Ship-to-Ground Guided Missiles Developed

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South Korea has completed the development phase of new tactical ship-to-ground guided missiles which would enhance its ability to strike North Korea’s key military equipment and facilities, the country’s arms procurement agency stated recently.

The country will begin mass-production of the weapon with two types of launch systems, inclined and vertical, next year after a seven-year project, led by the Agency for Defense Development, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).

According to a Yonhap report, the shrapnel of the missiles’ warhead can penetrate armored vehicles and destroy an area with the size of two football fields at a shot. The nation’s warships have largely depended on anti-ship or anti-aircraft guided missiles. But the successful development of the new missile will upgrade its capability to attack ground targets. Especially, ship-to-ground missiles with a vertical launch platform that can be used by various naval ships and will be operational by the beginning of 2019.

DAPA stressed that they are based on a technology to evade obstacles swiftly and effectively and shorten the time needed to create a trajectory. They also emphasized that the technology can be applied to the flight route program of drones or robots to be developed by the military and the civilian sector.

“South Korea has achieved the ability to strike from the sea not only the enemy’s major bases on the ground but also core facilities, including those related to ballistic missile launches,” said Lee Sang-moon, head of the DAPA’s guided weapon development team.

The new missile will be key maritime equipment for the military’s kill strike system against North Korea’s provocations, he added.

It will be installed onto frigates, with the Navy’s main destroyers already equipped with land attack cruise missiles with a range of more than 300 kilometers.