South Korea’s upcoming naval minesweeping helicopter will reportedly be based on the MUH-1 Marineon used by the nation's marines. (Korea Aerospace Industries)
CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea — Northrop Grumman has been contracted to provide technical support for South Korea’s upcoming naval minesweeping helicopter, the company announced in a news release Monday.
The Virginia-based company will support the integration of its Airborne Laser Mine Detection System, or ALMDS, into Korea Aerospace Industries’ Korean Mine Countermeasures Helicopter program by 2027, according to the release.
The purpose of the ALMDS is to detect and identify floating and near-surface moored mines, Northrop Grumman said on its website. The system has been used in U.S. Navy littoral combat ships and the MH-60S Seahawk helicopters since its development in 2016.
“KAI is convinced that the ALMDS integration will make a significant improvement to [South Korea’s] mine detection capabilities,” Chang-heon Han, the company’s rotary wing executive vice president, said in the release. “The program will also enhance our strategic partnership with Northrop Grumman in the defense domain.”
The cost of the contract was not specified in the release. KAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment by phone Tuesday.
KAI is developing South Korea’s mine-sweeping helicopter by 2026 after being awarded a contract by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, according to a Korea Economic Daily report in December.
The $269 million contract will reportedly include a prototype that will be based on KAI’s MUH-1 Marineon utility helicopter used by South Korean marines.
BAE Systems is also signed on to support the minesweeping helicopter. The UK-based defense company in June was awarded a $9 million contract by KAI to integrate its Archerfish mine-neutralization system, according to a BAE news release.
The remote-controlled, single-shot Archerfish system is used in U.S. Navy helicopters and fires a “directed-energy warhead” to detonate underwater mines, according to a BAE fact sheet.
Between 2018 to 2022, South Korea was the ninth-largest arms exporter with 2.4% of the world’s share, according to a Stockholm International Peace Research Institute report published in March.
Seoul also accounted for 6.5% of the U.S.’s total arms exports within the four-year span, the report said.
South Korea has “established itself as one of the world’s largest defense industry exporters” and will continue to build its military might amid the North’s “provocations and threats,” President Yoon Suk Yeol said in a speech at Seoul’s Armed Forces Day parade on Sept. 26.
