The first mass production contract for the KF-21 has been signed after nine years of development. Industry experts believe the KF-21 will be highly competitive in terms of price, maintenance costs, and performance.
On June 25, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, South Korea’s national arms procurement agency, signed a contract with Korea Aerospace Industries for the first mass production of the KF-21. The contract is valued at 1.961 trillion won (approximately $1.41 billion), with a plan to produce 20 units by August 2027.
Additionally, DAPA signed contracts with Hanwha Systems for 20 active electronically scanned array radars worth 110 billion won, and with Hanwha Aerospace for 40 F414 engines worth 556.2 billion won. The KF-21 is a twin-engine fighter jet, with each aircraft equipped with two engines.
Combining the contract amounts and dividing by the number of aircraft, the per-unit cost comes to approximately 130 billion won. However, considering the 400 billion won invested during the development phase and follow-up logistics support, the actual production cost per unit is expected to be around 100 billion won, which is relatively inexpensive compared to competing models.
An aviation industry insider explained, “Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the global aviation industry has been disrupted, causing a significant rise in fighter jet prices compared to the past. The average contract price for competing models has increased to 150 billion to 200 billion won per unit.”
Another advantage of the KF-21 is its low maintenance costs. Fighter jets are classified by generation based on their performance, and the KF-21 is considered a 4.5-generation jet. Its maintenance cost per flight hour is reported to be similar to widely used 4th-generation fighters like the F-16. The use of domestically produced parts also simplifies maintenance.
The high scalability of the aircraft platform is another strength of the KF-21. Designed from the outset as a 4.5-generation fighter, the KF-21 can be gradually upgraded to a 5th-generation stealth fighter or a 6th-generation AI-based manned-unmanned hybrid fighter.
The KF-21 measures 11.2 meters in width, 16.9 meters in length, and 4.7 meters in height. It can reach a maximum speed of Mach 1.81 (2,200 kph) and has a range of 2,900 kilometers. It can carry up to 7.7 tons of air-to-ground or air-to-air missiles. The KF-21 project involves more than 600 domestic partners, aiming for a localization rate of 65%.
