Hanwha Systems joins hands with Italy's Leonardo for radar exports

South Korea’s Hanwha Systems Co. joined forces with Italy’s major defense maker Leonardo SpA on exports of advanced aircraft radars to increase their market shares in the global market.

Hanwha Group’s satellite and defense unit said on Monday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Leonardo to cooperate in global sales of active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars.

An AESA radar is the core equipment for future fighter jets that carry out various missions in modern air warfare such as detection and tracking of aerial and ground targets. About 1,000 small transmission and reception integrated modules mounted on the front of the radar are key parts as they enable fighter jets to detect large areas and engage with multiple targets simultaneously.

“We hope to promote South Korea’s defense technology around the world by creating an opportunity for exports of a state-of-the-art AESA radar that only some developed countries have,” said Hanwha System CEO Eoh Sung-chul in a statement. “We will cooperate with developed companies in other countries to export more.”

The two companies plan to establish an integrated solution that combines Hanwha System’s AESA radar antenna devices, as well as Leonardo’s signal processors and power suppliers, according to the agreement. They will also pioneer the global market by expanding product lineups for various aircraft.

Leonardo is specialized in the aerospace, defense and security sector, developing rotor and fixed-wing aircraft, radar and warfare devices for aircraft, as well as aircraft platform solutions.

Hanwha System has been actively expanding its presence in the global defense market.

In April, it announced a deal to export a domestic combat system for Philippine patrol frigates. Earlier this year, the company also sealed a 1.3 trillion won ($1 billion) contract to ship multi-functional radars for the mid-range surface-to-air missile (M-SAM) system, known as Cheongung II in Korean, or heaven’s bow, to the United Arab Emirates.

Write to Kyung-Min Kang at kkm1026@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.