Hanwha Systems has finished putting out the first mass-produced, homegrown active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar for the Republic of Korea Air Force's next-generation KF-21 Boramae fighter.
The company said the event confirms that the sensor is ready to move from engineering development into fleet integration on Korea Aerospace Industries’ (KAI) twin-engine fighter.
The series-production phase follows a two-stage industrial path: an initial production contract signed last year, and a full-rate agreement concluded earlier this year. Under the current programme, Hanwha Systems will deliver 40 AESA radars between 2025 and 2028 for installation across the growing KF-21 fleet. Delivery pacing aligns with KAI’s aircraft production schedule and Korea’s drive to stand up frontline Boramae squadrons with a domestically supported mission-systems backbone.
Development of the radar began in 2016, with Hanwha unveiling a first prototype in 2020—an aggressive four-year sprint that signalled Korea’s intent to master electronically steered fire-control sensors. Since then, the design has progressed through functional and flight-integration milestones to reach production maturity, according to company officials. Each array comprises roughly 1,000 transmit/receive (T/R) modules, enabling agile beam steering for air-to-air search and track, high-resolution air-to-ground mapping, and advanced electronic protection modes typical of contemporary fifth-generation mission systems.
The rollout took place at Hanwha Systems’ newly completed antenna-testing facility at the Yongin R&D Centre, purpose-built in late 2024 to support AESA development and verification. The site features a near-field chamber sized to evaluate up to four airborne radar systems simultaneously, allowing engineers to characterise core performance metrics, antenna patterns and signal-processing behaviour in parallel. Scaling test capacity in this way is intended to compress qualification timelines while maintaining repeatability standards demanded for series production.
The company’s export ambitions were underscored in May 2024 when it signed its first overseas agreement for AESA radar antennas with Leonardo, covering systems for light-attack aircraft.
For the KF-21, the AESA is a cornerstone sensor that underpins long-range detection, multirole targeting and all-weather strike. Moving the radar into production not only reduces programme risk for the fighter but also strengthens Korea’s domestic supply chain for high-end gallium-based RF technologies, test infrastructure and software-defined waveform development. It further positions Hanwha Systems to iterate capability through software upgrades and modular hardware inserts as the Boramae evolves.
Author: Özgür Ekşi
