Report by Robin Polderman
With the introduction of six brand new Boeing P-8A Poseidons during the summer of 2024, the total number of Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA) operated by the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) has increased to 22. All aboard as The Unit Report immerses itself in the world of anti-submarine warfare in one of the globe’s most volatile regions.
When looking at a map of the Korean Peninsula, one will note that the Republic of Korea, otherwise known as South Korea, is surrounded by a hostile neighbor to the north as well as water on its east-, west- and south sides.
Both the Lockheed-Martin P-3 as well as the Boeing P-8, the MPAs currently in operation with the ROKN, conduct reconnaissance, surveillance, anti-submarine, and anti-ship operations in the entire waters of the Korean Peninsula.
With North Korea operating one of the world’s largest submarine fleets, securing its coastline and territorial waters from sub-surface threats is of paramount importance for South Korea.
Over the course of a few decades, many incidents involving North Korean submarines have occurred in these waters, a few of which ended in tragedy.
Too close for comfort
On 18 September 1996, a North Korean submarine of the Sang-O class ran aground on the east coast near the city of Gangneung. It tried to get close to shore to pick up a team of North Korean operatives it had dropped off a few days before. These infiltrators had collected intelligence on military installations in the area. The North Koreans onboard the sub, consisting of its 11-strong crew as well as twelve further operatives, had no option but to go ashore, where the submarine crew was executed by the operatives. A 49-day manhunt by almost 40,000 South Korean troops ensued, to capture or kill the last remaining North Korean. Out of the fifteen operatives, thirteen were killed and one was captured alive. A single operative is still unaccounted for. Most likely, he died of exposure in a remote South Korean forest or possibly managed to escape back to the North by crossing the DMZ. The incident also claimed the lives of more than a dozen military and civilian South Koreans.
Fast forward almost two years and another incident occurred. On 22 June 1998, a Yugo-class submarine became entangled in a fishing net well within South Korean territorial waters. When towed to the port of Donghae by a ROKN ship, the sub sunk in shallow waters. It was possibly scuttled by the crew of nine, which did not survive the sinking. After salvage of the wreckage, logbooks found onboard the submarine suggested the vessel had been used multiple times to enter South Korean waters and drop off secret agents on its coast.
In the evening of 26 March 2010, in waters surrounding the South Korean island of Baengnyeong, an explosion ruptured the hull of the ROKS Cheonan, a Pohang-class corvette, breaking it in half and sending it to the bottom of the sea. A total of 46 ROKN seaman did not survive the sinking. A subsequent investigation found a North Korean torpedo fired from a midget submarine to blame for the incident. Allegedly, a couple of North Korean submarines had left port a few days earlier, and were in the vicinity of the Baengnyeong island when the Cheonan was targeted.
However, the outcome of the investigation was disputed by a number of countries.
These examples are a clear indication of the perils faced by the ROKN on a daily basis. Having the capability to adequately face these threats, in the form of well equipped MPAs, is crucial both in war- as well as in peace time.
Last-minute Orion purchase
In 1990, just as the P-3 Orion production line at Palmdale, CA was winding down, the Korean government decided to order eight P-3C Update III+ aircraft to partially replace its aging S-2 Tracker fleet. The deal suffered from controversy because the Orion’s contender, the French-built Atlantic II, could have been purchased for half the price of the Orion deal, meaning as many as 16 aircraft could have been obtained.
After the assembly line was moved to Marietta in Georgia, adding considerable cost to the deal, production of the aircraft commenced, with deliveries to the ROKN taking place between April and December of 1995.
The eight aircraft built for Korea became the last US-built P-3 Orions (Japanese license production of the Orion for the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force was still ongoing in the nineties). In ROKN service, they received tail numbers 950901 through 950903 and 950905 through 950909*.
