After a decade-long delay, Korea’s indigenous fighter program is about to officially hit the road with bidding by partner firms scheduled for next month.
However, which design concept to go with — a single- or twin-engine aircraft — is emerging as the biggest sticking point in the program, codenamed KF-X.
Currently, the state-run Agency for Defense Development (ADD), siding with the Air Force, claims the nation’s future fighter should be a two-engine, clean-sheet aircraft, proposing a design labeled C103.
The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), on the other hand, has promoted a single-engine version of an aircraft, named C501, to be derived from the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) FA-50 light attack fighter, saying the plane is cheaper and easier to develop and build than the ADD preference.
The KF-X, aimed at manufacturing “F-16+ class” fighter jets with the help of global defense contractors to fill a fighter gap envisioned the next decade, has been delayed due to budget constraints and questions over its feasibility.
The program, initiated by the late former President Kim Dae-jung in March 2001, had its basic strategy resolved in April 2010 and the ADD conducted a final study on the feasibility of the development program between 2011 and 2012. The Air Force plans to secure 120 new jets to replace its aging fleet of F-4s and F-5s under the fighter project.
In January, $18.7 million from the defense budget for 2014 was appropriated for deciding on its design and engine, and DAPA said it would begin accepting bids from manufacturers to participate in the indigenous program in April.
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