Korean Air, L3Harris convene to advance aerial surveillance capabilities

Industry leaders gather at an Industry Day event at the Air Force Hotel in Seoul, Tuesday. From left: L3Harris ISR President Jason W. Lambert, Bombardier Regional Vice President Michael Calderone, ELTA Systems general manager Asaf Sharvit, Korean Air Senior Vice President Park Jung-woo and LIG Nex1 senior managing director Kook Chan-ho (Korean Air)

South Korea's flag carrier Korean Air and US defense company L3Harris Technologies co-hosted an Industry Day event Tuesday to discuss ways to bolster aerial surveillance and monitoring capabilities.

The gathering brought together executives and officials from over 30 domestic and international defense firms, including Israel Aerospace Industries, ELTA Systems and LIG Nex1 at the Air Force Hotel in Seoul.

The event comes as the Korean Air Force looks to ramp up its surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities by adding more special mission aircraft to its fleet.

Discussions centered on plans to adopt additional airborne early warning and control, or AEW&C, aircraft -- essentially flying command centers that give a bird's-eye view of combat zones and allow for real-time decision-making.

Currently, the Korean Air Force operates four Boeing E-737 "Peace Eye" AEW&C aircraft. A second phase of the acquisition project is currently underway, with the goal of purchasing additional units by 2031 at a cost of 2.9 trillion won ($2.13 billion).

L3Harris earlier proposed a model based on Bombardier's Global 6500 aircraft, equipped with IAI's advanced radar systems, for the Air Force's project.

A 2022 agreement with L3Harris positions Korean Air to participate in all stages of production from modifications to personnel training. Other South Korean defense aerospace companies will also have opportunities to gain technical insights and potentially join the global supply chain.

Park Jung-woo, Korean Air's senior vice president and aerospace business division head, expressed optimism about the prospects. "We're looking to gain valuable experience in cutting-edge special missions carrier modification and maintenance technology,” he said. “Our goal is to become a leading player in Korea's aerospace industry as we foster a mutually beneficial ecosystem with our partners."

Jason W. Lambert, president of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance at L3Harris, echoed this commitment. "If the South Korean Air Force selects our model, we'll roll out comprehensive technological cooperation with local firms, from manufacturing to setting up maintenance, repair, and overhaul facilities," he added.

By Moon Ki-hoon(moonkihoon@heraldcorp.com)