Finding solutions in the boneyard
It soon dawned upon the ROKN that a mere eight Orions and a handful of outdated Trackers were nowhere near sufficient to cover Korea’s entire maritime area, resulting in severe overuse of aircraft and crews. Given the fact the production of new Orions had ceased, the country tried to procure secondhand P-3s, and eventually succeeded. In July 2002, US Congress approved the sale of former US Navy P-3Bs, in storage at the AMARG facility in Tucson, AZ, otherwise known as the ‘boneyard’, to the Koreans. Out of the eventual nine aircraft purchased, eight were earmarked for upgrade while the remaining aircraft was parted out and subsequently shredded at a nearby scrapyard.
In April of 2005, US-based company L3 Communications, in a joint venture with Korean Aerospace Industries (KAI), won the contract to provide service life extension and system modernization of the mothballed P-3Bs. The first two aircraft were fitted out at the L3 facility in Waco, TX, after having been dragged out of desert storage and made airworthy again, while the other six aircraft had the majority of their upgrade work done at the KAI factory located in Sacheon. They were assigned tail numbers 090910 through 090913, 090915-090916, and 100917-100918*.
From high-time to zero hours
The aircraft were completely dismantled and major airframe components received structural improvements, essentially providing the ROKN with new, zero-hour, aircraft. Besides rebuilding the P-3B with new P-3C-configuration wings, essential flight control surfaces such as ailerons, flaps, elevators, and rudders were modified and strengthened. Additionally, the aircraft's hydraulic-, fuel distribution-, and pressurization systems were replaced and/or overhauled.
The former-US Navy birds received new mission system equipment, including modern Magnetic Anomaly Detectors (MAD) with digital acoustic signal processors, high-magnification EO/IR cameras, an advanced self-protection suite as well as a new radar system. The IAI/Elta EL/M-2022 multi-mode radar offers a great improvement over the existing AN/APS-115 radar installed in the P-3C, due to its capability to detect small objects in adverse sea conditions as well as the tracking and analyzing of targets on land or moored in a port. The EL/M2022 radar has a range of roughly 300 km (160 nm) and processes information ten times faster than the older type radar.
The P-3CK also received upgraded equipment for voice and data communication. Through a Data Link system, the P-3CK was able to play a big role in Korean military joint operations by providing precise target information to the ROKAF KF-16 aircraft tasked with the anti-ship role until the P-8A was introduced..
The P-3CK packs a considerable punch in itself. It can employ the AGM-84L Harpoon Block II missile, which, besides its use against targets at sea, is also capable of striking enemy coastal artillery and mobile missile launchers that pose a threat to ROKN assets. Other weapons integrated on the P-3CK are the indigenous K745 Blue Shark torpedo, the AGM-65 Maverick missile, and allegedly the AGM-84H/K SLAM-ER cruise missile. The upgraded Orions easily surpass the capabilities of the P-3Cs that were already in use, and the P-3CK is arguably the most capable P-3 ever built.
Problems with system integration caused delays, meaning the first hand-over of a P-3CK to the ROKN did not occur before February 2010.
Original P-3C upgrade
Following the introduction of the P-3CK the ROKN turned its attention to upgrading the original eight P-3C Update III Orions. In March 2013, Korean Air signed a contract with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) for the P-3C capabilities improvement project. The upgrade focuses on the replacement of aging equipment, including the installation of a digital acoustic detection system, a new IR thermal imaging system, improved radar, and an automatic vessel identification device. The first upgraded aircraft was handed over to the ROKN in July 2016. After the upgrade, the P-3C is more compatible with the P-3CK aircraft, lessening the burden on the ROKN’s logistical support system
Enter the Poseidon
The ROKN received its first taste of the Poseidon’s capabilities during the spring of 2014 when a US Navy P-8A deployed to Korea in support of exercise Foal Eagle 2014.
During the bilateral exercise, crew members from VP-16 operated with P-3C/CK Orion maritime patrol crews from the ROKN. The exercise effectively showcased what operational capabilities the P-8 Poseidon brings to the Pacific by demonstrating the effectiveness in monitoring and deterring submarine activities by South Korea’s adversaries.
