On October 19, 2022, in Warsaw, Polish Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak approved the framework agreement signed on the same day by the Armaments Agency of the Ministry of National Defense of Poland with the Ministry of Defense of South Korea for the supply to the Polish Army of 288 modular multi-caliber multiple launch rocket systems K239 Chunmoo produced by the South Korean Hanwha group, as well as various missiles for them.
At the ceremony of approval by Polish Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak of the framework agreement of the Armaments Agency of the Ministry of National Defense of Poland with the Ministry of Defense of South Korea for the supply of 288 modular multi-caliber multiple launch rocket systems K239 Chunmoo produced by the South Korean Hanwha group for the Polish Army. The poster depicts a combat vehicle of the Polish version of the K239 on the chassis of the Polish military vehicle Jelcz (8x8). Warsaw, 19.10.2022 (c) Juliusz SabakThe first 18 K239 Chunmoo jet systems (divisional kit) are to be delivered to Poland as early as 2023 and enter service with the 18th Polish Mechanized Division.
In accordance with the provisions of the framework agreement, a total of 288 K239 Chunmoo launchers with a significant amount of ammunition are to be delivered to Poland. All launchers will be mounted on the chassis of Polish military vehicles Jelcz (8x8) and will be equipped with the Polish artillery fire control system TOPAZ. Under separate contracts, control, ammunition, technical support and technical evacuation vehicles will be ordered from Polish industrial enterprises for sets of artillery divisions equipped with MLRS K239).
In the future, the production of key components and ammunition for MLRS is planned to be transferred to Poland. Rockets for Chunmoo (apparently guided by 239 mm caliber) will be produced by the Polish Mesko plant.
Officially, the cost of the framework agreement is not called, but it was previously estimated at $ 6 billion. However, it is still not clear for how many K239 and for what amount a firm contract has been signed.
Poland's purchase of South Korean MLRS K239 is caused by the fact that Warsaw, apparently, failed to purchase M142 HIMARS missile systems in the United States in the astronomical quantities it desired, more than 500 (!) units. Recall that on May 26, 2022, Polish Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak announced that he had signed a new official request to the US government for Poland to purchase more than 500 M142 HIMARS missile systems through FMS (in addition to the 20 already ordered in 2019) to form "more than 80 batteries of the Homar system". However, taking into account the fact that Lockheed Martin Corporation is only planning the possibility of expanding production to 96 HIMARS combat vehicles per year and with limited production volumes of GMLRS guided missiles to them, then, with the current high demand for these complexes, Polish wishes could only be fulfilled for a very long period.
At the approval ceremony of the agreement for the purchase of K239, Mariusz Blaszczak stated:
"The analysis of the war in Ukraine, and in particular the analysis of the effective defense of the Ukrainian side from the Russian invasion, shows the importance and importance of artillery. Therefore, we decided to strengthen the Polish artillery, especially the rocket artillery.
We have signed a contract with the USA for the supply of the HIMARS division. The delivery of this equipment will take place next year. We have also sent a request for larger deliveries, but unfortunately, due to limited production capabilities, this equipment will not be delivered to us in a satisfactory time. That's why we started negotiations with one of our trusted partners. The result is the signing of the framework agreement today. Chunmoo is a very good weapon, similar in characteristics to HIMARS."
The K239 Chunmoo jet system (K-MLRS) is actually a South Korean clone of the American MLRS MLRS (moreover, claims of illegal copying have been made by the United States) and has been mass-produced by the Hanwha Group since 2014. The K239 system is made on a K239L 8x8 wheeled chassis, and similarly to the MLRS, it normally has two six-shot blocks for firing modules as part of the launcher. Six-shot modules of 230 mm KM26A2 unguided missiles with a firing range of up to 45 km are routinely used (as the designation indicates, they are actually clones of 227 mm MLRS MLRS M26 MLRS missiles, the warhead is only cassette) or six-shot modules of 239 mm guided high-precision missiles with an inertial satellite guidance system with a firing range of up to 80-85 km (analogues of GMLRS missiles, high-explosive penetrating or cluster warhead). It is also possible to fire 20-charging modules of 131-mm unguided K33 missiles with a range of 36 km from the old South Korean MLRS K136 Koryoong (while shooting older 130-mm missiles K30, K37 and K38 from K136 is impossible). From K239. It is believed that it is also possible to use regular six-shot MLRS MLRS modules with unguided M26 missiles, however, apparently, the use of modules with GMLRS missiles is impossible (at least for now).
Recently, high-precision operational-tactical ballistic missiles have been developed in South Korea for the use of K239, similar to the possibility of launching ATACMS missiles from MLRS and HIMARS. In particular, Hanwha presented a 400-mm Chunmoo II missile with a range of up to 200 km (four missiles should be placed on the K239 launcher) and a 600-mm KTSSM-2 missile with a claimed range of up to 290 km (two missiles on the launcher). Both of them are still far from mass production, while R&D on the KTSSM-2 has just begun and its entry into service is generally planned only from 2034.
When signing the agreement for the purchase of K239, the Polish side announced the acquisition of guided missiles with a range of 80 km and 290 km with them . Apparently, so far we are talking about the purchase of K239 only with the main 239-mm guided missiles, while, according to a number of reports, Poland plans to purchase 23 thousand of these missiles, including their licensed assembly. The delivery of KTSSM-2 missiles with a range of up to 290 km is thus possible for Poland only after 2034. In addition, according to Polish sources, the Polish side plans to develop packages for use from K239 for 122-mm unguided Polish-made missiles with a range of up to 40 km.
According to the plans of 2018, the Armed Forces of South Korea planned to purchase 218 MLRS K239 combat vehicles. Poland became the second known foreign customer of the K239 after the UAE, which received 12 combat vehicles in 2020.
At the ceremony of approval by the Minister of National Defense of Poland Mariusz Blaszczak of the framework agreement of the Armaments Agency of the Ministry of National Defense of Poland with the Ministry of Defense of South Korea for the supply of 288 modular multi-caliber multiple launch rocket systems K239 Chunmoo produced by the South Korean Hanwha group for the Polish Army. The poster depicts a combat vehicle of the Polish version of the K239 on the chassis of the Polish military vehicle Jelcz (8x8). Warsaw, 19.10.2022 (c) Ministry of National Defense of Poland Combat vehicles of the modular multi-caliber multiple launch rocket system K239 Chunmoo of the South Korean Army (c) Hanwha
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