South Korean Army fields new air defense system

Citing a report from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) local media reported that South Korea’s military has received its initial batch of AAGW.

The new Hanwha’s AAGW is designed to replace the Vulcan air defense system.

Developed in 2019, the new gun will supplant the 20mm cannons that the country’s Army, Air Force and Marine Corps have operated for over 40 years, the DAPA said.

Hanwha Defense says that the purpose of the development of this system was to defend allied forces’ points of interest, as well as defend friendly mobile troops, from low-altitude attacks by enemy aircraft.

“The AAGW makes localized support and self-targeting functionalities possible through electron-optical targeting systems and visual targeting systems,” said the company.

The new gun’s firing range is 3 kilometers, 1.2 km longer than the existing ones. It is capable of tracking targets during daytime and at night and of countering threats from low-flying targets, according to the administration.

The number of personnel required for a gun unit is 18, compared to 48 for the operation of the existing canon.

The South Korean military plans to deploy the new guns to the three armed services in phases through 2031.