South Korea’s biennial defense exhibition took off showcasing cutting-edge military hardware and technologies, including stealth fighters, hydrogen-fuel drones and laser weapons.
The Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX) began its five-day run on Tuesday at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, just south of Seoul.
The exhibition follows Pyongyang’s recent defense show presenting an intercontinental ballistic missile, a hypersonic missile and other weapons
The South Korean Air Force’s acrobatic flight team, the Black Eagles, performed to mark the opening of the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX) 2021.
The Korea-ASEAN+India Forum on Logistics took place on the margins of a biennial defense exhibition at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, south of Seoul.
This year’s edition involves 440 companies from 28 countries, including 171 from overseas, the organizers said. It marks the largest number of participating firms in the exhibition first launched in 1996.
Among the items on display are large hydrogen-fuel drones, virtual reality-based training systems, laser weapons systems, multi-purpose unmanned vehicles, as well as dozens of military aircraft, such as FA-50 fighters and KT-1 basic trainer jets.
The ADEX also features ground-based arms as well, including the K-2 battle tanks and K-9 howitzer.
Among the key participants is the U.S. defense firm, Lockheed Martin Corp., which will display the radar-evading F-22 and F-35 fighters. Boeing will also take part to showcase AH-64E Apache helicopters and the MV-22 vertical-takeoff-and-landing-capable transport aircraft.
Korea Aerospace Industries displayed a life-size model of the country’s first indigenous fighter jet, the KF-X, currently under development.
The exhibition also unveiled a set of military hardware running on green resources, such as the hydrogen-powered cargo drone cells, developed by LIG Nex1 Co.
Around 20 international symposiums and conferences are being held on the sidelines of the exhibition as well, organizers said.
During the preview event on Monday, a KC-330 military tanker transport aircraft, a RF-16 reconnaissance plane, along with F-15K and KF-16 jets carried out flyovers over the venue, along with the Air Force’s acrobatic flight team, Black Eagles.
North Korea’s evolving threats and an intensifying Sino-US rivalry underlines the importance of Seaul ADEX 2021.
This year’s edition provides a chance for defence companies at home and abroad to take stock of progress in the arms industry and explore business opportunities, as the COVID-19 pandemic has impeded their in-person exchanges.
The radar-evading F-35A, manufactured by Lockheed Martin Corp., was unveiled to the general public for the first time since the warplane was first delivered to an Air Force unit in South Korea in 2019. During the 2019 exhibition, a mock-up of the stealth fighter was on display.
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. presented the MQ-1C Gray Eagle combat drone. Capable of high-definition surveillance, the drone is known to carry four air-to-ground anti-armor missiles.
Hanwha Aerospace Co. displayed a real 75-ton thrust engine, which is the same model installed in the country’s homegrown space rocket, the Nuri, which will be launched Thursday at the Naro Space Center in Goheung, 473 kilometers south of Seoul.
LIG Nex1 Co. unveiled the hydrogen-powered cargo drone, currently being developed to carry 200 kilograms of freight, for release by 2025.
The forum brought together six partner countries of Seoul’s signature New Southern Policy, as well as Australia and the Maldives. The policy is aimed at deepening diplomatic and economic ties with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and India.
“The forum was arranged to strengthen the bond with officials from partner countries of the New Southern Policy and establish a cooperation mechanism in logistics areas to respond to various threats at home and abroad,” the Army said in a statement.
South Korea opened its largest defence expo ever on Tuesday, showing off its next-generation fighter jet, drones, and other technology in an effort to boost exports as economies around the world rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Opening ceremonies for the International Aerospace and Defence Exhibition (ADEX) at an air base in Seoul were however somewhat overshadowed by the launch of what South Korea said was a North Korean submarine-fired ballistic missile (SLBM).
“Despite the COVID-19 situation this year, export marketing is expected with products developed by domestic companies at the exhibition hall, which has been expanded from last year,” ADEX official Lee Jong-ho told reporters.
At least 440 companies from 28 countries are showcasing 79 types of aircraft and 68 types of ground equipment. Around 300 government, military and defence acquisition officials from 45 countries were expected to attend the event, which lasts through Saturday.
At least 170 U.S. troops were on hand to display American military aircraft, the U.S. Air Force said in a statement.
Last week Korea Aerospace Industries officials declined to comment on potential export deals for its KF-21 fighter jet and Light Attack Helicopters, but said both programmes were on track.
Korean Air said it was displaying drones with vertical lift-off and landing capabilities, while a “space hub” at the show displays components of South Korea’s space programme, expected to get a boost with the planned launch of its first space launch vehicle.
