Hanwha Systems-Leonardo of Italy, 'AESA Radar' Export Agreement

(From left) Eo Seong-cheol, CEO of Hanwha Systems; Luca Picollo, Vice President of Leonardo Aerospace Systems; Marco Galletto, Vice President of Marketing for Leonardo Asia-Pacific.

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-ho Kim] Hanwha Systems is targeting the global defense market with its cutting-edge AESA radar.

Hanwha Systems announced on the 23rd that it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Leonardo, a leading Italian defense company, for overseas export cooperation of AESA radar for aircraft.

Through this MOU, they plan to implement an integrated solution combining Hanwha Systems' AESA radar antenna device with Leonardo's signal processor and power supply. This will expand the product lineup to be applicable to various aircraft platforms and jointly pioneer the global export market.

Hanwha Systems and Leonardo expect that by combining each company's strengths in AESA radar development, they will secure both technological reliability and price competitiveness.

AESA radar is a state-of-the-art radar that determines the survival and combat outcome of fighter jets in modern aerial warfare. It performs various missions such as detecting and tracking air and ground targets. By electronically controlling about 1,000 small transmit-receive integrated modules mounted on the radar's front, it enables rapid beam steering, allowing ▲wide-area detection ▲multi-mission execution ▲simultaneous engagement of multiple targets.

Seong-cheol Uh, CEO of Hanwha Systems, said, “We hope to create export opportunities for the cutting-edge AESA radar, which only some advanced countries possess, and once again showcase South Korea's defense technology to the world.” He added, “We will continue efforts to expand our export product lineup into various fields through cooperation with overseas advanced companies.”