Hyunmoo III
Encyclopedia
Hyunmoo-3 is a new cruise missile that is to be fielded with the military of Republic of Korea. It is designed by Agency for Defense Development (ADD). The name Hyunmoo (Hangul
: 현무) comes from a mythical beast described as the "Guardian of the Northern Sky", perhaps hinting North Korea.
Hyunmoo-3 bears no resemblance to the previous Hyunmoo SSM
, which were improved versions of Nike Hercules surface-to-air missiles that were converted into short-range high-speed surface-to-surface ballistic missiles in response to North Korea's Scud-B
and Nodong-1
missile threats. Instead, the new missile's designs are strikingly similar to the United States Tomahawk cruise missile and also the Babur
cruise missile of the Pakistan military.
Hyunmoo-3A, which was nicknamed "Eagle-1" (독수리-1) during the testing, has a range of 500 km, while Hyunmoo-3B, nicknamed "Eagle-2" (독수리-2), has a range of 1,000 km. Hyunmoo-3C, or "Eagle-3" (독수리-3), will be capable of striking its target up to 1,500 km away. This is a significant improvement from Hyunmoo I which had a range of 180 km and Hyunmoo-2, which only has a range of 300 km, both of which were ballistic and not cruise missiles.
It is powered by a turbofan
engine, much like other subsonic
cruise missiles of its type, and has a payload of up to 500 kilograms. The guidance systems consist of Inertial Guidance System and Global Positioning System
.
The maximum payload of the missile is rated at 500 kilograms of conventional explosive.
King Sejong the Great class destroyers and KSS-III class submarines will be equipped with these missiles inside their Vertical Launching System
(K-VLS).
South Korea is barred from producing a non-indigenous ballistic missile that is above a certain payload and range limit in accordance to Missile Technology Control Regime
. Therefore, a heavy emphasis was put on for developing long-range cruise missiles by the South Korean government, as there is no restriction of payload amount and range limit set for them. With the introduction of Hyunmoo-III, which also has some advanced systems sometimes found on ICBMs, the Republic of Korea Army
created the Missile Command in order to efficiently manage these missiles.
Hangul
Hangul,Pronounced or ; Korean: 한글 Hangeul/Han'gŭl or 조선글 Chosŏn'gŭl/Joseongeul the Korean alphabet, is the native alphabet of the Korean language. It is a separate script from Hanja, the logographic Chinese characters which are also sometimes used to write Korean...
: 현무) comes from a mythical beast described as the "Guardian of the Northern Sky", perhaps hinting North Korea.
Hyunmoo-3 bears no resemblance to the previous Hyunmoo SSM
Hyunmoo
Hyunmoo was a series of missiles developed by South Korea.Through reverse-engineering of US supplied missiles, South Korea produced two versions of a two-stage, solid-fuel SSM based on the US Nike Hercules surface-to-air missile: NHK-1/Paekkom and NHK-2...
, which were improved versions of Nike Hercules surface-to-air missiles that were converted into short-range high-speed surface-to-surface ballistic missiles in response to North Korea's Scud-B
Scud
Scud is a series of tactical ballistic missiles developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War, and exported widely to other countries. The term comes from the NATO reporting name SS-1 Scud which was attached to the missile by Western intelligence agencies...
and Nodong-1
Nodong-1
The Rodong-1 is a single stage, mobile liquid propellant medium range ballistic missile developed by North Korea...
missile threats. Instead, the new missile's designs are strikingly similar to the United States Tomahawk cruise missile and also the Babur
Babur missile
Babur , also designated Hatf VII, is the first land attack cruise missile to be developed by Pakistan....
cruise missile of the Pakistan military.
Hyunmoo-3A, which was nicknamed "Eagle-1" (독수리-1) during the testing, has a range of 500 km, while Hyunmoo-3B, nicknamed "Eagle-2" (독수리-2), has a range of 1,000 km. Hyunmoo-3C, or "Eagle-3" (독수리-3), will be capable of striking its target up to 1,500 km away. This is a significant improvement from Hyunmoo I which had a range of 180 km and Hyunmoo-2, which only has a range of 300 km, both of which were ballistic and not cruise missiles.
It is powered by a turbofan
Turbofan
The turbofan is a type of airbreathing jet engine that is widely used for aircraft propulsion. A turbofan combines two types of engines, the turbo portion which is a conventional gas turbine engine, and the fan, a propeller-like ducted fan...
engine, much like other subsonic
Subsonic aircraft
A subsonic aircraft is an aircraft with a maximum speed less than the speed of sound ....
cruise missiles of its type, and has a payload of up to 500 kilograms. The guidance systems consist of Inertial Guidance System and Global Positioning System
Global Positioning System
The Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
.
The maximum payload of the missile is rated at 500 kilograms of conventional explosive.
King Sejong the Great class destroyers and KSS-III class submarines will be equipped with these missiles inside their Vertical Launching System
Vertical Launching System
A vertical launching system is a system for holding and firing missiles on surface ships and submarines used by many navies around the world. Each VLS system consists of a number of cells, which can hold one or more missiles ready for firing...
(K-VLS).
South Korea is barred from producing a non-indigenous ballistic missile that is above a certain payload and range limit in accordance to Missile Technology Control Regime
Missile Technology Control Regime
The Missile Technology Control Regime is an informal and voluntary partnership between 34 countries to prevent the proliferation of missile and unmanned aerial vehicle technology capable of carrying a 500 kg payload at least 300 km....
. Therefore, a heavy emphasis was put on for developing long-range cruise missiles by the South Korean government, as there is no restriction of payload amount and range limit set for them. With the introduction of Hyunmoo-III, which also has some advanced systems sometimes found on ICBMs, the Republic of Korea Army
Republic of Korea Army
The Republic of Korea Army is the largest of the military branches of the South Korean armed forces with 520,000 members as of 2010...
created the Missile Command in order to efficiently manage these missiles.
Uses
- Chungmugong Yi Sun-sin class destroyerChungmugong Yi Sun-sin class destroyerChungmugong Yi Sun-shin class destroyers are multipurpose destroyers of the Republic of Korea Navy. The lead ship of this class, ROKS Chungmugong Yi Sunshin, was launched in May 2002 and commissioned in December 2003...
(KDX-II) - King Sejong the Great class destroyer (KDX-III)
- Son Won-il class submarineType 214 submarineThe Type 214 is a diesel-electric submarine developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH . It features diesel propulsion with an air-independent propulsion system using Siemens polymer electrolyte membrane hydrogen fuel cells...
(KSS-II) - KSS-III