2@heraldcorp.com)