South Korean Agency for Defense Development Succeeds in Developing Counter Missile System

South Korea has successfully tested a counter missile system for military aircraft to help dodge enemies’ portable surface-to-air missiles, the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) said Wednesday. The ADD said it carried out an initial operational test and evaluation on helicopters under cooperation with Hanwha System from 2020-2021. The system is significant in that it has drastically shortened the response time, enabling aircraft to guard against portable surface-to-air missiles from a close range. The directional infrared countermeasures (DIRCM) system enables aircraft to dodge missiles by emitting a laser beam to the ground, blinding missiles that rely on heat to track targets. The system can also be applied to larger aircraft when enhanced with stronger laser output.

The Agency for Defense Development is the South Korean national agency for research and development in defense technology, funded by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration(DAPA). It was established in August 1970 under the banner of self-reliable defense. Its purpose is contributing to enforcing the national defense, improving the national R&D capacity, and fostering the domestic defense industry. ADD is responsible for the first South Korean ballistic missile Nike Hercules Korea-1 aka White/Polar Bear, developed in the 1970s with its first successful test in 1978. ADD is the operator of South Korea’s first dedicated military satellite, ANASIS-II, launched on 20 July 2020 by a Falcon 9 rocket.