For some time, Korea mulled the purchase of the P-8 Poseidon, with the main obstacle being the high price. However, amidst a change in security conditions, including North Korea's SLBM (Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile) development progressing much faster than anticipated, reports emerged in August 2016 that the country would move towards acquiring four P-8s. As the number of countries that ordered the Poseidon increased, the corresponding drop in price gave Korea the final push towards a P-8 purchase, with six aircraft being sought initially.
A new proposal
When Swedish company SAAB got wind of the Korean interest in a new MPA, they proposed their Swordfish patrol aircraft despite the fact that the ROKN voiced a strong preference for the P-8 Poseidon, not in the least to enhance interoperability in joint maritime operations with the US Navy. The Swordfish was offered not only at a better price but also included the possibility for joint production and a technology transfer.
Coinciding with the purchase of a new MPA, the Koreans were also looking at the US-built SM-3 and SM-6 missiles as well as the acquisition of the MH-60R naval helicopter, making the United States somewhat of a ‘one-stop-shop’ when it comes to defense purchases. On top of that, the strong ROK-US military alliance gives US defense companies a decisive edge.
With that in mind, it came as no surprise when, on 25 June 2018, DAPA decided to introduce the Poseidon through a private contract instead of open competitive bidding, effectively sidelining the SAAB Swordfish. Subsequently, the US State Department approved the sale of the P-8A to Korea in September 2018.
In March of 2023, the first ROKN P-8 Poseidon took to the air, followed by a transfer to NAS Jacksonville in Florida, where Korean air- and ground crew received training. The first Korean pilots took to the air in a ROKN P-8A on 10 October 2023.
Following completion of training, three ROKN Poseidons (tail numbers 230921, 230923, and 230926*) flew to Pohang Naval Air Station on 19 June 2024, with the second group of three (230922, 230925, and 230927*) touching down on the 30th of the same month. A ceremony held at Pohang on 4 July marked the delivery of the six aircraft to the newly formed 617 squadron**. As is the case with the P-3, the Poseidon can be armed with Harpoon missiles and torpedoes.
It is reported that the ROKN is pursuing the acquisition of an additional six P-8 Poseidons to be able to retire the eight aging P-3CK aircraft by 2030. By that time these aircraft, having originally been delivered to the US Navy in 1966 and early 1967, are almost 65 years old!
Units of the 61st Naval Aviation Group
Current squadrons under the command of the 61st Naval Aviation Group of the Korean Naval Air Command (the latter established on 15 July 2022 to replace the 6th Naval Air Wing):
611 Squadron
The unit was formed on 20 November 1975 and operated S-2 Tracker ASW aircraft, transferred from the ROKAF 59 Marine Patrol Squadron.
In 1995, the squadron received its first P-3C Orion at home base Pohang.
613 Squadron
The 613 Squadron was born at Pohang in 1984 to operate S-2 aircraft. The unit currently flies the P-3C/CK Orion.
615 Squadron
After its founding at Jeju airport in February of 1982, the 615 squadron operated S-2 Trackers and MD500 helicopters. The unit flew the S-2 Tracker until the type’s replacement by the P-3 Orion in March of 2001.
The airbase, located on the east side of Jeju Island’s international airport, is an important hub for maritime patrol flights over the southwestern waters surrounding the Korean peninsula. Because of its strategic importance, the unit flies the most capable variant of the Orion, the P-3CK.
617 Squadron
During the Korean Armed Forces Day celebrations on 1 October 2021, the 617 squadron was established at Pohang Naval Air Station to operate the P-8A aircraft.
It is rumored the squadron will establish a detachment at the Yangyang International Airport in the northeast of Korea somewhere in the future.
*Note 1: since the number 4 is considered unlucky in Korea, there is no P-3 or P-8 with a tail number that ends in '4'.
**Note 2: although the Korean naval units simply use the word ‘Navy Group’ or ‘Navy Squadron’ in their native language, flight suit patches worn often display ‘Patrol Group'or 'Patrol Squadron’ in the English language. We decided to use as direct translation of the Korean names for this story.