USFK Deploys 'American Iron Dome' IFPC System

The United States Forces Korea (USFK) has deployed America's new air defense system, the Indirect Fire Protection Capability (IFPC), in South Korea.

According to the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service (DVIDS) of the U.S. Department of Defense on September 25, U.S. Army Chief of Staff Randy George visited the 35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade of the USFK, located at Osan Air Base, on September 22. DVIDS is the Department of Defense's photo and video archive.

In related photos posted on DVIDS, a yellow ground-to-air missile launcher-believed to be part of the system-was captured. DVIDS described it as an "IFPC launcher inside the Patriot tactical site."

The IFPC is a new weapons system often referred to as the American version of the Iron Dome. It is designed to protect bases and respond to a variety of aerial threats, including cruise missiles, unmanned aerial systems such as drones, rockets, artillery, and mortar attacks. In addition, it uses next-generation missile defense radar to provide 360-degree low-altitude surveillance and can intercept targets with missiles depending on the threat.

Meanwhile, the U.S. military has been steadily introducing new weapons systems to the USFK. In July, the U.S. Air Force's MQ-9A Reaper drone was deployed to Gwangju Air Base, and earlier this year, the U.S. Army's latest reconnaissance aircraft, the Athena-R, was also deployed.