2023-12-03 07:42:36
This photo, provided by the South Korean Navy, shows the destroyer Gang Gam-chan conducting a live-fire exercise on Dec. 1, 2023, to launch an SM-2 ship-to-air missile from offshore waters. the East Sea. (Resale and archiving prohibited)
SEOUL, Dec. 3 (Yonhap) — The South Korean Navy’s SM-2 ship-to-air missile has successfully hit its target in the first live-fire exercise conducted with the weapon in South Korea, officials said Sunday. military officers.
Navy officials said the country’s first live-fire training session involving the SM-2 missile, designed to intercept enemy missiles and aircraft from the sea, took place in the East Sea on Friday.
The South Korean Navy’s live-fire exercises for SM-2 had been carried out exclusively at the US Navy’s missile range in Hawaii as part of the biennial “Rim of the Pacific” exercise, due to the absence, in South Korea, a site for live-fire naval exercises and an evidence analysis system.
The first local test of the SM-2 came as the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) established a naval research center in the eastern coastal city of Samcheok in 2021, along with a of analysis for live-fire naval tests of guided weapons.
During the latest training, an SM-2 was fired from the 4,400-ton destroyer Gang Gam-chan in the East Sea and intercepted a target drone approaching at high speed, Navy officials said.
The Navy said the test makes it possible to mobilize SM-2 missiles in future live-fire tests in South Korea, improving the Navy’s response capabilities in defense and anti-aircraft battles.
Officials also said that nationalizing the process would save the South Korean Navy training costs of 1 billion won ($769,822) per session.
In 2004, the South Korean Navy adopted the use of the SM-2 missile, from American defense manufacturer Raytheon. The missile has a strike range of 150 kilometers and a price of 1.8 billion won per unit ($1.37 million).
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