South Korea to start trial operations of ‘grenade-launching' and ‘small modular' UAVs in 2022

The South Korean military will begin trailing two new types of locally sourced unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the first half of 2022.

South Korea's Defence Acquisition Programme Administration (DAPA) announced on 3 August that it will acquire an undisclosed number of “grenade-launching” and “small modular” UAVs through a fast-track procurement process ahead of the pilot trials, adding that new technologies developed in the civilian UAV sector will be applied for this project.

The first UAV type, which is equipped with six, single-shot, 40 mm grenade launchers, can be remotely controlled within a 2 km radius, said DAPA, adding that the use of a two-axis gimbal and recoil absorber will allow the platform to remain stable in flight even while firing.

Operators of the vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAV can use an electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor turret equipped with a laser rangefinder for aiming. The platform can launch six grenades consecutively (one every two seconds), with each grenade having an effective blast radius of 5 m, DAPA noted in its statement.

The agency also said that an unspecified number of these UAVs will be supplied to the Republic of Korea Army (RoKA) by Korea CNO Tech Co for KRW6.62 billion (USD5.8 million).