South Korea’s Counter-Artillery Detection Now Fully Operational Against North Korean Threats

The Counter-Artillery Detection Radar-II was fully deployed across the military on the 29th. / Provided by the DAPA

The combat deployment of the Counter-Artillery Detection Radar-II, developed by LIG Nex1 to detect North Korea’s long-range artillery threats early on, has been completed.

The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA: Minister Seok Jong Gun) announced on the 29th, “The Counter-Artillery Detection Radar-II, developed to effectively respond to enemy’s long-range artillery provocations threatening the metropolitan area and the Northwest Islands, has been fully deployed in all army divisions and the Northwest Islands,” adding, “This has significantly enhanced our deterrence surveillance capabilities against North Korea.”

The Counter-Artillery Detection Radar-II, developed from November 2011 to 2017 with an investment of approximately 54 billion won (Approximately $40 million), can detect incoming North Korean long-range artillery shells within 10 seconds and trace their flight path to confirm the origin of the provocation.

In particular, it has significantly enhanced electronic warfare defense capabilities by making detection and electronic attacks from the enemy difficult with an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. It has also designed the antenna as modular semiconductor transceivers so that operations can be performed even if some transceivers fail.

This equipment, which can be mounted on a 5-ton truck and detected while moving, has a detection range more than 1.5 times longer than the existing Swedish Arthur-K. It is designed to suit the Korean climate, allowing it to operate continuously for up to 18 hours, even in bad weather.

It started to be deployed in 2018 and was completed on this day.

The DAPA continuously participates in international defense exhibitions to increase the export potential of domestically produced excellent-performing equipment. It also makes every effort to demonstrate the superiority of K-Defense by showcasing equipment overseas and engaging in various promotional activities.

Lee Myung, the head of DAPA’s Firepower Program Department, said, “This deployment will dramatically improve the ability to detect enemy shells and greatly contribute to strengthening our military’s artillery power,” adding, “We expect that it will play a significant role in securing competitiveness in the overseas market and globalizing K-Defense when exported as a package with the K9 self-propelled howitzer in the future, exerting a synergy effect.”