S. Korea To Buy 40 F-35s

The S.Korea has decided to buys 40 F-35s to response to the nuclear developments of N.Korea.This aircraft will boost the Air Force of the Korea .The joined chief of staff says on Friday. 

The jet contest was nullified in September when the country’s arms procurement agency voted down a bid by Boeing to supply 60 F-15 Silent Eagle aircraft, citing the “4.5-generation” jet’s lack of radar-evading stealth capability.

“The next-generation fighter is a key asset of the ‘kill chain’ system to respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threat that has become a reality,” JCS spokesman Eom Hyo-shik said in a briefing.

The kill chain refers to a proactive defense system being develo

ped by the South Korea military. It is to be used in preemptively detecting and striking North Korean main targets by using various tools, such as strike fighters and missiles, should the North show signs of attacks.

“We need fighter aircraft fitted with the state-of-the-art stealth technology and electronic warfare capability in order to secretly penetrate into the North’s airspace and strike key targets,” the spokesman said. “By securing those aircraft, we can deter North Korea’s provocation more effectively.”

The number of jets to be bought fell to 40 from the initial F-X III plan of 60 in order to meet the budget requirements as well as help fill the projected fighter jet vacuum over the next decade.

The aircraft are expected to be delivered to the South Korean Air Force from 2018 to 2021 if a contract is signed next year, officials said