North Korea indigenous aircraft

GTX said:
Given the apparent similarity to the Russian 30N6E Flap Lid B system I also question if that is really a indigenous system.
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It's most likely developed from 30N6E radar, but why did you assume that North Korea could not produce it? They have technology at least of 1980s level. It's not that passive phased array radars are some super-secret technology that couldn't be reproduced.
 
GD5-Zju3-XAAAdm-Ah.jpg

:cool:have achieved this, so rumors that they are working on creating a domestically designed and produced fighter aircraft may come true
ipotesi-2.jpg
 
It's clear that at the moment at the very least DPRK has the ability to build a jet trainer, since all the systems required, crucially including the engine, have already been demonstrated on the SB-4.

If they add an afterburner to the engine then at the very least they have the capability to build something like the twin-engined CK-1 in capability/size/weight, either conventional or more likely with LO features.

The question is how high are they aiming, and the timescale they decided on building military aircraft.

PS: and if they want to, a turboprop prmary trainer can be built as well, since the engine is already flying on the SB-9.
 
North Korea produces a lot of mockups, which can broadly speaking be viewed as statements of intent. As with the case of missiles, wait until examples take flight, or what they have previously shown competencies in.

I was very bullish on them making successful solid-fueled ICBMs for a couple of years before they did, they had already tested examples of larger-diameter IRBMs, it was simply a case of further development, I am however much more pessimistic when it comes to competitive aircraft, high-quality gas turbines are very hard to make.
 
A Tentative Fleet Plan said:
North Korea produces a lot of mockups, which can broadly speaking be viewed as statements of intent. As with the case of missiles, wait until examples take flight, or what they have previously shown competencies in.

I was very bullish on them making successful solid-fueled ICBMs for a couple of years before they did, they had already tested examples of larger-diameter IRBMs, it was simply a case of further development, I am however much more pessimistic when it comes to competitive aircraft, high-quality gas turbines are very hard to make.
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There is footage released of both UAV's flying.
I agree about the manned aircraft, but a jet trainer, jet light strike, and turboprop trainer are well within current NK capability.
 
Waterballoon said:
Most likely a non-afterburning Tumansky from the Mig-21 or J-7. I don't expect a new indigenous turbojet/fan design of that thrustrange.
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Those (with high altitude modifications, which DPRK is probably quite capable of) powered yak-25rv, so other than low expected service life and thirstiness - they're fit for the job.
 
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KonTim said:
Improvements for DPRK MIG-29s:

time.news

North Korea develops threatening MIG-29 with Russian support - TIme News

2024-04-06 17:31:11 FA-50·F-5E/F, concerns about being unilaterally hunted by improved MIG-29 A truly shocking scene was…
time.news time.news
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I for one see no likelihood of a future continuation of the Civil War, so I am actually pleased to see Kim investing in his Air Force because I know that; even if that money could've better allocated to aiding the people, they're not going to do that anyways. The money's simply used for aircraft procurement instead of better and more ICBMs.

Politicians, especially the 21st century politicians, are all alike no matter the country of origin...
 
What can the signed agreement "not excluding military-technical cooperation" mean:
- in the short term, a significant increase number of operationally deployable MiG-29s and adding ability to use BVR and PGM weapons;
- in the mid-term horizon (after 2025) delivery of a limited number of Su-35;
- in the long term (after 2030), the delivery of a larger number of LTS with the possibility of more or less extensive localization of production on the territory of the DPRK, which is very feasible and would mean a fundamental reduction in program costs.
The LTS can be an ideal tool to balance the deployment of promising aircraft in the south of the peninsula (F-35 and KF-21) and it would be strange if Kim Jong-un did not take an interest in this program during his detailed visit to Komsomolsk.
 
