South Korea’s military plans to launch a comprehensive drone operations unit in July as part of its efforts to bolster its counter-unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) capabilities following North Korea’s drone incursions late last year.
According to officials Wednesday, the military is accelerating its efforts to map out its plans, such as the size of the unit, command structure and its location.
This comes as a direct order of President Yoon Suk Yeol, who in January called for a multi-mission unit capable not just of effectively fending off UAV threats from North Korea but also of conducting reconnaissance and psychological warfare roles.
Gen. Lee Bo-hyung of the Army Aviation Command is in charge of the project. How to share roles and interoperate with the Air Force against UAV threats in various forms has emerged as one of the major tasks, as the military plans to continue to strengthen its drone capabilities.
Pocheon, a city in the far northeastern area of Gyeonggi Province, is among the candidates for the unit’s location. It is just south of Cheorwon and Hwacheon, two counties bordering North Korea, and has the military facilities once used by the now-disbanded Republic of Korea Army VI Corps. This means that the swift development of a UAV unit is possible, given that most of the facilities including underground bunkers can still be used after some repairs and improvement work.
To maximize the unit’s potential, officials said South Korea’s military has been learning from its partner countries that operate such units. Some military officers recently visited Turkey’s UAV operation unit to receive advice, according to officials.
“We are developing the operational concept and strategies by analyzing operation cases of various countries,”
the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.Photo: A soldier controls a reconnaissance drone during joint drills with the U.S. military in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, in this Jan. 13 file photo. – Newsis
Source: The Korea Times