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China-South Korea relations
ChinaMilitary

South Korea is zooming ahead with the mass production of its KF-21 fighter jet, and China won’t be happy

  • Seoul has announced it will produce up to 40 units of its latest 4.5-generation fighter jet, the KF-21 Boramae
  • It is set to rival China’s FC-31, proving a threat to Beijing’s arms export trade as well as its regional air dominance, experts say

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South Korea’s KF-21 Boramae fighter jet is set to go into mass production, pitting it as a potential rival on the global arms market to China’s FC-31. Photo: YNA/dpa
Seong Hyeon Choi
South Korea’s newest home-grown fighter jet, which has recently been approved for mass production, is set to be viewed by Beijing “primarily as a threat” to its own arms trade, experts say.
Last week it was announced that the KF-21 Boramae, a 4.5-generation fighter jet, had been approved by Seoul’s Defence Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) for a mass production plan of up to 40 units, to be built between 2024 and 2028.

The news is likely to cause unease for China because of the jet’s advanced capacity, the potential to enhance the air capabilities of China’s regional competitors as well as its position as a rival to China in the arms export trade, they said.

The model will also reportedly be upgraded to a 5.5-generation fighter jet. Currently, only three countries – the United States, Russia and China – have produced home-grown fifth-generation fighters.
DAPA plans to contract the first 20 units of KF-21 this year, while the remaining 20 units will be contracted by February next year after completing performance verification tests by June, which will include the jets’ connectivity with air-to-air missiles and active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar capabilities.

The South Korean arms procurement agency stressed that securing fighter aircraft that met “the future battlefield operation concept” was essential following the retirement of older operational fighter jets.

“Through this project, it is expected to contribute to strengthening the air force’s base power by preventing a power vacuum caused by ageing, long-term operational fighters and securing Korean aircraft capable of performing cooperative operations with cutting-edge fighters,” DAPA said in a statement last week.

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