DAPA's 'Nominal Rapid Acquisition Project'

[Jang Won-jun, Research Fellow at the Defense Industry Research Center, Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade] The recent buzzword in the global defense industry is undoubtedly 'velocity.' Not only South Korea but also the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Israel, and others are racing to prepare rapid weapon acquisition systems.

The United States is leading this effort. Since 2016, the U.S. Department of Defense has revised the Other Transactional Authority (OTA) and introduced the Middle Tier Acquisition (MTA) rapid acquisition procedures. In 2018, the U.S. Army consolidated eight existing departments/agencies from requirement proposal to testing and evaluation to establish the Army Future Command (AFC), reducing the average requirement proposal period from five years to less than one year. The recent development of the Mach 5 hypersonic projectile (HPV) designed to intercept missiles by the U.S. military is a product of this initiative. Moreover, the U.S. is actively pursuing the rapid development of 21st-century game changers such as next-generation fighters equipped with artificial intelligence (AI) and swarm drones, drone-integrated armored vehicles, and hypersonic guided weapons.

The United Kingdom’s Joint Staff Innovation Hub (JSF Innovation Hub) and Defense Innovation Centre (IRIS), established by benchmarking the U.S., France’s Defense Innovation Agency and its open defense innovation budget (approximately 1.5 trillion KRW), are extensions of these efforts. Additionally, major countries including Israel, Australia, and Singapore are striving to innovate traditional long-term, high-cost weapon acquisition systems in preparation for the new battlefield environment of the 21st century.

South Korea also established the ‘Rapid Demonstration Acquisition Project’ this year, conducting a pilot project worth 30 billion KRW led by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA). Nevertheless, compared to advanced countries, domestic defense innovation capabilities remain insufficient. According to the 2019 evaluation of the defense industry ecosystem response capabilities by the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade, the level of innovation (based on 11 indicators) stands at only 64% of that of advanced countries (U.S.=100). In particular, the level of rapid acquisition system adoption is limited to 57% by the same standard.

The main reason appears to be that while advanced countries are comprehensively innovating their weapon acquisition systems from a ‘zero base,’ South Korea is merely adding or supplementing some new projects within the existing system (PPBEES). Despite continuous calls for improvement over recent years, bold institutional reforms that companies can feel?such as adopting an evolutionary development approach considering exports, performance improvement projects that take a long time (5?10 years) similar to new projects, and rapid demonstration acquisition projects that are hardly different from the existing Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD)?remain a distant story.

In fact, the rapid demonstration acquisition project introduced this year signed purchase contracts for four types of equipment, including coastal surveillance drones, in July and is preparing for military pilot operation soon. Despite the establishment of guidelines by DAPA and the creation of an organization (Rapid Acquisition Project Team), it remains a small-scale pilot project (30 billion KRW), limited to procurement rather than research and development (R&D), and the military pilot application of prototypes is separate from military testing and evaluation that determines operational deployment. Furthermore, after the pilot project’s success, it does not proceed to follow-up mass production projects but only considers mid-term or urgent requirements under existing acquisition procedures. In contrast, the U.S. includes the entire cycle from rapid research and development (rapid research) to rapid prototyping and rapid fielding/performance improvement. Moreover, companies participating in rapid prototyping are competitively selected, and if the project is successfully completed, follow-up mass production contracts can be awarded through sole-source contracting.

In summary, efforts limited to so-called ‘nominal rapid acquisition’ by establishing some new projects within the existing weapon acquisition (PPBEES) system cannot meet the rapidly changing military threats from neighboring countries and the stringent weapon procurement requirements of major countries. Furthermore, the government’s push for a post-COVID-19 leading economy and the transition of the defense industry from a fast follower to a first mover industry seem unlikely.

Accordingly, it is time to focus on building a ‘rapid weapon acquisition system’ tailored to South Korea by taking bold innovation efforts of advanced countries as a model. To this end, comprehensive measures must be taken first, including enacting laws and establishing rapid acquisition procedures at the level of advanced countries, creating related organizations, reflecting budgets, and guaranteeing incentives for participating companies. It is necessary to benchmark advanced country laws (OTA) and consider revising the Defense Acquisition Program Act or enacting a separate ‘Rapid Weapon Acquisition Act (tentative)’ beyond the current DAPA regulations. Also, by incorporating rapid acquisition procedures within the existing weapon acquisition process (PPBEES) beyond separate pilot projects, institutionalization should enable application throughout the entire cycle. Furthermore, the establishment of an organization to concretize rapid acquisition policies and the creation of a ‘Rapid Weapon Acquisition Support Fund (tentative)’ for budget support should be actively considered. Lastly, improvements should guarantee priority rights for follow-up mass production projects to companies meeting certain criteria in pilot projects, enabling rapid military deployment and performance improvement.

Over the past five years (2015?19), South Korea’s defense exports surged by an astonishing 143%, achieving a historic first entry into the top 10 globally. In the coming years, the success of national defense innovation policies will be a critical factor determining entry into the global Big 7. By promptly establishing an advanced-level ‘rapid weapon acquisition system,’ South Korea must prepare for the 21st-century ‘New Defense’ era and develop into a true ‘first mover defense industry.’