South Korea approves mass production of fourth batch of K2 MBTs

by Kapil Kajal

In service with the Republic of Korea Army, Hyundai Rotem's K2 main battle tank, pictured above, is replacing ageing inventories of M48 Patton tanks and older models of the K1 MBT. (Janes/Kelvin Wong)

South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has approved the mass production of a fourth batch of the Hyundai Rotem K2 main battle tank (MBT) for the Republic of Korea Army (RoKA).

DAPA said on 25 May that the project to build the batch-four MBTs has been allocated KRW1.94 trillion (USD1.46 billion) between 2024 and 2028. It said the additional K2s will contribute to the “improvement of the mobile corps' ability to perform offensive manoeuvres”.

DAPA did not disclose how many K2s would be built in the new batch.

According to Janes Land Warfare Platforms: Armoured Fighting Vehicles, the K2 is a third-generation MBT designed to provide the RoKA with modern heavy-armour capability.

The MBT is operated by a crew of three and has a length of 10.8 m and a width of 3.6 m. It weighs 56 tonnes and has a maximum onroad speed of 70 km/h.


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US Department of Defense approves F-35 for full-rate production

by Zach Rosenberg

The 36th F-35, delivered in 2014, was CF-19, the US Marine Corps' first F-35C carrier variant. The Milestone C decision has slipped for nearly a decade beyond initial projections, even as the production has continued. (Lockheed Martin)

The US Department of Defense (DoD) approved the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II to enter full-rate production, according to a 12 March announcement, even as deliveries remain suspended.

William LaPlante, the DoD undersecretary of defence for Acquisition and Sustainment, signed the full-rate production/Milestone C approval, allowing the programme to transition from low-rate initial production (LRIP).

“This decision – backed by my colleagues in the [DoD] – highlights to the services, F-35 co-operative programme partners, and Foreign Military Sales (FMS) customers that the F-35 is stable and agile, and that all statutory and regulatory requirements have been appropriately addressed,” LaPlante said in the announcement.

“[The Director, Operational Test and Evaluation] conducted [an] analysis of the results from initial operational test and evaluation and live-fire test and evaluation and delivered a comprehensive, combined report as required by statute to inform the Milestone C/full-rate production decision,” said Raymond O'Toole, Jr, the DoD's acting director of operational test and evaluation.


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Pentagon budget 2025: Precision Strike Missile Inc 2 procurement delayed

by Meredith Roaten

The US Army's Precision Strike Missile is meant to strike targets as far as 400 km away. (US Army)

The multimode seeker that makes the US Army's Precision Strike Missile Increment 2 (PrSM Inc 2) unique and more advanced than Inc 1 is holding the capability back from its scheduled procurement in fiscal year (FY) 2025, according to budget documents.

While Inc 1 is designed for land targets, it is the Land-Based Anti-Ship Missile multimode seeker that enables Inc 2 to perform maritime targeting for the army. The service is requesting funding for 230 PrSM Inc 1 missiles – an increase from 190 missiles the service planned to purchase for FY 2025 in the 2024 budget request – but Inc 2 procurement has been pushed back to FY 2026, Major General Joe Hilbert, director of force development and deputy chief of staff (G-8), told reporters on 12 March.

“The bottom line is that technology was not ready, not mature enough to go into procurement in [FY 20]25,” Maj Gen Hilbert said. The seeker needs more time to mature, but he declined to provide more engineering details.


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Pentagon budget 2025: US Navy seeks more funding for unmanned vessels

by Michael Fabey

The US Navy's FY 2025 budget requests includes funding for unmanned underwater vehicles. (Boeing)

The proposed fiscal year (FY) 2025 US Navy (USN) budget includes USD172.2 million to develop enabling capabilities and critical technologies for unmanned surface vessels (USVs), including funding for medium, large, and long-range vehicles, according to budget documents.

The funding is intended for Medium Unmanned Surface Vessels (MUSVs), Large Unmanned Surface Vessels (LUSVs), and Long-Range Unmanned Surface Vessels (LRUSVs) including prototype vessel support.

The FY 2025 request also includes USD191.5 million for the Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (UUV) family of systems (FoS), which consists of the small and medium UUV (SUUV/MUUV), Snakehead Large Displacement UUV (LDUUV), and the Orca Extra Large UUV (XLUUV).

The SUVVs/MUUVs include Lionfish and Viperfish, designed to provide better battlespace awareness, and along with the Knifefish, provide mine warfare capability. The Orca XLUUV also provides modular payload capability.

Small and medium UUVs are transitioning from fabrication into testing, Rear Admiral Ben Reynolds, deputy assistant secretary of the navy for budget and director of the USN Fiscal Management Division, noted during an 8 March media briefing of the proposed budget.


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South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) has approved the mass production of ...

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