South Korea plans to develop a new attack helicopter for its marines, and also obtain four new tactical transports.
A high level defense committee announced the decisions after a meeting on 26 April, says the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).
The program to develop and field an indigenous attack helicopter for the marines will cost roughly W1.6 trillion ($1.4 billion). The program will run from this year until 2031.
South Korea’s marines have been in the market for 24 attack helicopters capable of operating from the navy’s pair of Dokdo-class amphibious assault ships.
According to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, the new attack helicopter will be based on the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) KUH-1 Surion utility helicopter. The type already has a marine variant, the MUH-1 Marineon.