Geo said:
What can the signed agreement "not excluding military-technical cooperation" mean:
- in the short term, a significant increase number of operationally deployable MiG-29s and adding ability to use BVR and PGM weapons;
- in the mid-term horizon (after 2025) delivery of a limited number of Su-35;
- in the long term (after 2030), the delivery of a larger number of LTS with the possibility of more or less extensive localization of production on the territory of the DPRK, which is very feasible and would mean a fundamental reduction in program costs.
The LTS can be an ideal tool to balance the deployment of promising aircraft in the south of the peninsula (F-35 and KF-21) and it would be strange if Kim Jong-un did not take an interest in this program during his detailed visit to Komsomolsk.
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if there are no upheavals within the UN, numerous sanctions and military embargoes against the DPRK remain active, to which Russia has also officially joined.
This does not mean that Moscow cannot "collaborate" with North Korea to help it strengthen its defense system, but it will do so possibly by trying to disguise supplies/aid with systems that the DPRK already has at its disposal, or with systems also several to which it could potentially acquire also outside Russia.
Therefore
1) In the short term, a significant increase in the number of MiG-29s is possible
either with direct supply of second-hand aircraft from Russian stocks or even in newly produced kits which can then be assembled locally (all old and new with modernization)
2) I don't think that Moscow supplying SU-35 would be too obvious to the whole world, but it doesn't take away from the fact that they could supply deeply modernized SU-27 type SU-27SM/SM2
3) In the medium term, help to create a jet trainer aircraft with CAS capability
4) In the long term, barring global and UN developments, not the delivery of a possible LTS (Legkiy Takticheskiy Samolyot - Light Tactical Aircraft), but collaborating for the creation of an indigenous North Korean project for a combat aircraft that could benefit from what was created for LTS, but with a slightly different design to be able to state that it is not an LTS.
This new fighter may be built/assembled officially in DPRK with parts made locally and others that could be supplied by Russia away from prying eyes.
 
Ironic part is that for both DPRK and Iran, in principle, mig-35 makes much more sense than sukhoi fighters.

But Mikoyan/Phazotron apparently just can't get their act together, almost a decade after NIIP managed to make their AESA work.
 
BullpupRafale said:
At this point I have expectation of FJ33 tier high bypass turbofan jet engine being shoved in air frame of those cruise missiles.
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What cruise missile requires an 1800lb thrust engine? Tomahawks and AGM86s use Williams F107s, all of 430lb thrust. The big Kh55 has a ~400kgf thrust engine, ~800lb thrust.

and bluntly, you could work a lot of mass and strength out of an FJ33 if you had a missile that needed that big an engine. FJ33 is built for several hundred hours between overhauls, you can push a missile engine a lot harder because you only need it to last 3 hours.
 
That's a Planet image of Sunchon AB from 1 May 2023.

beyondparallel.csis.org

Aircraft Return to Sunchon Airbase? - Beyond Parallel

Recent satellite imagery shows that the ongoing modernization project at Sunchon Airbase is nearing completion, along with the presence of ten aircraft - the first observed in two years.
beyondparallel.csis.org beyondparallel.csis.org

Planet imagery is comparatively lower resolution than, say, a WorldView-3 or Pleiades Neo shot, making fine details much more difficult to observe. Observing the aircraft in higher resolution imagery when they were returning (I kept an eye on the fighters from Sunchon as they moved about to alternative airbases) indicates that the Su-25s are unmodified. The smaller aircraft, as well as four of the "Su-25s" in the Planet image, could be a decoy or mockup, and later in the year those five were dumped in the dirt off one of the taxiways. If this was a prototype of some new single engine fighter I doubt they'd dump it aside.
 
F.L. said:
It looks like a big L-39.
View attachment 699226
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Today I came across this Facebook page, and what the author wrote could support the hypothesis that the user F.L. had indicated.
https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=3896674960603054&id=100007817641885
View: https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3896674960603054&id=100007817641885&rdid=Z8LfOBWj1Z505gUk

and specifically this:
<< and where the last few years the SyAAF was working intensively on overhauling its L-39ZA/ZOs, and (back in 2016-2017, and with help of a North Korean team) upgrading them with night-fighting capability.>>

Apparently the North Koreans have put their eyes, hands and technical capabilities on the L-39ZO aircraft that they do not officially have at their disposal at home, this could support the hypothesis advanced that the DPRK is developing a jet that could resemble the aircraft built in the then Czechoslovakia....and who knows if some "scrap" of Syrian L-39s ended up being disposed of in North Korea to be better evaluated :cool: .
 
and to reinforce the latter, regarding transfer of technology and know-how, just look at what they have achieved with their nuclear deterrent in the last 10 ys.
 

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