Korea promises plan to produce domestic jet engine by end of year

Korea plans to create a comprehensive jet engine development roadmap by year's end, emphasizing collaboration across government, military and industry.

Over 100 experts in politics, academics and corporations gather for a seminar, hosted by lawmaker Ahn Gyu-baek of the Democratic Party, to discuss Korea's plan for aircraft engine development in the National Assembly members’ office building in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Monday. [HANWHA AEROSPACE]

Korea will set a detailed and practical road map for its own jet engine development by the end of the year, the head of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said Monday.

“Aircraft engine development remains complex due to countries' strict protection of technical knowledge, but Korea must make our own with concentrated efforts from all sectors including the government, the army, corporations and academics,” Seok Jong-gun, minister of the DAPA, said during a seminar in the National Assembly members’ office building in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Monday.

“We are confident that domestically developed engines for fighter jets will largely contribute to increasing national security.”

Hanwha Aerospace USA's manufacturing facility in Cheshire, Connecticut. [HANWHA AEROSPACE USA]

The seminar, hosted by lawmaker Ahn Gyu-baek of the Democratic Party, drew around 100 experts, including lawmakers, military personnel, scholars and corporate employees to discuss the current status of Korea's fighter engine development capability and ways to advance the schedule.

“The U.S. Army is in the process of developing the latest engine to improve the performance of the F-35 fighter, but it is not likely it will provide it to Korea,” said Lee Hong-chul, head of aerospace technology institute of the Air Force. “With this kind of spreading exclusion trend, the need of having our own engine is growing.”

[HANWHA AEROSPACE]

No more than 10 countries have the ability to solely develop engines as of now, including the United States and Britain. They, however, heavily protect their technology through strict guidelines in exports. Korea's aircraft, like KF-21 and KUH-1 Surion, are also topped with the foreign engines, which require complex rules to get approval for export.

The DAPA, in July of last year, formed a task force dedicated to developing jet engines. It is undergoing an early-phase study to develop engines that can generate at least 15,000 pounds-force of thrust.

Monday's seminar was also joined by corporate sector, who can handle the manufacturing part.

“Korea's current technical prowess in engines is around 75 percent of those who already owned their own,” said Kim Won-wook, head of the advanced aero engine business at Hanwha Aerospace. “Hanwha Aerospace has the experience of producing more than 10,000 aircraft engines and also runs research centers in Europe and the United States to ramp up our technologies."

Other attendees of the seminar included Shim Hyeon-seok, secretary in the advanced technology program department at DAPA; Cho Hyung-hee, mechanical engineering professor at Yonsei University; and Lee Sang-eon, head of the gas turbine development project management team at Doosan Enerbility.

BY SARAH CHEA [chea.sarah@joongang.co.kr]