Diehl Defence and Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) stating that their goal is to increase their marketing and integration efforts to take advantage of the potential of IRIS-T on FA-50 and KF-21 aircraft.
The agreement is being made to achieve the shared objective of incorporating the IRIS-T missile into FA-50/T-50 and KF-21 Block II aircraft. As was previously revealed in an earlier agreement that was signed during ADEX 2021, this substantiates the aim of both businesses to study the possibility of working together.
Additionally, the Memorandum of Understanding addresses the process of working groups collaborating on marketing efforts for KAI aircraft equipped with Diehl Defence missiles. In addition, the two businesses have agreed to study the possibilities of adapting or further developing missile systems manufactured by Diehl Defence for Korea’s indigenous aviation programmes.
In this week’s trip to Berlin, Germany, which was part of a Korean trade delegation led by Kang Goo-Young, the Chief Executive Officer of KAI, Dr. Harald Buschek, Chief Programme Officer and Diehl Defence Division Board member, signed the Memorandum of Understanding.
The firms announced the consolidation of their cooperation on the eve of the Singapore Airshow, which is scheduled to take place this week and is the largest aerospace and defence trade event that Asia has seen this year.
Diehl Defence and KAI have been working together for several years. They have successfully integrated Diehl Defence’s expertise and skills in missile system development, manufacture, and integration with KAI’s track record of successfully launching and managing military aircraft programmes. IRIS-T was first included in the KF-21 Block I fighter in 2017, marking the beginning of the collaboration between the respective organisations.
