On August 22nd, Republic of Korea Army accepted delivery of six upgraded K9A1 Thunder self-propelled howitzers. ROK Army plans on upgrading all of its K9 to K9A1 standard by mid 2020s and by 2030 at the latest. Owing to constant upgrading of existing artillery systems and fielding of new platforms, such as K239 Chunmoo, ROK Army field artillery's capability continues to grow. South Korea has also risen to the number one spot of having the most number of self-propelled howitzers in service after the US and Russia retired significant number of their own in the past several years.
K9A1 arriving at its base.
Photo Credit: sedaily.com
K9A1
The six K9A1 howitzers recently delivered to the army are all brand new. Production of K9A1 was not originally intended to begin until Q4 2019, when full production run of K9 Thunder would have ended. The army decided instead to implement K9A1 specification to all K9s currnetly being produced. All armored vehicles are subjected to 'overhaul' (창정비) every 12 to 15 years past its production date. Overhauling of original K9 to K9A1 and production of brand-new K9A1 are concurrently taking place. In addition, due to recent export of used K9s to Finland and Estonia, higher number of K9A1 is most likely to be produced than originally planned.
K9A1 upgrade specification
Photo Credit: Defense Acquisition Program Administration
Changes made to the K9A1 are of the following:
1) Improved automatic fire control system
2) INS + GPS
3) Driver thermal periscope
4) Auxiliary power unit
5) Rear camera
Future Upgrades
Additional upgrades are already being researched. Dubbed "Super K9A2," implementation of partially unmanned system, increased range and firing speed, reduction of crew, and other features are being considered to create a highly-automated system. If successful, number of crew may be decreased from five to three and average firing rate may increase from 6 to 10 rounds a minute.
These upgrades are not only being researched for domestic use, but also for export. 600 systems have already been exported, with additional 400 in the realm of possibility. Foreign users of the K9 have already expressed interest in upgrading their own fleet. Owing to successful exports, K9 platform will need to continually evolve to meet global needs.
K9 Thunder in Finnish service.
Photo Credit: Wikimedia commons
Artillery King
South Korea now opeartes the largest number of 155mm (Eastern equivalent is 152mm) self-propelled howitzers. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, ROK Army and Marine Corps actively operates approximately 2,000 self-propelled howitzers, surpassing the United States' 1,850. The number of active self-propelled howitzers in US service is closer to 400, with the rest being in storage. Russia also retired over 1,000 obsolete systems in recent years and growth in Chinese artillery strength has stagnated. Germany, France, and the United Kingdom operate about 100 systems respectively. North Korea is said to operate 4,000 systems, but majority of them are 76mm or 122mm calibre.
K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzers
Photo Credit: Newsis
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