By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
Vice Defense Minister Kim Jong-cheon will visit Poland later this month to discuss the European nation's potential purchase of South Korea's T-50 Golden Eagle supersonic trainer jet, a military source said Thursday.
The visit is part of efforts to seek a breakthrough in the sales of the T-50, jointly built by Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) and Lockheed Martin of the United States, the source said.
It is also in line with the government's push to boost its defense exports to help revive the economy, he added.
In a 2009 policy briefing to President Lee Myung-bak late last month, Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee pledged full-fledged support for exporting the nation's defense goods, which he believed would serve as a good national growth engine.
The ministry set the goal of exporting weapons systems and defense items worth $1.3 billion this year. South Korea sold about $1.03 billion worth of defense goods last year, up 22 percent from the previous year's $840 million and the largest amount ever.
``Vice Defense Minister Kim will meet with officials of the Polish defense ministry and discuss the sale of the T-50,'' the source told The Korea Times on condition of anonymity. Kim will visit Poland from Jan. 19 to 23 he said.
Poland is now considering introducing advanced trainer jets, said the source. The Polish government is weighing in on buying Finland's surplus Hawk trainer jets built by BAE Systems of the United Kingdom, he said.
Seoul has been making all-out efforts to sell the T-50, which experts say would help the country become a global leader in arms exports.
The T-50 is the world's only high performance, supersonic trainer in production today. KAI is the prime contractor for the trainer and Lockheed is the principal subcontractor, assisting with development and international marketing.
Last year, the T-50 was included on Singapore's short list of preferred bidders, along with the M-346 of Italy, for the Southeast Asian nation's trainer jet program. Singapore wants to equip its Air Force with 12 to 16 advanced trainers under a $500 million program, according to sources.
The T-50 is also competing with the M-346 for a $1 billion acquisition by the United Arab Emirates, which wants to purchase between 35 and 40 trainers. Other potential customers for T-50s include the United States and Greece.
The single-engine trainer features a variety of technological advances, including digital flight controls and a modern, ground-based training system that helps new pilots to smoothly transition into advanced fighters such as the F-16 and the fifth-generation F-22 Raptor and F-35 Lightning II.
The aircraft has been operational with the South Korean Air Force since 2005 when mass production started. The per-unit price is about $21 million.
Source
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/01/205_37534.html
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