South Korea plans to buy Lockheed Martin-built Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missiles through a potential $53 million contract to support defense efforts against ballistic missile threats posed by North Korea, Defense News reported Monday.The East Asian country’s defense acquisition program administration approved Feb. 7 the procurement plan for PAC-3 Missile Segment Enhancement as part of a foreign military sales program.
“The contract is expected to be made in the second half of the year for the delivery after 2020,†said Kang Seok-hwan, a spokesman for DAPA.
South Korea purchased PAC-3 interceptors and launcher modification tools in 2015 to modernize its PAC-2 platforms and now plans to field the updated systems in the next few months.
Analysts say the country will use PAC-3 MSE missiles to further build up its PAC-3 interceptor capability and its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, the report added.
