MOSCOW, July 28. /TASS/. In mid-July, LIG Defense and Aerospace (LIG D&A, formerly LIG Nex1) of South Korea presented to journalists its newest surface-to-air missile (SAM), the KSAM-II (Korean Ship-to-Air Missile - II), which it is developing to replace the American SM-2, the online publication daum.net reported, posting a photograph of the missile.

According to the portal, the presentation of the first prototype of the SAM, also designated as the FAM-II (Fleet-to-Air Missile - II), took place at the company’s Plant 3, located in Gumi, North Gyeongsang Province. The missile, designed to intercept enemy aircraft and cruise missiles, is about 6 meters long and consists of three sections.

The forward section is furnished with various computing equipment, including a "third-generation precision seeker" made from semiconductors. According to daum.net, this is the "brain" of the SAM. The publication noted that while the first-generation seeker on the Cheongung missile detects aerial targets 1.4 meters or more in length, the KSAM-II seeker can detect objects as short as 30 cm.

The speed at which it processes information has also been significantly increased. To effectively predict the target’s direction and speed, the KSAM-II’s onboard computer updates its trajectory data approximately 100 times per second--five times faster than that of the American SM-2.

The central section contains the warhead, rocket engine, and fuel tank. The rear section of the missile contains the booster. According to the developer, the KSAM-II will reach speeds of up to Mach 5 and is intended to tolerate loads of 17g.

Kim Bum-su, a senior research engineer at LIG D&A, told reporters that assembly of such a missile is carried out in 20 stages, which takes three months. "This is such a delicate process that around 20 people are involved in the final assembly stage alone," the specialist noted.

Kim Bum-su confirmed that the KSAM-II SAM is intended to replace the American-made SM-2, which, along with the SM-3 and SM-6, currently equips the South Korean Navy's surface ships. Full-scale serial production of the KSAM-II, he said, was expected to begin shortly after its press presentation.

The newest SAMs are planned to be deployed primarily on the next-generation KDDX (Korean Next-Generation Destroyer) destroyers. These ships will also receive Haeryong cruise missiles for striking land targets and Hong Sang-eo torpedoes for countering enemy submarines and surface ships.

The portal recalled that the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) made the decision to develop a national naval anti-aircraft missile in 2024. Production of the first test prototype of the SAM was scheduled to begin in July, approximately two years after LIG D&A received the corresponding contract.

According to the Army Recognition portal, the KSAM-II program was launched in 2023, and the contract with LIG D&A was signed in October of that year. The initiative is scheduled to run until 2036, and its total budget at the time of launch was estimated at about 690 billion won ($472.78 million).

A total of at least ten test firings of the new missile are planned before it is declared ready for service. Construction of the KSAM-II/FAM-II assembly plant itself, as Korean journalists were told during a press tour, was completed in March of this year. It currently comprises four production facilities, each roughly the size of a badminton court (about 6 x 13.5 meters) and separated from its neighbors by blast-proof walls over 60 cm thick.

According to daum.net, the development and production time for the KSAM-II is record-breaking, and LIG D&A could achieve this thanks to its experience working on SAMs and interceptor missiles: the L-SAM (Long-Range Surface-to-Air Missile), the Chonggeun, and the LAMD (Low Altitude Missile Defense).

Choi Kwang-beom, head of LIG D&A's missile research office, also hinted at the export potential of the new missile. "If we want to export warships, we will have to equip them with domestically produced missiles and SAMs," he said. "We plan to contribute to [expanding] exports of Korean defense products by developing several SAMs, including the KSAM-II for intercepting ballistic missiles.".