TSAMTO, July 5. The Air Force of the Republic of Korea will receive four additional Falcon-2000S aircraft from Dassault Aviation with a set of equipment for information collection, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR).
According to Scramble Magazine, the first aircraft under the new contract will be delivered to the 296th Reconnaissance Squadron (39th Reconnaissance Wing) at Seongnam Air Base (Seoul, South Korea). In 2017, the first two Falcon-2000S aircraft were delivered to this division. The project was named "Baektu" (Baekdu / Paektu) in honor of the mountain in North Korea, to which the area of operation of the aircraft equipment extends.
After the success of the first program, the Air Force decided to launch a program to replace four outdated RC800 (Raytheon Hawker 800XP) reconnaissance aircraft. The second program is planned to be implemented from 2022 to 2026, and its total cost will be $ 768 million. The twin-engine business jets will be purchased through Korean Air and equipped with ISR equipment at facilities in South Korea.
As already reported by TSAMTO, the Republic of Korea in 2011 decided to purchase two French Falcon-2000 reconnaissance aircraft capable of intercepting radio communications and detecting ballistic missile launches from the territory of the DPRK. The decision was made based on the results of the tender held in 2010.
As part of the competition, the South Korean companies LIG Nex1 and Thales Samsung presented their proposals for the supply of communications equipment, radio-electronic systems and radio signal intelligence equipment. The American company Gulfstream Aerospace and the Canadian Bombardier also participated in the tender for the supply of air platforms. The only aircraft manufacturer in South Korea, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and the national air carrier Korean Air, initially competed for the conclusion of the contract for the integration of systems.
According to the information of the Defense Procurement Programs Agency of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Korea (DAPA), after the installation of equipment since April 2016, both aircraft (the first batch) under the Paektusan program were tested in pcs.Texas (USA). The testing allowed us to evaluate the performance of the aircraft with onboard equipment developed by national companies, including LIG Nex1. The program partner from the USA provided technologies for their integration with the main on-board computer. After completing the tests, the aircraft arrived in South Korea in November 2017.
The Falcon-2000 reconnaissance aircraft of the second batch will replace four outdated American RC-800 aircraft. Compared to this aircraft, the Falcon-2000 has an increased range and can carry more equipment.
